Bluegrass Cafe

Sunday, January 16, 2011

"Bluegrass Cafe" Playlist - 1/16/2011

Hi Folks.

Bluegrass Cafe was pretty special this week since Marti and I had three very accomplished bluegrass women pay us a visit.

Valerie Smith and Becky Buller joined us first and brought us up to date on their new project, "Blam e It O n The Bluegrass," which has the distinction of being the first album ever recorded in the Interna tional Bluegrass Music Museum in Owensboro, Kentucky. This 6-song EP (Valerie calls it a "six-pack") contains some energetic music, two songs of which were written or co-written by super-songwriter, Becky (including the title song). Besides the information from our previous blog entry, you can view a video of the making of the album here --> Making of Blame It On The Bluegrass

Next was a visit from current and three-time IBMA Banjo Player of the Year, Kris tin Scott Benson of The Grascals. Kristin delighted us with her musical history (she is related to Arval Hogan - pioneering musician of the duo Whitey & Hogan, and The Briarhoppers - and named her son Hogan after him), and told us about The Grascals' new CD on the Cracker Barr el label -- The Grascals & Friends - This new CD, only available at Cracker Barrel stores or at Cracker Barrel on line, pairs the group with many famous country artists such as Dierks Bentley, Tom T. Hall, and Charlie Daniels. Accordingly, the music has more elements of country than previous Grascals albums, but there is still plenty of Grascals-style bluegrass in the songs. A feature of the new album is a song written by Grascals singer Jamie Johnson titled "I Am Strong" inspired by St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Dolly Parton performed the song with the Grascals. You can see the video here --> "I Am Strong"

We played an entire 15-min

ute radio show from the 1950s by "Allerton & Alton," the Cumberland Ridge Runners, who were actually Maine bluegrass legend Al Hawkes and his partner Al Myers. The unusual part of this duo was that Al Myers happened to be black. This was such an unusual arrangement for the time that Bear Family has seen fit to release a CD with many of the old Allerton & Alton radio performances titled "Black, White and Bluegr ass." We just obtained the CD and it was an interesting coincidence that we played this set of music on the Martin Luther King holiday weekend.

Other music included more from excellent New England old-time duo Taylors Grove (Mac McHale and Carolyn Hutton), a retrospective from the Heritage Corner comparing a song from the original Carter Family with a modern version from Chesapeake, a track from Charlie Moore's "Avery County" LP, new music from Jimmy Gaudreau, Travers Chandler, Blue Moon Rising, and Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad. We also were happy to play a track from the newly re-released complete Vetco sessions of Hotmud Family.

Amy will be with you next week making the banjos and fiddles ring, so be sure to ask her about the great brother duet concerts with the Gibsons and the Spinneys in Massachusetts and Vermont when you get a chance.

Jim Beaver

Title / Artist / Album / Label

Fire On The Mountain / Michael Cleveland / Sawing On The "C" String / Self-released
Mary Of The Homeplace / Travers Chandler / State Of Depression / Patuxent
Poor Rambling Boy / Darrell Webb Band / Bloodline / Rural Rhythm
Hold Whatcha Got / Lonesome River Band with Audie Blaylock / The All Star Jam - Live At Graves Mountain / Rural Rhythm
Pain Of Loving You / The Grascals with Dolly Parton / The Grascals & Friends / Cracker Barrel
Red and Green Signal Light / Rich In Tradition / Black Mountain Special / Mountain Roads
Gold Watch And Chain / Taylors Grove / Keep On The Sunny Side / Self-released
Going To The Races / Taylors Grove / Keep On The Sunny Side / Self-released
Too Many Tear Drops / Reno & Smiley / 1963-1972 Complete King Starday Recordings / Gusto
Are You Tired Of Me My Darling / The Carter Family / In The Shadow Of Clinch Mountain / Bear Family
Are You Tired Of Me My Darling / Chesapeake / Full Sail / Sugar Hill
Promise Me / Jimmy Gaudreau / Pieces and Bits / Goose Creek
Tidwell Pike / Jimmy Gaudreau / Pieces and Bits / Goose Creek
Rainin' On Her Rubber Dolly / Joe Diffie with The Grascals / Homecoming / Rounder
My Angeline / Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out / Self-titled / Rural Rhythm
How Did That Turn Into My Problem? / Steve Gulley & Tim Stafford / Dogwood Winter / Rural Rhythm
Time To Be Movin' On / Blue Moon Rising / Strange New World / Rural Rhythm
No Vacancy / Valerie Smith / Blame It On The Bluegrass / Bell Buckle
Interview with Valerie Smith and Becky Buller
Blame It On The Bluegrass / Valerie Smith / Blame It On The Bluegrass / Bell Buckle
A Good Day, Lord / Valerie Smith / Blame It On The Bluegrass / Bell Buckle
Guitars, Whiskey, Guns and Knives / The Steeldrivers / Reckless / Rounder
I Wish I'd Stayed In The Wagonyard / The Hotmud Family / The Complete Vetco Recordings / Vetco (?)
Don't Tread On Me / Kristin Scott Benson / Second Season / Pinecastle
Interview with Kristin Scott Benson
The Year Clayton Delaney Died / The Grascals with Tom T. Hall / The Grascals & Friends / Cracker Barrel
I Am Strong / The Grascals with Dolly Parton / The Grascals & Friends / Cracker Barrel
Banjo Am The Instrument For Me / The Old Time Bluegrass Singers / Plastic Heart / Open Road
Coal Minin' Man / The Roys / Single / Rural Rhythm
Washington Lee Fling (bed) / Fred Etheridge w. Nick Anderson, Mark Doyle / Pickin' and Singin' / Self-released
Yellow Roses (bed) / Fred Etheridge w. Nick Anderson, Mark Doyle / Pickin' and Singin' / Self-released
Keep On The Sunny Side / Allerton & Alton / Black, White and Bluegrass / Bear Family
Memory Lane / Allerton & Alton / Black, White and Bluegrass / Bear Family
Don't This Road Look Rough And Rocky / Allerton & Alton / Black, White and Bluegrass / Bear Family
Drifting Too Far From The Shore / Allerton & Alton / Black, White and Bluegrass / Bear Family
Jar Gap / Paula Dellenback / The Crooked Road / Self-released
Can't Live Life Here Without You / Edgar Loudermilk with Rhonda Vincent / Roads Travelled / Mountain Fever
Matthew Twenty Four / Charlie Moore / Avery County / Old Homestead (LP)
You Can Find It At The Cross / The Bluegrass Brothers / So Long / Self-released
Look To The Light / John Miller and others / Look To The Light, Songs of Rick Lang / Rural Rhythm
I Saw The Light / David Peterson / Live In the WHUS Studio / n.a.
I've Been Redeemed / Junior Sisk and others / Look To The Light, Songs of Rick Lang / Rural Rhythm
It's A Mighty Hard Road To Travel / Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver / Light On My Feet, Ready To Fly / Horizon
Snow Covered Mound / Carolina Native Sons / Rank Ol' Bluegrass / Patuxent
When My Savior Welcomes Me / Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad / Self-titled / Steeltown
Paul And Silas / Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen / Self-titled / Fiddlemon Music
Walking In A Dream / Fred Etheridge with Nick Anderson, Mark Doyle / Pickin' and Singin' / Self-released

Kristin, Valerie, and Becky Interviews Sunday 1/16

We have the honor of having telephone visits with Kristin Scott Benson, three-time consecutive IBMA banjo player of the year and member of the Grascals, and Valerie Smith and Becky Buller, members of Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike. Both have new CDs that were just released this week, and we will talk about those as well as more personal aspects of their careers.

Join us at 91.7

FM in Southern New England, or at whus.org for the Bluegrass Cafe Sunday 4-7pm EST. Valerie and Becky will be on around 5pm and Kristin will be on around 5:30 EST.

Valerie Smith link

Video: Making of "Blame It On The Bluegrass"

Grascals link

For the video of "I Am Strong," click on the picture below:

Sunday, January 09, 2011

"Bluegrass Cafe" playlist - 1/9/2011

Sunday's show was back to its "regular" 3-hour duration, but we still tried to include a whole bunch of music, talk, and things to give away...

Around the 5PM timeframe, we were pleased to chat with Mark Newton, who is one of the founding members of the highly-regarded Virginia Squires, and an IBMA winner in his own rite as the spearhead behind the great tribute recording to the ladies of Bluegrass known as, "Follow Me Back to The Fold." On Sunday, though, Mark talked to us about a new project in which he has a very big interest: the live festival recording released last October called, "The All-Star Jam: Live From Graves Mountain." This project was released by Rural Rhythm Records, and is a celebration both of the annual Graves Mountain Festival of Music in Syria, Virginia, and the 55th anniversary of Rural Rhythm Records. The songs on the CD may be Bluegrass "chestnuts," but they're presented as special events, with groupings of performers who don't normally get to work together (i.e. "Lonesome River" sung by Russell Moore and Lou Reid; Audie Blaylock joining the Lonesome River Band on "Hold Whatcha Got"). There is a also a tune special to Mark, who was one of the founders of the Graves Mountain Festival, called "Graves Mountain Memories." This Carl Jackson composition tells the story of the Graves family who settled in that part of Virginia from their arrival 400 years ago through the present day, and is sung by several performers, including Carl Jackson and Mark Newton, as well as Lou Reid, Russell Moore, Audie Blaylock, and Carrie Hassler. At the end of our discussion with Mark, we were able to give away two copies of this great disc to two lucky listeners. Thanks both to Mark Newton and Rural Rhythm Records for letting us share this great music.

If interviewing Mark Newton and giving away CDs wasn't enough excitement for one day, we also got to give away a pair of passes to this Saturday's Boston Bluegrass Union-sponsored show featuring two of our favorite sets of brothers: the Gibson Brothers and the Spinney Brothers. We've been telling you about this great show since it was announced back in October, and I really think it's going to be an event you're going to want to see. We all know how incredibly talented and popular the Gibson Brothers are, and seeing them win two IBMA Awards in 2010 was a real treat. And if you were listening Jim and I host a special Bluegrass edition of "Fiat Flux" last May, you heard us welcome the Spinney Brothers into our WHUS studios. These Nova Scotia brothers (and their great band) made a decision to go full-time with their music in 2010, and we were delighted to have them visit us in the studio and share some of their great brother harmonies. If you miss this BBU show on Saturday night (January 15th), you're going to be sorry. Get to Lexington, if you can -- find out more by clicking here, or calling the BBU hotline at (617)782-2251.

And if you can't make it to Lexington on Saturday, get to the Bellows Falls Opera House in Bellows Falls, VT on Sunday, January 16th. Find more info on both of these s hows in my earlier blog posting.

In addition to all of the giveaways, we still found some time to play music on the air, too. Imagine that! There was new music from the great new solo project by Edgar Loudermilk on Mountain Fever Records (called "Roads Traveled"), as well as newer music from the Grascals, Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad, the Hagar's Mountain Boys, Travers Chandler & Avery County, and Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike.

And we couldn't let the show pass without playing a few tunes from one Earl Eugene Scruggs, who was born on January 6, 1924.

Jim looks to have a big show this coming Sunday on the "Bluegrass Cafe." Do join him for lots of music, plus talk with two of the fabulous females in Bluegrass: reigning IBMA Banjo Player of the Year, Kristin Scott Benson of the Grascals and fiddler/songwriter Becky Buller from Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike. It should be a great show, so be sure to tune in beginning at 4PM...

Have a great week, and I'll look forward to seeing you in Lexington on January 15th...I hope.

Amy

Katy Hill / Del McCoury Band / RockyGrass / Blue Planet
The Last Song / Mark Newton with Paul Williams / Living A Dream / Rebel
You Love Me Just A Little At A Time / Spinney Brothers / Side By Side / Self-Produced
Sam Smith / Gibson Brothers / Red Letter Day / Sugar Hill
Wild, Wild Rose / Bluegrass Patriots / E Pluribus Bluegrass / Red Feather
Little Annie / Lilly Brothers & Don Stover / Bluegrass At The Roots, 1961 / Smithsonian Folkways
The Eighth Of January / Chubby Wise / An American Original / Pinecastle
Hazel Creek / Heather Berry & Tony / Before Bluegrass / Blue Circle
Marianne / Paul Adkins & the Borderline Band / Modern Times / Rebel
Head Over Heels / Carrie Hassler with Brand New Strings / The All-Star Jam: Live At Graves Mountain / Rural Rhythm
Where's The Lonesome / Hagar's Mountain Boys / Mountain Fever Records Sampler / Mountain Fever
I'm Blue, I'm Lonesome / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys, 1950-1951 / JSP Records
I'm Gonna Sing, Sing, Sing / Charlie Monroe / Post War Country Classics / Cattle
Little Cabin Home On The Hill / David Grisman with Tony Rice & Curly Seckler / Home Is Where The Heart Is / Rounder
Monrosine / Bill Emerson & Mark Newton / A Foot In The Past, A Foot In The Future / Pinecastle
Follow Me Back To The Fold / Mark Newton / Follow Me Back To The Fold / Rebel
INTERVIEW WITH MARK NEWTON
Graves Mountain Memories / Carl Jackson, Mark Newton & others / The All-Star Jam: Live At Graves Mountain / Rural Rhythm
The Year That Clayton Delaney Died / The Grascals with Tom T. Hall / The Grascals & Friends / Cracker Barrel
Black Mountain Special / Rich In Tradition / Black Mountain Special / Mountain Roads Recordings
Follow The Leader / Jessie Baker / Yessir! / Patuxent Music
Black Dust Fever / Travers Chandler & Avery County / State Of Depression / Patuxent Music
Making Up Stories / Johnson Mountain Boys / Live At The Birchmere / Rounder
Blame It On The Bluegrass / Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike / Blame It On The Bluegrass / Bell Buckle Records
Flint Hill Special / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / Foggy Mountain Jamboree / Columbia
Earl's Breakdown / Hylo Brown & the Timberliners with Earl Scruggs / Classic Bluegrass Live / Vanguard
Randy Lynn Rag / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / The Essential Earl Scruggs / Columbia Legacy
Farm Of Yesterday / Gibson Brothers / Ring The Bell / Compass Records
The Yodelling Muleskinner Blues / Spinney Brothers / If I Were Your Brother / Self-Produced
Carolina Dreams / Edgar Loudermilk / Roads Traveled / Mountain Fever
Cold Chill Of Gone / Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad / Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad / Steeltown Records
Detour / The Grass Cats / A Good Way To Get The Blues / New Time Records
On The Wings Of Angels / Spinney Brothers / Side By Side / Self-Produced
Pray The Clouds Away / J.D. Crowe, Doyle Lawson, Paul Williams / Old Friends Get Together / Mountain Home
Land Up In The Air / Special Consensus / 35 / Compass Records
Good News When I Die / Charlie Sizemore Band / Good News / Rounder
I'm Building On The Rock Of Ages / Darin & Brooke Aldridge / Darin & Brooke Aldridge / Mountain Home
I'll Live Again / Baucom, Bibey, Graham & Haley / Baucom, Bibey, Graham & Haley / Rebel
Harbor Of Love / Stanley Brothers / Selected Cuts, 1955-1956 / JSP Records
Sinners, You Better Get Ready / Ricky Skaggs / Ricky Skaggs Solo: Songs My Dad Loved / Skaggs Family
Gone Home / Gibson Brothers / Iron & Diamonds / Sugar Hill
Blue Grass Twist / Johnson Mountain Boys / Requests / Rounder

Thursday, January 06, 2011

You say you like brother duets?

About this time of year, a lot of folks are experiencing post-holiday blahs. Here's a fabulous way you might get yourself out of this funk...make plans to get to either the next Boston Bluegrass Union (BBU)-sponsored concert on Saturday, January 15th, or a show on Sunday, January 16th in Bellows Falls, VT, which is being sponsored by the same folks who bring you the Jenny Brook Bluegrass Festival. On the bill at each show: two of the finest brother duets you're ever going to hear -- the Gibson Brothers and the Spinney Brothers. Both of these bands of brothers are top-notch, and if you've ever listened to the "Bluegrass Cafe," you know that we're pretty fond of both groups.

The similarities between these two bands are numerous: each group features two brothers who are very close in age; in each group, one brother plays the banjo, and the other the guitar; there is a third member in each group who may not be a blood-related brother, but has worked with his band for so long, they might as well be; both bands perform a good bit of original music; and their most important similarity: each group can produce harmonies that rival other brother duos of which you may have heard (with last names like Delmore, Louvin, and Everly).

You NEED to be at one, or maybe even BOTH of these shows next weekend. The BBU show is on Saturday, January 15th at the National Heritage Museum in Lexington, MA and starts at 7:30PM. For more information, visit http://www.bbu.org/, and click on the "Concerts" tab. You may also call the BBU hotline: (617)782-2251, or email info@bbu.org. The Bellows Falls show happens at the Bellows Falls Opera House at noon on Sunday, January 16th. More info can be found by clicking here, or email jennybrookfestival@comcast.net.

I hope to see you at at least one of these shows. Don't miss an opportunity to hear some wonderful harmonies, or you'll be kicking yourself all year...

Oh, and if you think I'm biased about how great these shows are going to be, well, you may be right. However, I'm not alone in my praise of the Gibsons and the Spinneys. You should also read what one of the Rounder Records founders, Ken Irwin, has to say about these shows. In his post on the New England Bluegrass listserv this week, he wrote: "I love both of these bands! For my taste, this should be one of the best concerts that bluegrass fans will get to see for a long time...Both bands are playing their music at a very high level and both put on very entertaining shows...[this] show with the Gibson Brothers and the Spinney Brothers is a show I've been looking forward to since it was announced a while back. While there are other family bands out there, these are the bluegrass bands from their respective sides of the border who are doing the most to push the duet in bluegrass."

Sunday, January 02, 2011

"Bluegrass Cafe" playlist - 1/2/2011 (plus one "bonus" hour)

The first BG Cafe for 2011 was extended by one hour, as the regular 3-4PM show host at WHUS was away for one more week. We had no problems filling his hour, though...

In early December 2010, Country Music Hall of Famer Merle Haggard was recognized with Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, D.C., and the big gala television show honoring Merle and four other performers (including Paul McCartney and Oprah Winfrey, as well as Broadway's Jerry Herman and choreographer, Bill T. Jones) aired shortly after Christmas. Even though the Hag really can't be considered a "Bluegrass singer," he has made a BG-flavored recording in recent years, and there is absolutely no doubt that he is probably the favorite country singer and songwriter of a whole lot of BG performers. All you really need to make that determination is to take a look at the number of Merle Haggard tunes (both songs he's written or songs he's performed) that have been recorded in the BG world through the years. The list is incredibly long, so we thought it might be a nice way to honor Merle by playing an hour's worth of tunes he wrote and/or sung. While we included no fewer than fifteen Haggard classics, we could have easily played several more. I liked it; I hope you did, too.

Of course, the program is still called the BG Cafe, so playing a good bit of BG was on the agenda, too. We mixed in new music from folks like Edgar Loudermilk, Travers Chandler & Avery County, Bobby Osborne & the Rocky Top X-Press, Jimmy Gaudreau, the Grascals, and Charlie Sizemore, with older music from Rounder's "Early Days Of Bluegrass" recordings like the Shenandoah Valley Trio, the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers, and Jerry & Sky.

We also featured a couple of tunes from a brand-new project from a band known as Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad. This new recording mixes the secular with gospel, and 10 of the 12 tunes on the project were written or co-written by Cody Shuler,. You can expect to hear plenty more from it in future weeks of the BG Cafe.

And we couldn't let the show pass without acknowledging a tune that has been named the #1 Bluegrass song of 2010, as ranked according to Bluegrass Unlimited and the National Bluegrass Survey. The Gibson Brothers have had amazing success with their song, "Ring The Bell," and so, it has been named the top BG tune of 2010. Pretty good for a couple of New York farmboys. Incidentally, their "Farm Of Yesterday" is also ranked for the year...at #10. Congratulations to them!

I hope you'll be able to join me in the BG Cafe this coming Sunday (January 9th), as well, as the plan is to have a chat with Bluegrass promoter and former member of the Virginia Squires, Mark Newton, on the air. I'm also told that copies of the great "All-Star Jam" CD recorded live at the 2010 Graves Mountain Festival of Music will be given away, too. Sounds like fun to me...hope you feel the same!

Hope your first week of 2011 has been a great one, and we'll look for you again on Sunday beginning at 4PM...

Amy

REQUESTS ARE RED; MERLE HAGGARD MUSIC IS PURPLE.

Mush Melon / Tim Martin / Bluegrass Fiddle / Patuxent Music
Big City / Merle Haggard / The Bluegrass Sessions / McCoury Music
I'm Bringing Home Good News / Darrell Webb Band / Bloodline / Rural Rhythm
Today I Started Loving You Again / The Grascals / Keep On Walkin' / Rounder
Fighting Side Of Me / Charlie Waller & the Country Gentlemen / Songs Of The American Spirit / Pinecastle
Swinging Doors / Lost & Found / A Ride Through The Country / Rebel
Huntsville / Blue Highway / Wind To The West / Rebel
Red Bandana / Lonesome River Band / Still Learning / Rural Rhythm
Holding Things Together / Southern Rail / On The Road From Appomattox / Railway Records
Back To The Barrooms / J.D. Crowe & the New South / Come On Down To My World / Rounder
Silver Wings / Spinney Brothers / Side By Side / Self-Produced
Somewhere Between / Bob Paisley & the Southern Grass / Back To The Blue Ridge / Brandywine
Old Man From The Mountain / BearTracks / Together 'Til The End / AMT Records
I Must Be Somebody Else You've Known / Steep Canyon Rangers / Deep In The Shade / Rebel
Mama Tried / Seldom Scene / SCENEchronized / Sugar Hill
Katy Hill / Del McCoury Band / RockyGrass / Blue Planet
Daddy Frank / Jim Mills with Paul Brewster / The Hide Head Blues / Sugar Hill
Where Is My Little Cabin Home? / Kathy Kallick Band / Between The Hollow And The High-Rise / Live Oak Records
Proud Mary / Bill Emerson & Cliff Waldron / The Best Of Emerson & Waldron / Rebel
I'm Lonesome Without You / Stanley Brothers / Selected Sides, 1949-1953 / JSP Records
Ring The Bell / Gibson Brothers / Ring The Bell / Compass Records
Slowly Getting You Out Of The Way / Bluegrass Cardinals / Home Is Where The Heart Is / Sugar Hill
Can't Live Life Here Without You / Edgar Loudermilk with Rhonda Vincent / single / Mountain Fever Records
It Don't Mean A Thing / Claire Lynch / RockyGrass / Blue Planet
Let Me Rest (At The End Of My Journey / Shenandoah Valley Trio / New Sounds Ramblin' Coast To Coast / Rounder
You're Not A Drop In The Bucket / Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs / Selected Cuts, 1952-1955 / JSP Records
Sparkling Brown Eyes / Jerry & Sky / New Sounds Ramblin' Coast To Coast / Rounder
The Story Of The Lawson Family / Stanley Brothers / An Evening Long Ago / Columbia
Lonesome, Sad And Blue / Lonesome Pine Fiddlers / Windy Mountain / Bear Family
No Letter In The Mail / Jim & Jesse with Emmylou Harris / Songs From The Homeplace / Pinecastle
Out In The Cold World / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys, 1957-1958 / JSP Records
Worried Blues / Doc Watson / Trouble In Mind / Sugar Hill
Roane County Prison / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys / Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys, 1957-1958 / JSP Records
Flat Fork / Kentucky Colonels / Appalachian Swing! / Rounder
The Court Of Love / Rhonda Vincent / Taken / Upper Management Music
I'd Rather Live By The Side Of The Road / Country Gentlemen / Let The Light Shine Down / Rebel
You Must Come In At The Door / Doc Watson / The Best Of The Sugar Hill Years / Sugar Hill
Once More / Audie Blaylock & Redline with Russell Moore & Lou Reid / The All-Star Jam: Live At Graves Mountain / Rural Rhythm
Cold Sheets Of Rain / Virginia Squires / The Best Of The Virginia Squires / Rebel
I've Had A Time / White Mountain Bluegrass / Aragon Mill / Strictly Country
Ribbon Of Darkness / Chris Jones & the Night Drivers / No One But You / Rebel
Memory Of You / Balsam Range / Trains I Missed / Mountain Home
Tee Tot Payne / Volume Five / Down In A Cell / Mountain Fever Records
Southern Rail Road Line / Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa / Out In The Middle Of Nowhere / Self-Produced
When Snow Falls On The Bluegrass / Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad / Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad / Steeltown Records
Mountain Fever / Bobby Osborne & the Rocky Top X-Press with Russell Moore / Memories / Rural Rhythm
Pain Of Lovin' You / The Grascals with Dolly Parton / The Grascals & Friends / Cracker Barrel
Nobody Cares For Me / Travers Chandler & Avery County / State Of Depression / Patuxent Music
Log Cabin In The Lane / The Boxcars / The Boxcars / Mountain Road
Classic JAG / Jimmy Gaudreau / Pieces And Bits / Goose Creek Music
Working Hard Ain't Hardly Working Anymore / Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice / Heartaches & Dreams / Rebel
No Lawyers In Heaven / Charlie Sizemore / Rounder Records 2010 IBMA Sampler / Rounder
Pretty Polly / Ralph Stanley with Patty Loveless / Clinch Mountain Country / Rebel
Singing In The Family Circle / John Rossbach / Never Was Plugged! / Self-Produced
Livin' On The Mountain / Del McCoury / Livin' On The Mountain / Rebel
They Can Only Fill One Grave / Old Time Bluegrass Singers / Plastic Heart / Open Road
Justified / Billy Boone Smith / Five Flat Rocks / Muddy Sunshine
Angel At Your Side / Barry Scott / Look To The Light: Songs Of Faith From The Pen Of Rick Lang / Rural Rhythm Christian
Way Down Deep In My Soul / Warrior River Boys / Sounds Like Home / Rounder
Country Church / Pike Brothers & the Pine Hill Ranchers / The Pike Brothers & the Pine Hill Ranchers / Rebel
When My Savior Welcomes Me / Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad / Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad / Steeltown Records
I Want To Live Like Christ My Savior / Johnson Mountain Boys / Walls Of Time / Rounder
Sweeping Through The Gate / Johnnie & Jack With Kitty Wells / Johnnie & Jack With Kitty Wells At KWKH / Bear Family
Black Mountain Blues / Johnson Mountain Boys / Requests / Rounder

Monday, December 27, 2010

"Bluegrass Cafe" Playlist - 12/26/2010

Hi Folks.

The snowstorm kept Amy away for this last show of the year, so I happily stepped in to keep the bluegrass going on this Sunday afternoon, and had the bonus of a couple of extra hours ahead of our regular time because of a combination of weather and school break. Five full hours of bluegrass is a fine way to close out the year!

Some of the extra hours allowed the Heritage Corner to do a sort of early career retrospective of The Dillards. The mother-lode of the early Dillard recordings heard on this show was a batch of songs from rare 45 RPM singles on the small K-ARK label that were 1961 releases of home recordings of Rodney and Doug Dillard from 1958-59. Some of these recordings were issued under the name "Dillard Brothers" and others by "Joe Noel and the Dixie Ramblers," but person

nel were similar on all the tracks with Doug Dillard on banjo, Rodney Dillard on guitar, Joe Noel on mandolin, and Buddy Van on bass and lead vocals. Some tracks even included John Hartford on fiddle or Dobro.

Other Heritage Corner classics included songs from Mac Martin, Ralph Stanley and his 1968 Clinch Mountain Boys at Newport, Bill Monroe doing a live version of his instrumental "Get Up John," The Johnson Mountain Boys live at Strawberry Park in 1981, a song from Fred Pike, Sam Tidwell & The Kennebec Valley Boys, The Foothill Boys (with Cullen Galyean), Classic Country Gentlemen, Wade Mainer, Jimmy Martin, Hack Johnson and his Tennesseans (with Allen Shelton on banjo), Doc and Merle Watson, early Stanley Brothers, Reno & Smiley, Ted Lundy, and Carl Story.

Some of the newe

st tracks came from the latest Grascals album on Cracker Barrel that pairs them with many of their country friends. Others included Charlie Sizemore, Edgar Loudermilk with Rhonda Vincent, Travers Chandler, Joe Diffie, Jimmy Gaudreau, The Steeldrivers, Cedar Hill, the new Graves Mountain All-Star Jam, and an excellent old-time duet album from Taylor's Grove -- a pairing of Maine legend Mac McHale and North Carolinian Carolyn Hutton.

Amy will be back for the next couple of weeks, so be sure to tune in to hear the banjos and fiddles ring.

Jim