Troubadour Stevie Tombstone Lays the Truth On The Table with
“Love And Money”
Single out on 11/3 With Ruby Friedman with her hallowed hall vocals
Singles artwork by David Childers
“Tombstone is a soulful and singular vocalist who delivers these songs with the kind of believability that aligns him with some of his more lauded peers.” – Lonesome Highway (UK)
Stevie Tombstone has more miles on him than a 1966 Mustang, keeping his eyes on the asphalt while delivering his songs, picking on his 1998 Larrivee and singing with gritty, well-worn vocals.
“Love and Money” was a direct reply to a 6-page “Dear John” letter about someone’s shallow, surface-level greed. “I sat in that cabin in Black Mountain and wrote the lyrics as a reply. Sometimes things you think will make you happy can hurt the most. For a lot of folks, it’s “Love and Money,” says Stevie.
The core foundation of the haunting production was recorded at Jett Bass Studios in San Antonio, TX, for Big Beard Records, with John Duer and Eric Gagnon as executive producers. The backing studio musicians give the song a backbone: Stevie on guitars, J Plank on Dobro, Bass and harmonies with John Duer and Dave Wulfekueler on drums. The LA-based Ruby Friedman rounds out the song with her signature voice.
The song’s cover art is by David Childers, a North Carolina songwriter and folk artist, whose work has been praised by the Avett Brothers and who has worked with Don Dixon (R.E.M., Marshall Crenshaw). His curious visuals echo with small-town life with big thinkers and dreamers.
I’ve been searching
For the answer
To your questions at the bottom of the sea.
But love and money, love and money, love and money will never set you free.
You can’t take it
When you leave here
Less the burden, the stronger the wing.
Cause love and money, love and money love and money will never set you free.
From the mountain to the valley, I’ll forgive you if you just spare me.
From Love and money, love and money love and money will never set you free”- “Love And Money” (BMI)
Stevie Tombstone’s saga canopies like a rock n’ roll oak, the kind with wild, ever-searching roots that tangle and gnarl above the earth. Career-wise, his box set would be monstrous, a cornucopia of lost highway narratives hauled from Georgia to Texas to California to New York and all points in between, shredding rockabilly gospel and living the troubadour’s lovely curse one song at a time.
After a chance meeting with Roy Acuff, Stevie (then a young man) was certain he would always be a musician. He is the great, great nephew of legendary fiddler, Clayton McMichen (The Skillet Lickers and The Georgia Wildcats), who mastered both old-time style fiddling while evolving into a more jazz/country fiddle style. During the 80s/90s, Stevie immersed himself in the world of rock and the underground music scene in Atlanta but never lost the twang of his childhood. Over four decades later, he has become an accomplished performer, songwriter, and guitarist, as well as an integral player in the Atlanta and Austin Music Scenes at various points in time. Stevie has spent most of the last ten years living in Western North Carolina and on the road.
In addition to his published works with his 1980s swampabilly band, The Tombstones, Stevie has released five solo albums and half a dozen music videos. The Tombstones’ song “Nobody” became a college radio anthem. The roots punk song is about Carolina Lights and was later recorded by rock icon Stiv Bator.
Tombstone’s debut full-length release, 730 AM, featured performances by members of Wilco, Jason and the Scorchers, The Bad Livers, and The Georgia Satellites, and offered tracks that peaked on the Satellite Radio charts. After several compilations and EPs, his 2011 release, Greenwood, reintroduced Stevie to Americana and folk listeners with an autobiographical tale of his journey to Greenwood to mark the grave of then-unhonored Robert Johnson.
Over the years, Tombstone’s bandmates and co-conspirators have been a veritable who’s who of underground and nationally recognized players. Priding himself on his ability to cross genres, he has also had the honor of sharing the bill with the likes of Leon Russell, Billy Joe Shaver, The Stray Cats, Gregg Allman, Willie Nelson, Drive By Truckers, Marshall Tucker Band, Johnny Bush, Charlie Starr, Kevn Kinney, and the list goes on.
In addition to producing and writing for other artists, Stevie still maintains a hardcore troubadour outlook, enjoying a grassroots following that’s kept him on the trail for the last three decades.
