• Jim Paul Blair passes

    The state of Oklahoma and the wider music community has been rocked by the untimely death of Jim Paul Blair on February 11, 2020. He was 58 years of age and had recently been hospitalized with a lung infection. Blair, an

  • A conversation with John McEuen

    Jim Fondren, John McEuen, and Pamm Tucker As 2019 was wrapping up, I enjoyed a telephone conversation with one of the founding members of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, the banjo player - and mandolin, guitar, fiddle, and if it has

  • Danielle Szabo – the last soul lives on

    Let me take you on a trip. A trip to Guthrie, to Byron Berline’s Double Stop Fiddle Shop, which burned February 23, 2019. The devastation hit the fiddle community with full force, much like an F5 tornado, leaving everything in

  • BanjoFest 2019 – Hall of Fame presentations

    Annually, the American Banjo Museum in Oklahoma City holds a 3 day extravaganza of talent, recognition, and pure love for America’s instrument, the banjo.   Banjo Fest 2019 kicked off with its traditional BBQ, including the grand-opening of the new exhibit, Reflections of

  • BanjoFest 2019 at the American Banjo Museum

    Every September brings cooler temperatures, the state fair with mouth-watering food, and the giant ferris wheel to Oklahoma City. Bricktown is the epicenter of talent the first weekend of the month, September 6-9, at the American Banjo Museum where BanjoFest

  • Wood Willow – Medicine for the soul

    Willow trees have pliant, tough wood and slender branches with large fibrous roots. The roots of the willow are known for their remarkable strength and tenacity. Willows are often planted on the borders of streams so their interlacing roots can