Review- Taylor Hunnicutt: With All Due Respect
You know what follows is probably going to be something you don’t want to hear from somebody that has no business saying it. Saying “With all due respect…” seems to give some folks the green light to point out something grossly inappropriate or downright rude. Taylor Hunnicutt says she has taken the feeling of hearing that phrase and used it to fuel her passion, “the tone of this whole EP lies with the idea of just being done with this shit.”
Barely half a year has passed since the #QueenOfAlabama released her debut full-length record and now Taylor Hunnicutt is back With All Due Respect; another set of tracks showcasing her brand of Outlaw Country and Southern Rock releases on October 11. “If Alabama Sound was us showing up to your house then With All Due Respect is us kicking down your door. We wrote these songs on the road playing show after show. It is the most cohesive body of work we have done together as a band.”
While this band of Alabama Outlaws may not cause actual harm to your home, they have figuratively burned down a few prestigious stages this summer since Taylor exploded onto the music scene. Since the release of Alabama Sound in March, she has opened for the Red Clay Strays at the Ryman Auditorium and Whitey Morgan at Cain’s Ballroom, as well as appearing at the Bonnaroo Festival and at CMA Fest. She has also joined both Blackberry Smoke and Whitey Morgan for runs of tour dates as direct support. She has also had her share of headline club dates and slots on festivals from coast to coast. Jason Eady had her join him to recut a song from his latest album and released it as a single.
The next chapter in the story of “the only person from Demopolis, Alabama to ever play the Ryman Auditorium” is this six-song EP recorded in December 2023 at Sol Studios in Ft Smith, Arkansas. The producers of Peacemaker Festival were so impressed with her performance last summer they named Taylor their “Emerging Artist” for 2024 which includes free studio time. The result is showcased here with a couple of songs that have been on the band’s setlist for a while, two new songs from Alabama songwriters, and two Taylor originals peeking back to her singer/songwriter days.
“Not Tonight” was one of the first songs Taylor wrote as she began moving into more Rock N Roll territory. It has established itself as a setlist staple often closing the show. I started seeing videos featuring “Left Turn on a Red Light” from fans at Mile 0 Fest and the band has just turned up the heat on the Blackfoot cover ever since. The song has settled right into the middle of the setlist bringing each show back to Rock N Roll center.
Hunnicutt has often said she only takes songs from Alabama songwriters, and she returns to Auburn’s Brett McDaniel for “Runaway.” He also wrote “In It for the Pain” and “Trail of a Broken Heart” from Alabama Sound. Like the other two, this song is a perfect vehicle for Taylor’s magnificent voice, showcasing her range and dynamics and still gives the guitars room to rock. Alexander City’s Kyle Wilson wrote “Back to the Country,” giving Hunnicutt an opportunity to show off her bluesy chops and the band to get funky and loose.
If you want a glimpse of Taylor when she was back in Birmingham playing little clubs with just her guitar, check out her 2018 EP Flower in a Drought. Even though she says she “doesn’t even know who that is.” It’s in that spirit of fierce independence where we hear the story of the “Country Club Queen.” “Despite your perception of me, I’m getting better and better all the time / Talk is cheap and, God forbid, I did the things you wish you did.” I asked her if it was a song that she had carried over from the past, but she says it’s a newer one finished about a year ago; she’s only played it out a few times. It’ll be a great one to pull out for acoustic sets!
It was about that time when Taylor posted a video on social media of her singing “Lucky Me” and described it as being shot in a California desert. It’s a sparse arrangement of just Taylor and her acoustic guitar with a lonely fiddle played by Travis Curry from Vandoliers. The lyrics tell the story of an artist unsure of her place and a sardonic look at her fortune, “Every day there’s a new breakout star on the rise / Payin’ dues don’t matter anymore if the streams are something you can’t afford / Your name on a plate at the table with all those other guys / Well, Lucky Me, found myself another dead-end street.” The bottom line in both songs is she has absolutely had enough and there is a change happening now.
Wherever you are, there’s a good chance she will be playing near you at some point soon. In true “road dawg” fashion, when With All Due Respect comes out, they’ll be in Ft. Smith at the Peacemaker Festival, where she’s being honored. The next night they’re playing the North Springs Music Festival halfway across Tennessee. The weekend before they were in Louisiana, and the next weekend they’ll be in Texas. Taylor has a big project with Muscadine Bloodline scheduled for next year, as well as a special collaboration with some gentlemen from Texas coming out in January. So, 2025 is already shaping up for new material. This release renews the buzz on Taylor Hunnicutt and gives folks a better idea what to expect when they see her live, because that is where the real “Alabama Sound” happens.
When she digs deep for that signature growl or leans her head back to hit that sustained note you can actually feel that huge voice inside. The #QueenOfAlabama may be reluctant to wear the crown, but with each new release and show date, Taylor Hunnicutt grows her legion of friends. She doesn’t call them “fans” because she meets everybody and you WILL get a sweaty hug. With all due respect, that makes you family.
Find out more about Taylor at the links below: