Bluegrass Cafe: March 2013

Sunday, March 31, 2013

"Bluegrass Cafe" Playlist - 3/31/2013 - Easter

Hi Folks.

The first two hours of our Easter Day show was new and classic bluegrass, and the last hour was bluegrass music of Good Friday and Easter.

Up early in the show was new music from young mandolin picker and songwriter Chris Henry. While his new album covers a range of styles, the track we played demonstrates very strong traditional bluegrass chops.

Other new music included a new singles from upcoming releases from Mark Newton & Steve Thomas, and Dailey & Vincent, and music from new releases from The Gibson Brothers, Sutton, Holt and Coleman, Marty Raybon, and Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver.

Steve Thomas (L) and Mark Newton (R)

We returned to some recently-released music from Kathy Kallick, Alan Bibey & Wayne Benson, Dennis Cash, The Steeldrivers, Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out, The Lonesome River Band, The VW Boys, Ricky Skaggs, Danny Paisley, American Drive, Toshio Watanabe, and Town Mountain.

The Good Friday/Easter set included great classic and new material from Ralph Stanley, Larry Gillis, The Spinney Brothers, Nu-Blu, Darin Aldridge & Brooke Justice (now Aldridge), Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper, Bill Monroe, The Easter Brothers, and many others.

The Heritage Corner brought forth great classic material for the secular and gospel portions of the show from The Stonemans, Vern & Ray, Jimmy Martin & Bob Osborne, The Stanley Brothers, and J.E. Mainer.

Be sure to tune in next Sunday when Amy will make the banjos and fiddles ring, and will have guest Eric Gibson on the air to chat.

Jim Beaver

Song/Artist/Album/Label

Fire On The Mountain / Michael Cleveland / Sawing On The "C" String / Self-released
Every Day I'm Ridin' / Chris Henry / Making My Way To You / Self-released
Old McDonald Sold The Farm / Mark Newton & Steve Thomas / Reborn / Pinecastle
Steel Drivin' Man / Dailey & Vincent / Brothers Of The Highway / Rounder
Cindy / Sutton, Holt and Coleman / Ready For The Times / High Windy
Sparkle City / Town Mountain / Steady Operator / Pinecastle
Time / Kathy Kallick Band / Time / Live Oak
Right Here / The Missy Werner Band / Three Kinds Of Lonesome / Self-released
That Pal Of Mine / Stoneman Family / Cabin On A Mountain / Gusto
She's Just A Cute Thing / Jimmy Martin & Bob Osborne / Cabin On A Mountain / Gusto
Blue Grass Style / Vern & Ray / Cabin On A Mountain / Gusto
Talking Fiddle Blues / Stoneman Family / Cabin On A Mountain / Gusto
I Love You Still / The Virginia Cutups / 1979-1987 / Fayette County
Yes Sir / The Virginia Cutups / 1979-1987 / Fayette County
Off And Gone / The Grass Cats / The Mountains My Baby And Me / New Time
They Called It Music / The Gibson Brothers / They Called It Music / Compass
Long Haul Trucking Man / American Drive / American Drive / Rural Rhythm
Homesick / David Peterson & 1946 / David Peterson & 1946 / Self-released
My Dear One / Scott Brannon / Your Old Standby / Patuxent
I've Been Walking / Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass / Road Into Town / Patuxent
John Dig A Hole / Cumberland Gap Connection / Another Song / Mountain Fever
Another Night / Alan Bibey & Wayne Benson / The Mandolin Chronicles / Pinecastle
Rebels Ye Rest / Spinney Brothers / Memories / Mountain Fever
Big Sciota / Randy Jones / When Old Lonesome Comes Around / Southfork
It'll Aggravate Your Soul / Dennis Cash / Sing Me A Carter Family Song / Blue Circle
That Janie Baker / Marty Raybon & Full Circle / The Back Forty / Rural Rhythm
He Went To Sleep - The Hogs Ate Him / The Stanley Brothers / The King Years 1961-1965 / Gusto
Dobro Joe / Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver / Roads Well Traveled / Mountain Home
Harvest Time / Lonesome River Band / Chronology Volume Three / Rural Rhythm
Something Comin' To Me / The Gibson Brothers / They Called It Music / Compass
The Old Home Place / Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out / Bluegrassed / Cracker Barrel
How Long Have I Been Your Fool / The Steeldrivers / Hammer Down / Rounder
Little Annie / Fiction Twins (Toshio Watanabe) / Fiction Twins / Self-released
Loving You Too Well / Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder / Music To My Ears / Skaggs Family
Down The Road / VW Boys / Listen To The Music / Mountain Roads
Get 'Em Up / Dave Adkins and Republik Steele / That's Just The Way I Roll / Rural Rhythm
Heartstrings / Dave Adkins and Republik Steele / That's Just The Way I Roll / Rural Rhythm
Leave The Bottle / Town Mountain / Leave The Bottle / Pinecastle
Sweet Dixie (bed) / Bill Emerson / True Bluegrass Banjo (comp) / Rebel
Clinch Mountain Backstep (bed) / Ralph Stanley / True Bluegrass Banjo (comp) / Rebel
Little Rock Getaway (bed) / Jimmy Arnold / True Bluegrass Banjo (comp) / Rebel
Purple Robe / Ralph Stanley & Joe Isaacs / A Gospel Gathering / Freeland
Ringing Of The Hammer / Larry Gillis / Ringing Of The Hammer / Tinman
Old Roman Soldier / The Spinney Brothers / Memories / Mountain Fever
Cry From The Cross / Ralph Stanley / Classic Gospel / Freeland
Legend Of The Dogwood Tree / Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper / Heaven Bound 2 / Time Life
Three Men On A Mountain / The McCormick Brothers / Somewhere In Time / Stonewall
Hammer / Nu-Blu / Nail By Nail / Pinecastle
Were You There / Bill Monroe / Heaven Bound 1 / Time Life
I'm Not Turning Backward / J.E. Mainer & His Mountaineers / Run Mountain / Gusto
He Took Your Place / Flatt & Scruggs / Heaven Bound 1 / Time Life
Trail Of Tears / Darin Aldridge and Brooke Justice / I'll Go With You / Pinecastle
Crosses And Stones / Dale Ann Bradley / Send The Angels / Mountain Home
Stone Was Rolled Away / The Old Time Bluegrass Singers / Plastic Heart / Open Road
The First Son-Rise / The Easter Brothers / It's About Time / Life Line
Driving Nails / Mickey Boles / Let My Feet Go Runnin' / Self-released
By The Mark / Dailey & Vincent / Dailey & Vincent / Rounder
I Am The Man Thomas / Ralph Stanley and The Clinch Mountain Boys / 1971-1973 / Rebel
Walking In A Dream / Fred Etheridge, Nick Anderson, Mark Doyle / Pickin' And Singin' / Self-released

Sunday, March 24, 2013

"Bluegrass Cafe" playlist - 3/24/2013

Sunday's show featured a full three hours of music -- a "luxury" we don't take for granted during the UCONN Baseball and Basketball season...

We didn't have any great formal plans for Sunday's show, so that left plenty of time for music -- both newer and classic. As the show was the first one officially held since Spring began (on the calendar, anyway), we opened with a set of Spring-themed tunes. Eventually, it might start feeling a bit warmer and more Spring-like in these parts, but in the meantime, we'll just have to listen to songs that tell us what Spring should feel like.

The Spinneys' soon-to-be released "No Borders" will be a
Radiothon 2013 thank-you gift.

Springtime often means fundraising time at a lot of non-commercial radio stations, and that holds true at WHUS, too. Our fundraising campaign known as Radiothon begins on April 13th and runs until April 21st, and we've been accumulating quite a few really wonderful musical ways of saying thanks to you for your donations. We'll tell you more about specific "thank-you gifts" as we get closer to the start of Radiothon, but some of the titles we'll have available are highlighted in red in our playlist that follows here.

Carl Smith (1927-2010)

From time to time, I enjoy paying tribute to some of those great honky tonk singers of the 1950s whose material has been covered really well in the Bluegrass world. Today, the Country Music Hall of Famer in the proverbial spotlight was the great Carl Smith, who would have celebrated his 86th birthday on March 15th. While Carl Smith wasn't really known as a songwriter, he had a great number of hits throughout the 1950s and into the 1960s, and we featured some BG covers by performers like Barry Berrier, the Gibson Brothers, Danny Paisley & the Southern Grass, and the Lynn Morris Band on Sunday.

Spring means LOTS of new BG, including this great disc.

This is the time of year where a lot of Bluegrass bands are releasing new CDs, so every week, it seems like we have a bit more new music to share. This week, those newer songs came from projects either recently released (Shannon & Heather Slaughter & County Clare's "One More Road" and the self-titled Feller & Hill & the Bluegrass Buckaroos), or soon-to-be released (the Gibson Brothers' "They Called It Music" comes out this Tuesday, March 26th; May 7th is the official release date for "No Borders" from the Spinney Brothers and Dailey & Vincent's "Brothers Of The Highway"). Other newer music we heard came from recordings released over the past several months by Mike Compton & Joe Newberry, the Tennessee Mafia Jug Band, the Boxcars, the Lonesome River Band, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice, Rickey Wasson & Dwight McCall (from "God Didn't Choose Sides"), Chris Brashear, Joe Mullins & the Radio Ramblers, Volume Five, and Flatt Lonesome.

Hope you enjoyed something you heard today, and be sure to join Jim next Sunday -- Easter Sunday -- for another music-filled edition of BG Cafe.

Have a good week -
Amy

Katy Hill / Del McCoury Band / RockyGrass / Blue Planet
Little Annie [When Springtime Comes Again] / Lilly Brothers & Don Stover / Bluegrass At The Roots / Smithsonian Folkways
Springtime In The Rockies / Bluegrass Patriots / Springtime In The Rockies / Copper Creek
Irish Spring / Country Gentlemen / The Complete Vanguard Recordings / Vanguard
Spring Will Bring Flowers / Balsam Range / Last Train To Kitty Hawk / Mountain Home
Rocky Road Blues / Mike Compton & Joe Newberry / Live / Self-Produced
Sunshine Special / Tennessee Mafia Jug Band / Screams From The Holler / Spring Fed Records
Little Darlin' Pal Of Mine / Heather Berry & Tony Mabe / The Heather Berry & Tony Mabe Show / Mountain Fever Records
Dickson County Breakdown / Stanley Brothers / Select Songs, 1949-1953 / JSP Records
Don't Fall In Love With A Girl Like That / The Boxcars / All In / Mountain Home
I Knew It Wasn't You (The Telephone Song) / Crowe Brothers / Bridging The Gap / Rural Rhythm
Loneliness And Desperation / Del McCoury / Classic Bluegrass / Rebel
The Last Old Shovel / Phyllis Boyens / O Sister! / Rounder
New Freedom Bell / Eddie & Martha Adcock with Tom Gray & Friends / Many A Mile / Patuxent Music
Sally Goodin' / Mashville Brigade / Bluegrass Smash Hits / Rural Rhythm
Barely Beat The Daylight In / Lonesome River Band / Chronology, Volume 2 / Rural Rhythm
The Darker The Night, The Better I See / Gibson Brothers / They Called It Music / Compass Records
Steel Drivin' Man / Dailey & Vincent / Brothers Of The Highway / Rounder
It's In My Mind To Wander / Shannon & Heather Slaughter & County Clare / One More Road / Self-Produced
Wasted Words / Feller & Hill & the Bluegrass Buckaroos / Feller & Hill & the Bluegrass Buckaroos / Self-Produced
It's Hard To Be Forgotten / Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver / Roads Well Traveled / Mountain Home
Good To See The Home Place Once Again / Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice / The Story Of The Day That I Died / Rebel
Grandpa's Way Of Life / Spinney Brothers / No Borders / Mountain Fever Records
Old John Burns / Rickey Wasson & Dwight McCall / God Didn't Choose Sides / Rural Rhythm
Let Old Mother Nature Have Her Way / Barry Berrier / First Time With Feeling / Pinecastle
Loose Talk / Gibson Brothers / Another Night Of Waiting / Hay Holler
I Overlooked An Orchid / Danny Paisley & the Southern Grass / Road Into Town / Patuxent Music
Kisses Don't Lie / Lynn Morris Band / The Lynn Morris Band / Rounder
You Are The One / Carl Smith / The Essential Carl Smith, 1950-1956 / Columbia
Randy Lynn Rag / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / Selected Cuts, 1952-1955 / JSP Records
Flint Hill Special / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / Selected Sides, 1950-1952 / JSP Records
It's A Long, Long Road / Blue Highway / Lonesome Pine / Rebel
Ain't Nobody Gonna Miss Me / Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa / Out In The Middle Of Nowhere / Self-Produced
Hard Pressed / Hot Rize / Traditional Ties / Sugar Hill
The Ole Pueblo / Chris Brashear / Heart Of The Country / Dog Boy Records
Steel Guitar Rag / Joe Mullins & the Radio Ramblers / They're Playing My Song / Rebel
I'll Be Alright Tomorrow / Loafers' Glory / Loafers' Glory / Arhoolie
Rambler / Volume Five / Run / Mountain Fever Records
How Come You Do Me Like You Do / Jeff Parker / Go Parker! / Lonesome Day Records
Palms Of Victory / Country Gentlemen / Calling My Children Home / Rebel
Journey To My Savior's Side / Missy Werner Band / Three Kinds Of Lonesome / Self-Produced
The Right Side / Flatt Lonesome / Flatt Lonesome / Pisgah Ridge
Old Roman Soldier / Spinney Brothers / Memories / Mountain Fever Records
A Robin Built A Nest On Daddy's Grave / Ralph Stanley / A Gospel Bluegrass Homecoming, Volume One / GGS Music
Wait A Little Longer Please Jesus / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys, 1954-1957 / JSP Records
Springtime In Glory / Johnson Mountain Boys / We'll Still Sing On / Rounder
Black Mountain Blues / Johnson Mountain Boys / Requests / Rounder

Sunday, March 17, 2013

"Bluegrass Cafe" Playlist - 3/17/2013

Hi Folks!

Not only were there no sports preemptions on the day of this show, but the game before the show ended early and we were able to pick up about 15 minutes of extra time. There was lots of new music and lots of classic bluegrass from my Heritage Corner. I'll tell much of the story with photo captions. The actual playlist is at the end:

Rare Buzz Busby 45 played on this show

Rare European Charlie Moore LP played on this show.
Charlie recorded two albums in Europe in 1976 with
European musicians, and this is one of them.

Walter Hensley LP played on this show

Peter Tork, local Connecticut musician and Monkee, plays banjo!
We heard three of his banjo tunes on this show.

The Daughters of Bluegrass -- a collection of some of the best female bluegrass musicians in existence, have a fourth effort out now that includes three CDs of new material in a box that includes the third CD in the series for a total of four CDs. It's a great bargain with some excellent music. This set made its debut on the show.

This new CD from Dave Adkins and Republik Steele
has been making lots of younger bluegrass fans.

Toshio Watanabe

I was surprised to meet Toshio Watanabe, a founding member of the groundbreaking Japanese bluegrass band Bluegrass 45, at a 2012 IBMA storytelling session for Everett Lilly. Toshio has a new CD by "Fiction Twins" which is aptly named since Toshio performs and sings all the parts on this disc of old-time country duet songs. We heard a track on this show.

Doyle Lawson always makes great records,
and his latest is no exception.

We had some great laughs from this new CD from the VW Boys.

This young lady from North Carolina has recorded a beautiful CD. Emily Kirsch -- you'll probably hear more from her.

A new CD from the gospel bluegrass group Mountain Faith.

This new CD from the Steeldrivers made its Bluegrass Cafe debut on this show.

From Ashville, North Carolina, Town Mountain has a great new CD.

We rounded out the Heritage Corner selections with tunes from the Camp Creek Boys, Clint Howard and Doc Watson, J.E. Mainer Jr., Ralph Stanley from his early Rebel years, Carl Story, and a rare 78 from obscure old time singer Pappy "Gube" Beaver (no relation).

Tune in next week when Amy will make the banjos and fiddles ring.

Jim Beaver

Requests in blue

Song / Artist / Album / Label

Fire On The Mountain / Michael Cleveland / Sawing on the C String / Self-released
If My Nose Was Runnin' Money / VW Boys / Listen To the Music / Mountain Roads
The Waves On The Sea / The Lilly Brothers & Don Stover / Bluegrass At The Roots - 1961 / Smithsonian Folkways
Blues Are Close At Hand / Tommy Brown and The County Line Grass / Reminiscing / Short Grass
Sweet Dixie / Alan Bibey & Wayne Benson / The Mandolin Chronicles / Pinecastle
Lookin In The Mirror / Town Mountain / Leave The Bottle / Pinecastle
Five Pounds Of Possum / VW Boys / Listen To the Music / Mountain Roads
That's Just The Way I Roll / Dave Adkins and Republic Steele / That's Just The Way I Roll / Rural Rhythm
Swing Banjo / Peter Tork & James Lee Stanley / Live - Backstage The Coffee Gallery / Beachwood
Cuckoo / Peter Tork & James Lee Stanley / Live - Backstage The Coffee Gallery / Beachwood
Cripple Creek / Peter Tork & James Lee Stanley / Live - Backstage The Coffee Gallery / Beachwood
Rambler's Blues / Cumberland Gap Connection / Another Song / Mountain Fever
There's Another Baby Waiting For Me Down The Line / Robert Hale / Pure & Simple / Pinecastle
Blackjack Davey / Chesapeake / Rising Tide / Sugar Hill
Walk Away / Monty McClanahan / The Road Less Traveled / Self-released
Appalachian Son / Randy Jones / When Old Lonesome Comes Around / Southfork
I'll Remember You Love In My Prayers / Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys / 1971-1973 / Rebel
My Native Home / Dennis Cash / Sing Me A Carter Family Song / Blue Circle
North Carolina Breakdown / Mark Johnson w.Rice Brothers / Clawgrass / Bangtown
Shallow Grave / The Steeldrivers / Hammer Down / Rounder
Alcatraz Island Blues / Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass / Road Into Town / Patuxent
This Guy's Gotta Go / Buzz Busby / 45 Single / Carol (45)
T For Texas / Charlie Moore / T For Texas / Philips (LP)
Your Red Wagon / Buzz Busby / 45 Single / Carol (45)
Three Days From Home / Walter Hensley and the Dukes Of Bluegrass / 3 Days From Home / Revonah (LP)
She's Outta Here / Darrell Webb Band / Breaking Down The Barriers / Rural Rhythm
Empty Old Mailbox / The Daughters Of Bluegrass / Pickin' Like A Girl / Blue Circle
Dixie Road / Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver / Roads Well Traveled / Mountain Home
How Do You Say Goodbye To Sixty Years / Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver / Roads Well Traveled / Mountain Home
Georgia Bound / Scott Brannon / Your Old Standby / Patuxent
Whoa Mule / Clint Howard - Doc Watson / Favorites of... / Old Homestead
Fortune / Camp Creek Boys / Old-Time String Band / County
The Billy Goat Boogie / The McCormick Brothers / Hot Bluegrass Rhythm / Bronco Buster
My Long Journey Home / Fiction Twins (Toshio Watanabe) / Self-titled / Red Clay
Red Rocking Chair / Tony Ellis / Sounds Like Bluegrass To Me / Copper Creek
Please Don't Wake Me / Larry Sparks & The Lonesome Ramblers / Silver Reflections / Rebel
Kentucky Girl / Larry Sparks & The Lonesome Ramblers / Silver Reflections / Rebel
You'll Get No More Of Me / Flatt Lonesome / Self-titled / Pisgah
Old Time Pickin' (bed) / Ralph Stanley / True Bluegrass Banjo / Rebel
M Street Rag (bed) / Jimmy Arnold / True Bluegrass Banjo / Rebel
Nedscape Navigator (bed) / Ned Luberecki / True Bluegrass Banjo / Rebel
Home Street Home / Bill Emerson / True Bluegrass Banjo / Rebel
New Muleskinner Blues / The Charles River Valley Boys / Live at the Y-Not / Self-released
I'd Rather Hear I Don't Love You (Than Nothing At All) / Rhonda Vincent / Single release / Upper Management
Riding Down The Canyon / Allan "Mac" McHale and The Old-Time Radio Gang / Southern Division / Lamon
I'm Almost Home / Steve Gulley / God Didn't Choose Sides / Rural Rhythm
Take Your Shoes Off, Moses / Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys / 1971-1973 / Rebel
Moses, Set My People Free / Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers / They're Playing My Song / Rebel
Wayfaring Stranger / Emily Kirsch / Just Another Memory / Rabbit's Foot
Heavenly Light Shinin' On Me / Shady Creek / Back To The Roots / Self-released
Living Water / Mountain Faith / Battlefield / Pisgah
A Beautiful Life / Carl Story and the Rambling Mountaineers / Sacred Country Music (comp) / Wyncote (LP)
Great Judgment Day / Pappy "Gube" Beaver / 78 Single / Capitol (78)
Walking For The Lord / J.E. Mainer's Mountaineers / 78 Single / King (78)
Lay My Body Down / Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa / It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Day / Raincoe
Walking In A Dream / Fred Etheridge w.Nick Anderson, Mark Doyle / Pickin' and Singin' / Self-released

Sunday, March 10, 2013

"Bluegrass Cafe" playlist - 3/10/2013

For the first Sunday in several weeks, we were able to share a full three hours with you on today's Bluegrass Cafe. We had A LOT of ground to cover on this first Sunday of Daylight Saving Time, and while we didn't play quite as much music as some folks might have liked, we tried to cram in a whole lot of it in our time together. Hope you were able to enjoy at least some of the program...

This past week marked the 50th anniversary of one of the biggest tragedies to ever occur in the history of country (or really, any kind of) music: namely, the March 5, 1963 plane crash in Camden, TN that took the lives of Patsy Cline, Hawkshaw Hawkins, Cowboy Copas, and Patsy Cline's manager, Randy Hughes. To add to the tragedy, Jack Anglin (of the brother-style duo, Johnnie & Jack) died in car accident en route to Patsy Cline's funeral on March 7, 1963. While none of these performers could be classified as "Bluegrass," most all of them had some Bluegrass connections, so we touched a bit on those as a form of remembrance in Sunday's show.

Another award winner for the Gibson Brothers?

While most of the time, there is always new music to be shared, this week, it seemed we had it in spades. While Jim and I have previously played a little bit of music from some of the physical CDs that were received this week, there was definitely some brand-new to be heard on Sunday, as well. Among those recordings you'd already heard some of in previous weeks was "The Story Of The Day That I Died" by Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice; "The Mandolin Chronicles" by Alan Bibey & Wayne Benson; and from Nothin' Fancy's Mike Andes, "The Songs I Sing." Recordings you may have never heard before came from the VW Boys ("Listen To The Music" on Mountain Roads Recordings); Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver's "Roads Well Traveled" on Mountain Home; and a CD we've been very anxious to play ever since we heard it was being recorded in December 2012: "They Called It Music" -- the newest Compass Records recording from the reigning IBMA Entertainers of the Year, the Gibson Brothers. All of this music is quite wonderful, and we'll be happy to share more of it with you in future weeks of the Bluegrass Cafe.

The Spinney Brothers (L-R, Gary Dalrymple, Rick Spinney,
Allan Spinney, Darryl Hebb) -- August 2012
(photo courtesy of Linda Orlomoski)

Sharing new music is always an enjoyable experience, and today, we even got to "debut" a song from the forthcoming second recording from the Spinney Brothers on Mountain Fever Records. This new CD is called "No Borders," and will be officially released on May 7th. This week, Mountain Fever will release the first single from "No Borders" to radio: a terrific grandfather song from the pen of Ohio songwriter, Mark "Brink" Brinkman called "Grandpa's Way Of Life." It was an honor for us to play this single, and it seems like the folks who heard it really enjoyed the song. We got to cap off our afternoon of new music with a phone visit with Rick Spinney, who told us a bit about the new recording, as well as how the band chooses the songs they record. Thanks to Rick for joining us, and do be sure to check out the Spinney Brothers when they play in Hamden, CT on Friday, March 22nd in a GuitarTownCT show at the Outer Space. For more information on this show, click here.

(Incidentally, it looks like both the Spinneys' "No Borders" and the Gibsons' "They Called It Music" will be potential premiums for you at our upcoming Radiothon campaign, scheduled to run from April 13-21. We'll let you know more about Radiothon as we get closer...)

Make plans to join Jim next Sunday for another edition of Bluegrass Cafe, won't you?

Have a good week -
Amy

Katy Hill / Del McCoury Band / RockyGrass / Blue Planet
Daylight Savings Time / Grandpa Jones / An American Original / CMH
Time Changes Everything / Reno Brothers / Swing West / Webco
Time / Lou Reid & Carolina / Time / Lonesome Day Records
Time / Kathy Kallick Band / Time / Live Oak Records
I'm Not Broke, But I'm Badly Bent / Jimmy Gaudreau's Bluegrass Unit / Live In Holland / Strictly Country
Banjo Special / Reno & Smiley / Early Years, 1951-1959 / Gusto
The Last Log Drive / Fred Pike, Sam Tidwell & the Kennebec Valley Boys / The Last Log Drive / Revonah
Cabin On A Mountain / Spinney Brothers / Memories / Mountain Fever Records
Poor Ellen Smith / Rich In Tradition / Black Mountain Special / Mountain Roads Recordings
If I Lose / Scott Brannon / Your Old Standby / Patuxent Music
With Body And Soul / Johnson Mountain Boys / At The Old Schoolhouse / Rounder
I'd Rather Love A Memory / Missy Werner Band / Three Kinds Of Lonesome / Self-Produced
Blue Moon Of Kentucky / Patsy Cline / The Last Sessions / MCA
Sunny Side Of The Mountain / Hawkshaw Hawkins / Hawkshaw Hawkins, Volume 1 / Gusto
Little Cabin Home On The Hill / Johnnie & Jack / Johnnie & Jack With Kitty Wells At KWKH / Bear Family
I Fall To Pieces / Too Blue / Trouble With The Grey / Self-Produced
Johnny And Jack Medley / Country Gentlemen / The Early Rebel Recordings / Rebel
Drinking At The Waterhole / Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice / The Story Of The Day That I Died / Rebel
Tired Of Runnin' / Mike Andes / The Songs I Sing / Phoenix Productions
Buckaroo / VW Boys / Listen To The Music / Mountain Roads Recordings
Dixie Road / Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver / Roads Well Traveled / Mountain Home
Wintergrass / Alan Bibey & Wayne Benson / The Mandolin Chronicles / Pinecastle
They Called It Music / Gibson Brothers / They Called It Music / Compass Records
Dusty Old World / Gibson Brothers / They Called It Music / Compass Records
Home Sweet Home / Rick Spinney with Machaela Taylor Spinney / Off The Cuff / Self-Produced
That Janie Baker / Marty Raybon / forthcoming CD / Rural Rhythm
If That Was Love / Chris Jones & the Night Drivers / EP / Rebel
Black Pony / Lynn Morris Band / The Lynn Morris Band / Rounder [Marshall Wilborn born 3/12/1952]
You Are My Sunshine / Norman Blake / O Brother, Where Art Thou? / Mercury [Norman Blake born 3/10/1938]
Grandpa's Way Of Life / Spinney Brothers / No Borders / Mountain Fever Records
** Interview with Rick Spinney of the Spinney Brothers **
The Train Song / Spinney Brothers / Memories / Mountain Fever Records
God Has Been So Good To Me / Crowe & McLaughlin / Going Back / Rounder
Get A Transfer / Nashville Bluegrass Band / The Boys Are Back In Town / Sugar Hill
Row By Row / Balsam Range / Papertown / Mountain Home
Beyond The Sunset / Doyle Lawson-Russell Moore-Jamie Dailey-Josh Swift / Life Goes On / Rural Rhythm
Let The Church Roll On / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / Flatt & Scruggs At Carnegie Hall! / Columbia
Send The Angels Down / Dale Ann Bradley / Send The Angels / Compass Records
I'm Going To Make Heaven My Home / Virginia Squires / The Best Of The Virginia Squires / Rebel [Rickie Simpkins born 3/10/1955]
Sweeping Through The Gates / Bob Paisley & the Southern Grass / Forty Years Of Trouble / Strictly Country [Bob Paisley born 3/14/1931]
Home On The River / Gibson Brothers / They Called It Music / Compass Records
Do You Live What You Preach / Joe Val & the New England Bluegrass Boys / One Morning In May / Rounder

Friday, March 08, 2013

Coming soon: a chat (and new music!) with Rick Spinney - 3/10/2013

Rick posed with some WHUS
big mouth - December 2012
(photo courtesy Linda Orlomoski)

Sure hope you'll consider joining us in the Bluegrass Cafe this coming Sunday, March 10th, as we've got a very special show planned. ~~While the show's beginning will be slightly delayed for UCONN Men's Baseball action until about 5PM, we've still got a lot of great things to share with you.~~ [Update from the WHUS Sports Department as of 3/9/2013: There will be NO baseball preemption on Sunday afternoon, so the Bluegrass Cafe will begin at 4PM]. In addition to our usual combination of classic and newer Bluegrass music, the plan is to have a telephone chat with the banjo-picking member of the Spinney Brothers -- Rick Spinney -- sometime around 6PM. The Spinneys have been on a pretty amazing ride (both literally and figuratively) for the past year: they've been performing all over their native Canada from coast to coast, as well as throughout the United States, from Washington State to Florida, steadily gaining fans and friends along the way. Last March, the band released its first CD for Virginia-based Mountain Fever Records entitled, "Memories," and oh, what a success it has been! Quite a few of the songs on the recording have made several of the different Bluegrass charts, and the title song, "Memories," even reached the #1 position on the prestigious Bluegrass Unlimited National Bluegrass Survey in February 2013.

The Spinneys on the stage - May 2010
(Photo courtesy Linda Orlomoski)

Coming up in early May, the Spinneys will see their second recording released on Mountain Fever Records: "No Borders." The album's first single is "Grandpa's Way Of Life" -- a fine ode to the simpler way of life written by Ohio-based songwriter, Mark "Brink" Brinkman. This song will be released to radio on Tuesday, March 12th, but we've been given special permission by Mark Hodges of Mountain Fever Records to play the song at WHUS on Sunday, March 10th! That's pretty exciting news for us at Bluegrass Cafe, and we're honored to have the opportunity to debut it. The new Spinney album is a dandy, for sure; Mark Hodges is excited about its release, and has some nice words to say about the Spinneys: "Those brothers from Nova Scotia keep setting the bar higher for every other bluegrass band. We're so proud of all they have accomplished, and look forward to all they have planned in the future."

For folks in the Hamden, CT area, here's one more great thing the Spinneys have planned for the not-too-distant future: a show on Friday, March 22nd for GuitarTownCT Productions! This show will take place at The Outer Space, 295 Treadwell Street, Hamden and showtime is 8PM. Tickets are available through GuitarTownCT promoter, Chris Wuerth. Find more information on this show by clicking here or calling Chris at (203)430-6020.

We'll talk about all of these things with Rick on Sunday evening -- the new single and the new record, the upcoming CT show, and a whole lot more. Hope you'll be able to tune in, as it should be a fun time. Please join us at 4PM for a full 3-hour, jam-packed edition of Bluegrass Cafe. See you then!

Amy

P.S. Daylight Saving Time begins this Sunday, so don't forget to "Spring Ahead" your clocks!

Sunday, March 03, 2013

"Bluegrass Cafe" Playlist - 3/3/2013 - Doc Watson

Hi Folks.

This day's Bluegrass Cafe show was preempted for UCONN sports except for the last 35 minutes. I celebrated what would have been Doc Watson's 90th birthday by using the whole set for Doc's music.

We also introduced a new song from three of Doc's long time collaborators; Bryan Sutton, David Holt, and T. Michael Coleman; about Doc. The one track is available free on CD Baby, and the rest of the album is available for purchase.

Doc's influence and importance to acoustic, bluegrass, folk, and American roots music cannot be understated. The same is true of Doc's influence on guitar pickers. Doc changed the landscape permanently. This is personally true for me because it was my attendance at a Doc & Merle Watson concert that changed the course of my musical life.

Please tune in to Bluegrass Cafe next Sunday when we hope Amy will have a show without preemptions.

Jim Beaver