writer/editor
(KDHX) Today we call the kind of music that Rhys Jones, Jeff Miller, and Jim Nelson play “old-time music,” though that wasn’t always ever thus. Prior to the 1920s, it was just called music, and it came to America with the English, Scottish, Irish, and German settlers. In the US the music naturally kept growing,Continue reading “Old Time 101”
(ParentsCanada; CBC) For most people looking down the barrel of retirement, the thought of having another baby isn’t one they’re willing to entertain. Yet when Steve Heming said “I do” three years ago, he also said “I will.” For wife Tammy, having kids was always in the cards. Sure enough, nine months later, Steve welcomedContinue reading “Second Time Around”
When we were teenagers we defined ourselves through the music that we listened to, and I suppose that that is something which remains true for teens today. I wouldn’t have been caught dead listening to James Taylor (even if I sat enthralled with “Sweet Baby James” when no one was around) and the same wasContinue reading “Revisiting Tommy Dorsey”
(McMaster University Department of Pediatrics) As a nation, we’re getting heavier with each passing year, and the health effects of obesity—from depression to heart attacks to some forms of cancer—are on the rise, too. So what do we do? Well, not perhaps what you might think. New studies, such as those led by Dr. KarenContinue reading “Now what?”
(HVBA) Don Rigsby has been around a while, and as such he always seems to be there, not too far away. Many probably came across him for the first time in the movie Bluegrass Journey where he’s onstage with the Lonesome River band (in what some consider their best line up) at the IBMA’s andContinue reading “Don Rigsby’s “Doctor’s Orders””
(HVBA) The first track on Adam Steffey’s new album New Primitive opens with a pop music flourish of a kind that you don’t typically find on oldtime albums. It’s a statement that this isn’t just another album of traditional tunes. And, certainly, it isn’t. It’s his third solo project and one that Steffey says he’sContinue reading “Adam Steffey’s “New Primitive””
(CBC Kids) Steve Colbert once said that stay-at- home dads are “against nature’s laws.” Your grandmother probably thinks that, too.
(HVBA) Listening to this disc, I wished that I had no idea who Ron Block is or any of the things he’s done in his career. By any measure, he’s done a lot, most notably as a member of Alison Krauss and Union Station for twenty years. On his own, he’s released two collections priorContinue reading “Ron Block’s “Walking Song””
(HVBA) Culturally, we seem to like the idea of the struggling artist, someone who suffers for their work and who’s work seems to benefit from the struggle that goes into it. Would we revere people like Hemingway, for example, if their lives were idyllic and the only drama was in the pages of their books.Continue reading ““Tell the Ones I Love” by the Steep Canyon Rangers”
(KDHX) People who live in St. Louis are lucky for lots of reasons, not the least of which being KDHX. I know that sounds self-serving, but it’s true. And here’s one reason why: discovery.
(KDHX) It’s a truism that musicians don’t make the best business people, and there are examples galore to prove it, from the very heights of the industry on down. Alison Brown, however, is a spectacular exception to the rule.
(HVBA) Dick Bowden recently wrote a compelling cover story about the Spinney Brothers for Bluegrass Unlimited. Titled “On the road with the Spinney Brothers” (April, 2013) Bowden gives an account of one leg of the Spinney Brothers’ summer 2012 tour, following the band from the moment they leave the Bluegrass in the Hills festival inContinue reading “The Spinney Brothers’ “No Borders””
(HVBA) There is a novelty to being a family band, just as there is a novelty to being very young yet sounding like someone who has been playing for decades. There was a time when the Snyder Family Band was both of those things
(KDHX) At times, Peter Rowan seems like the Zelig of roots music. In the course of his long career, Rowan has been a bluegrass boy, a new-age Buddhist mystic and truly everything in between.
(HVBA) When I first saw a note about this album online, I had to do a double take as it seems like an odd pairing.
(KDHX) There are lots of tribute albums around, though they are a curious bird. The assumption we make as consumers is that the people who contribute do so because they were inspired by the person whose work they are paying tribute to. I once bought a tribute CD to Jimmy Rogers that opened with aContinue reading “Review, “The Music is You: a tribute to John Denver””
When I arrived at my mother’s house she was still getting ready. I asked if I could take the things out to the car. There were three boxes of clothes—some of which were intended for my grandfather, some of which were going to charity—and a blue velvet bag. The clothes had belonged to my father,Continue reading “Ashes”
(HVBA) Well, if you want to get on my good side, cover a song from Laura Boosinger, and indeed that’s how Della Mae starts this collection. “Letter from Down the Road” is a traditional song with new words and arrangement from Boosinger, and the version included here is a very faithful romp through a delightfulContinue reading “Review: Della Mae, “This World Oft Can Be””
(HVBA) There are lots of good bluegrass albums, and there are a few great ones. There are also some that stand out even above those ones, and this new release from Dailey and Vincent is going to prove to be one of them.
Greg Cahill is, in so many ways, the embodiment of bluegrass music: honest, friendly, and in it not because he wants to be, necessarily, but because he has to be. I was fortunate to reach him at his home on a day that he was, as he says, unpacking his suitcase, doing the laundry, andContinue reading “Interview with Greg Cahill”
(KDHX) Here’s how every review of Heidi Talbot opens: Talbot is from County Kildare, Ireland, and famously was a member of the Irish-American all-female supergroup Cherish the Ladies. The reviews for her new album, “Angels Without Wings,” likewise will all tell you in the first paragraph that Jerry Douglas and Mark Knopfler play on thisContinue reading “Heidi Talbot’s “Angels without Wings””
(KDHX) I reached guitarist Chris Eldridge at his home in Brooklyn, N.Y., during a break from a tour that will eventually bring Punch Brothers to St. Louis and the Sheldon Concert Hall on January 25. Eldridge noted that it was nice to have a break from the road, to see friends and to sleep inContinue reading “Interview with Chris Eldridge”
(HVBA) One reviewer noted of Audie Blaylock that he “puts music before image.” If you’ve seen the cover of his latest album, Hard Country, you’ll see some of the truth of that statement: this is one of the best albums of 2012, and it has one of the worst album covers.
(HVBA) Whenever I approach the music of Jim Lauderdale I find myself reconsidering that question that we’ve all mulled over at one time or anther: Just what is bluegrass, anyway?
(HVBA) It’s pretty much impossible to discuss John Driskell Hopkins without discussing Zac Brown, and there are a number of reasons for that. Brown, though still young, is one of those people who has more energy than any single person rightfully should—he’s a Grammy winner, he’s run a restaurant, tours incessantly, is a father ofContinue reading “John Driskell Hopkins and Balsam Range, “Daylight””
(ParentsCanada) In 1996, Monique and Scott Collins were among the first couples in North America to choose the gender of their child. It’s called family balancing and they took advantage of medical technologies that, to some, represent a great stride forward in family planning. In an interview some years later, Monique said “After having twoContinue reading “Choosing your baby’s gender: Separating science from fiction”
(Kruger Brothers online) Skip Vetter was a very dear friend of the Kruger Brothers, one who offered his talents to a number of their projects, including the cover art for the second volume disks of the Carolina Scrapbook. More so, he was a friend and ardent supporter. Yesterday, Skip passed away from the complications ofContinue reading “Making the most of every day”
(KDHX) Jerry Garcia once said that the Grateful Dead are like licorice — some people don’t like licorice, but those who like it like it a lot. I think that’s a category that the Hillbenders might be in as well.
(KDHX) Lots of people might look at this list might say, “Who are all these people?” In roots/Americana music, and at my house, they’re stars. These albums are examples why.
Published in the Kruger Brothers Newsletter, December 2012. It’s one of the great stories in the history of fretted instrument building in the US: In 1970 Sam Radding began a small manufacturing shop to serve a local community of musicians in the greater San Diego area. Small, unassuming, not a little bit rag-tag, it wasContinue reading “The Deerings and the American Dream”
(KDHX) Tender Is the Night is the fifth solo collection from Old Man (Chris) Luedecke, and it feels like some of the musical ideas he’s been working with are really beginning to gel. His writing has always been very strong, remaining true to the roots of American folk and country music, though dealing with modernContinue reading “Old Man Luedecke’s “Tender is the Night””
(KDHX) In 2000 Tim O’Brien and Darrell Scott released “Real Time,” a gorgeous album of duets by two complete masters of instrumentation, arrangement, and performance. Beautiful. Then they toured it, and pretty much immediately demonstrated that there was a dimension to their playing that the recording lacked; it was a studio piece, and didn’t entirelyContinue reading “Tim O’Brien and Darrell Scott’s “We’re Usually a Lot Better than This””
(KDHX) There are no easy labels for Darrell Scott. In his career he’s been a first-call session musician in Nashville, a songwriter, performer, collaborator and producer — and he recently toured with Robert Plant as part of his Band of Joy. In Scott’s world, it’s not that he’s all over the map, but rather it’sContinue reading “An interview with Darrell Scott”
Published in What’s Up: Canada’s Family Magazine, Holiday 2012 Christmas isn’t just decorations and presents. Some other signs of the season are, unfortunately, injury and illness. Especially at the holidays, you can never be too careful …
(HVBA) Partnering with an orchestra seems to be the thing to do these days. Bela Fleck did it last year with his concerto, as did the Kruger Brothers, as did Ricky Skaggs with the Boston Pops a few years ago, as did Cherryholmes before they disbanded. It’s easy to wonder what the impulse is. TheContinue reading “A Fiddler’s Holiday, Jay Ungar and Molly Mason Family Band”
(HVBA) While “The Hills of Alabam” is a new release, the material all dates from the early 1980s or thereabouts—it’s a compilation of material from two Front Porch String Band albums (the only ones that were ever released) with the one exception being “The Day that Lester Died” which comes from Mark Newton’s album “FollowContinue reading “Claire Lynch, “Hills of Alabam””
(KDHX) I think it’s probably safe to say that this album won’t appear on many year-end best of 2012 lists this year, likely because it’s really a kind of teaching tool: a presentation of the pieces that O’Connor included in his fiddle method books. O’Connor is interested in building a sound fiddle teaching method basedContinue reading “Mark O’Connor and Rieko Aizawa, “American Classics””
(KDHX) The things we desire in the fall—the movies we want to watch, the soups we want to cook, the music we want to hear—are expressions, I think, of what we want the fall to be. For me, if summer is the colouring outside the lines of the Grateful Dead—what I think of as quintessentiallyContinue reading “Music for the fall: Art Tatum and Ben Webster”
(KDHX) Sometimes with new albums, as is the case with David Gunning’s “No More Pennies,” it’s as much about the packaging as it is the music. First the music: David Gunning is very much a songwriter of the Canadian Maritimes, and in this release he revisits so many of the themes we commonly see fromContinue reading “Dave Gunning’s “No More Pennies””
(Penguin Eggs) Make even the slightest adjustment to a violin design—add a string, use a different scroll shape—and you can turn heads, which is true of the work of Phil Elsworthy, an instrument maker from Waterloo, Ontario. Extra strings, fingerboard inlay, a square scroll—in the staid world of violin design, Elsworthy’s fiddles aren’t for theContinue reading “The fiddles of Phil Elsworthy”
Herbert, Richard Louis Passed away peacefully at McNally House in Grimsby, on Wednesday, September 26, after a long illness. He was in his 72nd year. A longtime resident of Fort Erie, Richard was a dear husband and best friend to Judie (nee McNally) and loving father to Peter (Nady), and Glen (Laura). He was aContinue reading “What we talk about when we talk about life”
(KDHX) I’m not certain that this is Herring’s best album to date, and then again I’m not sure that it isn’t. But what I am sure of is that it continues, beautifully, what she has been up to since her first solo release, “Twilight,” in 2001. Herring writes, it would appear, because of a desireContinue reading “Caroline Herring’s “Camilla””
(KDHX) As I listen to this new collection, which is just as good as anything he’s done in his career if not better, I can’t help wondering why Smither isn’t better known. In 2006 he released the glorious “Leave the Light On,” with a title track that feels like an instant classic (though, in aContinue reading “Chris Smither’s “Hundred Dollar Valentine””
Liner notes from the Kruger Brothers’ 2012 release, Best of the Kruger Brothers In the liner notes to the album Forever and a Day Uwe wrote that, “When we began our career in 1975, nothing could have prepared us for the journey that lay ahead.” As we approach the 40th anniversary of that beginning, itContinue reading “Kruger Brothers’ “Best of the Kruger Brothers””
(KDHX) So much of the traditional, roots, and country songbook, is about death, family, and God, with likely an over-representation of the latter. Ralph Stanley, both with his brother Carter and later in his solo career, seems to rarely about much else, though I don’t think we’d call him a gospel artist. And while I’mContinue reading “Kelly Joe Phelps “Brother Sinner and the Whale””
Liner essay for the Kruger Brothers’ CD release Appalachian Concerto The Appalachian Concerto is a very different kind of recording for the Kruger Brothers, and is without any true precedents within their catalogue to date. Still, if there are any real surprises in this work, perhaps the greatest is how entirely natural and obviousContinue reading “Finding Appalachia”
(KDHX) You never know, but Steve Spurgin’s Folk Remedies might be the best album of 2012. We could probably argue at length, if we wanted to, about what makes good music good. Despite the fact that we all have different tastes, different opinions, we feel in our bones that we can recognise good music whenContinue reading “Steve Spurgin’s “Folk Remedies””
(KDHX) Bela Fleck is great. Now if only he could swing. “Across the Imaginary Divide” is another foray for Bela Fleck into jazz, coupling with a pianist much as he has done with Chick Corea in their live shows and on their CD “The Enchantment” (2007). The trio is filled out by Rodney Jordan onContinue reading “Bela Fleck and the Marcus Roberts Trio “Across the Imaginary Divide””
(KDHX) “Rotten Taters” is, unbelievably, the first solo release from a mandolinist that, despite playing Carnegie Hall and the White House, simply should be more widely known than he is. There are lots of reasons for making albums, and Mike Compton’s Rotten Taters is one that was made for the best reason of all: becauseContinue reading “Mike Comptons’ “Rotten Taters””
(KDHX) If you’re looking for a hidden gem, “Home from the Mills”–by bluegrass veterans Jimmy Gaudreau and Moondi Klein–is it. Both artists, while lesser known, have been in the A-league of bluegrass music for decades, playing in bands with lots of names you know well: Bela Fleck, Tony Rice, JD Crowe, Mike Auldridge, the CountryContinue reading “Jimmy Gaudreau and Moondi Klein’s “Home from the Mills””
Glen Herbert 