Tom - Bill Callahan's "So Long Marianne" is okay, but the song doesn't sound right without the desperation and momentum that Leonard infuses it with. Callahan's version has the laid back feel of Tom Rush's "No Regrets" (a great song in itself, but a style that is not really applicable to "Marianne").
I'm not totally sold on Cas McCombs yet. His version of "Teachers" doesn't do a lot for me, but then again it is a pretty monotonous tune in the first place. "County Line" doesn't particularly blow me away either, but I do like "Sacred Heart" (
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdQIOOXbhsc). I'll he seeing McCombs play live at the Union Chapel in March, as he's supported by Mike Heron of the Incredible String Band (who's the artist I'm mainly going to see!).
All good things, John E