Author: John Lawless

John had served as primary author and editor for The Bluegrass Blog from its launch in 2004 until being folded into Bluegrass Today in September of 2011. He continues in that capacity here, managing a strong team of columnists and correspondents.

Alison Krauss and Ricky Skaggs to host IBMA Awards Show

The IBMA has just announced that Alison Krauss and Ricky Skaggs will host the 2005 Awards Show for the International Bluegrass Music Association, to be held on October 27 in Nashville, TN. This will be the third year in a row for Ms. Krauss as a co-host, and a repeat performance for Ricky Skaggs as well.

Expectations are high for this year, as the event is hosted for the first time in Nashville, with the Awards Show at the historic Ryman Auditorium, original home of the Grand Ol’ Opry. Awards are given in more than a dozen categories with the winners chosen by the professional voting members of the IBMA, making it a true “peer reviewed” award.

See a list of past award winners here.

Read the entire press release.
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ALISON KRAUSS AND RICKY SKAGGS TO HOST 16TH ANNUAL IBMA AWARDS SHOW AT RYMAN AUDITORIUM
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NASHVILLE “”??? “Bluegrass Music’s Night of Nights” has always showcased the best of bluegrass music”????from”????newcomers to industry stalwarts,”????right down to the hosts of the show, and the 16th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards Show is no exception.”???? Multiple IBMA award winning artist, bluegrass veteran and the most highly decorated female Grammy winner in history, Alison Krauss, will return as host of the”????show for the third year in a row, along with six-time IBMA Instrumental Group of the Year”????winner, ten-time Grammy Award winner”????and longtime bluegrass ambassador Ricky Skaggs.”???? Krauss and Skaggs have both been hugely successful as hosts of previous broadcasts, inflecting humor and great performances to sold out crowds.
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The 16th Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards Show is scheduled to be held for the first time at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville”????on Thursday, Oct. 27th.”???? The broadcast production of the Awards Show will begin at 8:00 pm (CST), and will feature a a large number of live musical performances from bluegrass music””???s most outstanding artists, the announcement of recipients in 17 categories, and two inductions into the Bluegrass Hall of Honor.
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Alison is a four-time IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year, two-time IBMA Entertainer of the Year and three-time IBMA Album of the Year winner with Union Station.”???? Krauss hit a career milestone in February 2004 when she became the most highly awarded female artist in Grammy history at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards, winning her 17th statue.”???? This year has already proven to be exciting with the release of her band Union Station’s newest album Lonely Runs Both Ways in addition to starting a successful partnership with restaurant giant Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores, now sponsoring their current tour and featuring a”????CD titled Home On The Highways sold only in Cracker Barrel restaurants.”????
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The band recently released their second video from the Lonely Runs Both Ways”????CD to television in addition to making appearances on Sesame Street and Austin City Limits.”???? Last year, Krauss joined country star Brad Paisley for a video shoot for their chart topping duet “”???Whiskey Lullaby,””??? directed by actor Rick Schroeder for which he won Best Director at the CMA Awards.”???? She was also a featured performer”????in the highly”????talented cast of the”????Great High Mountain Tour.
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No stranger to”????creating music”????for film and television, Alison has recorded songs for numerous soundtracks in the recent past including “”???You Will Be My Ain’ True Love” which she performed live with pop icon Sting, during the 76th Annual Academy Awards broadcast on February 29, 2004 in addition to “The Scarlet Tide” recorded for the Cold Mountain soundtrack, starring Nicole Kidman. “????Both songs were Oscar nominees.”????
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By the age of 21, Ricky Skaggs was already considered a “recognized master” of one of America’s most demanding art forms, bluegrass music.”””??His career took him in different directions, catapulting him to popularity and success in the mainstream of country music, only to return him to his original love years later.”””??He continues to be”????one of the most sought after performers on the bluegrass scene today.”???? His hard-driving mandolin style, traditional sound”????and superior band Kentucky Thunder keep him in constant demand.
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At the recent Grammy Awards Skaggs”????newest album,”????Brand New Strings, was recognized as the Best Bluegrass Album. The award was especially gratifying because it was decided by artists, musicians, engineers, and producers from across the entire music industry.”???? It’s no exaggeration to say that Brand New Strings features some of the best new songs and musical performances of Ricky Skaggs’ illustrious career.
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Marching”????towards his 35th year as a”????professional musician, this ten-time Grammy Award winner continues to do his part to lead the recent roots revival in music. Known affectionately today as a true ambassador for bluegrass music, Skaggs has brought the genre to greater levels of popularity in the past few years than the father of bluegrass music “”??? legendary Bill Monroe “”??? could ever have imagined.”???? With seven consecutive Grammy nominated classics behind him, all from his own record company, Skaggs is definitely one of the genre’s top artists who are assuring the music will continue to be in good hands.”???? Skaggs has been featured in Entertainment Weekly, People Magazine, The Washington Post, USA Today, Associated Press as well as appearances on CNN, The Tonight”????Show”????and CMT to name a few.
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The International Bluegrass Music Awards will be recorded live and made available for worldwide radio broadcast in more than 300 U.S. markets and 14 foreign networks.”???? Program directors and station managers may contact Shari Lacy, IBMA Marketing/PR Director at 888-GET-IBMA or (615) 256-3222 for broadcast information.”???? For ticket information contact the IBMA office at 888-GET-IBMA, or visit www.ibma.org.””””””””””

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Debut CD from top European bluegrass band

Carmel Sheerin & The Ravens, voted European Bluegrass Band of the Year for 2005 this past May, will release their first CD, Runaway, in late August. The band is based in Ireland and features vocalist Carmel Sheerin, her three brothers Danny (guitar), Des (bass) and Tom (mandolin/fiddle), along with ex-pat American Tom Hanway on banjo.

Proving that some things transcend geography and national identity, the story of the band’s origins reads much like those of the many family bluegrass bands which have proliferated in the United States. The Sheerin siblings were raised by musical parents (Dan and Mary Sheerin) who passed along their love for traditional and country music to their 11 children, 8 of whom have remained musical into adulthood. Many of the children have played traditional country music with their parents over the years. The Ravens have left the nest and are a full-fledged original bluegrass band.

In addition to the band being selected for such a high honor by the European Bluegrass Music Association, bluegrass fans should note that renowned producer and recording engineer, Bill VornDick was so taken by the band’s demo that he agreed to travel to Ireland to produce this new recording, which was accomplished at Des Sheerin’s own studio.

The Ravens have a CD release party scheduled in Moate on August 23, with more details available on their web site. No audio or online order links as yet, but you can expect to see those available soon.

New Cherryholmes CD due September 27

Cherryholmes will see the first fruits of their association with Skaggs Family Records realized on September 27 when their self-titled debut project for the Nashville-based label is released. This highly-celebrated family band has been garnering rave reviews for their live shows, and look for this association with Skaggs Family to help them move to the next level with recorded product as well.

Cherryholmes was produced by Ben Issacs, recently nominated from a Grammy award as the producer of Tribute to the King of Bluegrass- Jimmy Martin on Koch Records, and features nine original tunes written within the band. Other highlights include an a capella version of Who Will Sing For Me, and the band’s cover of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s Workin’ Man.

Banjo Teachers Directory available online

Our friend Angie Sumpter has a directory of banjo instructors accessible through her web site. There is no charge for a student to access the directory when seeking a teacher, or for a banjo instructor to add their information to the list. There are a great many banjo teachers listed already and Angie reports that more are being added regularly.

Pat Cloud’s banjo web site back online

I spoke recently with Pat Cloud, banjo player extraordinaire, and am delighted to learn that he is back in the US to stay after many years working primarily overseas. Pat is known in many circles primarily for his contributions to the expansion of the five string banjo into the jazz and blues realms. While he deserves this reputation, his profound love and knowledge of bluegrass banjo is often overlooked.

His banjo web site is back online and he is experimenting with online delivery of video instructonal materials. Banjo players at any level of skill or experience are encouraged to check it out.

New Dolly Parton CD in October

Those Were The Days is the title for the next CD release from Dolly Parton, with an October 11 release date cited by Sugar Hill Records. The theme of this recording is Dolly doing duets with a number of notable pop, folk and country artists on a set of what Sugar Hill describes as “era-defining songs from the 1960s and 1970s.”

Of particular interest to readers of Bluegrass Today may be this quote from the press release announcing the 10/11 street date:

Recorded in Nashville, ‘Those Were The Days’ retains the bluegrass-inspired sound that earned her two Grammys and a new generation of fans for her previous four albums on Sugar Hill Records. The album includes a group sing featuring a menagerie of Grand Ole Opry legends. Capping off the album is Parton’s unique version of “Imagine.”

Guest performers on Those Were The Days include Roger McGuinn (of The Byrds), Kris Kristofferson, Judy Collins, Tommy James, Norah Jones, Keith Urban, Nickel Creek, Lee Ann Womack, Rhonda Vincent, Joe Nichols and Alison Krauss.

Of this new project, Dolly says:

I am really very proud of this album. I love all of these songs and all of the artists who performed, it just felt special from the moment the concept came to my mind. I knew I had to produce it myself in order to get all of my ideas across exactly as I wanted them to be presented. I really hope people enjoy it. I know I enjoyed making it.”

No info yet on the Sugar Hill web site about this release.

Uncle Earl moving up the chart

Uncle Earl, the all-female old time band making such a splash at bluegrass festivals this summer, is featured in the Breaking & Entering column in the August 10 edition of Billboard magazine. This recurring feature offers a glimpse at acts breaking into radio or retail, or entering the Billboard charts for the first time – hence the name.

The article contains a nice profile of the band and their music, but is primarily focused on the fact that their debut CD on Rounder, She Waits For Night, entered the Billboard bluegrass chart on August 6 at number 7 and moves up one spot in the current chart this week.

Guitarist Kristin Andreassen offers a look at the band’s approach:

“We think of ourselves as old-time musicians,” she says. “And in our world, old-time music is pretty different from bluegrass music. Bluegrass focuses on instruments taking breaks, and we don’t really take breaks. ‘Walking in My Sleep,’ the first song on the album, is a popular bluegrass song, so it makes total sense that we’re on the bluegrass chart, but we play it in an old-timey way. Nobody comes out and takes a mandolin solo or a fiddle solo, we all just play right through and create a group.”

Read the whole article here.

Keith Sewell debut CD due in late August

Noted bluegrass/acoustic songwriter and sideman Keith Sewell steps out front with his debut release on Skaggs Family Records. Love Is A Journey is scheduled for an August 23, 2005 release and features 12 new songs written or co-written by Keith. If you follow bluegrass you may recall Keith from his time touring with Ricky Skaggs, or his current duties as guitarist with both Sam Bush and Jerry Douglas’ bands.

As a songwriter, he has seen his songs cut by such mainstream acts as Montgomery Gentry and Steve Wariner, as well as BR549 and Sonja Isaacs. Keith also wrote the title track to the current release from Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder, Brand New Strings.

Keith is assisted on Love Is A Journey by Scott Vestal, Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas and Byron House, and is featured on a duet with Ricky Skaggs (Love Came Down).

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