Memphis quintet Lucero has been making straight ahead rock without a hint of pretense since 1998, and just over two decades in, they are at an inevitable crossroads of sorts. A little over twenty years in with record number ten would be mileposts no matter what life had brought a band, but throw in big life changes (welcome ones for front man Ben Nichols, as he will explain) plus a new approach to their sound and a turn towards writing about characters outside rather than inside the band makes for an intersection you can spot miles away.

Join me for a lively conversation with Ben, touching on everything from his band’s embrace of synthesizers to working with his brother on film projects, the different kind of melancholy and heartbreak that he knows now from being a family man, and a whole lot more including, of course, a good bit of Lucero’s music from their new album When You Found Me.

Cover art for Lucero’s tenth studio album, When You Found MeThe addition of synthesizers to Lucero’s mix has updated the group’s supply of tools in their chest, imparting a kind of sci-fi aura to much of the album, while also harkening back to rock … — Cover art for Lucero’s tenth studio album, *When You Found Me*
The addition of synthesizers to Lucero’s mix has updated the group’s supply of tools in their chest, imparting a kind of sci-fi aura to much of the album, while also harkening back to rock and roll bands from decades past.

Thanks for listening to the show, and I hope you might reach out to someone you know who is a fan of music, history or culture and let them know about this series. You can subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn, Pandora, NPR One -- pretty much everywhere you can find podcasts. And once you subscribe, it helps even more when you give it a good rating and a review. Top ratings, and especially your reviews, will make Southern Songs and Stories and the artists it profiles more likely to be found by more people just like you. Southern Songs and Stories is a part of the podcast lineup of both public radio WNCW and Osiris Media, with all of the Osiris shows available here. You can also hear new episodes of this podcast on Bluegrass Planet Radio here. My full interview with Ben Nichols is on video here, and it includes even more nuggets like what it was like working in Sam Phillips Recording Studio with its upstairs bar where you can still sense the presence of all the Sun Records greats from long ago.

Thanks to Corrie Askew for producing the radio adaptations of this series on WNCW, where our audio engineer Sean Rubin graciously ran my video call with Ben, and also where we were lucky to call Joshua Meng our intern for time -- he wrote and performed our theme songs. I’m your host and producer Joe Kendrick, and this is Southern Songs and Stories: the music of the South and the artists who make it.

Songs heard in this episode:

“Back In Ohio” by Lucero from When You Found Me

“Outrun the Moon” by Lucero from When You Found Me, excerpt

“When You Found Me” by Lucero from When You Found Me, excerpt

“Pull Me Close Don’t Let Go” by Lucero from When You Found Me, excerpt

After a brief pause over the holidays, it is time to jump into the new year with a strong lineup of guest artists here at Southern Songs and Stories. On deck is Dom Flemons who has a new song with Reverend Peyton featured in his episode, as well as Amythyst Kiah who is soon to raise her profile with her album Wary + Strange, with its lead single “Black Myself” scheduled for release on February 19th. Also in our pipeline are Ben Nichols of the band Lucero, and a relatively new artist, Pony Bradshaw, both of whom have new albums which we will explore as we speak with them in their podcasts. Here is a taste of what is soon to come, enjoy! - Joe Kendrick

Dom Flemons performs at WNCW’s Outback Opry drive-in concert September 2020 (photo: Daniel Coston)

Artist stereotypes do not apply

How many times have parents cringed when their children fell in love with a musician? Let's be honest, the world has looked askance at artists of all stripes (with notable exceptions) for most of our history. Musicians tend to be thought of as people who may be great at their art but who are nonetheless pretty bad at life skills like paying bills, getting to work on time, and sticking with the missus.

Aaron turns all those stereotypes on their head; he is not only a fantastic songwriter and musician, but he also runs his own construction business and is a devoted family man living a stone's throw from where he grew up in the western NC mountains. He is as meticulous and intense about his guitar and ballads as he is about his green built homes and raising his two girls.

As you'll see in our pilot episode, Aaron does both life and art exceptionally well. The folks around him are a big part of that.

Twenty Years In, A New Sound and A Different Kind Of Heartbreak: Lucero

Winter 2021 Preview

Artist stereotypes do not apply