I had a chance to speak today with Jessica Lovell, the fiddling third of the sibling trio, The Lovell Sisters. She was making final preparations to leave for their European tour, which begins this Sunday (8/31) in Norway.

We talked in some detail about what the three young ladies have been doing for the past year or so, and got an answer to the question they have been hearing from their fans for the past two years… “When are you guys going to have a new CD out?”

The only studio recording they have released came in 2005 (When Forever Rolls Around), not long after they won the National Teen Talent Competition on Prairie Home Companion, and only a short time after the three of them embraced bluegrass music, leaving their classical studies behind.

Big things have happened for the girls since then, and their sound has matured as their professional life has expanded. A new album seemed like an obvious next step after being invited to showcase at IBMA in the fall of 2006, and by the middle of 2007, Jessica said that it looked like all their hopes were about to be fulfilled.

“We were working with a manager who was shopping us to labels in Nashville, and we had met with five of them who were serious about signing us. After a lot of thought and discussion, we decided to sign with Lyric Street Records, which is a division of Disney.

They had paired us up with producer Mark Bright, and everything seemed perfect. Mark had just finished producing Carrie Underwood, so we knew he could work well with female artists, and he had previously produced Mountain Heart, so we knew he was great with bluegrass and acoustic instruments.”

As they got closer to start recording, they started to get nervous about the direction things were taking. It was becoming clear that the label had chosen a path and a sound for the Lovells, and that the artist’s input wasn’t a high priority.

“It really hit me when Mark Bright mentioned one day that when he worked with Rascal Flatts, the biggest problem he had was convincing them not to record any of their original material. That hit me hard, as we wanted to do exactly that!

I don’t mean any disrespect to Mark or Lyric Street. They were great to us and treated us very fairly. It just started to look like we were heading into a place where we would lose control over our music.” (more…)

Del McCoury has always been hip to the younger crowd, and it seems he’s staying that way. While fans download and trade bootlegs of live recordings, many artists see this as detracting from their CD sales. Other industry people see it as stealing from songwriters who deserve a royalty for such recordings. Del has decided this situation isn’t a problem, it’s an opportunity.

McCoury has just announced the launch of the McCoury Music Club. It works like this. Fans pay $100 for a 12 month (if paid in full up front, you get 2 extra months for free) membership to the site. The membership benefits include one live show download each month. This amounts to $7 or $8 per show, depending on how you choose to pay for the membership. This looks like a win all the way around. That’s not a bad price for a recording, the band gets paid, and I’m assuming the songwriters will as well.

The site is promising that most shows will be from recordings made within 60 days of the upload, with the occasional archival show being offered. It also promises to reward members with extra tracks, and even exclusive studio tracks from time to time. McCoury Music Club members will be the first to hear songs from a new box set scheduled for release a few months from now.

Don’t want to pay for a membership? Don’t worry. McCoury is also planning to offer individual shows for sale to non-members. This won’t happen for a few more months, but it’s coming. If more than one show is made available during any month, members will have to pay to download the additional concert. The member price will be discounted from the non-member though.

Another feature of the site that I noticed was a non-working button that reads “Give The Club“. This button is located just under the “Subscribe To The Club” button, and appears as though you will be able to purchase a club membership as a gift at some point in the near future.

This is an exciting new business model for a bluegrass band to adopt. I like the approach, but only time will tell if it works.

Our friends at ukbluegrass are looking forward to the appearance of one of the hottest new groups in bluegrass today, Cadillac Sky, at this year’s Didmartin Bluegrass Festival at the end of the month. The 20th iteration of this event takes place between August 29th and 31st at Kemble Airfield, near Cirencester, and will feature a line-up of bands from the USA, Europe and Great Britain.

Headliners this year are Texas five-piece Cadillac Sky, who released their second album, Gravity’s Our Enemy, on August 19. ukbluegrass spoke to the band’s singer and mandolin player Bryan Simpson about the new record and their upcoming visit to England.

In addition, there are appearances at the Didmartin festival by Growling Old Men (USA), and UK groups New Essex Bluegrass Band, Thunderbridge Bluegrass Boys, Down County Boys, Rabbi John and more. There is a full band listing and schedule at the festival’s website.

The full interview can found here.

Recently, the West Virginia Music Hall Of Fame announced the names of those to be inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall Of Fame this year. Among them are the Clear Creak, Raleigh County, bluegrass trio the Lilly Brothers and Don Stover.

Also named are Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper, but more of them another time.

Michel Burt ‘B’ Lilly (born December 15, 1921, died September 18, 2005) and Charles Everett Lilly (born July 1, 1924) began performing together as a brother duet act, Everett playing mandolin, banjo and fiddle, and ‘B’ playing guitar. While still only teenagers they made their radio debut in 1938, playing a guest spot as the Lonesome Holler Boys on the Old Farm Hour on Charleston’s WCHS.

In 1939, they began performing regularly at the newly-established WKLS Beckley, where they performed together and with other musicians, such as ‘Speedy’ Krise. In the summer of 1945 they moved to WNOX Knoxville where they worked with Lynn Davis and Molly O’Day for a while and then formed the Smiling Mountain Boys with fiddler Burk Barbour and Paul Taylor, a banjo player who was also from West Virginia.

Three years later the Lilly Brothers moved to Wheeling’s WWVA where they were the star turn in Red Belcher’s Kentucky Ridge Runners group. Everett and ‘B’ cut a single for Page Records and ‘B’ and the recently befriended fiddler ‘Tex’ Logan helped Belcher do a couple of sides for the same label. Also, at about this time the brothers cut four songs for the Cozy label.

They remained in Wheeling until 1950, when a dispute with Belcher led to Everett and ‘B’ to leave Belcher and, eventually to return home. In the early 1950s, Everett spent about two years playing mandolin and singing tenor with Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs, participating in two recording sessions that produced 14 songs in all.

Early in 1952 the brothers were persuaded by Logan to move to Boston where they were joined by banjo player Don Stover (born March 6, 1928 - died November 11, 1996). They got their first job playing on WCOP’s Hayloft Jamboree and from there the Confederate Mountaineers, as the quartet was known, worked at various clubs such as the Hayloft Jamboree and the Boston Jamboree, but most notably at the Hillbilly Ranch. For 18 years, with only a brief interlude when Everett re-joined Flatt & Scruggs and Stover toured with other bands, they played constantly in Boston area. As a result they have been credited with bringing bluegrass to New England and with influencing such future bluegrass artists as Peter Rowan, Jim Rooney and Bill Keith, among others. (more…)

Mountain Heart is scheduled to play three shows with southern rock legends Lynyrd Skynyrd in September.

Fiddler Jim van Cleve tells us that show promoter Kent Martin was so impressed with the band that he started talking with them about performing in other venues.

Martin knew Mountain Heart vocalist Josh Shilling before he joined the band, and Jim said that he was blown away when he saw Josh with them on stage.

“The promoter saw the high energy presentation of their show and ‘had to have us’ on these shows in front of Skynyrd.”

All three concerts are in the southwest VA and northwest NC areas in mid-September.

• September 11 – Danville, VA - Carrington Pavilion – 8:00 p.m.
• September 12 – Boone, NC – Appalachian State University – 8:00 p.m.
• September 13 – Elizabeth City, NC – Coast Guard Support Center – 7:00 p.m.

Shilling is especially excited about having this chance to open for such industry legends so close to his hometown of Martinsville, VA.

“These shows are going to be a blast! Lynyrd Skynyrd has always been a huge influence on us as musicians and in general, Skynyrd is just a huge group in these areas. Jason Moore and I know this first hand because the Danville show is right in our backyards. We couldn’t be more excited to share the stage and meld our acoustic sound with these southern rock icons!”

Mountain Heart has a show with country act Diamond Rio this next weekend (8/29) and has also been scheduling a number of shows with Tony Rice. All the guys are looking forward to getting their brand of high energy bluegrass before some new audiences.

You can find details on all their live appearances on the band’s web site.

CMT will soon begin their 3rd annual Music City Madness, where artists compete in head-to-head video competition online. Video entries can be submitted until October 6, 2008 and in-person auditions will be held in several locations over the next few days.

The format follows very closely to the “bracketology” of the NCAA basketball tournament. 64 contenders will compete for viewer votes in subsequent rounds of online balloting until just four finalists remain, from which one will chosen.

The winner will be flown to Music City (Nashville, TN) to tape a segment of Unplugged at Studio 330 for CMT.com and a showcase with Warner Brothers A&R execs. A mentor session with country star Randy Travis is also included.

Bluegrass acts are specifically invited to enter, and have done quite well in the competition in the past, though not yet reaching the finals.

To submit a video online, or by mail, you need to submit your information online. Live local auditions will be held on August 23 in Pittsburgh and Atlanta, and in Nashville on August 27. At least one act will be chosen at each live audition site.

Full rules and competition details can be found at CMT.com.

Blue Moon Rising is celebrating last month’s release of their 4th recording, One Lonely Shadow, with a CD release party tonight (8/22) at The Shed in Maryville, TN.

The new album has been getting strong airplay from bluegrass radio, and the band is hoping to meet a lot of fans and friends at this evening’s show.

There are no audio samples up on the band or the label (Lonesome Day) web sites, but they have created a video to introduce the guys and the music from the new CD.

Longtime readers of The Bluegrass Blog will recall the story of Kylie Chapman which we covered earlier this year. She is the infant daughter of John Chapman and his wife Vickie, who was born on March 22, 2008.

John, Vickie and all of The Chapmans soon saw their joy turn to grave concern as when it became clear that Kylie had suffered complications that required an emergency C-section and a flight to a hospital where she could receive specialized treatment.

Fortunately, she came through just fine and is growing strong and healthy at home with her family.

A video has been posted on The Chapman’s web site, Chap-TV, which chronicles the family’s ordeal, and the final very happy ending. Mixing still and video footage, it offers a personal glimpse of the nearly two weeks between Kylie’s birth and her homecoming. Fans and friends of the band will find solace and comfort in this poignant presentation, as will anyone who can identify with this sort of family health crisis.

While visiting Chap-TV, check out a video on the opposite end of the emotional spectrum, the hilarious Chapmans Pretzel Challenge.

It stars former bass player Jamey Booher (now with Grasstowne) and is not to be missed.

To see the videos, just visit chapmansonline.com, click the Chap-TV link, and scroll horizontally to find the various clips.

Like most bands, Cadillac Sky has some special events lined up today to commemorate the release of their new CD, Gravity’s Our Enemy. Unlike most bands, however, they will perform on The Grand Ole Opry, and then host a CD release party live online.

Tonight (8/19) at 8:00 p.m. (EDT) the guys will be on the Tuesday Opry which airs in the Nashville market on WSM AM 650, on XM channel 11 (XM Nashville), and simulcast worldwide via online streaming at wsmonline.com.

Then, at 10:00, their official CD release party begins at The Rutledge, hosted by XM Satellite Radio’s Kyle Cantrell. Everyone in attendance will get a free copy of Gravity’s Our Enemy, and C-Sky fans outside of the Nashville area can watch the proceedings live online at skaggsfamilyrecords.com.

Sounds like a big day in store.

Our friend Frank Solivan has announced he will be leaving the Navy Band, Country Current, in the spring and turning his attention to his own band. For 5 years Frank has been playing electric guitar, mandolin and fiddle with the Navy Band. It’s a stable, paying gig and it wasn’t an easy decision to make.

It has been a great job and sense of financial security for sometime, but I have decided to move on and focus my energy on my own music. I’ll be leaving the Navy Band at the end of my enlistment, April 14th 2009. This has been a difficult decision, but I know I have made the right choice for me.

Focusing on his own music means fronting his own band, Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen. The name is taken from an instrumental on Frank’s first solo project, I Am A Rambler. The band has already been performing on a limited basis, working around Frank’s Navy schedule. Most recently, they just returned from a short tour in Alaska, Frank’s original home state, and enjoyed an enthusiastic response from the crowds there.

The band is basically the core group of musicians who were on Frank’s last recording project, Selfish Tears. Band members include: Mike Munford on banjo, John Miller on guitar, Stefan Custodi on bass, and Frank on mandolin and fiddle. Frank is excited about the group of musicians he’s put together.

They are a bunch of extremely talented musicians and close friends. A winning combo if you ask me!

The band will be performing at a number of late night showcases at IBMA this year and are currently booking dates for 2009.

Frank tells me he has been composing some new material for a recording project and hopes to get the band in the studio sometime this fall or winter.

Visit Frank’s website for schedule/booking info, and to hear mp3 samples from his two solo records.

Bluegrass music isn’t confined any longer to the rolling hills of western Kentucky or the peaks and valleys of Appalachia. It is acknowledged and enjoyed world-wide.

One person who has helped to foster interest in the music in the wider sense is the Nashville correspondent for the Japanese language bluegrass music journal, Keishi Shikata. Sadly, we have learned that he passed away on Sunday evening, August 3, near his home north-east of Nashville.

The Publisher and Editor of MoonShiner, Saburo ‘Sab Watanabe’ Inuoe spoke emotionally about his friend and colleague ……

“I have to report a sad news. My friend, Keishi Shikata who made the bridge between Japan and Nashville passed away last night while jogging near his home in Hermitage, Tennessee.

He worked for Gruhn Guitars in the 1970s and made friends in (the) bluegrass community both in Japan and Nashville. He organized the Japan tours for late Vassar Clements, Cluster Puckers (March 1995) and others; the Japanese TV-CM for Nissan by using (the) Blue Sky Boys’ song Sunny Side of Life with Chris Sharp, Ronnie Bowman and others.

He wrote ‘Keishi’s Nashville Report’ every month for my MoonShiner magazine to let Japanese bluegrass fans know what’s going on in Nashville bluegrass scene.

I just want you to know that we lost a great person who loved people, music and bluegrass.”

Shikata contributed his column for MoonShiner for over 12 years. MaryE Yeomans remembers him as always being friendly and he laughed a lot.

The funeral service will take place today, Sunday, August 9, from 4-6 p.m. at Oceanway Studio A, at 1200 17th Avenue South in Nashville, Tennessee (at the corner of Edgehill and 17th Avenue). The number at Oceanway is 615-320-3900.

Earlier this week, Rhonda Vincent & The Rage took time out from their busy tour schedule to catch a baseball game in St. Louis. The Cardinals were hosting the Los Angeles Dodgers at Busch Stadium on Thursday, August 7 when the band stopped in, but lost in part thanks to a home run from freshly minted Dodger, Manny Ramirez.

They took some photos at the ballpark to remember the event.

The Rhythm Road is currently seeking ten, four-piece bands for its American Music Abroad program. The acts chosen to participate will tour in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, or the Middle East for roughly a month under the auspices of the US State Department.

Auditions will be handled by personnel with Jazz at Lincoln Center and are open to any US citizen 21 years or older with a valid US passport. Selected quartets are expected to perform some form of American music, and bluegrass is specifically mentioned in the audition criteria.

These tours promise adventure and a chance to share uniquely American music forms with audiences who may have no familiarity with them. Remuneration is said to be modest, and tour conditions are described as challenging.

Applications must be submitted by September 15, 2008 for the upcoming tours, which include trips to Senegal, Indonesia, Guatemala, Turkmenistan and Honduras.

More details and an application form can be found at The Rhythm Road’s web site.

Pinecastle Records has formed a new company and is launching a new business to provide marketing and publicity support for bluegrass artists.

MountainRidge Music Marketing was created to assist both up-and-coming and established, mid-level acts with a package of services at predictable, a la carte prices. These services include tour support, promotional material design and production, online press kits, radio distribution, CD duplication and a premium release package that includes all of these services.

Essentially, MountainRidge can offer for a fee the same promotional assistance that Pinecastle artists receive for their new releases and ongoing activities.

To help get the ball rolling, MountainRidge is searching for one talented band to receive these services for free. The selected act will have tour support for 15 dates of their choosing, a free online press kit, and will be included in all initial marketing and promotion when the company is launched in September.

To be considered, an artist must submit a press kit and recording by September 1 to:

Full details can be found online.

Ethan Burkhardt with Pinecastle and MountainRidge told us that this competition and the services of MountainRidge Music Marketing are available to unsigned bands as well as artists under contract with a label.

“We’ll gladly work with artists who have a label and feel like they need some extra help with tour support. Some small labels don’t send out promos for their artists, so we would be glad to help a signed band in that way also.”

Ethan also made plain that the two companies will be kept as discrete entities.

“MountainRidge and Pinecastle are going to be kept separate. MountainRidge Music Marketing is not being set up as a stepping stone to Pinecastle Records. We are simply providing another tool for bluegrass artists.

If a great band comes through MountainRidge Music Marketing and we feel that both the artists and Pinecastle could benefit from a relationship, we will move forward.”

Big Al Johnson has gone postal. No, not like that. He’s working for the US Postal Service. That doesn’t mean he’s not playing music though.

Alan has a solid background as a fiddle player and bass singer, having toured with a number of bluegrass and country artists, including Doyle Lawson, BlueRidge, Larry Cordle, Lorrie Morgan, Pam Tillis, Terry Clark, and Doug Stone. After leaving Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, Johnson took a job at the post office, while quietly getting involved in bluegrass music in new ways.

He’s been filling in with various artists who need a fiddle player when touring the Western part of North Carolina and Eastern part of Tennessee. He’s been teaching fiddle workshops at regional festivals. He’s also been helping his brother Kenny Johnson with the promotion of the High Country Bluegrass Festival in Boone, NC. The festival is coming up in early September. They have a stellar line up of bluegrass artists, including a fiddle workshop taught by, you guessed it, Big Al Johnson, along with Adam Haynes.

In addition to his work with the festival, Alan tells me he’s putting together his own band. This is something new for him since he’s always played the part of the sideman previously. He’s considering band names and players at this time, but expect an announcement soon, and look for them next summer at your favorite bluegrass venue.

In the meantime, you can keep up with Alan on his MySpace page.

Is there a more powerful name than Vincent in the bluegrass world right now?

Rhonda V. is topping the charts and maintaining a brutal touring schedule, while her brother Darrin supplies the requisite Vincent in the new powerhouse act, Dailey & Vincent.

Next Best Thing may not officially share the family name, but they surely have plenty of the genetic material needed to join the family tradition. This new trio is made up of Rhonda’s two daughters, Sally and Tensel Sandker, along with Karen McNees.

Sally (22) and Tensel (20) have been around bluegrass music all their lives - even before they were born - and sang with their family on occasion, but had never considered a career in music. In fact, Sally spent her high school years focused on basketball while Tensel pondered medical school.

After graduation and a bit of college, the girls transfered to East Tennessee State University where they enrolled in the bluegrass music program. There they met banjo picker Karen McNees, and with Sally on guitar and vocals, and Tensel on bass and vocals, the trio was born.

The ETSU program has honed their skills as performers and when the Tensels headed back to Missouri for the annual Sally Mountain Festival in 2007, they invited Karen to tag along. This event has been produced by their grandparents since 1986, and they had attended since they were youngsters - just like their mom and uncle before them.

While at the festival, a last minute opening in the schedule brought them to the stage, and the three of them came up with the name as they were preparing to go on. The crowd reaction was such that a return engagement in ‘08 was required and the 6th generation of the musical Vincent family is now in the business.

Their self-titled debut CD has recently been released, and can be purchased from the official Rhonda Vincent online store. Audio samples are up on the girls’ MySpace page.

Lou Reid & Carolina have formally announced a band member change.

Kevin Richardson has left the band to pursue a full-time gig with the Larry Stephenson Band. Lou, Christy and Trevor have expressed their best wishes for Kevin as he makes this change.

Kevin had been with the band for the last six years, holding down the guitar gig and contributing to the vocals. It’s always a challenge to find someone new who fits your band’s style and vision, but Lou is excited about Shannon Slaughter, former guitarist and lead singer for the Lonesome River Band, joining the band.

Shannon will be singing some lead as well as harmony, including the bass vocal part on Lou’s trademark quartet numbers. Lou commented on the vocals after rehearsing with Shannon.

[Singing with Shannon is] a delight, Shannon sings with power, passion and his range is incredible, he is one of the best.

This isn’t the first time the two have sung together. Back in 2001 the two jammed together at the Galax Fiddler’s Convention.

I knew then that this guy could cut his gig, he could hold his own with anybody.

In addition to his vocal contributions, Lou is looking forward to taking advantage of Shannon’s excellent song writing skills when the band begins recording another band project later this year.

Carolina banjo player Trevor Watson has known Shannon for years and is excited about his joining the band.

Shannon and I have been friends for over 15 years, and we have played in many jams together. It’s great to finally be in a full time band together on the road, he is a powerful singer and guitar player who compliments our sound perfectly.

Shannon has been in a number of different bands, but he’s looking forward to performing with Lou Reid & Carolina.

Lou is on a very short list of my favorite vocalists and influences from very early on in my career. Trevor is one my absolute favorite banjo players and best friends. Combine that with Christy’s timing on the bass and excellent singjng….I’m just excited to be a part of Carolina and to play this music that I have listened to for the past 16 years! I look forward to traveling the road and I hope I can bring something to their stage show that everyone enjoys.

Check the band’s website for a show near you. And keep an eye out for them later this fall as they are scheduled to perform as part of an hour long episode of PBS’ Song of the Mountains, to be recorded on November 15 in Marion, VA.

The last time the Seldom Scene were invited to entertain people at The White House, rain prevented them from singing even one song. Well, when they got the opportunity to take a return engagement, the weather was a lot more pleasant and they were treated as special guests.

The majority of the guests at The White House special dinner last Monday (July 21) were members of the 2008 United States Olympic and Para-Olympic teams. Athletes such as Allyson Felix, Lauryn Williams, Sanya Richards, Bernard Lagat, Tyson Gay, Adam Nelson, Bryan Clay and Jeremy Wariner; and swimmers Michael Phelps, Larsen Jensen, Brendan Hansen, Natalie Coughlin, Katie Hoff, Christine Magnuson were given a fitting send off prior to the competitions next month in Beijing, China.

There were Ambassadors and other dignitaries also, alongside George W Bush and his wife, Laura. The President sat right up front, listening intently, perhaps thinking about the ole home place…?

Playing on a small stage in the Rose Garden, the Seldom Scene performed four songs, Old Train, Wait a Minute, the old Bob Dylan tune, It’s All Over Now Baby Blue and City of New Orleans. President Bush must have enjoyed what he heard as at the end he went onto the stage and requested “just one more.” Of course, they graciously obliged, after kidding that they said they didn’t know one more… they’re such kidders… and they launched into Nadine, in fact.

I wonder, at the end did they hand him a copy of their latest CD, SCENEchronized, only to find that he had a copy already?

Members of the band are Ben Eldridge on banjo; Dudley Connell on guitar, Lou Reid on mandolin, Fred Travers on dobro; and Ronnie Simpkins on bass. Thanks to Sally Love and Dudley Connell for the insight.

Footnote: (Weather Report) …

The rained-out event was a picnic on June 3rd, honouring the Executive Office and Cabinet staff. The weather in Washington DC during the daytime on the 21st was in the upper 90s, humidity about 120%, and it didn’t cool off too much when the sun went down. Fortunately, they played after sun set!

Thanks to Karen Kouns of Main Street Entertainment we have learned of the formation of Summertown Road, a fresh and creative new band from that bluegrass music hotbed, the Ashland area of Kentucky.

The name, Summertown Road, came from a Marty Raybon song with the same title.

The elder statesman in the quartet is Jack Hicks, innovative banjo player and former Blue Grass Boy (April 1971 - September 1973), who has had a long and varied musical career. He has also been a part of such legendary groups as Jim & Jesse and the Virginia Boys, the Whites, Lester Flatt, Sonny James and Conway Twitty, with whom he worked for about 10 years.

Alongside Hicks is guitarist Bo Isaac, a part of the Kentucky Opry and a member of the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame. Isaacs has played with the Ernie Thacker, Dave Evans and Larry Cordle. He has also made guest appearances with IIIrd Tyme Out and Marty Raybon. As a soloist, Bo’s first single stayed on the bluegrass charts for 10 months. His eponymous solo album has earned rave reviews. He has been nominated for the IBMA Emerging Artist of the Year award.

The other two members are John Rigsby and Randy Thomas.

Rigsby is a Grammy award winner for his talent on the mandolin and fiddle. He started out his musical journey with Dwight Whitley and Sideroads while he was still in high school. Rigsby has played with such notables as Ralph Stanley and Melvin Goins. He is cousin to Don and Ron Rigsby.

Thomas (bass) has made his name working with Dave Evans, Tony Rice, Hylo Brown, Don Reno, the Marshall Family and Bo Isaac and the Wheelwrights. (more…)

I crossed paths with Cherryholmes a few days ago, and found time for a nice chat with patriarch, Jere Cherryholmes. He filled me in on what the band has been up to this summer, and what they have planned for the coming months.

Jere told me that the new band CD is nearly finished, with only the approval of the last few mixes required before it goes off for replication. Most of the material will be original, though he said that the band had wanted to include at least a couple of older songs.

“BJ had one that he had been wanting to record for a couple years, but it had never seemed appropriate to me. Now that he is 19, I guess it’s OK.”

The song is Devil In Disguise, which was recorded by JD Crowe & The New South back in 1973, and I heard BJ’s version on Sunday’s show at Grave’s Mountain in Virginia. It’s a fine tribute to the original, and will be featured on Cherryholmes III when it is released on Skaggs Family Records on September 30.

“Once we named the last album Cherryholmes II (Black & White), it seemed like we might as well keep on naming the new CDs that way. It worked well for Chicago, who made it to #18, and I hope we get there as well.”

The band has had a very busy 2008 on the road, and Jere mentioned that they had especially enjoyed being part of a number of country legends shows with the likes of Hank Williams Jr, Alabama and The Oak Ridge Boys. A friendship with the Oaks has blossomed of late, in part due to Joe Bonsall constantly nagging Cia for banjo lessons.

An Australian tour with The Oak Ridge Boys is being planned for 2009, with hopes of a North American tour to follow.

They are heading overseas now for a week long tour in England, running July 27 through August 1.

Jere also enjoyed doing a show that included bearded rockers, ZZ Top. I wondered if his young progeny had any familiarity with the band before the show.

“All they knew was that they were the band that I was supposed to look like.”

The biggest news that Jere had to share regards the possibility that Cherryholmes might end up as reality TV stars. They recently had a television production company travel with the band for a weekend shooting a pilot that will be presented to a major cable network.

Now, that sounds like a hoot!