Reviews

One of the chief rules of stage performance, going back to the vaudeville days, is that you never want to follow an animal or a kid act. We don't get many animal acts in bluegrass, but cute kids have been a

Pressing play on the debut album from the Great Smoky Mountain Bluegrass Band is like taking a time machine to the 1950s. This four-piece group, based in the Tri-Cities region of East Tennessee, is writing and playing tunes straight out

Now that November is upon us, it seems like fair game to start talking about Christmas, and the new Christmas-themed project from Donna Ulisse. All The Way To Bethlehem, recently released by Hadley Music Group, is quite a departure from the

Young Cory Piatt is currently mandolinist with The Kenny & Amanda Smith Band. He has been playing almost half his 17 years, and has developed a stunning mastery of his instrument in this short time, as evidenced by his debut

Bluegrass musicians have always been known for drawing from other musical styles, particularly in the past several decades. Alabama-based band Delta Reign is no different, starting with a bluegrass standard – three-finger banjo – and building around it, adding swing,

Traditional musicians, particularly folk artists, have long been known for their tendency to write and record songs of protest. Most musicians today are not quite as outspoken and often choose to celebrate the things that make America great, rather than

I spent yesterday with Josh Graves by reading Bluegrass Bluesman: Josh Graves A Memoir, a collection of transcribed interviews given in the '90s by the resonator guitar master. Expertly edited by Fred Bartenstein with help from a lot of good folks,

Here's a real international bluegrass story, the tale of guitarist Rob Lifford, who grew up in New York, became passionate about bluegrass in South Korea, and ended up in Austin, TX jamming with the guys in Milkdrive. And like those Austin

We've written many times about the bluegrass music program at East Tennessee State University, and their fine work turning out educated, capable young artists for the bluegrass farm teams. They are among the very few institutions where a talented young

For a musician living in Texas, Geoff Union certainly spans the country in his newest release, Cold as Steel. This Austin-based guitarist and vocalist sings about North Carolina, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Colorado and yes, Texas, on his first solo project,