Bleu Edmondson is one of the most unique artists on the Texas Country scene these days, bringing a wide variety  of sounds into his music. But his 13-track live album, part of the Live at Billy Bob’s Texas series, is almost an exact replica of his most recent studio album, “Lost Boy.”  Edmondson had a hand in penning 10 of the 12 songs, but the others come from fellow Texas artists. That’s a tradition in the Texas scene, artists collaborating and singing each others songs much more than their Nashville counterparts. In fact, Edmondson’s signature song – “50 Dollars and A Flask of Crown” – was written by Matt Powell.  It wasn’t on “Lost Boy”, and it’s probably the highlight of this album. “50 Dollars” is a rollicking party anthem, and the title itself is merely a sneak preview of how fun the song plays out.

Brandon Jenkins, another Texas artist, wrote  “Finger on The Trigger”, which Edmondson sings perfectly. It’s a downtrodden tail of a desperate man who’s contemplating suicide. But again, unlike Nashville, Texas artists are more apt to take on uncomfortable subjects in such a direct manner. Edmondson teams with Wade Bowen, a popular Texas artist, to write “Resurrection”, a song chock full of metaphors. Both artists recorded the song, but Edmondson’s has much more feeling to it. The majority of the album has influences of everything from self-reflective folk (“Don’t Fade Away”),  alternative rock vibes (“Last Last Time) and tinges of Bruce Springsteen
(“The Echo”) and blues (“Southland”).