Rock Hearts has jumped in to the Christmas bluegrass single mix at the last minute with a song from their current album.
It’s Willie Nelson’s Pretty Paper, a heartbreak number that was a hit for Roy Orbison in 1963. The boys in Rock Hearts dress it up in a nice twin-fiddle bluegrass arrangement, just perfect for Christmastime.
Have a listen…
Pretty Paper from Rock Hearts is available from popular download and streaming services online, and for download purchase directly from the artists. Radio programmers will find the track at AirPlay Direct.
You can check out all the Christmas bluegrass we have covered at Bluegrass Today by following this link.
The single is one written by mandolinist Billy Thibodeau with fellow Mainer Stan Keach called Lonesome Man in a Lonesome Town. It’s a hard-chargin’ grasser about a man fresh out of prison with no family or friends. Now that’s mighty lonesome!
Billy says that it was a natural fit for their buddy, Danny Paisley.
“We felt that this song was perfect for Danny Paisley, and we were thrilled that Danny agreed to sing on it with us. We’re all huge fans of Danny, and thought of no one else but him to join us on this project. Danny’s undeniable and soulful lead vocals, which he trades off with Alex MacLeod, are quintessential Danny Paisley.
Danny is a gem in the world of bluegrass and Rock Hearts is proud to call him a friend.”
The rest of Rock Hearts is involved as well: McLeod on guitar, Joe Deetz on banjo, Austin Scelzo on fiddle, and Rick Brodsky on bass.
It’s a burner, and Alex and Danny wear it out.
Have a listen.
Unfinished Bridges is available now from the popular download and streaming services online, and to radio programmers via AirPlay Direct. Audio CDs can be ordered directly from the band.
Billy Thibodeau, mandolinist with Rock Hearts, has been inducted into the Maine Country Music Hall of Fame. He officially joined the HOF on May 19, and now shares this distinction with his father, Sam Tidwell, who is in the Rhode Island Bluegrass Alliance Hall of Fame.
Thibodeau, who had resided in Maine for 42 years, born in Ripley, now lives in Cumberland, Rhode Island, where he does repair work at Rick’s Musical Instruments.
He has been involved in bluegrass all of his adult life, after learning the ropes from his dad, who had worked with Don Reno, Red Smiley, and Mac Wiseman, among others. Billy played as a member of Sam’s Kennebec Valley Fold as a young man, as well as other northeastern groups like North Country Bluegrass, Bluegrass Supply Company, Breakneck Mountain Band, Stan Tyminski & Blue Diamond, The Union River Band, and Anna Mae Mitchell & Rising Tide, plus had his own bands, Descendants of Bluegrass and the the Bill Thibodeau Band, before coming into Rock Hearts in 2018.
In Bangor he operated two different recording studios in his day, and has credits on 14 albums and a number of singles that have received notable radio attention. Rock Hearts currently record for the 615 Hideaway Records label.
In accepting a plaque marking this induction, Billy said…
“This moment clearly validates that I’ve been on the right path for all these years. I am truly blessed!
I thank all my family, friends, and supporters from the bottom of my heart, while I pursue my musical journey.”
Rock Hearts performed as part of the induction ceremony, held at The Silver Spur in Mechanic Falls, ME.
Many congratulations to Billy Thibodeau on a most deserving honor.
Also inducted May 19 were Dan Bayall, Joan Kennedy, and Mike Preston.
615 Hideaway Record’s latest single from Rock Hearts, Unfinished Bridges, is a driving bluegrass number from Mark ‘Brink’ Brinkman and Eric Gnezda, a tale of lost love and heartbreak which the band delivers with panache.
Rock Hearts is among the most successful groups from New England in recent years, with a fresh bluegrass sound that has delivered them fans all over the US. Alex McLeod is on guitar, Joe Deetz on banjo, Billy Thibodeau on mandolin, Austin Scelzo on fiddle, and Rick Brodsky on bass.
Unfinished Bridges came to the band through Billy’s relationship with Brink, who met through IBMA and the NAMM shows. It will serve as the title track for the next Rock Hearts album, expected later this year.
McLeod, who sings the lead, explained a bit about their arrangement of this lonesome song.
“Brink and Gnezda’s original demo was an elemental version, leaving a lot of room for artistic interpretation and license. Rock Hearts was challenged with delivering the song as it was written, but at the same time, rendering it true to the Rock Hearts style. The story tells itself nicely with plenty of metaphors and imagery, but the band felt it could use some pep.
When the listener hears the first three fiddle strokes, they’re led to believe it’s going to be a mid-tempo song. But then the band rips into a double-time, while the lyrics are still rendered at a slower pace. The arrangement works beautifully, complimenting the imagery and story line.
Rock Hearts were honored to have recorded a Mark ‘Brink’ Brinkman and Eric Gnezda song, and be included in the long and humbling list of successful bands who have covered their music. Feedback from Brink is, ‘We love the cut and hope it will be a big hit for y’all!!’ That’s high praise from such a revered songwriter.”
Since 2016, the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development has selected award winners from all across the many disciplines of art, to honor those who have inspired others within the state. Scelzo will be interviewed by members of the state government, and travel to the capitol next month where he will deliver a speech at the awards ceremony.
In addition to performing, Austin is a passionate music educator and a tireless promoter of bluegrass music. After college, he spent four years as an orchestra teacher in the Darien public schools before deciding to become a full time artist, performer, and instructor. He teaches regularly at bluegrass workshops and festivals in the northeast, plus takes private students both in person and online.
Austin is also very involved with the Wernick Method jamming classes, and maintains a wealth of resources on his web site and on YouTube designed to help people get started playing and to improve their music. His involvement in the furtherance of bluegrass earned him a nomination for the IBMA’s Mentor of the Year Momentum award earlier this year.
Here’s a look at Scelzo with Rock Hearts at the World of Bluegrass convention in 2022.
Of being announced as a recipient of the Connecticut Arts Hero award, Austin says…
“Many of you must know how much this means to me as a lifelong Connecticut resident. I grew up in Wallingford, went to school at Western Connecticut State, worked my first job in the Darien Public Schools, planted firmly in Danbury, and resisted the urge to chase excitement in the music industry elsewhere.
For years I watched with some envy as many of my friends moved to Nashville, Boston, NYC, and more. Friends often asked me what kept me in Connecticut, a state not particularly known for its thriving bluegrass and country scene.
I’ve remained in Connecticut because of my unwavering dedication to a vision. My biggest heroes and inspirations in life were community builders. They planted roots in a community and nurtured them until they blossomed into beautiful realities. I’ve set out to build something similar to the Ashokan Center, a place that has inspired me for years. I understand that creating something truly transformative often takes decades of patience, commitment, and dedication.
Right now I am in a stage of life where I’m devoted to building a reputation for my passion in education, music, and community. I know that through consistent delivery of quality music education and musical performance, I may one day have the influence to create transformative musical retreats like the ones that first lit the musical spark for me as a teenager!”
The award came about after a bluegrass musician in the Danbury region, Alan Zinser, put forward a nomination in his name.
Many congratulations to a most deserving young musician, Austin Scelzo!
615 Hideaway Records has released a pair of new singles for Rock Hearts, who are quickly becoming New England’s favorite bluegrass group. The band boats five experienced veterans of the music scene up north who are currently expanding their reach all across the US.
One of these new releases is their take on Don’t Cry Blue, originally recorded by singer/songwriter Jonathan Edwards in 1971. It was one of two songs on Edwards debut album that he had not written, both of those, including Don’t Cry Blue, from Malcolm McKinney. That original cut had a decidedly grassy feel, and the song had since been covered by a number of bluegrass artists, including Lonesome River Band and Savage Hearts. Edwards even cut a grassed up version himself with Emmylou Harris and Seldom Scene.
The Rock Hearts single not only continues this bluegrass tradition, it brings Edwards together with the band for a duet arrangement where Jonathan trades verses with guitarist Alex MacLeod. Support comes from regular bandmates Joe Deetz on banjo, Billy Thibodeau on mandolin, Rick Brodsky on bass, and Austin Scelzo on fiddle. Edwards sings both lead and baritone harmony.
Check it out…
This collaboration led to Jonathan Edwards joining Rock Hearts at the recent Thomas Point Bluegrass Festival in Maine on another song he had recorded, Jimmie Rodgers’ Travelin’ Blues.
The second single from Rock Hearts also comes from their upcoming 615 Hideaway album, Wanderlust, and is likewise a duet, this time with Dale Ann Bradley, on Driving Nails. This gospel number was written by Bruce Carroll, Mickey Hiter, and Kevin Thomas, and recorded by Carroll back in 1987. It tells the story of the Crucifixion through the eyes of Mary, Jesus’ mother, who listened to the sound of the nails being driven into his hands and feet.
In an interesting side note, Scelzo tells us that the once the band decided to record this song, Deetz had a dream where MacLeod sang it in a duet with Bradley. So they reached out to see if she would do it, and she readily agreed. Dale Ann even shared the stage with Rock Hearts at the Jennybrook festival, where they sang this one together live.
Check out the single…
Both new singles from Rock Hearts will be available soon from popular download and streaming services online. Radio programmers will find them at AirPlay Direct.
Sam Tidwell, father of Rock Hearts mandolinist Billy Thibodeau, wrote the song as a protest against the modern changes in the logging industry in Maine. Tidwell, himself a major figure in the northeastern bluegrass community, now deceased, laments in The Last Log Drive how timber transport changed from floating logs down the river to the mills, to now being carried on 18 wheel logging trucks which clog up the rural roads.
Billy actually recalls seeing his dad writing the lyrics down, sitting at the kitchen table, when he was a boy. Thibodeau grew up in bluegrass, performing with his dad, whose actual last name is Thibodeau as well, and his uncle Bob with the Kennebec Valley Boys.
Other members of Rock Hearts include Joe Deetz on banjo, Alex Macleod on guitar, Austin Scelzo on fiddle, and Rick Brodsky on bass. Ned Luberecki was in the producer’s chair, recording at Dark Shadow studio.
Have a listen to The Last Log Drive.
The Last Log Drive is available now from popular download and streaming services online, and will appear on Rock Hearts’ upcoming Wanderlust album.
Radio programmers will find the track at AirPlay Direct.
Rock Hearts on the red carpet for the IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards (9/29/22) – photo by Sammy Passamano
615 Hideaway Records has released a new music video for Rock Hearts, a performance video for their song Wanderlust, which will be included on their upcoming project with the label.
Taking advantage of everyone being together last week in Raleigh for the World of Bluegrass convention, label head Sammy Passamano brought his video equipment along and shot the band in several spots in the convention center. Anyone who spent time there during IBMA week will recognize these settings, or may even have encountered the band during the shoot.
Rock Hearts is Joe Deetz on banjo, Alex McLeod on guitar and lead vocal, Billy Thibodeau on mandolin, Austin Scelzo on fiddle, and Rick Brodsky on bass.
The song is one McLeod wrote some time ago, with an eye towards the way he grew up in a military family, moving every few years and becoming anxious staying in one place. For Alex, he solved this issue by finding the love of his life, settling down, and starting a family.
Wanderlust started out as a slow, bluesy number that he repurposed just as the band was preparing to record this spring. In the studio, Michael Cleveland twin fiddled with Scelzo.
Passamano tells us that this shoot was a seat-of-the-pants affair, but that it worked out quite well. Before launching his label, Sammy had been focused on video production, even while working with his family’s label, Rural Rhythm Records.
“This was the definition of a ‘Run & Gun Shoot,’ and I was looking at what natural light we had to work with in the convention center. Overall, I would say that we plan on doing more video like this next year as it was so much fun. My flight on Friday was at 5:00 p.m., and I wanted to get to the airport early just to be safe. We started around noon and by 2:00 p.m. we had enough footage to work with.”
Check it out…
Wanderlust is available as a single now from popular download and streaming services online. Radio programmers can get the track at AirPlay Direct.
615 Hideaway Records has released their first single with Rock Hearts, since signing them to a recording contract last month. The southern New England grassers will produce multiple projects for the Nashville label.
For their debut the band has chosen Wanderlust, a new song written by guitarist and lead vocalist Alex MacLeod. As the title suggests, it’s about that feeling that you need to keep moving, and staying in one spot too long starts to make you anxious.
He say that it’s a feeling he sees in himself, growing up in a military family.
“It’s a song that I would dedicate to every adult military brat, who by simply being born into a military family, had to move frequently, often leaving friends and loved ones behind, always being the new kid, and trying to make sense of it all, never knowing where they’re from. Not so much the story, but the genesis of the story.”
Alex is supported by his regular bandmates Joe Deetz on banjo, Billy Thibodeau on mandolin, Rick Brodsky on bass, and Austin Scelzo on fiddle, with a special assist from Michael Cleveland, who joins Austin for a twin fiddle break, and a soaring solo of his own.
Rock Hearts, southern New England’s fastest rising bluegrass group, has signed a multi-project deal with 615 Hideaway Records in Nashville. The label is run by Sammy Passamano III, son of Sam Passamano of Rural Rhythm Records, and is known in the industry as Sammy3.
Members of the group became friends with Sammy during the 2021 World of Bluegrass Convention in Nashville, which led to them filming and distributing their music videos through 615 Hideaway.
Alex MacLeod, guitarist and lead singer with Rock Hearts, says that joining up with Passamano was a simple decision.
“It was clear after our very first get-together with Sammy3 that he understood us as a group and could relate to our goals and vision for what we want to achieve. What started as a friendly conversation about our band’s dreams, has developed into a mutual respect and admiration between us and Sammy3, with a commitment to working together to accomplish big things! From its inception, Rock Hearts has always felt like family, speaking the same ‘musical language,’ and it’s evident that Sammy3 speaks that same language as well. Rock Hearts believes Sammy3 has an exciting vision for 615 Hideaway Entertainment, and we’re honored to be a part of journey with him as we join The 615 Hideaway Records!”
For their first 615 Hideaway album, the band is working once again at Dark Shadow Recording, with Stephen Mougin engineering and Ned Luberecki producing.
In addition to Alex, Rock Hearts is Joe Deetz on banjo, Billy Thibodeau on mandolin, Austin Scelzo on fiddle, and Rick Brodsky on bass.
Here’s their most recent video, a band original called Whispering Waters.
Expect to hear some music from their next project in the near future.
