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Silver Dollar City’s Bluegrass & BBQ festival has added a new wrinkle for 2013. The annual mega-fest which runs continuously from May 9-27 in Branson, MO, will feature bluegrass lake cruises on their paddlewheel showboat, Branson Belle, May 24-26. Monroe Crossing will perform May 24, Larry [...]

Our Special Bluegrass Correspondent, John Goad, has organized a fun competition for the month of May. He’s trying to locate the ugliest mandolin amongst the readers of Bluegrass Today. If you’ve got an ugly mandolin, we want to see it!   Don’t be bashful; show [...]

Much of Nashville, and all of country music, was absorbed yesterday with the memorial service for George Jones held at the Grand Ole Opry house. Friends and loyal fans turned out to remember this musical giant, who passed away on April 26. Over the course [...]

Rounder has released yet another video preview from their upcoming Dailey & Vincent CD, Brothers Of The Highway. This time it’s the Louvin Brothers classic, When I Stop Dreaming, which was the first radio hit for Ira and Charlie back in 1955. The new album [...]

It’s a good thing Joe Zauner was hungry one night while visiting his aunt and uncle 35 years ago. It cemented his place in bluegrass folklore. Zauner, a picker from the Washington D.C. suburbs, chose a western Maryland pizza shop that night because he heard [...]

Valerie Smith's single "The Moon Ain't Square" was included in the Daughters of Bluegrass new release on Blue Circle Records "Pickin' Like A Girl" (Disc 2, Track 14). Val got out her video cam and had a fun spring day interviewing various people and groups about the moon. The video is humorous!

Award winning songwriters Tom T. Hall and Dixie Hall penned the songs on this wonderful collection and which is released on their Good Home Grown Music label. The combination of outstanding songwriting and an assemblege of artists combine for a unique and creative collection of awesome music.

This project took around a year and a half in the making. It would, of course, have been completed sooner but we just couldn't quit! If the truth were told there really is no stopping place. There is just too much female talent out there that should not pass unheard. We hope you enjoy this drop in the bucket - Happy Listening!

"The Moon Ain't Square" by David Stevens/Valerie Smith (BMI)/Tom T. Hall (BMI)/Dixie Hall (BMI) features Valerie Smith - lead vocals; Corrina Rose Logstone - fiddle; Rebekah Long - lead guitar, bass, rhythm guitar; Rachel Burge - mandolin.

Tags: Valerie SmithDaughters of BluegrassPickin' Like a GirlThe Moon Ain't SquareCD ReleaseVideo

San Diego, CA -- Summergrass San Diego is Southern California's most exciting bluegrass music festival. Summergrass is pleased to announce their 2013 festival, marking their 11th year held at the Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum in Vista, CA, a fascinating 40 acre outdoor museum, you won't want to miss it. This year's headlinerlineup features NewFound Road, Sierra Hull, Bluegrass Etc, Flatt Lonesome,, Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen. Also appearing will be: Bluegrass Brethren, Box Canyon, Front Porch Preservation Society, Full Deck, Gone Tomorrow, Next Generation, Old Town Road, Roustabouts.

Summergrass Festival 2013 will be 3 Days of Live Music from 13 international, national, regional and local bands; music workshops presented by our performing artists; a variety of special family & kid-oriented music activities; lots of spontaneous live jam sessions; instrument raffles; tasty food and a variety of vendors. Enjoyable whether you're 6 or 60! It's a great, affordable, family event.

NewFound Road returns in 2013! With NewFound Road, what you hear is what you get. The fire and intensity of this band's performance are made possible through their immense gifts as instrumentalists, songwriters and vocalists. A well received, big crowd favorite in 2009, NewFound Road's impressive assurance and sincerity make them among the most dynamic bluegrass bands on today's scene. From the Ohio and Kentucky area, make sure you see NewFound Road's return appearance! Visit the band at myspace newfound road and find out what makes this band so popular.

Summergrass is very proud to present Sierra Hull in 2013. A recent alumni of Berklee School of Music in Boston, this young lady is at the cutting-edge of the future of bluegrass. Sierra has already earned considerable respect in the bluegrass world, the IBMA's voting members having nominated her for no fewer than five awards over three years. As a player, a singer and a songwriter, she also has remarkable range, the potential to win over ears unfamiliar with Bill Monroe and give performances of broad cultural importance, as she's done at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center and the National Prayer Breakfast. Matt Glaser-head of Berklee's American Roots Music Program-put it this way: "She has no limitations as a musician." Sierra Hull - a must see show! See more of Sierra at http://www.sierrahull.com

Flatt Lonesome is a young, new group of pickers hailing from Florida who are deeply-rooted in bluegrass music's historic classics. They also have an energetic flair for country sounds, progressive jams, and soul-stirring gospel music while never forsaking their traditional essence.

Flatt Lonesome was born from the Robertson family's bluegrass gospel band, Sandy Creek Revival. Pastor Dolton Robertson, his wife Lisa, and their three children Kelsi, Buddy, and Charli began playing as a group just a few years ago because of their love of bluegrass and the desire to play music together as a family. This quickly grew into a passion for the Robertson children with a great longing to travel, write, and record. So, in January 2011, Kelsi, Charli and Buddy teamed up with friends Dominic Illingworth, Michael Stockton, and Brian Andrews and became Flatt Lonesome. In February of 2011, the band entered the SPBGMA International Band Championship in Nashville, TN and placed 3rd. Not bad for the band's very first time on stage!

Bluegrass Etc. is back! This San Diego blockbuster band will return to its roots in Vista to the delight of their throngs of fans. This dynamic trio is comprised of stunning pickers and will dazzle and delight their hometown fans once again. Bluegrass Etc. performs a hard-hitting show of instrumental expertise, vocal precision and stage personality that never fails to entertain. The group is well known internationally and tours more than eighteen countries per year, performing more than 200 shows annually at festivals and in concert. Bluegrass Etc. consists of John Moore (mandolin, guitar, vocals), Dennis Caplinger (banjo, fiddle, vocals), and Bill Bryson (bass, vocals).

Summergrass is proud to debut Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen in 2013. With Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen you hear power. You hear volume. You hear crispness, clarity, timing, and taste. All this combined with passion and drive creates this band that has a powerful life force that's raw, natural and pure. Frank Solivan on mandolin and fiddle, Mike Mumford on banjo, Danny Booth on bass, and Chris Luquette on guitar "play the fire" out of their respective instruments and will impress you with an energy force that will have you up out of your chair. Welcome Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen! Check out this band at www.dirtykitchenband.com_blank

Tags: SummergrassBluegrass FestivalEvent

Appalachian Entertainer and actor Randall Franks joins historic country music luminaries such as A.P. Carter of the Carter Family, Pop Stoneman of the Stoneman Family, Uncle Dave Macon and Fiddlin’ John Carson in the Independent Country Music Hall of Fame. Franks was inducted alongside several industry friends including Leona Williams, Razzy Bailey, Jean Shepherd, Jimmy C. Newman, the late Billie Jo Spears, Glenn Douglas Tubb, Jerry and Helen Burke, Leslie Elliott, Jim Lusk, Phyllis Cole and the late Johnny Carson.

Franks accepted the induction on behalf of those who he said invested in his life and encouraged him along his path.

“I first thank God for the opportunities and talents He provided, my late parents Floyd and Pearl Franks, Cotton and Jane Carrier, John and Debbie Farley, Bill Monroe, Jim and Jesse McReynolds, Roy Acuff, Perry Harris, Carroll O’Connor, Alan Autry, Johnny Carson and Phyllis Cole, the producers, directors, engineers, songwriters, managers, agents, disc jockeys, and those of you who bought records and show tickets, listened on radio, and watched me on TV.”

Hall of Fame member Jerry Cramer presented Franks the award as he also expressed his appreciation to the nominating committee for his induction.

“It is especially such an honor to join such an illustrious class of inductees filled with so many whose work I have admired through my career as well as many who are my friends,” he said.

Franks is best known as “Officer Randy Goode” from TV’s “In the Heat of the Night,” a role he performed on NBC and CBS from 1988-1993. He also starred with Robert Townsend in his series “Musical Theater of Hope” which aired on GMC-TV in 2009.

He has co-starred or starred in 14 films with superstars including Dolly Parton, Christian Slater, William Hurt and Stella Parton and legendary western star “Doc” Tommy Scott. His most recent film is “Lukewarm” with John Schneider, Nicole Gale Anderson and Bill Cobbs.

Franks’s musical stylings have been heard in 150 countries and by more than 25 million Americans. His musical career boasts 19 album releases, 17 singles, and over 200 recordings with various artists from various genres. One of his most popular self-penned Songs of the Year award winners is “The Old Black Fiddle.” The award-winning fiddler’s best selling release, "Handshakes and Smiles" was a top 20 Christian music seller. Many of his albums were among the top 30-bluegrass recordings of their release year.

The Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame member shared a top country vocal collaboration with Grand Ole Opry stars the Whites. In addition to his solo career that includes 13 years guest starring for Grand Ole Opry, Franks is a former member of Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys, Jim and Jesse's Virginia Boys and has performed with Jeff and Sheri Easter, the Lewis Family, the Marksmen Quartet, Elaine and Shorty, “Doc” Tommy Scott’s Last Real Old Time Medicine Show and Doodle and the Golden River Grass.

He was included among his generation’s leading country humorists in the recent Loyal Jones book “Country Music Humorists and Comedians.”

He is president of the Share America Foundation, Inc. that provides the Pearl and Floyd Franks Scholarship to musicians continuing the traditional music of Appalachia. He hosts a monthly concert series at the historic Ringgold Depot which helps fund the scholarships. He authored four books including “A Mountain Pearl: Appalachian Reminiscing and Recipes;” “Stirring Up Success with a Southern Flavor” and “Stirring Up Additional Success with a Southern Flavor” with Shirley Smith; and “Snake Oil, Superstars and Me” with “Doc” Tommy Scott and Shirley Swiesz.

The award-winning journalist is a syndicated columnist with his “Southern Style” appearing weekly in newspapers from North Carolina to Texas and at http://randallfranks.com/

Also honored at the ceremonies near Nashville in Lebanon, Tenn. were Roy August, T. Jae Christian, Gary Clardy, Ed Gowens, Hickory Wind Band, Marty Martel, Dave Lindsey, Gary S. Paxton, Ernie Rowell, Bill Rainey, Donna Ray, and Steven B. Riley.

The Independent Country Music Hall of Fame Awards was established in 1996 to recognize those independent recording artists, songwriters, producers and country music industry business people who deserve recognition for their important roles within the country music family. For more information, visit http://www.independentcountrymusichalloffame.com.

Tags: Randall FranksIndependent Country Music Hall of Fame AwardsAwardHall of Fame

Nashville, TN -- Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum and the Nashville Public Libary and Foundation will present the world premiere of String City: Nashville's Tradition of Music and Puppetry. Many of country music’s most impactful artists, from early musical architects to contemporary superstars, will perform together on the Ford Theater stage this summer—in a manner of speaking: The world premiere of String City: Nashville's Tradition of Music and Puppetry, a colorful telling of the history of country music in Nashville, will take place June 20 at 8 p.m. at the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum. Tickets will be available on May 9, 2013.

Admission to the June 20 performance, which includes a pre-show reception at 7 p.m., is available for a $30 per person donation; tickets may be reserved starting May 9. All donations go to the Nashville Public Library Foundation and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Additional information is below.

An hour-long history of country music with an emphasis on Nashville’s transformation into Music City, this original program is made possible by a partnership between the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and Nashville Public Library and Foundation. This performance launches the 2013 Nashville International Puppet Festival.

“String City is the brainchild of Judy and Steve Turner,” said Museum Director Kyle Young. “Our city could not ask for two more dedicated patrons; they are passionate supporters of the arts and arts education. Steve is chairman of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s board, Judy serves on the advisory committee of Nashville Public Library Foundation, and they conceived String City as a collaboration between our institutions that could ultimately educate audiences around the world about Music City. The resulting show uses puppets and artists’ original recordings to take the audience on a journey through country music history, from early seminal artists and key events up to the present day.

“We envision String City as a production that will travel to festivals across the U.S. and internationally,” Young continued. “It has the potential to act as an ambassador for our institutions, our city and the genre as a whole.”

“The wide appeal of country music and Nashville’s deep roots in the genre’s history attract tourists from all over the country and the world,” said Kent Oliver, Nashville Public Library director. “String City appeals to the same crowd of music enthusiasts and demonstrates that puppetry is a fine art form, attracting fans of all interests and ages, not just the younger ones.”

The String City soundtrack features original recordings from numerous artists. The script was written by Brian Hull of Wishing Chair Productions, the library’s in-house puppet troupe, in consultation with the museum’s Jay Orr, Michael McCall and Ali Tonn.

Each of the nearly three dozen artists featured in the narrative is represented by a puppet doppelganger. Two were created by Tennessee’s own Phillip Huber, an artist best known for his work with marionettes, most notably in Being John Malkovich and in Disney’s Oz, the Great and Powerful.

String City is the largest production Nashville Public Library has ever undertaken. After its debut at the museum, String City will continue to be performed at the Nashville Public Library, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, local schools, special events, festivals and abroad.

The program is part of the 2013 Nashville International Puppet Festival, which takes place June 21–23 at the main library downtown. Free and open to the public, the festival includes a family-friendly carnival atmosphere with puppet performances, live music, food and a parade. International puppet troupes hailing from France, China, Japan, Argentina and Germany will perform. The festival is being funded by Nashville Public Library, the Nashville Public Library Foundation and the Junior League of Nashville.

The marionette tradition at Nashville Public Library dates back to 1938 when Tom Tichenor performed a rendition of Puss in Boots. Seventy-five years later, marionette shows are still performed at the downtown library on Friday and Saturday mornings by Wishing Chair Productions. Nashville’s first international puppet festival was held by the library in 2008 and attracted more than 18,000 people.

Advance tickets for String City and the preshow reception may be obtained by making a $30 donation online at www.nashvillepuppetfestival.com beginning Thursday, May 9; donations may also be made the night of show at the museum box office. Tickets are available on a first come, first served basis and are nonrefundable. Guests attending the String City premiere are also invited to a pre-show reception, which begins at 7 p.m.

Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum is operated by the Country Music Foundation, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) educational organization chartered by the state of Tennessee in 1964. The museum’s mission is the preservation of the history of country and related vernacular music rooted in Southern culture. With the same educational mission, the foundation also operates CMF Records, the museum’s Frist Library and Archive, CMF Press, Historic RCA Studio B and Hatch Show Print®. More information about the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum is available at www.countrymusichalloffame.org or by calling (615) 416-2001.

Nashville Public Library maintains a collection of 2 million items, including books, periodicals, DVDs, CDs, audio books, and downloadable books, movies and music. The library also offers more than 800 public-use computers, free art exhibits, educational programs and events for all ages, such as historic marionette shows by Wishing Chair Productions enjoyed by nearly 8,000 children each month. The system also offers Bringing Books to Life, a pre-K initiative for children, teachers and families; 24/7 reference assistance; and interlibrary loan. The Oral History and Special Collections Center houses historical photographs, documents and memorabilia. The center also offers online genealogical resources such as Ancestry Library Edition and HeritageQuest, and incorporates the award-winning Civil Rights Room. Equal access is offered through the Talking Library audio reading service for the print disabled- and Library Services for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. For more information, call (615) 862-5800 or visit http://www.library.nashville.org.

The Nashville Public Library Foundation provides private funding to enhance library buildings, programs and collections. Recent initiatives include: opening the Oral History and Special Collections Center, funding a pre-school literacy program called Bringing Books to Life; sending the famed marionettes on the road with the Puppet Truck; starting T.O.T.A.L., a youth empowerment program; and mounting professionally curated art exhibits. Each year, the Foundation bestows the Nashville Public Library Literary Award to a distinguished author for their contribution to the world of books and reading; past recipients include Ann Patchett, John Updike, David Halberstam, David McCullough, John McPhee and Margaret Atwood. For more information on the NPLF or to make a gift, visit http://www.nplf.org.

Tags: Country Music Hall of Fame and MuseumNashville Public LibraryString City: Nashville's Tradition of Music and PuppetryEvent

Last week, Donna Ulisse shot a new music video for I Am A Child Of God, a track from her 2007 album, When I Look Back. The song will serve as the title track for a compilation project due for a June release, with a [...]

Our 2013 MerleFest correspondent, Andy Garrigue, has sent along a number of image galleries from last weekend’s event. First up is Sam Bush, with his band, and in the Doc Watson Tribute set, with a few shots of Chris Smither.  

The Chapmans are hosting an all-day music event this Saturday (5/4) for the official Grand Opening of their new business venture, The Acoustic Shoppe in Springfield, MO. Live music will be provided from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. featuring The Hillbenders and several bluegrass and acoustic [...]

Philapdelphia PBS television station WHYY featured Mountain Heart in a recent episode of their On Canvas program. The show features lengthy bits of live video from the band’s February 1 performance at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA, interspersed with interview clips with Mountain Heart fiddler Jim VanCleve. [...]

Shannon and Heather Slaughter have announced that Blake Bowen has joined their touring band, County Clare. He has worked previously as a member of Randy Waller & The Country Gentlemen, Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper, and the Tina Adair Band. He comes by his talents naturally, [...]

Nashville, Tenn. (May 1, 2013) — The International Bluegrass Music Association – IBMA – is pleased to make its first announcement of talent for the newly-named Wide Open Bluegrass festival, to be held at the Raleigh, NC Convention Center andAmphitheater on September 27th and 28th.

The initial slate of artists scheduled to perform at the Wide Open Bluegrass festival include a special collaboration between bluegrass giants Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Béla Fleck, Alison Krauss, Del McCouryand Tony Rice, a performance from one of the most anticipated tours of the summer, Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers Featuring Edie Brickell and the acclaimed Punch Brothers, with their first appearance at the IBMA festival.

Tickets for the Wide Open Bluegrass festival will go on sale May 15 for IBMA members and May 29 for the general public. Bluegrass fans can join IBMA in order to take advantage of early ticket availability and member discount rates, by calling 1-888-GET-IBMA or going to www.ibma.org.

Serving as onstage“mistress of ceremonies” for the Wide Open Bluegrass festival is celebrated banjo player/songwriter Abigail Washburn.

Additional ticket information for the Wide Open Bluegrass festival – as well as the full slate of performers - will be announced in the coming weeks.

The two-day festival is part of IBMA’s annual World of Bluegrass event: bluegrass music’s annual industry gathering and family reunion. Held for the first time in Raleigh, North Carolina, World of Bluegrass runs from September 24-28. The International Bluegrass Music Association – IBMA – is the professional trade organization for the global bluegrass music community.

Friday night’s performance from artists Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Béla Fleck, Alison Krauss, Del McCoury and Tony Rice offers a unique reunion of recipients of the IBMA’s inaugural International Bluegrass Music Awards, presented in 1990—a group of artists whose names are synonymous not just with the best in today’s bluegrass, but with the most memorable acoustic music of any kind.

Rooted in tradition yet with distinctive, forward-looking visions that have propelled bluegrass music into the 21st century and brought its sounds and influences around the world, these are true masters who are equally at ease in bringing audiences to the edges of theirseats with finely-wrought intimacy, and to their feet with bold instrumental virtuosity and signature vocals.

Individually, they have been among the genre’s most important role models and musical mentors for the current generation of bluegrass musicians. Though they’re friends and colleagues of long standing, this appearance marks their first time together on stage in more than 20 years. Mark Schatz, Bass Player of the Year in 1994-1995, will be standing in for the late Roy Huskey, Jr., who took top IBMA honors on Bass from 1990-93.

Audiences are already familiar with the award-winning combination of actor/musician Steve Martin and the Grammy-winning bluegrass band Steep Canyon Rangers; the addition of artist Edie Brickell to their spring/summer tour – which will take them from Town Hall in NYC to the LA’s Hollywood Bowl - has made them on of the most talked-about tours of the year. The Washington Post has nothing but praise for Martin and Brickell’s new Rounder album, “Love Has Come For You, ” declaring that “Mixing the traditional with the modern, Brickell and Martin find a comfortable groove on what may seem like an unlikely collaboration but that turns out to be a perfect fit.”

Saturday night’s Punch Brothers, led by widely acknowledged mandolin genius Chris Thile, have earned acclaim by blending the traditional interplay of bluegrass instruments with the complexity of chamber music—and a healthy dose of contemporary indie sensibility.

“With a new host city on the horizon for our annual World of Bluegrass gathering, it was the perfecttime for IBMA to assemble a spectacular, one-of-a-kind artistic lineup to celebrate the move,” said IBMA Executive Director, Nancy Cardwell.

IBMA’s World of Bluegrass 2013 will take place at the Raleigh Convention Center, the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts, and the Red Hat Amphitheater—all within easy walking distance of each other. Evening showcases will take place at the Raleigh Convention Center and at various venues in town.

For more details and to purchase tickets/register for World of Bluegrass 2013, IBMA Awards, “Wide Open Bluegrass” weekend festival and showcase passes, visit www.worldofbluegrass.org or call 1-888-GET-IBMA.

Follow IBMA’s World of Bluegrass news at Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/intlbluegrass) and on Twitter (@intlbluegrass, #ibma, #wob2013, #bluegrassnation and #bluegrass).

Tags: International Bluegrass Music AssociationIBMAWide Open Bluegrass FestivaBluegrass FestivalEvent

Nashville, Tenn. (May 1, 2013) – George Jones’ funeral will take place on Thursday, May 2nd at The Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee, starting at 10 am (Central) and will be open to the public. Doors will open at 9 am. "George would have wanted his fans and friends everywhere to be able to come and pay their respects along with his family," said publicist Kirt Webster. Country Music Hall of Famer, Grand Ole Opry member, and Kennedy Center Honoree George Glenn Jones died Friday, April 26, 2013 at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville.

In addition, national television networks CMT, GAC, RFD, and FamilyNet, as well as local Nashville stations WKRN 2, WSMV 4, WTVF 5, WZTV 17 will broadcast the funeral service “LIVE”, with radio partners WSM 650AM and SiriusXM Willie's Roadhouse (Ch. 56) broadcasting the service. Fans around the world can listen online at wsmonline.com or watch online at www.opry.com.

"The caliber of speakers and performers is a testament to what George Jones meant to everyone in the world," says publicist Kirt Webster. "Nancy is overwhelmed by the love and support of not only George's fans, but also the music community, public figures and friends."

The service will include music from Charlie Daniels, Vince Gill w/ Patty Loveless, Alan Jackson, Ronnie Milsap, Kid Rock, The Oak Ridge Boys, Brad Paisley, Randy Travis, Travis Tritt, Tanya Tucker, and Wynonna. Former First Lady Laura Bush, Kenny Chesney, Grand Ole Opry VP&GM Pete Fisher, Governor Bill Haslam, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Barbara Mandrell, and CBS News' Chief Washington Correspondent Bob Schieffer will all make special remarks.

Fans not able to attend can leave a special message about George Jones at: http://tinyurl.com/GJtribute

Tags: George JonesObituarySilent Strings

Irvine, KY -- Kindred Records has signed a record deal with Kermit, West Virginia bluegrass music group JD Messer and Sanctified. The band is currently in the studio recording tracks for a new Gospel all-original project and is planned for the Kindred Records debut release this summer.

Two singles are now being released simultaneously, "Peter Stepped Out" is a solid Bluegrass Gospel number that sure fits the classic Doyle Lawson mold and a bonus track release "Lunch Box Letter" that really touches the hearts and minds of anyone with coal miners in the family. Both singles are available now on AirPlayDirect with more info posted on their artist page on kindredrecords.com and on their website at www.jdmesserandsanctified.com

Band members are John D. Messer - mandolin/lead vocals, Kenny Stanley - guitar/vocals, Jerry Sturgell - dobro/vocals, Kayla Amburgey - bass/vocals, Brent Amburgey - banjo/vocals, and Albon Clevenger - fiddle/vocals.

Great bluegrass with a Gospel message, solid vocal harmonies, and a hard driving performance. The group is currently booking and looking forward to performing and expanding their territory.

Kindred is pleased to add JD Messer and Sanctified to its catalog of artists. For more information visit their website at www.jdmesserandsanctified.com

Tags: J.D. Messer and SanctifiedGospelCD Release

The Expedition Show is very excited to announce that their new CD, Stormy Horizons, on Mountain Fever Records will be officially released on Tuesday, May 14th! However, the band will have some advance copies ready to ship on May 6th so they are offering the project for pre-order now.

The unique and entertaining musical journey of The Expedition Show blends tight vocal harmonies, white-hot picking, and sidesplitting humor into a fast paced, non-stop, crowd-pleasing show! One of the fantastic surprises of this veteran group of musicians is the original songs and fresh sounds combined with old-school traditional spirit. Critically ac- claimed master musicians and singers trained by the forefathers of bluegrass and the legends of the Grand Ole Opry have forged into a very special musical experience!

Consisting of Blake Williams on banjo and vocals; Wayne Southards on guitar and vocals; Kimberly Williams on bass and vocals; and Alex Hibbitts on mandolin and vocals; The Expedition Show has been a fan and festival favorite since their beginning in early 2002.

The tracks on Stormy Horizons include:

1. "Cheating Game Of The Blues"
2. "Rambler Like Me"
3. "Paradise City Of God"
4. "Dryland Farmer"
5. "World's Greatest Picture"
6. "Gotta Travel On"
7. "Stormy Horizons"
8. "Foggy Mountain Special"
9. "Take The High Road"
10. "Low Down Cryin' Shame"
11. "He's The One For Me"
12. "The Blues Come Around"

During the band's 9 year tenure, the entertaining group has been nominated twice by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) for Emerging Artist of the Year (2005 and 2007), Wayne Southards has won the International Acoustic Music Association's Male Vocalist of the Year award (2009) and Blake Williams has been nominated three times for Entertainer of the Year by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (2007-2009).

The band has performed all over the world including a tour with country music artist Darryl Worley to Japan and an extensive headlining tour in Canada. In addition, the band was invited to perform for the historic Ryman Auditorium's "Bluegrass Nights at The Ryman" concert series in 2007 where they played to a nearly sold out crowd. In between all the touring, the quartet has also released seven full-length CDs.

"When we started this band, we wanted to be different from anyone else out there," states founding member Blake Wil- liams. "With Wayne and Kimberly both singing lead and harmony, we immediately offer a variety for the listeners and we also write a lot of our own songs. And another thing we wanted to do was to put on an entertaining show. When I worked with Lester Flatt back in the 70's, he made a point to call his performances a ‘show’. Every time he stepped on stage, he set out to entertain and not just perform but give that audience a ‘show’ and I learned very early on that if you can entertain a crowd, not just play to them, then you've done what you're supposed to do when you’re on stage." And entertain is exactly what The Expedition Show does.

They not only present excellent vocals from solos to quartets, and excellent musicianship from the veteran players, but they also engage the crowd in laughter with the banter between Expedition band members and the country comedic style of Williams. "I've always thought if people were laughing, they're forgetting their troubles," continues Williams. "If you aren't smiling or laughing throughout our show, then we're not doing our job as entertainers."

Tags: The Expedition ShowStormy HorizonsCD Release

The International Bluegrass Music Association has begun to announce the scheduled performers for the 2013 Wide Open Bluegras Festival, their weekend concert event that follows the conclusion of the World of Bluegrass Business Conference and International Bluegrass Music Awards in September. This 2 day festival, [...]

Two more bluegrass artists have checked in with their thoughts and reflections on the passing of George Jones. First up, five-time IBMA Male Vocalist of the Year, Russell Moore. “George Jones is a legend…not only in country music, but in probably every genre of music. [...]