American Songwriter recently interviewed former Nickel Creek fiddler, Sara Watkins. Watkins just released her first, self-titled, solo project.

The interview takes the form of a question and answer session. Some attention is given to songwriting, but much of the discussion concerned Sara’s music background and influences, her experiences with Nickel Creek, and of course, her new CD. One interesting exchange concerned the transition from being a band member to a solo artist.

Having played with Nickel Creek for most of your life, what was it like transitioning to life as a solo artist?

It has been interesting and really exciting, empowering and also frustrating. And I want to learn how to do it better‚Äì “it” meaning I want to learn to manage myself better. I have a manager but I want to learn to be more self-sufficient and to be more capable and to just be able to handle more, like multi-tasking. I don’t want to be so overwhelmed with details about travel and logistics. I want to be able to handle all of that and still be able to put everything into a show.

Check out American Songwriter for the entire interview.

Another new Rebel release from last month is In God’s Time from Barry Scott & Second Wind.

This project had been released as a self-produced CD last year, available only from the band, and Rebel picked it up when Scott signed with them in November of ‘08. Unless you may have picked up a copy from the band at a live show, this Rebel release will probably be your first exposure to the CD.

Barry performed as a member of Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver for almost 10 years, leaving at the end of 2005. At the time, he said that he needed to get away from the road life for a while, but like most artists with the music in their blood, it wasn’t long before he was back at it with his own band.

In God’s Time is a sort of hybrid album – part solo project and part band record. Barry said that it wasn’t planned that way…

“The last year I was with Doyle, I was going to cut a solo project. Dale Perry was with us at the time, and I started working on the solo CD at Dale’s studio. When I started putting together the band, I wasn’t sure whether I should do a solo project or a band CD, and we ended up with a little of both.”

The band has been together for the past two years, and consists of Jason Leek on bass, Travis Houck on resonator guitar, Matthew Munsey on mandolin,and 14 year old Zane Petty on banjo. Scott is on guitar and all the band members but Petty share in the vocals.

“I’ve known Jason Leek for a long time, and had always said that if I ever left Doyle, I would want him singing with me. When I did leave I wasn’t even sure if I would start a band, but knew I would be singing somewhere, and wanted Jason with me.

All of these guys had been playing together for some time and it worked out great when we started playing together as Second Wind. (more…)

We have written in the past about Kate Lee, a talented young singer, fiddler and songwriter from New York. Kate has just now turned 16 and continues to impress audiences throughout the northeastern US and beyond with her poise and ability. The Bluegrass Blog is especially interested in the development of young grassers, and we thought it might be fun to have Kate share some of her experiences as a teen musician with our readers. She promises to send us ongoing reports as her schedule allows.

I’m Kate Lee with No Strings Attached and this is my story, or at least some of it. It is better described as a small chapter from a book being written as I navigate this world of music. I will try to keep it brief, but it will be difficult, as there are already many great stories to tell. I say already because I have only been involved in music since I was nine in Fourth Grade, about seven years. It feels much longer because there have been so many rehearsals, performances, television and radio concerts, music and music writing contests, touring and uncounted hours of individual practicing. My stories will, I hope, be interesting as they are told through the eyes and memories of a teenager.

Chapter 1 – The Holy Grail

Actually it’s more like chapter 3 or 4 (I know I always have to be different) because I am going to start my story with some fairly recent events.

My friend and first guitarist, Jack Metzger once told my dad and I, after hearing we were going to write our own songs, that original material is the “Holy Grail” within the music industry. That has proven to be the truest, most valuable statement that anyone has ever told my dad and me.

Musically, everything changed in a very positive way the day after we wrote our first song. 20 Paces was written three years ago, and in a round about way it propelled Kate Lee with No Strings Attached into the “Big Leagues.” Soon we would be opening and sharing the stage with the likes of Rhonda Vincent, Nothin’ Fancy, Jay Unger, and The Grascals, as well as meetings with Gordon Lightfoot, Charlie Daniels, Ricky Skaggs, and ultimately Alison Krauss. The rest of this chapter or story will be devoted to how I got to meet and spend an evening with Ms. Alison Krauss. (more…)

Noted bluegrass songwriter Mark “Brink” Brinkman is profiled in today’s edition of The Columbus Dispatch.

The focus of the piece is a new song of Brink’s, With Love from Normandy, which he had performed at a Memorial Day celebration this past weekend. The song is written from the perspective of a young boy who discovers a letter his grandfather had written to his grandmother the day before he died on the beaches of Normandy.

The article also touches on Brink’s decision to pursue his muse as a songwriter in mid-life.

“Seven years ago, I stepped down from the corporate life,” Brinkman said. “I’d been the state manager for American Family Insurance for 10 years. But the travel, the meetings; my kids were growing up without me, my music was suffering. . .” It was a sentence fragment that needed no end.

Brinkman, who still free-lances as a claims adjuster, has been playing with notes and rhymes for 40 years.

“I like performing,” he said, “but I don’t need to perform. On the other hand, I need to write.”

You can read the full piece online.