We met with Judy Collins at the Willard International Hotel in Washington, D.C., the day of her show at the Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia. As one would guess, the artist that prompted the writing of “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes” has a captivating gaze and an elegance and intellect that have been nurtured by her life’s journey.
The ironclad heft of Furnace Mountain’s talent shows up shining on every track of their release, Shadow of Plenty. The quartet of masterful musician’s hail from Loudoun County, Virginia’s Piedmont area where iron ore was extracted and formed into muskets, wagon wheels and more, all part of the Industrial Revolution.
by: Rick Landers Decades ago, banjo man Stephen Wade made an indelible mark on stage performing his now legendary one-man act, Banjo Dancing, or the 48th Annual Squitters Mountain Song, Dance, Folklore Convention & Banjo Contest and How I Lost, in Chicago (1979), and later scored a major coup at Washington, D.C.’s Arena Stage, where I […]
Today – on her 83rd birthday – after a decade lay-off from recording on her own, Sylvia Tyson ,announces the release on November 3rd, 2023 of her most powerful, and most incisive recording to date, At The End Of The Day, on Stony Plain Records – and shares that this will be her final a
Prolific singer-songwriter, Jesse Colin Young, and his contributions to music are forever woven into the fabric of the American Dream, where the fundamental elements of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” are rooted in song gifts bestowed by him to all of us.
Shenandoah Run is the brainchild of Bob Melissinos who founded the group decades ago. Over the years members of the group have come and gone, and come back again. Today, the group includes: Bob who plays guitar; Jill Nelson (mandolin), John Werntz (bass); Joe Dickey (banjo), Leslie Smile Hoyle (violin), Jim Johnson (guitar, mandolin, bouzouki, banjo), Ben Hamblin (guitar), and Renee Moyer (percussion).
Many, like award-winning author, J.R. Potter, take on more artistic hobbies or career ambitions, as it’s their nature to create art, sometimes seemingly from whole cloth. Jamie and his life and musical duet partner in the Crooked Angels, Amy, are well-known in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, DC area for their well-crafted songs and other well-chosen music of others that prompt audience’s to hum along and smile.
The concept of playing for free or for spare change is one for the ages. And the decisions for performing for little to no compensation is one to not take lightly, and should consider one’s level of talent, name recognition, commerciality, as well as the venue or circumstances that offer “real estate” to perform your original songs, cover songs or, most likely a mix of the two.
Tim O’Brien talks about his song, “Cup of Sugar” – The songs started with ‘Bear.‘ It was December of 2021, and the news was all about Russia and would Putin invade Ukraine. I had just read a book on the history of dancing bears. White Nationalism was a prominent topic, the flip side being Black Lives Matter. Trump had lost the election but was ramping up his spoiled brat act. I could imagine the gripes Putin, Trump and the White Nationalists had, even if I didn’t agree.
Two-time folk Grammy nominee Eliza Gilkyson is sharing the first single, the “brightly ethereal” (Folk Alley) “Safety Zone”, from her new album, Home, set for released June 23 on her own imprint, Realiza Records. Premiering today, the song came about after a bad accident Eliza suffered at last year’s Kerrville Folk Festival in Texas. A member of the Austin Music Hall of Fame, and an inductee into the Austin Songwriter Hall of Fame, she has won countless Folk Alliance and Austin Music awards, including 2014’s Songwriter of the Year.
