Author: Dave Berry

If you follow bluegrass at all then you are no doubt aware there is an amazing amount of young talent coming out of California. The California Bluegrass Association (CBA) Youth Programs spearheaded by CBA President Darby Brandli are a huge

Kate Brislin is a San Francisco based guitarist and extraordinary singer with a rich bluegrass and old-time history. She has performed and recorded with Hazel Dickens, Mike Seeger, Alice Gerrard, Chris Brashear, and Katy Moffatt, to name a few. She’s

I received a note from Bay Area singer and instrumentalist Jody Stecher about a stellar band he helped Jerry Wicentowski put together for a Northern California tour in March. I spoke with Jody who is quite excited about the tour,

Jeremy Darrow is a frequent bluegrass blogger, IBMA board member, and bass player for the roots pop band Front Country. Originally from North Carolina, Jeremy now resides in Nashville and though he is not California based, he qualifies as next

Lucy Smith from Chico, California is a guitar picker, singer, promoter, jammer and for the last 5 years, head of the California Bluegrass Association's IBMA Hospitality and Showcase Suite in Raleigh, NC. She’s passing that torch to very experienced and

This month we welcome San Francisco Bay Area high lonesome singer, guitarist, songwriter, and activist, John McKelvy. DB: Hi John, thanks for your time. You have a very distinctive mountain voice. Is this something you’ve always had or did it take

Phil Salazar (on fiddle), with Phil Salazar & The Kin Folk This month we are thrilled to chat with Southern California bluegrass legend musician and instructor, Phil Salazar. Phil Salazar and the Kin Folk have been playing their unique mix of

To west coast grassers, Larry Cohea really needs no introduction. Larry is a California Bluegrass Association and Northern California Bluegrass Society Lifetime Achievement Honoree, and member of many seminal Bay Area bluegrass bands such as High Country, Blue and Lonesome, and

Photo of Stephen Gilchrist © Alan Messer Stephen Gilchrist is widely recognized as among the very finest mandolin makers in the modern history of the instrument. Here he shares the story of how he went from a teenaged surf bum to

This month we talk with California Bluegrass Association member, bass player, teacher, and four-time winner of Northern California Bluegrass Society’s Bass Player of the Year award, Lisa Burns. DB: Hi Lisa, you’ve been in the middle of this CBA scene since