An online resource for information on all things Bluegrass in southern New England from the folks at WHUS Radio's "Bluegrass Cafe." We broadcast each Sunday from 4:00-7:00PM (EST) on WHUS, 91.7FM and whus.org in Storrs, CT. Call us during the show -- (860)486-9487, or send email to bgcafe@gmail.com.
James Ward and his mom, Cathy, began their own one-hour BG show at WHUS last Monday, September 20th. The show airs from 3:00-4:00PM every Monday, so won't you think about joining them tomorrow?
Here's what they played during the first show on September 20th...
Bluegrass Saturday Night / Rhonda Vincent / Good Thing Going / Rounder
Gonna Be Moving / Darrell Webb Band / Bloodline / Rural Rhythm
Meet Me Over On The Other Side / Darin Aldridge & Brooke Justice / I'll Go With You / Pinecastle
Can't You Hear The Mountain Calling / Ralph Stanley & the Clinch Mountain Boys / Can't You Hear The Mountains Calling / Rounder
I Remember You / Del McCoury Band / Family Circle / McCoury Music
Wait 'Til The Clouds Roll By / White Mountain Bluegrass / Oh So Many Years / Self-Produced
San Antonio Rose / Jessie Baker / Yessir! / Patuxent Music
The Last Song / Josh Williams / Down Home / Pinecastle
Come Early Morning / Lynn Morris Band / Lynn Morris Band / Rounder
Jesus On The Mainline / Dry Branch Fire Squad / Long Journey / Rounder
The Mountain's Gonna Sing / Steep Canyon Rangers / Deep In The Shade / Rebel
Nashville Cats / Del McCoury Band / By Request / McCoury Music
Rollin' In My Sweet Baby's Arms / The Grascals / Keep On Walkin' / Rounder
Sinners, You Better Get Ready / Ricky Skaggs / Ricky Skaggs Solo: Songs My Dad Loved / Skaggs Family
Don't Neglect The Rose / Lynn Morris / Shape Of A Tear / Rounder
Backwoods Barbie / Dolly Parton / Live From London / Dolly Records
Foggy Mountain Breakdown / Charlie Cushman / Five String Time / Self-Produced
I'm off to Nashville this week, so not sure I'll have a chance to post a bunch of details about today'sBG Cafe anytime soon. In the meantime, here's the playlist... Our "agenda" for Sunday's show included playing a few tunes from some of the nominees for various IBMA Awards this year, as well as a bit of music representing the two Hall of Fame inductees for 2010 (John HartfordandLouise Scruggs). About midway through the show, we had a telephone conversation with Connecticut Bluegrass promoter,Chris Wuerth, who for the past couple of years has put together some top-notch shows in the New Haven area. Chris's next concert featuresTim O'Brien & Bryan Suttonon October 2nd, andDavid Petersonwill be playing in Hamden on November 1st. For more information, visitwww.guitartownct.com. Have a good week - Amy
Katy Hill / Del McCoury Band / RockyGrass / Blue Planet
The Old Home Place / J.D. Crowe & the New South / The Old Home Place / Rounder
Old Homestead Ain't So Homey Anymore / Lonesome Pine Fiddlers / Starday Collection / Gusto
Lonesome Old Home / Longview / The Old Home Place / Rounder
The Hills Of My Home / Laurie Lewis / Earth & Sky / Rounder
My Old Kentucky Home / Dan Paisley & the Southern Grass / The Tradition Continues / Brandywine
I Wonder How The Old Folks Are At Home / Mac Wiseman / In Concert, 1971 / Rural Rhythm
Beauty Of My Dreams / Blackjack / 10 Years Of European World Of Bluegrass / Strictly Country
Buckaroo / James Alan Shelton / Where I'm Bound / Sheltone Records
Let Me Be Your Friend / Stanley Brothers / The Complete Columbia Stanley Brothers / Columbia Legacy
Where The Old Red River Flows / John Hartford / Steam-Powered Aereo Takes / Rounder
Run Little Rabbit / John & Jamie Hartford / Hartford & Hartford / Flying Fish
Doin' My Time / John Hartford / Steam-Powered Aereo Takes / Rounder
Give This Message To Your Heart / Larry Stephenson with Dailey & Vincent / 20th Anniversary / Pinecastle
Anybody Else's Heart / Dale Ann Bradley / Don't Turn Your Back / Compass Records
Through The Window Of A Train / Blue Highway / Some Day: The Fifteenth Anniversary Collection / Rounder
Sinner / Tim O'Brien / Chicken & Egg / Howdy Skies Records
Gonna Try To Make Her Stay / Tim O'Brien / Chicken & Egg / Howdy Skies Records
Gonna Lay Down My Old Guitar / Bryan Sutton / Almost Live / Sugar Hill
1946 / David Peterson / Live At WHUS, 5/8/2010 / no label
A Stranger In My Own Hometown / Jerry Butler & the Blu-Js / Good Home Grown Sampler, 2010 / Blue Circle
The Reckless Side Of Me / The Steeldrivers / Reckless / Rounder
Pay No Attention To Alice / Charlie Sizemore / Good Home Grown Sampler, 2010 / Blue Circle
Call On Me / Ken Scoggins & Miller's Creek / Once In A Lifetime Thing / Old Homestead
Foggy Mountain Breakdown / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / The Essential Earl Scruggs / Columbia Legacy
Why Did You Wander / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / Selected Sides, 1948-1952 / JSP Records
Randy Lynn Rag / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / The Essential Earl Scruggs / Columbia Legacy
R.P.'s Run [music bed] / Tim Martin / Bluegrass Fiddle / Patuxent Music
Green's Creek [music bed] / Tim Martin / Bluegrass Fiddle / Patuxent Music
J.C.'s Hornpipe [music bed] / Tim Martin / Bluegrass Fiddle / Patuxent Music
Mush Melon [music bed] / Tim Martin / Bluegrass Fiddle / Patuxent Music
Big Iron / Jim Hurst / Second Son / Pinecastle
Don't Worry / Johnson Mountain Boys / Requests / Rounder
Hard Rock Mountain Prison ('Til I Die) / Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out / Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out / Rural Rhythm
My Florida Sunshine / Claire Lynch / Whatcha Gonna Do / Rounder
Roll On Buddy Roll On / Sam Bush with Del McCoury / Circles Around Me / Sugar Hill
Up This Hill And Down / The Grascals / The Famous Lefty Flynn's / Rounder
Don't You Wanna Go To Heaven / Dailey & Vincent / Singing From The Heart / Rounder
Living The Right Life Now / Paul Williams & the Victory Trio / Just A Little Closer Home / Rebel
When I Safely Reach That Other Shore / Reno & Smiley / Early Years, 1951-1959 / Gusto
It's Just Like Heaven / Bill Yates & Friends / Country Gentlemen Tribute, Volume II / Mastershield Records
I Just Want To Thank You Lord / Larry Sparks / I Just Want To Thank You Lord / Rural Rhythm Christian
One Wide River / Country Gentlemen / Early Rebel Recordings, 1962-1971 / Rebel
For Him / Gary Waldrep Band / Road Leading Home / Blue Circle
Ring The Bell / Gibson Brothers / Ring The Bell / Compass Records
Blue Grass Twist / Johnson Mountain Boys / Requests / Rounder
When school is in session at UCONN, that means that the various sports teams are also playing. At WHUS, our Sports Department works hard to broadcast LOTS of sporting events during the school year, including not only the "biggies" of football and basketball, but also, Men's & Women's Soccer, as well as both Ice and Field Hockey during their respective seasons. Generally, the Sports folks are very good at telling us when one of our programs will be preempted for sports so that we can pass the information along to prospective listeners ahead of time. This past Sunday, though, a Men's Soccer preemption that was supposed to go from 1-3PM ended up happening from 2-4:15ish, instead. So, we got a late start, but still squeezed in a whole lot of music. Hope you don't feel "short-changed."
We featured a good bit of brand new music from quite a few performers, including music from the forthcoming third release from Balsam Range ("Trains I Missed" on Mountain Home), as well as duo Fred Carpenter & Tim May, and a Colorado band called the Blue Canyon Boys. The Boxcars are a new band of veterans with a new self-titled CD on Mountain Home, and they are good! That's not really surprising, though, when the band includes Adam Steffey on mandolin, Ron Stewart on banjo, John R. Bowman on the fiddle, Keith Garrett on the guitar, and Harold Nixon on the bass. No doubt you'll be hearing lots more from their fine debut recording in future weeks of the BG Cafe. And, of course, we included tunes from practically-new CDs from Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa, Marty Marrone & Tangled Roots, Big Country Bluegrass, Rich In Tradition, and Volume Five.
Since Hank Williams was born on September 17, 1923, I couldn't resist putting together a few Hank tunes done in the BG style as a way of tribute. Is there any style of music in which a Hank Williams tune hasn't been covered? Maybe rap, but who knows?
Jim told you last week about a new program that hit the airwaves at WHUS just yesterday. James Ward and his mom, Cathy, debuted their program called, "Bluegrass Rules" on Monday -- be sure to join them every week from 3-4PM, if you can!
I'll join you once more this coming Sunday, so hope you'll be able to tune in for at least a few minutes...
Have a good week - Amy
REQUESTS ARE BOLD.
Katy Hill / Del McCoury Band / RockyGrass / Blue Planet
No More The Moon Shines On Lorena / Everett Lilly / Everett Lilly & Everybody & Their Brother / Swift River Music
Talk To Me Lonesome Heart / Larry Stephenson with Marty Stuart & Connie Smith / 20th Anniversary / Pinecastle
Ida Red / Lost & Found / Classic Bluegrass / Rebel
Cotton Dice / Patuxent Partners / Seven Or Eleven / Patuxent Music
Why Don't You Tell Me So / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / Selected Sides, 1948-1950 / JSP Records
December 13th / The Boxcars / The Boxcars / Mountain Home
Cherokee Shuffle / Fred Carpenter & Tim May / Carpenter & May / Violin Shop Records
Callin' Caroline / Balsam Range / Trains I Missed / Mountain Home
Rocky Mountain Bound / Blue Canyon Boys / Mountain Bound / Self-Produced
I Could Change My Mind / The Boxcars / The Boxcars / Mountain Home
The Boys In Hats And Ties / Big Country Bluegrass / The Boys In Hats And Ties / Rebel
It's Mighty Dark To Travel / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys / The Essential Earl Scruggs / Columbia
Home / Volume Five / Down In A Cell / Mountain Fever Records
Poor Ellen Smith / Wilma Lee Cooper / O Sister 2 / Rounder
Since Sunday was just a day before the anniversary of William Smith Monroe's 99th birthday, and just a few days after the anniversary of his death in 1996, this entire show was dedicated to music by, of, about, and in honor of Bill Monroe.
Notable tributes included songs or tunes from Mark Newton, The Wildwood Valley Boys, Frank Wakefield, Rhonda Vincent, Dolly Parton, Peter Rowan, Cadillac Sky, and the late Randy Howard.
In addition to the many artists performing the songs of Bill Monroe, we brought you several interesting recordings of Bill himself that included a very late 1995 studio performance with Earl Scruggs (first time in the studio together since the 1940s) and Byron Berline, a duet with Emmylou Harris, and an instrumental duet with Doc Watson. We also heard from The Monroe Brothers (Bill & Charlie), and what is certainly one of the strangest tunes Bill ever wrote, "My Last Days On Earth."
We played the last two studio recordings made by Bill Monroe. The songs appeared on a tribute project by Billy & Terry Smith released in 1997. You may know Terry Smith as the bass picker with The Grascals, and Billy Smith as a great songwriter who records by the name Billy Boone Smith.
Probably the rarest tune we played was an undocumented radio air check of Bill playing an otherwise unknown instrumental called "Orange Blossom Breakdown" that sounds like it came from a version of the Blue Grass Boys with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs which would date it in the late 1940s. (Airing this tune caused one listener to nearly run his car off the road.)
If you haven't yet supported the campaign to have the USPS issue a stamp for Bill Monroe, you can do it now by going to http://www.billmonroestamp.org/
We hope you enjoyed our tribute to Bill. We have come to love our annual celebration of Monroe because it keeps the source of our favorite music in our minds and relevant, and we hope you feel the same way.
Amy will make the banjos and fiddles ring next Sunday, so be sure to tune in.
Also, the new schedule at WHUS will begin later this week, and you now can look forward to another bluegrass program on Monday afternoons from 3 to 4pm ET titled "Bluegrass Rules" with long time "Bluegrass Cafe" listeners and sometime fill-in hosts James Ward and Cathy Ward. Be sure to check them out at 91.7 FM or whus.org
Good pickin'
Jim Beaver
Song / Artist / Album / Label
Tennessee Blues / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / Mule Skinner Blues / RCA
White House Blues / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / Blue Grass 1950-1958 / Bear Family
With Body And Soul / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / High Lonesome (Soundtrack) / CMH
Sally Goodin / Byron Berline with Bill Monroe & Earl Scruggs / Fiddle And A Song / Sugar Hill
Monrosine / Mark Newton / Living A Dream / Rebel
Kentucky Waltz / Bill Monroe with Emmylou Harris / Bill Monroe's Friends / MCA (LP)
This Is For Bill / Frank Wakefield / Ownself Blues / Patuxent
Bluest Man In Town / The Johnson Mountain Boys / At The Old Schoolhouse / Rounder
Mule Skinner Blues / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / Mule Skinner Blues / BMG
The Big Man From Rosine / Wildwood Valley Boys / Songs From Wildwood Valley / Rebel
Wheel Hoss / Dan Menzone / Frostbite / Self-released
Uncle Pen / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / Blue Grass 1950-1958 / Bear Family
Is The Grass Any Bluer / Rhonda Vincent / The Storm Still Rages / Rounder
Stay Away From Me / Audie Blaylock and Redline / Cryin' Heart Blues / Rural Rhythm
I'm Blue, I'm Lonesome / The Grascals / The Famous Lefty Flynn's / Rounder
Watson Blues / Bill Monroe & Doc Watson / Off The Record Vol. 2 / Smithsonian Folkways
Orange Blossom Breakdown / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / NA / Unidentified Radio Transcription
Bluer Pastures / Dolly Parton / Little Sparrow / Sugar Hill
On And On / Ted Lundy, Bob Paisley & The Southern Mountain Boys / Self-titled / GHP
Travelin' Down This Lonesome Road / The Dreadful Snakes / Snakes Alive! / Rounder
Weep Not For The Dead / Peter Rowan / Bluegrass Boy / Sugar Hill
Molly And Tenbrooks / Alan O'Bryant, Craig Smith, others / True Life Blues - The Songs Of Bill Monroe / Sugar Hill
Georgia Rose / Fred Pike, Sam Tidwell & The Kennebec Valley Boys / The Last Log Drive / Revonah
My Long Journey Home / Bill & Charlie Monroe / Blue Moon Of Kentucky / Bear Family
Never Been So Blue / Cadillac Sky / Blind Man Walking / Skaggs Family
Cheap Love Affair / Bob Paisley and the Southern Grass / Steeped In Tradition / Brandywine
Come Hither to Go Yonder / The Virginia Cutups / Cherishing Memories / Fayette County
Walk Softly On This Heart Of Mine / Billy & Terry Smith with Bill Monroe / Bill Monroe Tribute / K-Tel
Letter From My Darlin' / The Bluegrass Album Band / The Bluegrass Compact Disc, Vol 2 / Rounder
Blue Moon of Kentucky / Billy & Terry Smith with Bill Monroe / Bill Monroe Tribute / K-Tel
Used To Be / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / Blue Grass 1950-1958 / Bear Family
So Long, Bill / Randy Howard / I Rest My Case / Sugar Hill
Toy Heart / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / The Essential / Columbia
Jerusalem Ridge / Bill Monroe with Kenny Baker / The Music Of Bill Monroe 1936 - 1994 / MCA
On The Old Kentucky Shore / The Bluegrass Album Band / Volume V, Sweet Sunny South / Rounder
Walls Of Time / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / Blue Grass 1959 - 1969 / Bear Family
Goodbye Old Pal / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / 16 Gems / Columbia
She's Young (And I'm Growing Old) / The Johnson Mountain Boys / Live At The Birchmere / Rounder
What Would You Give In Exchange? / Bill & Charlie Monroe / Blue Moon Of Kentucky / Bear Family
Walking In Jerusalem (Just Like John) / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys featuring Jimmy Martin / The King & The Father / Universal Music
That Home Above / David Peterson & 1946 / The Howling Blue Winds / Self-released
You're Drifting Away / Nashville Bluegrass Band / To Be His Child / Rounder
Wicked Path Of Sin / Old And In The Way / That High Lonesome Sound / Acoustic Disc
A Voice From On High / Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys / High Lonesome (Soundtrack) / CMH
Get Down On Your Knees And Pray / The Johnson Mountain Boys / Live At The Birchmere / Rounder
What Would You Do / Fred Etheridge with Nick Anderson and Mark Doyle / Pickin & Sing'n / Self-released
My Last Days On Earth / Bill Monroe / The Music Of Bill Monroe 1936 - 1994 / MCA
There are at least two events happening in CT on Saturday, September 18th which involve live Bluegrass music. Hope you can partake of at least one...
The Hartland Hollow Bluegrass Festival (#11?) takes place at Berg Field in East Hartland, and features several area bands. Music begins at 10AM and will run until about 8PM. The lineup includes ShoreGrass, Cindy Rines & Mad River Crossing, Acoustic Blue, TrueGrass, Bear Minimum, Crossover, and Old Country Road. This event is put on by the Town of Hartland as a non-profit benefit. For more information, call (860)844-8526. This year, there is a Hartland Hollow Bluegrass Festival website, so visit that site for directions on how to get to the festival. You can also view a copy of the festival flyer by clicking here.
An event that's not purely BG also merits a mention here, as New England Bluegrass Pioneer Sam Tidwell will make an appearance. The Preston City Congregational Church in Preston, CT hosts their 5th annual Scarecrow Festival. While this festival is billed as an old-fashioned, small-town harvest celebration with lots of vendors, activities for the kids, and food, there is plenty of fine, free entertainment to be enjoyed, as well. Sam Tidwell, John Stey & Friends will be performing from 3 to 5PM. If you'd like more information on the Scarecrow Festival (including directions), click here.
At WHUS, we like to play new music. That simple rule applies to just about all of the shows on the air and the various genres of music that are played at WHUS, and it certainly includes us at the BG Cafe. This week, in addition to including some music from a few of the Masters -- Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, the Stanley Brothers, Jim & Jesse, Reno & Smiley -- we featured some extremely new music from the likes of Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa, Balsam Range, and the Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band. H
ope you enjoyed the mix...
If you attended the Strawberry Park Bluegrass Festival back in June, you may have seen Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa performing. Until his retirement in 2008, Wayne was the featured singer and guitar player with the U.S. Navy's country music band known as Country Current. His first post-retirement gig was with Bill Emerson & Sweet Dixie, but it wasn't long before Wayne launched his own band which he named after a tune he'd written years before, Appaloosa.This group's second CD release is called "Out In The Middle Of Nowhere." The current band includes Wayne on guitar and lead vocals, Emory Lester on mandolin and vocals, Lee Marcus on banjo and vocals, and Kene
Hyatt on the bass. It wouldn't surprise me to see these guys play more in New England in the 2011 and beyond...we'll have to wait and see.
We also included the title track from the forthcoming third recording from North Carolina band, Balsam Range. This new CD on Mountain Home Records is titled, "Trains I Missed," and should be available for us radio types sometime very soon. I look forward to hearing the whole CD. And while Peter Rowan is not exactly "new" to the Bluegrass world, his new recording for Compass Records features the Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band (including Jody Stecher on mandolin, Keith Little on mandolin,and Paul Knight on bass), and is titled, "Legacy."
September marks the anniversary of the birth and death of the Father of Bluegrass, Bill Monroe (born September 11, 1911--died September 9, 1996). There's no doubt that there will be many, many special celebrations in the world of Bluegrass as we work toward the Bill Monroe Centennial year, so we started our own little celebration on Sunday by playing 7 tunes written by or about Bill Monroe. Don't be surprised to hear a whole lot more Monroe tunes and tributes in future weeks.
Jim joins you for next week's BG Cafe -- be sure to tune in beginning at 4PM on Sunday.
Have a good week -
Amy
REQUESTS ARE RED.
Katy Hill / Del McCoury Band / RockyGrass / Blue Planet
I Ain't Goin' To Work Tomorrow / Carter Family / Anchored In Love / Rounder
Poor Boy Workin' Blues / Dailey & Vincent / Dailey & Vincent / Rounder
Will I Be The Winner? / Cherryholmes / Cherryholmes / Skaggs Family
Say You'll Take Me Back / Stanley Brothers / Selected Cuts, 1955-1956 / JSP Records
Workin' Man Blues / Osborne Brothers / Hillbilly Fever / CMH Records
I Thought I'd Seen It All / Darin & Brooke Aldridge / Darin & Brooke Aldridge / Mountain Home
Stickleyville Stomp / Tim Martin / Bluegrass Fiddle / Patuxent Music
Riverboat Fantasy / Country Gentlemen / River Bottom / Sugar Hill
Carolina Hurricane / Lorraine Jordan & Carolina Road / Lorraine Jordan & Carolina Road / Rural Rhythm
We didn't create this blog to talk about ourselves. If you'd like to learn a bit about some of the WHUS Bluegrass alumni, you can find info in this blog. Primarily, though, the site exists to promote the Bluegrass music we play weekly on air at the "Bluegrass Cafe." We love to hear from listeners, so give us a call during the show (860-486-9487) or send an email to bgcafe@gmail.com.
