Lucky Mud: short bio

Seven years in the early days of Nashville taught Mike & Maggie McKinney what they did not want. The heart of music should not be lost in the business of music. The music that Lucky Mud writes/sings/plays comes from the dirt of their native Florida. Mix that with a little saltwater, sweat and tears and you have Mud, Lucky Mud. Lucky Mud plays SwampyTonk and Folkabilly.

Check out our radio show links on the Home page and follow the music. No videos, not a lot of talking but so much great music from some of the best singer/songwriters in America. Folks we met on tour or who graced our stage here at Maggie's Musical Farm in the wilds of the Florida panhandle.

 

 

Lucky Mud: Medium Bio 

 

From yodeling to rhythmic drumbeats, from soft, sweet harmonies to rootsy, wicked, belt-it-out swamp sounds, Lucky Mud makes 'Mud Music.' Their latest CD, Mud On The Saddle, was released last year in August, just in time to play at the Montana Poetry and Western Music Festival in Lewistown, Montana. It's a collection of original Western songs from cowboy yodels to the story of Custer's 7th Cavalry on that fateful day at the Little Big Horn.

Lucky Mud's original music has taken them from yearly tours of Ireland and the British Isles to Nova Scotia, shows in Texas and the main stages of both the Florida Folk and the Will McLean Festivals to festivals across the country.

"Lucky Mud is from the deeper side of Folk Music. The couple have a soulful connection that is palpable, and their ballads are a much needed departure from the cookie cutter, sample-driven fodder currently filling the airwaves. A splendid way to battle the daily grind. " EARBUZZ

"Lucky Mud's new CD is a showcase of original contemporary folk music - but it's the duo's milk-and-honey harmonies that wrap their sound up into one neat package" -Rice B. RadioIndy

One of Maggie's original songs, Banshee, is the title cut on an Independent Film out of Oregon, making the rounds of film festivals.

 

Lucky Mud: long bio

Having spent almost 7 years under the Nashville spell in the years of transition from the Country Music tradition of story telling through lyric to the current trend of songwriting by committee, Mike and Maggie McKinney returned to their Florida roots disillusioned with music. Michael McKinney became a well-respected author with a starred review in Publishers Weekly and accolades across the country for his first novel, 'A Thousand Bridges.'

     But the love for songwriting still haunted them. Through a magical moment of clarity at the Kerrville Folk Festival in the Nineties, the realization struck them that Nashville had become the "Business of Music," not the music itself. That's when Maggie and Mike became Lucky Mud. Their reformation became their musical salvation. The love of a beautifully written lyric paired with a melody that fits the words so seamlessly that they cannot be separated without mournful loss. The ability to reach out and touch an audience with a voice that comforts or stings. A voice that amuses or inspires. Words have power and a great melody enhances that power. That's "Mud Music."

     Their love of a great song has taken them on journeys throughout the world. Their original music has taken them from the stage of the Legendary Linenhall in Castlebar, Ireland, to Campbell's Pub on the wild coast of County Mayo in the West and throughout Connemara. From the island of Sark, in the Tidy Bowl blue English Channel, to the bridge-bound streets of Newcastle Upon Tyne in Northern England and Bandera, Texas, (yes, it feels like another country) to the beautiful hills of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in Canada. Lucky Mud has shared their Florida swamp roots 'Mud born' music.

     Lucky Mud has opened for and shared stages with both the infamous and famous musicians currently touring today. From the legendary songwriter Eric Taylor to the irreverent Grant Peeples. From the mesmerizing talents of California folk-duo Paul Kamm and Eleanore MacDonald to the sultry-voiced Sally Spring. Too many incredible voices singing out in the wilderness of satellite radio channels and independent music sources to name, but all equally blessed with the true gift of storytelling.

     Too honest for Nashville. Too gifted to compromise by writing songs-by-committee. The music, and nothing but the music, matters. Lucky Mud can be contacted for bookings at: luckymudmusic@bellsouth.net or 850.774-3561.

     

Lucky Mud plays: - Guitar, Mandolin, Octave Mandolin, Frame Drum, Various Percussion

Lucky Mud, Mike and Maggie McKinney, live on a beautiful farm near the pristine Econfina Creek in Northwest Florida, in a 140 year-old farmhouse....once surrounded by a wall of 120' tall oak trees that hid the morning sun until Cat 5 Hurricane Michael changed their world in October, 2018. Behind the house now is a ragged line of broken trees. Those still standing are mostly limbless with bunches of leaves reminiscent of a Dr. Seuss book. But, thanks to the hurricane, there is a new roof on the old house and a new pavilion called the 'HoTangle' (Built with a back side like a Hogan and the front a peaked rectangle that centers on the stage) that brings the music from the stage to the audience with a perfect sound at Maggie's Musical Farm.

The stage, built four years ago out of native and precious 'deadheaded' pecky cypress and equipped with a wonderful and true sound system, didn't lose a single board in the fierceness of the hurricane. We are certainly the Luckiest Mud!