When Oklahoma bluegrass band Midnight Hollow were ready to release a new single, they chose to cover U2’s massive international hit from 1987, Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For. The song became an anthem for the iconic Irish rockers, and has been recorded by a number of other artists over the years, including a previous bluegrass cut by Dierks Bentley and Del McCoury.
Midnight Hollow kicks the song off in a vein smilier to the original, but with grassy rhythm guitar and vocal. In a different key, banjo player Joey Shann sings it in a high, plaintive voice until the band joins after the chorus.
Shann says he knew this song from his youth, but then one day, he heard it as bluegrass.
“I grew up listening to the ’80s with my Dad headed to town, and I think we can all agree the ’80s were a special time for music, and hair. I was in the store and this song I’ve heard a hundred times came on the radio, and for some reason, this time it sounded bluegrass in my head. So I brought it to the guys and we made it happen.”
Support comes from band members Allan Sanders on guitar and mandolin, Daniel Collier on fiddle, and Chance Coppedge on bass. Harmony vocals are provided by Allan and Chance. The band also counts sound and lighting tech Michael Rarick as a member.
It does make a fine bluegrass number, and the guys retain the song’s initial vibe with the 4/4 beat. Have a listen.
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For from Midnight Hollow is available today from popular download and streaming services online. Radio programmers will find the track via AirPlay Direct.
The stage at the Double Stop Fiddle Shop, where once Byron Berline, the King of the double stop, stood, was the back drop for a recent unveiling of two new bluegrass albums. Both Joe Kahlden, of Midnight Hollow, and The Hunt Brothers celebrated their latest projects in Guthrie, OK.
Joe Kahlden opened with his first solo recording. Kahlden’s background in the bluegrass scene has been ongoing since the age of 13. While exposed to bluegrass music at an early age, opportunity began to really knock when Joe was asked to join the band Cliff Top. From CliffTop to Midnight Hollow the roads for Kahlden have opened up a career highway through his talent.
Road to Nowhere offers 12 tracks of acoustic bluegrass/newgrass with vocal performances by Joe Kahlden. He offers his multi talents both as a composer and very strong songwriter on this album. Joe is a hard driven flatpicker with a voice that drips with honey. The album was mastered and engineered at Byron’s Fiddle Shop. I personally enjoyed the pure traditional sounds of Saint Ann’s Reel, which embraces with a grand entry of sound and offers sweet melodic sounds.
The following instrumentalists recorded the album: Joe Kahlden on guitar, Jonathan Hunt on banjo, Henry Burgess on mandolin, and Andrew Hunt on fiddle. Recorded and mixed at the iconic Fiddle Shop and Double Stop Recording, it is released under the label of First Capital Records.
The Hunt Brothers “get down” with their traditional bluegrass sound. Live at the Music Hall is not their only first album, but also their first live recording. To attempt a live album is difficult on its own, but to be able to make it happen without a glitch on your first release is a mastery of its own kind.
Traditionally-based bluegrass performed on Byron Berline’s stage was just the icing on the cake as the four piece band performed with an enthusiastic rendering of their 30 track release. Live the Hunt Brothers, Andrew and Jonathan, are engaging, personable, and with a focus centered on entertaining. Having studied music with Cowboy Jim Garling, they learned the secret of relaxation from Byron, and you can see it in their comfort at center stage.
The album consists of traditional tunes from Riding on the Midnight Trail to Sally Goodin, close familial harmonies, and toe-tapping music. This four piece band brings a comic personality to their routine, with the grace of God, offering a true family show experience with their own interpretation of bluegrass music. Look for this brother duet team to climb in the world of bluegrass music.
Not only was this a huge evening as Bette and Becca Berline greeted you at the door, there was yet another introduction to the filled to capacity room. Andrew Hunt, with beaming pride, brought his wife and newborn son, Charlie, onto the stage. Seems this family is full of new releases, as Charlie, who “plays the lead bassinet,” according to Uncle Jonathan, was born July 9.
Engineered by Jonathan Hunt, the following are heard on the live album: Andrew Hunt (fiddle and vocals), Jonathan Hunt (banjo and vocals), Sam Grounds (guitar and vocals), and David Meyer (bass).
In downtown Oklahoma City, a mere three blocks south of the iconic Bricktown district, lies a 70 acre park, Scissortail Park, named for the Oklahoma State Bird, which offers experiences for all ages. The Upper Park opened in September of 2019, while the lower park was opened to the public in September of last year. An open air stage was the focal point for the evening when Jerry Douglas performed last Friday.
Kicking off the night with the sound of bluegrass, Midnight Hollow, a new, almost acoustic outfit with an authentic sound was the opening act. Midnight Hollow offers a true acoustic experience, using electric bass, with top flight harmonies that are almost familial, however, these four band members are not true family, just great friends.
These talented young musicians can clearly play, but when you hear their harmonies you will definitely be a fan and follower. Being based out of Oklahoma and relatively new as a band, this quartet of multi-talents has already achieved a strong regional following and some major concert dates and appearances.
Midnight Hollow consists of Joey Shann (banjo, reso guitar, and vocals), Joe Kahlden (guitar and vocals), Chance Coppedge (bass and vocals), and Sam Conrey (mandolin and vocals). Midnight Hollow typically performs without a fiddle, but this weekend they brought a very talented and experienced fiddler from Tulsa along to the show. Daniel Collier bowed like he played regularly with the band.
Before the show, Kahlden shared, “We are super excited to open for one of our heroes, Jerry Douglas.”
Douglas, of course, is a household name in bluegrass music. A fifteen-time Grammy winner, and three-time CMA winner, Jerry and his band kicked off their 2023 tour in Oklahoma, where as we all know the wind comes sweeping down the plains.
Looking over Douglas’ discography, one quickly recognizes the artists with whom he has taken the stage. Just to name a few: Alison Krauss & Union Station, Tommy Emmanuel, Earl Scruggs, and the list goes on with over 1500 artists that he has performed or recorded with.
But after perusing Douglas’ Oklahoma connections, a hidden gem was discovered. In 1976, Billy Perry gathered six jam buddies and recorded Billy Perry’s Bluegrass Jam. This vinyl LP was produced under the King Bluegrass Records label, and was pressed by Artists Recording Co. Instrumentalists on this rare find were Billy Perry on banjo, Mike Perry on bass, Jerry “Flux” Douglas on dobro, Vince Gill on guitar, Bobby Clark on mandolin, and Ricky Skaggs on fiddle. The genre of the album album was described as “Folk, World & Country in the style of Bluegrass.”
On the back of the album were photos of each artist. Wow, these guys have matured and are unrecognizable from what we see today.
Also in 1977, the same group of jammers (minus Gill) met in Kentucky and released yet another LP under the same label, Billy Perry’s Bluegrass – More Bluegrass Jam. It was a surprise when I sent an email to Brian Penix, with Vector Management about Jerry Douglas, “I don’t know about these albums. Can you send me photos, front and back?”
Of course, I sent my pics of the album immediately.
https://youtu.be/Q6DIU6sZK7Y
The show at Scissortail Park was an enormous success. The buzz was centered around the fact that this was the first known internationally recognized artist to perform at Scissortail Park in the bluegrass genre. But Douglas is more than just an outstanding musical talent, he is an entertainer, and kept his audience waiting on his next word and melody.
Douglas’s interaction with the audience was appealing and welcoming. The vocals were sublime, and exhilarating. The music and dancing lights with the Skydance bridge on the Oklahoma horizon, the evening was simply spectacular.
Oklahoma is on fire with bluegrass these days, with a new band, Midnight Hollow, that is only adding to the flames.
Banjo picker Joey Shann previously toured with The Baker Family and The Dave Adkins Band. From Claremore, OK, Shann held the title in 2018 in both Oklahoma and Kentucky in the State Banjo Championship. A multi- faceted talent, he was self taught while in his younger years, and now plays piano, banjo, and dobro, which is just a tip of what he brings to the table with his musicality.
Chance Coppedge, a Tulsan, is a hot in-demand bassist. While he may not play the stand up bass as traditional bluegrass usually does, Coppedge brings his self taught structure center stage. Chance has worked in Branson with Eric Hinson, of the original Hinson Family. Today Chance is the bassist and musical director for The Life Church of Broken Arrow OK, and instructs for the Anthem Road Academy.
Joe Kahlden, singer and songwriter, flatpicks with the best of them. No stranger to the stage, Kahlden and his family band have opened for Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder. Joe also plays lead acoustic with another rising talent, Cliff Top.
Full of talent, mandolin player Sam Conrey hails from near Memphis, Tennessee. Sam’s musical roots began with blues and rock. But magic happened when Sam stumbled into a jam session in Edmond, OK. Totally mesmerized by the mandolin, Conrey purchased his first only recently and has played for a year and a half. Conrey is also an active member of the band, Cliff Top.
Midnight Hollow’s newest release Can’t Make Things Right, was written by Kahlden. Their EP, a 3 track, was Kahlden and Conrey both take life’s moment and in a story-book fashion write songs that will bring tears to your eyes. Conrey states, “Joe and I are stylistically different. He offers originality but the whole band shares responsibility and works together.”
Midnight Hollow will have a full-length album released in June 2022.
Jonathan Hunt, of the Hunt Brothers Band, was the engineer of Can’t Make Things Right, and the recording was completed on the stage of The Double Stop Fiddle Shop, in Guthrie OK.
Shann and Coppedge had an earlier band, Coyote Hill in 2003. However, it was Byron Berline’s Oklahoma International Bluegrass Festival that introduced the four men. While jamming in the camp, they found one another. Shann spoke of OIBF 2021, “It was a very special year with Byron’s passing. Everyone was supportive and the spirits were up.” Conrey agreed, saying, “I only met Byron one time, and he gave me some constructive criticism, which I learned from. I wish I would’ve known him better.”
the band performed their first show at the Double Stop Fiddle Shop. Although Berline is not physically present, his spirit engulfs the state of Oklahoma as new talents emerge.
Midnight Hollow is sponsored by Streeper Banjos, Pitt Resophonic Guitars, Travis Williams Guitars, and GHS Strings.
![Billy Perry's Bluegrass Jam [1976] - Billy Perry's Bluegrass Jam](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/RYFvemmB6_4/hqdefault.jpg)
