This report from Winter NAMM comes from Dan Miller, publisher of Flatpicking Guitar magazine. The 110th National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) show was held in Anaheim, California, from January 19th to the 22nd. There were 1441 exhibitors and 95,709 registered attendees at this year’s [...]
The bluegrass stars were aligned, and in the audience, for the CD release party for new Americana/bluegrass duo Stetson & Cia last night. It all took place at the Hard Rock Café in Nashville, TN, and was streamed live via The Acousticana Journal website. Many [...]
When Music Shed closed its doors in December, they found themselves with a substantial amount of inventory remaining – even after a month-long going-out-of-business sale. Rather than offer these bluegrass recordings as a lot at auction, the company made the decision to donate it all [...]
Raleigh, NC is not the only city wooing IBMA’s World of Bluegrass once its contract with the Nashville Convention Center expires this year. Lousiville, KY – which hosted the event prior to the move to Nashville – has also launched a campaign to bring WOB [...]
The Infamous Stringdusters showed up in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on the tail end of an incredible winter storm that brought about 5 feet of snow to the surrounding mountains. Considering these guys are on their Ski Tour the timing was excellent. The Pink Garter, located on Broadway [...]
Special Consensus is one of the most well-traveled bands in bluegrass. And so, by extension, is their trusty Turtle Top van, Snowball. It has taken them all across the US and Canada since it went into service in December 2002. Greg Cahill and the band are [...]
Marty Raybon is going at full speed. Just over a year after undergoing treatment for prostate cancer, he has two new albums coming out, with a full tour schedule planned for 2012. His album of contemporary Christian music, Hand To The Plow, has been set [...]
Rebel Records has February 28th set as the release date for their latest album from Chris Jones & the Night Drivers. It’s a long title, Lost Souls & Free Spirits: The Rebel Collection Old & New, but it accurately describes what this project encompasses. There are [...]
Infamous Stringdusters reso-man Andy Hall has been announced as the newest member of the ArtistWorks Academy of Bluegrass faculty. His new site, The School Of Dobro with Andy Hall is live now and accepting students. It will follow the same format as the other successful Academy [...]
I just got a pre-release copy of Don Rigsby’s upcoming CD, a tribute to Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys called Doctor’s Orders. I asked Don how he came up with the name and he said, “The songs were hand picked by Ralph and [...]
This report from Winter NAMM comes from Dan Miller, publisher of Flatpicking Guitar magazine. The 110th National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) show was held in Anaheim, California, from January 19th to the 22nd. There were 1441 exhibitors and 95,709 registered attendees at this year’s [...]
Randy Driskill (Randolph to his bluegrass music friends, except for Terry Baucom who still fondly calls him Disco) is as much of a natural musician as there is. God truly gave this man a talent for hearing a song and then reproducing it on just [...]
Recording King introduced a pair of flat top, steel string guitars at last week’s NAMM show in California. Their new Greenwich Village model is designed to offer hybrid styling and features – a 13 fret, dreadnaught scale on a deeper, smaller body. It is offered [...]
Got a small child in the house who likes to play with your iPad? The folks at Whynoceros Apps have developed a fun game for youngsters called Barnyard Bluegrass. Like most such apps, it seeks to both educate and entertain, and this one uses charming [...]
Washburn introduced a new open-back banjo, the B-7, at last week’s NAMM show in California. The pot consists of a cast aluminum shell, with 18 tension brackets. A full-scale mahogany neck with dot inlays in the rosewood board, and to-the-side tuners is attached. All the [...]
The bluegrass stars were aligned, and in the audience, for the CD release party for new Americana/bluegrass duo Stetson & Cia last night. It all took place at the Hard Rock Café in Nashville, TN, and was streamed live via The Acousticana Journal website. Many [...]
The Infamous Stringdusters showed up in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on the tail end of an incredible winter storm that brought about 5 feet of snow to the surrounding mountains. Considering these guys are on their Ski Tour the timing was excellent. The Pink Garter, located on Broadway [...]
This report on the Kickin Grass 10th Anniversary show comes from their guitarist/vocalist Lynda Dawson. Photos are from Hunter Lee Elliott at 5 X 5 Photography. It was a thrill to take the stage and greet about 600 people in the audience at the historic Carolina [...]
Last week we shared the wonderful news that Herschel Sizemore had come through his cancer treatment with a clean bill of health. His wife, Joyce, is still undergoing treatment for breast cancer – as is one of their two daughters. The Sizemores have always lived [...]
Goat Rodeo Sessions, a stunning joint project from Chris Thile, Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan and Edgar Meyer, will be coming to a theater near you – via Fathom Events and the magic of simultaneous broadcast. A live show on Tuesday, January 31, at Boston’s House [...]
When Music Shed closed its doors in December, they found themselves with a substantial amount of inventory remaining – even after a month-long going-out-of-business sale. Rather than offer these bluegrass recordings as a lot at auction, the company made the decision to donate it all [...]
Raleigh, NC is not the only city wooing IBMA’s World of Bluegrass once its contract with the Nashville Convention Center expires this year. Lousiville, KY – which hosted the event prior to the move to Nashville – has also launched a campaign to bring WOB [...]
The International Bluegrass Music Association is not only looking to hire a new Executive Director, they are also seeking a new home for their annual convention, World of Bluegrass. This week long event, which combines an industry trade show, awards celebration and business conference during [...]
The family of groundbreaking Gospel songwriter Albert E. Brumley has announced the formation of the I’ll Fly Away Foundation, named for his most popular song. The organization is chaired by Brumley’s granddaughter, Betsy Brumley, and was chartered with a mission to support young musicians. According [...]
Maryland’s Jay Armsworthy will dedicate his weekly radio show, Bluegrass On The Bay, to the 10th Anniversary of of the Coen brothers movie, O Brother, Where Art Thou. If you haven’t picked up the Deluxe Edition 2 CD, 10th Anniversary edition of the soundtrack, tune in and [...]
The NAMM (National Association of Music Merchandisers) Show is held less than a mile from Disneyland. One is a commercial shrine to prepubescent entertainment and sensory overload. The other is a theme park. Or, maybe I should say the NAMM Show is Disneyland without the [...]
I’ve devoted the previous several columns to the subject of band self-management. There won’t be many more, I promise, because let’s face it: all this management gets tiring after a while. Sometimes you just want to go play the show. Let’s review just a little [...]
This has turned into a lengthy series on bluegrass band self-management, which is fitting because we live in a do-it-yourself era, from self-service gas pumps to self-checkout at grocery stores. I’ve even recently learned to eat meals without professional assistance. My staff of servants is [...]
Here’s a second video preview from the upcoming Punch Brothers CD, Who’s Feeling Young Now, due from Nonesuch on February 14. This one is for the song, Clara, which again shows Chris Thile and his merry band experimenting with the use of bluegrass instruments to [...]
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Pinecastle Music has announced that Karl Shiflett and Big Country Show have signed with the label, and will release a new CD, Take Me Back, by late Spring. Shifflett goes way past a traditionalist approach with his music. Throwback might be the most accurate description, though [...]
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With seven national recordings to her credit, Lorraine Jordan is back at it again with Carolina Road’s second Rural Rhythm release, Back to My Roots. Formed in 1998, the group remains very active on the bluegrass circuit, averaging 60 festivals per year in the US [...]
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Bearfoot spent last week in Owensboro, KY, where they will be this week as well, serving as Artists In Residence with the International Bluegrass Music Museum. During this time they will perform at 22 nearby elementary schools, giving the students a chance to hear bluegrass [...]
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The nominees for the 38th Annual Bluegrass Music Awards from the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass in America have been announced, and are listed online. Winners will be announced at the SPBGMA awards show held in Nashville over the first weekend in February at [...]
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