The Turnpike Troubadours, whose name is derived from the bumpy Oklahoma toll-roads and their hard lived folk singing heroes, are proof that isolation can be the mother of originality. Cutting their teeth in roadside dance halls and honky-tonks has made a serious impact on the band’s musical style, which walks the line between Woody Guthrie and Waylon Jennings. “Bossier City,” the band’s debut album, is testament to the small towns in which they were raised. It combines Folk, Country, Cajun, and Bluegrass with stories of longing, humor, tragedy, and general life in rural America.
If Turnpike Troubadours are playing in your town, you’ll know it. A block or two from the venue, you’ll see the crowds lining up. Get closer and you’ll start to hear the music -- rockin’ hard, lashed by burnin’ fiddle and guitar, maybe a little rough on the edges but with a deep-rooted soul that's impossible to resist.
And if you make it through the door, you’ll witness one of the best shows you'll ever see.
Audiences in their home state of Oklahoma and down in Texas have known this for years. It's no
longer news when they draw 5,000-plus at Billy Bob's in Fort Worth, sell out three nights in a row at Gruene Hall or turn several hundred away at the Legendary Stubb's Bar-B-Q in Austin.
Word has spread, though: Their shows in Chicago, St. Louis and elsewhere have pulled in more than 1,000 fans. And they’ve drawn full houses at Joe’s Pub in New York and The Troubadour in L.A., among many other nightspots from coast to coast.
