This review is a contribution from Louisa Branscomb, one of bluegrass music's most prolific and celebrated songwriters. Do the math: a legendary singer-songwriter singing her own, plus a producer who understands the impressive scope of the material and how to render
While many of us think of hymns as the traditional, organ or piano accompanied songs we grew up singing in church, bluegrass musicians have long made a habit of adapting these sacred numbers to fit their style of music. One
I have a vivid memory of the first time I ever heard John Hartford's Aereo-Plain album. It was on vinyl; played on a record player that dated back to the time of the album's release, with speakers stretching out to
Am I the only one who still finds it hard to believe that IIIrd Tyme Out is over twenty years old? Maybe it's because their music still sounds as fresh. Maybe it's because Russell Moore's timeless voice sounds as good
Young musicians are on the rise in bluegrass these days. Of course, there have always been exceptional teens making their mark on the genre – J.D. Crowe with Jimmy Martin, Ricky Skaggs and Keith Whitley joining the Clinch Mountain Boys,
Like the United States, England has experienced several folk revivals over the past century, leading to a renewed interest in traditional and acoustic music, and even the establishment of an annual folk awards show by one of the United Kingdom’s
Blue Mafia is a relatively new young band based in Muncie, IN, whose distinctive modern sound is centered around the muscular guitar playing of Tony Wray, and the strong songwriting of his wife, Dara. The Wrays have assembled a crack
For those of you who might be in a hurry, here’s the abridged version right up front: Pretty Good For A Girl, Murphy Hicks Henry's epic history of women in bluegrass music, is a magnificent and important work, and if
Mountain Fever has another new CD out today, Blue Side Of Me, from Jeff Brown and Still Lonesome. Brown is a powerful vocalist, with a sound reminiscent of Larry Sparks, with whom he once worked, and the great Ralph Stanley, who
Over the past several months, we’ve written several times about the Generation Bluegrass films, which feature a number of young, up-and-coming bluegrass musicians, including several family bands which have seen their music reach a wider audience since the premiere of
