We’ve been in communication recently with Lilly Drumeva, a real bluegrass Renaissance woman who is hard at work promoting and performing the music in her native Bulgaria. She hosts a television program which runs twice each week on national TV, two separate radio shows, and also manages and leads Bulgaria’s only bluegrass band, Lilly Of The West. The band features Lilly on guitar and vocal, Yassen Vassilev on guitar, Vladimir Michailov on fiddle/viola, Svoboda Bozduganova on bass, and Jesse Brock on mandolin.

Many American/Canadian artists and labels are not aware of the Eastern Europeans’ interest in bluegrass, or may be reluctant to bear the cost of sending new projects overseas. Lilly is always on the lookout for CDs she can use on the radio, and DVDs for the TV show, and asked us to pass along the address where bands and labels can send materials for airplay, along with a request to please assist her efforts to spread bluegrass by sending new releases her way.

Lily described her various broadcasting efforts for us:

“My TV show is called Country with Lilly (Kuntri s Lili - in Bulgarian). It is broadcast twice a week - every Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 ’till midnight on Balkan Bulgarian Television (BBT). They are 2 different shows which are repeated on Friday night. The show has 3 sections: Country Classics, New Country and Country Live. I feature a lot of bluegrass in Country Live. Sometimes I also have guest musicians in the studio to promote their projects.

My first radio show is called In The Mood with Lilly (Nastroenie s Lili). It is every Sunday from 11 till 1.00 a.m on RETRO RADIO. I am the co-owner of the station. the web site is in Bulgarian, but my show can be heard live. The accents of the program is oldies - 50s, 60s music plus rockabilly and bluegrass.

My second radio show is on the Bulgarian National Radio, every Friday from 9 till 11 p.m. It is called Pulsating Notes (Pulsirasti Noti) and presents the new releases in country music, charts according to Billboard, etc. I feature also a lot of bluegrass and independent artists. The website is also in Bulgarian.”

Our hats are off to Lilly the trailblazer, for her work spreading the music, as well as her entrepreneurial spirit. May her efforts bear great fruit for bluegrass.

Heartache & Hope is the title of the latest release from Pine Mountain Railroad, which will be officially released March 15 on the TrackTones Records label. The new CD was produced by Missy Raines, and recorded in Nashville by Ben Suratt, with guest performances turned in by Ben and Sonya Isaacs, Stuart Duncan, Larry Atamanuic, and producer Missy Raines.

PMR fans can pre-order the CD now from the band’s web site, where audio samples from each of the 12 tracks can also be found. The guys say that they will sign and ship pre-release orders as soon as they receive the CDs.

Mel Bay has just released to DVD Joe Carr’s Super Mandolin Picking Techniques. This was previously only available on VHS. The 30 minute program teaches mandolin players how to develop a strong well-coordinated right-hand technique that will lead to super fast, strong and accurate picking.

Included are play-along exercises for alternating, combination and consecutive down picking. Joe also covers Monroe style picking and two styles of Crosspicking.

The price is only $14.95 and a PDF file for the free instructional booklet that accompanies this DVD is available for download at www.melbay.com/DVDBooklets.

The Earl Brothers are proud to draw attention to the fact that their CD, Whiskey, Women and Death, has made it onto CDBaby.com’s list of top selling country music CDs.

Their latest CD of all original material, Trouble To Blame (which we mentioned in an earlier post), is also available from CDBaby.

CDBaby was started by Portland, OR musician Derek Sivers in 1997 to provide an online marketing venue for himself and some of his friends. Since that time, it has become the largest online distributor of independently-released CD projects, having sold more than $25 million in both manufactured CDs and digital downloads.

As Brance mentioned, I’m in St. Louis teaching this weekend, and had to miss a radio interview my Acoustic Endeavors bandmates did with WVTF, the public radio powerhouse in southwest Virginia. WVTF’s popular Back To The Blue Ridge program, hosted by Seth Williamson and Kinney Rorrer, is broadcast on 9 frequencies in central and western VA at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday afternoons, and rebroadcast the following Saturday at 6:00 a.m.

All the other Acoustic Endeavors members will join Seth and Kinney in the studio tomorrow to talk about the new CD, On A Farm, and play some tracks from the recording. You can find more info on Back To The Blue Ridge - or listen to the show online this Sunday (3/12) at 2:00 p.m. (EST) - on the WVTF web site.

The show is broadcast on 89.1 FM from Roanoke, VA and is simulcast on adjacent frequencies outside the reach of the Roanoke tower.

My fellow blog author, John Lawless, will be featured Sunday evening (3/12) on Sirius Satellite Radio’s bluegrass channel 65. He’ll be interviewed by Sirius on-air host Ned Luberecki, and they will also spin a number of tracks from John’s CD, Five & Dime. John will be in St. Louis (with Ned) teaching banjo classes at Bull & Tammy Harman’s St. Louis Flatpick.

Sirius subscribers can simply tune in on Channel 65, as can anyone with Dish Network Satellite TV where it will run on channel 6065. If you are a subscriber but won’t be in the car - or near your Sirius receiver - you can listen online. A free 3-day trial subscription is also available for online listening.

John and Ned’s segment will run in the 7:00 p.m. hour (EST) on Sunday, March 12.

Chris Davis, mandolinist with Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time, and his wife Rhonda are celebrating the birth of their son. The LST web site reports that mother and child are at home, and doing fine. A baby picture is posted on Larry’s site.

The site also indicates that the new young Master Davis is named Gibson, Gibson Christopher to be precise. What could bring a mandolin player to consider such a name, we wonder.

The Arizona Daily Star has a story online about Alison Krauss’ recent grammy win. The article is focused mainly on Jerry Douglas and his contributions to Union Station and dobro playing in general. They have a lot of quotes from Jerry in the article. Here are a couple of my favorites.

I’ve never seen her make that face before. She was really in shock.

I’m an ambassador for an instrument. I feel like when I don’t have to explain what it is, then I’ll feel like I’m successful.

She’s got great ears, and she hears things that no one else hears. And she’s got a great mind for arranging.

The diligent staff of the International Bluegrass Music Association is currently assembling their list of eligible recordings for the 2006 IBMA Awards voting.

This list is distributed with the first round (nominating) ballot sent to all voting members of the association, and while it is not meant to be the definitive listing of all eligible releases, it will ensure that voting members recognize that your CD can be nominated in this eligibility period. In other words, a non-listed recording is still eligible if it meets the release date criteria - which is all commercially available recordings released between April 1, 2005 and March 31, 2006 - but the voting members of the association may not be recall your project if it isn’t listed, or may neglect it in making their selections in favor of those on the list provided with the ballot.

These are the critical details IBMA needs to make sure that your recording is listed:

We need the following information for each of the recordings eligible to be included on this reference list:

-Artist
-Album title
-Catalog number & label
-Commercial release date (month/day/year recording was first made available to consumers for sale)
-Record Company
-Contact Person
-Telephone Number
-E-Mail

Because the list will be confirmed before the first ballots are printed and mailed, this information must be received at the IBMA office no later than April 30, 2006. You may email the info, fax it to (615) 256-0450 or mail it to IBMA; 2 Music Circle South, Ste. 100; Nashville, TN 37203.

Re-issues or re-releases of previously issued material are not eligible for these awards.

A number of bluegrass artists are up for awards from the Academy Of Country Music when they are presented on May 23. Rob Ickes (dobro) and Bryan Sutton (guitar) are nominated in the Top Specialty Instrument Player of the Year category, and both Glen Duncan and Aubrey Haynie are nominated for Top Fiddle Player of the Year.

The ACM Awards will be telecast on CBS at 8:00 p.m. (5/23), and while we hope to see a mention of these instrumentalist awards, they will not be presented during the televised portion of the program - what the ACM describes as Off-Camera Nominations.

Best of luck to all our bluegrass music representatives!

Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver recently released a new all-gospel CD, He Lives In Me. Since this week’s GrassCast Episode featured an interview with Terry Baucom, who plays banjo in the band, it seems appropriate to bring the CD to your attention. The interview was recorded last October at IBMA and Terry briefly mentions that the band was working on a new gospel project.

We were able to talk to Terry via email about this new CD. He says a lot of hard work went into the project and he’s happy to see the early success on the Billboard Charts [Ed: The CD debuted at #8 on the Bluegrass Chart and #15 on the Gospel Chart after being released only one week].

Terry also reminded us that

this will be the first opportunity for a lot of folks to hear the current line-up since Mike Hartgrove has returned on fiddle and Darren Beachley joined the band on bass and vocals.

Another thing special to Terry on the project are the instruments he used.

I actual use three different banjos on this project…the older Gibson that I used on the original Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver recordings and the Boone Creek recordings; the ‘Terry Baucom Model’ Gibson; and my 1962 RB250 Gibson Bowtie [Ed: Terry and John talk about this banjo in the GrassCast interview]. Doyle also used a Do-Jo, a really unique sounding instrument that combines the dobro and banjo, on two of the numbers. We also have some of the trademark Quicksilver accapella singing on there, as well.

The disc, He Lives In Me, is now available from Cross Roads Music and directly from Doyle’s website. You can also call Doyle’s office at 423-878-6160 to order an autographed copy.

Don’t forget to check out DL&Q’s Music Festival at Denton, NC.

Episode #19 of The GrassCast features two interviews. One with banjo player Terry Baucom. Terry plays with Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver. The second interview is with Terry’s wife, Cindy Baucom. Cindy is the current IBMA Broadcast Personality of the Year. Her syndicated radio show is Knee Deep In Bluegrass.

This GrassCast is 15 minutes in length and the file download size is 14MB.

Listen now:
Direct Download: ep19_the_baucoms.mp3
Subscribe with:
Free Download: The GrassCast iPodder software

To subscribe with your own podcatching software, copy and past this url into the appropriate entry box in your software: http://www.thegrasscast.com/rss

Bluegrass music has often been described as a “team sport,” referring to the need for the many musicians to work collectively in pursuit of a common goal. Bands whose members support each other’s artistry rather than seeking to highlight their own tend to thrive musically, just as sports teams who function as a unit will generally excel in competition.

That comparison will be on display this weekend during the Southeastern Conference NCAA basketball tournament, which will be widely broadcast (radio and TV) from Nashville March 9-12. Ricky Skaggs will be featured in a promotional television spot which will air throughout the tourney, produced for the SEC, where just that comparison is made. The spot, shot on the stage of the historic Ryman Auditorium, runs four and a half minutes and will air repeatedly during the televised tournament coverage.

The Nashville theme of the SEC Tournament will be further reinforced on TV with the use of instrumental clips from Skaggs’ Grammy winning Brand New Strings CD as commercial bumps throughout the broadcasts, which be aired throughout Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and beyond.

We just heard from Banjo NewsLetter publisher Donald Nitchie with some details about the March 2006 issue of the magazine - the longest running banjo periodical of its kind.

This month we feature an interview with Nashville picker Charlie Cushman, by Mary E. Yeomans. Also featured is three-finger player Matt Flinner, who plays with the Drew Emmitt Band. Janet Davis writes about a classic back-up lick; Tab of the Month features a hot tune by Steve Lutke, Bob Carlin reviews the new banjo exhibit The Banjo: From Africa To America and Beyond, currently showing in Knoxville, Tennessee. Arnie Naiman reviews clawhammer player John Balch”s Hot Biscuit Jam CD, there’s a review of Turtle Hill’s Bluegrass Woody banjo, and Steve Harvey writes about his recent old-time release, Three Forks of Ivy.

Find more info and subscription details on the BNL site.

North Carolina bluegrass band, the Greasy Beans are currently on tour with the North Carolina Dance Theater. They are Performing a piece entitled SHINDIG, which is a part of a larger series called Under Southern Skies. This program is a celebration of southern tradition through music and dance. Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux’s choreographey for the piece is considered contemporary, but is influenced by the traditional dances of the North Carolina foothills.

The Greasy Beans new CD, Busted, is currently available from Mountain Home Records in Arden, NC. Visit musicshed.com or greasybeans.com to pick up your copy.

Full story here.

The Lovell Sisters, who we interviewed in a recent GrassCast, were also just featured in the Chattanoogan. The story is about the Southeast Whitfield High Bluegrass Jamboree “06, at which the Lovell Sisters Band is headlining.

The sisters - Jessica, 19 (violin/fiddle); Megan, 16 (resophonic guitar); and Rebecca, 14 (mandolin) of Calhoun, Ga. are joined by fellow Georgian Andy Nall, on bass, and 19-year-old guitarist Brad Frazier, of Evansville, Tn.

This year the SHS Bluegrass Jamboree will be composed mainly of bluegrass performed by talented teens. In addition to the LSB, will be The Baker Boys from Indiana, The Barker Brothers from Copperhill, TN; Browngrass of Gainesboro, TN; and Garrett Arb and the Grassy Mountain Boys of Dalton. There will also be veteran bands appearing, including Peach Tree Station of the greater Atlanta area, Autumn Harvest of Dalton, and Spatial Effects from Northwest Georgia.

The club is hoping to increase the size of this year’s event and calls the line up,

one of the finest line ups of teen talent ever to appear at a venue in the Southeast.

We got a call earlier in the week from flatpick guitar demigod, Kenny Smith, just back from a whirlwind tour of the west coast. He taught at the Wintergrass Academy in late February, and then he and Amanda did some duo shows out west before heading back home to the Blue Ridge.

Kenny mentioned that they are heading into the studio again in late March, to record the third Kenny & Amanda Smith Band project for Rebel Records. This one will be an all-gospel recording, and Kenny says that they plan to make a conscious effort to choose and arrange the material for a more straightahead bluegrass sound. Their last two releases have been more contemporary in style, and Kenny said that they wanted to “throw down” on some solid bluegrass gospel this time out.

This new CD will be the first with band members Jason Davis on banjo, and Zak McLamb on bass, both of whom came on board last fall. Rebel is hoping for a late summer release of the new gospel project.

You can check the Kenny & Amanda Smith tour schedule online for a chance to catch them in person this season.

The Lynn Morris Band website has some photos of Lynn at last month’s SPBGMA Convention in Nashville, where she both performed with the band and accepted the 2006 Grand Masters Gold Award. This award is given to artists who have won any award from SPBGMA ten times, and Lynn has been their Female Vocalist Of The Year (Traditional) the requisite number of times.

As many of our readers may know, Lynn suffered a stroke during knee replacement surgery a few years ago, and was unable to perform for quite some time. She has been making a slow but steady recovery ever since, and her husband Marshall Wilborn has this comment posted on their site:

Lynn does indeed continue her recovery in a very positive way. Thanks so much, once again, to all of you for your good thoughts, prayers, and well wishes over these last three years. You can’t imagine how much it’s meant to us!

We look forward to seeing you at the festivals.

The site also indicates that cards and notes can be sent to Lynn at:

Mike Compton and David Long have teamed up on the new CD STOMP, which is out today. Compton of course is the mandolin player in the Nashville Bluegrass Band and is widely acclaimed for his contributions to the soundtrack, and accompanying tour, for Oh Brother Where Art Thou. David Long is a gifted young mandolinist and vocalist. The two teamed up in 2003 and began touring together. Eventually they found their way into David Grisman’s recording studio and the result is STOMP.

Considering Mike Compton’s love of Bill Monroe’s music, it’s no surprise that there are a number of Monroe compositions included on the disc. There are also several original tunes each from Compton and Long.

Whether newly composed by either Compton or Long or taken from traditional archives, STOMP is a moving musical odyssey through the deep south circa 30’s and 40’s delighting the listener with a variety of vocals and instrumentals in blues, ragtime, minstrel, gospel and old - time genres.

The CD is available from both artist’s websites

Visit Mike at MikeCompton.net.
Visit David at BigEveMusic.com.

Here is the song list from the CD:
(more…)

We heard recently from Greg Cahill, our friend and occasional Guest Contributor here on The Bluegrass Blog, who passed along some details on Special Consensus’ activities so far in 2006. Greg tells us that they have recently started work on a new recording at Brent Truitt’s studio in Nashville.

We did begin a new project, but had to start a day late due to our bus lines freezing up in Denver (at -13???), which meant we had to rent a vehicle to get to Wichita the next day for a fest, and that meant we had to drive the 8 hours back to Denver for the bus, blah, blah, blah. Consequently, we missed the first full day of recording and only got two days in, but we finished tracking and some singing on three and a half songs.

I am very pleased that the recording will feature the same four guys that appeared on our current Everything’s Alright release - that has only happened one other time in the history of The Special C.

Brent is his usual brilliant self both as engineer and as producer - we can’t wait to get back in to finish the project (which probably won’t happen until April). The recording will have the same basic format as on past Special C recordings: original hard driving bluegrass songs, gospel, swing and an original instrumental. Don’t have a release date from Pinecastle yet - meeting with Col. Tom in NC this weekend to work out details.

Greg also mentioned that they are leaving on March 13 for a brief European tour that will take them to Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Switzerland and The Netherlands - all in just over a week! Find links to the various European venues on the Special C tour page.

Hopefully Greg will post back when they return with some details and remembrances of the trip.