The plight of troubled people on the move seeking a new, safe home is the theme of Eric Bibb’s heartfelt Migration Blues. It tells the tale of various peoples – refugees and migrants – who have hit the road to escape violence or grinding hardship. With the album, Bibb says he hopes to “encourage us all […]
Monday Morning Video – Play Ball!
Forget the groundhog, the surest sign of spring is the arrival of a new baseball season. Sure, you may be tempted to say Spring Training is the milestone moment, but the weather will often step in to say otherwise. (Heck, there’s a reason Spring Training takes place in Florida and Arizona.) Many of you will […]
Guy Davis & Fabrizio Poggi – Sonny & Brownie’s Last Train
Guy Davis and Fabrizio Poggi’s Sonny & Brownie’s Last Train takes a stroll through the past, with an homage to the traditional country blues of Brownie McGhee and Sonny Terry that Davis refers to as “a love letter to Brownie and Sonny signed by both of us.” Harmonica virtuoso Terry (1911-1986) and acoustic guitarist McGhee (1915-1996) […]
Monday Morning Video – Chuck Berry
Count me among the many whose earliest experience with music was courtesy of Chuck Berry. I think it was “Roll Over Beethoven.” Perhaps it was my personal rebellion against the symphony performances that my parents dragged me to attend. I’ve come to enjoy the symphony in the years since but, at the time, the lyric […]
Front Country – Other Love Songs
Joe Strummer once said, “Rock and roll ain’t about playing all the right notes.” Â I’m pretty sure he was referring to the passion that elevates something good to be something great. Â I happen to think you can be both passionate and really good at what you do. Â Because I’m also pretty sure the Edge never […]
Beth Bombara – Map & No Direction
What is it about electricity that so irritates the traditional folk music crowd? Â Dylan practically caused a riot back in 1965 when he plugged in at Newport. Â The acoustic crowd wanted nothing to do with Fairport Convention or It’s A Beautiful Day when they displayed some rock and roll showmanship and musical direction. Â As late […]
Monday Morning Video – I’m With Her
How’s this for a talented of boundless talent – Sara Watkins, Sarah Jarosz and Aoife O’Donovan harmonizing beautifully on “Cross Muddy Waters.”
Quiles & Cloud – Shake Me Now
Quiles and Cloud originally formed as a duo. Maria Quiles (Vocals and Guitar) and Rory Cloud (Vocals and Guitar) began playing together in the Bay Area in 2011. Since then they have added Upright Bass player Oscar Westesson. Their new album “Shake Me Now†is being released this week and will hopefully be the launching […]
John Craigie – No Rain, No Rose
There will never be another John Prine. Â But like the jam bands that came after the Grateful Dead, if you’re open to the sprouts that come up in the field they plowed, you can experience some delicious flavors that may not be the original, but they’re tasty nonetheless. Â John Craigie is one such Prine varietal. […]
Taarka – Fading Mystery
About an hour north of Denver sits Lyons, Colorado, on the banks of the St. Vrain river. Â It’s the home of the Planet Bluegrass organization, Rockygrass, Rocky Mountain Folks Festival, and other smaller festivals and events. Â Â Which is to say it’s one of the epicenters of Americana music. Â The Enion Pelta-Tiller and David Tiller […]