The Twangtown Paramours - Double Down on a Bad Thing (2022)

Nashville-based husband-and-wife duo Mike T. Lewis and MaryBeth Zamer, known on stage as The Twangtown Paramours, have made a name for themselves defying boundaries with their award-winning catalogue of Americana, folk, and blues anthems. With a slew of accolades for their first two acoustic full-length albums, they’ve earned a loyal following, balancing serious instrumental and vocal chops with witty stage banter and a lighthearted approach to life. They don’t take themselves, or the world, too seriously. Now poised to release their third full-length album, Double Down on a Bad Thing, The Twangtown Paramours are shifting gears to showcase a full band, electric, groove-oriented, upbeat, soul-infused, and retro blues sound. “We want people to have fun, to cheer up, to dance, and to start sporting a positive attitude, dammit,” says Mike.
Hit songwriter, session musician, and producer Mike Lewis was born in NYC, but his sound is informed by a mix of experiences across the country’s major music centers, including NYC, L.A., Austin, and Nashville. He began learning classical and jazz guitar at age eight, studying under Leonid Bolotine, William Matthews, and Barry Galbraith, before earning degrees at Columbia in New York City and the Grove School of Music in Los Angeles. He wrote a #1 platinum pop hit ranked the 2nd biggest-selling female ballad of all time in Korea, and occasionally plays upright bass for Jimmie Dale Gilmore.
Born in Washington D.C., lead singer MaryBeth Zamer was raised on a mix of opera and American songbook music, singing along to Dean Martin and Ella Fitzgerald, before discovering Little Feat, Bonnie Raitt, and the blues in high school. A fixture in the Washington, D.C. club scene for years, MaryBeth performed with popular local cover band, Ignition and sang backup vocals for Eva Cassidy’s band, Method Actor. “Eva was a huge influence on my singing style,” MaryBeth says. “She taught me to go beyond having fun and hitting the right notes, to sing in a way that conveys real emotion.”
MaryBeth and Mike met and started dating in 2009, while both were working on separate musical projects. “The relationship came first,” says MaryBeth, “but I kept hearing songs he’d written that I loved, and I wanted to add my own vocal spin to them. I felt like I could interpret and deliver Mike’s songs the way he intended them to be.” The Twangtown Paramours released their debut self-titled album via Inside Edge Records just a year later in 2010, a well-received, pop-infused folk album that rose to #11 on the Folk charts. In 2012, they released their second full-length project, The Promise of Friday Night, a narrative-driven, acoustic folk album that hit #2 on the Folk charts, #150 on the Americana charts, and #7 on Deep Roots Magazine’s top 50 albums of 2012. In the following years, the pair became three-time finalists at the Kerrville New Folk Competition in Kerrville, TX and winners of the Wildflower Contest in Richardson, TX. They also had the honor to open for major acts such as Joe Ely, Claire Lynch, and Jimmie Dale Gilmore.
In addition to their elaborate musical pedigrees and critically-acclaimed release history, what makes The Twangtown Paramours unique is the purity of their priorities: They are committed to making top-notch music. Their new album, set for release February 4, 2022, signals a shift in style that aligns with the more freewheeling, fun-loving side of their natures. Named after a phrase they overheard from a Joe Pesci doppelganger on the street in Las Vegas, Double Down on a Bad Thing features throwback melodies, modern edge, and a big, buoyant, full-band sound. A fusion of Americana rock, Memphis blues, Motown, and 60s-era Beatles-inspired retro pop, the tracks teem with Mike’s driving electric guitar lines and sparse, vibrant vocal melodies sung by MaryBeth. (MaryBeth also sang the tight layered back-up harmonies.) Single releases for this fall include “Talk About Peace,” a hopeful call-to-action delivered via irresistible groove, followed by the hard-hitting, energetic title track “Double Down on a Bad Thing.” The cheeky bonus track “My Gingerbread Man,” a naughty-but-nice retro Christmas tune in the style of Brenda Lee and Bobby Helms, will be released on digital streaming and radio in time for the holidays.
Double Down on a Bad Thing also features some of the best musicians to be found anywhere. Players include world-renowned Shawn Pelton (SNL band, Shawn Colvin, Roseanne Cash) on drums and percussion, Dave Keyes (2-time Blues Society Pinetop Perkins pianist nominee), Rave Tesar (keyboardist and music director for the band, Renaissance), Steve Conn (Sonny Landreth’s right hand man), Ed Alstrom (renowned session pianist and organist), and horn players Dan Nigro and Vinnie Cutro (Smokey Joe’s Café). It’s a feel-good album with Blues-Brothers-esque pep, killer vocals, and expertly crafted, pared-down lyrics. “Though the vibe is vintage, this album isn’t some kind of retrospective. It’s a reminder of the strength, confidence, and we- can- do- anything attitude of the early 1960s. It’s meant to be an inspiration for having fun and for making better things happen,” says Mike. “We almost called the project, No Whining Allowed.”