December, 1999
Beaver Nelson
Nick A. Zaino III, Amplifier

There's no such thing as an overnight success. No one knows that better than Beaver Nelson. After creating a buzz around his home scene in Austin, Texas that caused Rolling Stone to hail him as a songwriting prodigy in 1991, Nelson spent the next several years fighting through major label reshuffles, dropped albums, and a general lack of support for his work.

But then, in 1998, Beaver finally found a home in the Austin indie label, Freedom Records, and released The Last Hurrah, his first official label release. The album quietly racked up accolades from the likes of No Depression and Mojo, and finally put the focus where Nelson has always wanted it to be—on his music. The Last Hurrah showed a songwriting talent equally adept at showing sublime depression and rowdy fun. Track for track, it was everything roots music should be, and everything the glitzy Nashville songwriting scene ignores.

Now Nelson's got an album of new material, tentatively titled Little Brother Blues, he's currently shopping to labels. He has found some musical stability, having spent the last year and a half with the core band from "The Last Hurrah," including guitarist/producer "Scrappy" Jud Newcomb, bass player George Reiff, and drummer Mark Patterson. Nelson says the new album trades in fiddles and mandolins for a lot more piano, and even a horn section on one tune.

Now that the people have heard the music, it's hard to believe Little Brother Blues won't get the push it deserves, and bring Nelson's music to a lot more people in 2000.