Jim VanCleve

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

Mountain Heart is taking a step up towards the big time. Their rowdy, hybrid show, which mixes elements of bluegrass, blues and rock music, will be represented by New Frontier Touring. They will continue to be managed by Brian Smith of

Cory Piatt, the talented young mandolinist with The Kenny & Amanda Smith Band, has recently completed a solo project. Entitled Daydreams, the album will be released this summer by Patuxent Music. Piatt tells us that he has been working on finishing this

Hudson James VanCleve, the third child of Mountain Heart fiddler Jim VanCleve and his lovely wife Desneige, was born at 10:34 p.m. yesterday in Nashville. Jim says that he weighed in at 8 lbs, 3 oz and 20.5 '' long. A hearty

Mountain Heart is having a heckuva strong start to their new year. Fiddler Jim VanCleve tells us that they have kicked off 2012 with a string of ten sold out shows, with a couple of nearly full houses in the mix

Another benefit concert has been scheduled in Knoxville for Phil Leadbetter, who continues to undergo treatment for a very stubborn cancer that has been try resistant to common therapies. Phil has dedicated his life to bluegrass music, working in turn

We've written many times about the magnificent work done by Darrel and Phyllis Adkins at their annual Musicians Against Childhood Cancer festival in Ohio. Top bluegrass acts make the trip each summer and perform at no charge, with proceeds from the

Arkansas fiddler Tasha Turner has suggested a new name for the US Presidential primaries in 2012. She posted this photo of Mountain Heart's Jim VanCleve, along with a winning campaign slogan, on her Facebook page. What say you Jim? Tasha performs with

There's bluegrass a'plenty on this weekend's edition on Mountain Stage, airing on dozens of NPR affiliates across the US. Nashville bad boys Mountain Heart will be featured, as well as Michigan's Greensky Bluegrass and the singing bluegrass attorney, Charlie Sizemore -

Today's the day! Our brand spanking new Bluegrass Blog theme song, The Speed Of Bluegrass, is now available as a digital single from iTunes or Amazon.com. We commissioned Jim VanCleve last year to compose a tune that would exemplify what we