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Lorraine Jordan & Carolina Road had announced in early March that their long time guitarist and lead singer, Tommy Long, would be taking a medical leave of absence from the band to undergo treatment for throat cancer. Now, Lorraine has scheduled

First round balloting for the 2017 International Bluegrass Music Awards, which was to have begun last week, has been stopped with a new ballot being prepared for voting members today. While there was no error in the existing ballot, some members

Among formerly young people, one of the most fearsome health risks is stroke. The warning signs are often invisible, but the devastating effects can be dreadful, especially to a musician who makes their living and their life with their hands.

A CD release concert is a pretty big deal, and a CD release concert at a museum dedicated to perhaps the most iconic musician in the history of bluegrass is an even bigger deal. How do you go about making

Bluegrass and related forms of old time and mountain music have long figured prominently in film. Perhaps it is the honesty and organic nature of the music that lends itself so well to use as a score, or the fact

The Salty Dogs, a group of pre-teen bluegrass all-stars, brought down the house and delighted millions of television viewers on last night's edition of Little Big Shots with Steve Harvey. The hit show follows the tried-and-true formula of pairing cute

Today a new single drops from Ralph Stanley II, his first since assuming the mantle passed by his late father as the new leader of the famed Clinch Mountain Boys. It's a heavy load to carry, the heir of the

Let's talk a bit about another banjo icon, someone who touched the lives of thousands of banjo players over a long career, but without the widespread attention that has come to someone like Béla Fleck, whom we discussed earlier this

Have you ever looked at the song titles of a new album and wondered what those songs are about? In some cases, the guesswork is removed for you by the specifics in the title, like Wreck of the Old 97,

MerleFest has announced the finalists for their 2017 Chris Austin Songwriting Contest. Each year hundreds of eager writers submit songs to be considered for this prestigious competition. First round judges then have the unenviable task of selecting three finalists in each