Not being from Brooklyn, or Texas, I hadn’t heard of The Mastersons, Eleanor Whitmore and Chris Masterson. It was only after hearing them on Steve Earle’s last tour where they brought IT as part of The Dukes and Dutchesses that I got turned on to their sound. Watching them perform with Steve, Kelly Looney, Will Rigby and Allison Moorer, I couldn’t help but feel there was a rite of passage being witnessed, a coming up of a new generation of authentic roots rockers. Chris, a member of SonVolt for a couple of years also played a supporting role to Bobby Bare Jr., Hank Williams III and Jack Ingram. Eleanor made an album titled Airplanes and their new record, Birds Fly South drops this April. Maybe you’ve seen Eleanor’s sister Bonnie Whitmore touring with Hayes Carl.
