East Texas native Cole Allen isn’t what you’d typically picture when you imagine a root’s musician. He has no top hat, wears no conchos, has no tatted sleeve, and I’ve never spotted him in any vintage pearl snaps. In fact, if one was to conjure up a visual for Cole, Dick Van Dyke’s portrayal of Bert and his one-man-band in the original Mary Poppins isn’t too far from the mark. Most of Cole’s live gigs involve just himself with what appears to be fifteen instruments strapped to his various appendages (though he claims to employ just a harmonica, guitar, and a Farmer Foot drum kit). His folksy solo approach was born of necessity according to Cole’s own bio, as early in his career he worked by day as a civil-engineer and spent his weekends traveling the circuit as a competitive bull rider, leaving little time to form a proper band. I first caught Cole live 5 or 6 years ago in Lindale, Texas and his introduction of himself at that time as an everyday, normal, working man lucky enough to get to perform some music by night was both unassuming and endearing, if not a tad overly modest.