Melonie Cannon’s new CD, And The Wheels Turn - her first with Rural Rhythm Records - isn’t due until October 7, but there is a good bit of buzz building up already. A single, I Call It Gone, has been circulated to bluegrass radio and word of a duet video with Willie Nelson has just slipped out.

I had a chance recently to discuss all this with Melonie, and her excitement about the new project was evident throughout our conversation.

“We just wanted to make a record as good or better as the last one. I found a place for my voice that feels like home in acoustic music, and I don’t want to change it. This is the most natural and organic I’ve ever felt about my singing in my life.”

She had one previous self-titled release on Skaggs Family Records in 2004, and my impression of her was based solely on the glamour photos that had been associated with that project. I had expected an urbane, sophisticated woman-of-the-world, but when we first spoke, the voice I heard was as country as they come.

“Lord no… I’m the furthest thing from that glamour image! Shoot, I’m the biggest redneck there is.”

Melonie comes by her music chops naturally. Her dad is Nashville songwriting and producing legend, Buddy Cannon, whose credits include work with Shania Twain, Vern Gosdin and Mel Tillis. She grew up around country music and top country singers, but discovered bluegrass on her own as a girl.

“I was raised in the country world, and that was the music I heard. My dad worked for Mel Tillis when we were young, and I grew up with his kids - Pam Tillis was our baby sitter.

Still, my family had connections to bluegrass from way back. Daddy played in bluegrass bands in Lexington before he started playing country. My great uncle Dalton Tate gave my dad his first guitar, and he was a bluegrasser. He and his friends - all in their 80s - still get together every week to pick and sing.

I went to school with Deanie Richardson [New Coon Creek Girls/Patty Loveless] since first grade, and later married her brother. She started teaching me songs from the bluegrass and folk world when we were teenagers. (more…)

Rounder Records is preparing a unique release for a new live album from banjo patriarch Earl Scruggs.

Earl Scruggs with Family & Friends - The Ultimate Collection, Live At The Ryman will be released as an audio CD on November 18, but will be offered as an iTunes exclusive digital download starting on September 30.

The new Scruggs project was recorded at The Ryman Auditorium on June 21, 2007 with his sons Gary and Randy, along with Rob Ickes, Jon Randall, John Jorgenson, Hoot Hester and John Gardner.

Songs were chosen primarily from the classic Flatt & Scruggs catalog, many of which were repeatedly heard from the Ryman stage during the band’s hey day.

In 1969, the duo [Flatt & Scruggs] played their final show at the Ryman. “I knew times were changing and you just can’t play the same old five or six songs for 100 years,” Earl says. “You need to learn a new tune.” Later that year, he reappeared on the Opry with the Earl Scruggs Revue, a band that included sons Gary and Randy and later included son Steve. The Revue blended traditional sounds with innovative country-rock and folk-rock settings.

“It seemed to excite the audience to see me on the stage with my boys,” Earl says. “The whole family practically was onstage. And when the boys came into the group, that’s when I first started realizing real progress, for the first time in years.”

Look for Earl Scruggs with Family & Friends - The Ultimate Collection, Live At The Ryman on iTunes starting next Tuesday (9/30).

On my personal list of bluegrass artists who rarely get the exposure and credit they deserve, songwriter Chris Stuart’s name is always prominent. Songwriters generally toil in the shadows, and folks in the business are among the few who keep up with who has written what.

Chris currently has two songs on the Bluegrass Unlimited National Bluegrass Survey in September, both recorded by notable bluegrass artists - Larry Cordle’s version of First Train Robbery, and the Danny Paisley cut of Don’t Throw Mama’s Flowers Away, co-written with Ivan Rosenberg.

There is also a Stuart song, Farewell for a Little While, on the new Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper CD.

He also records and performs with his band, Chris Stuart & Backcountry, and they have a new CD which features 10 of his new compositions. Crooked Man is their first release in several years, with Chris on guitar and vocals, Janet Beazley on banjo and vocals, Austin Ward on bass, Christian Ward on fiddle and Eric Uglum on guitar and mandolin.

Chris shared a few words about the new CD…

“Originally, we were going to just do digital singles, but as we got into writing the songs and recording, we realized that there was a unifying theme. The band decided that we would release a full album project of thirteen songs, and sell it as an album for a few weeks until it shows up on iTunes and the other digital download sites.

The theme is about aging, which I guess is ironic since we have a couple of teenagers in the band. But hey, I turned fifty this year!”

Bandmates Beazley and Ward also have original songs on Crooked Man. All of the material is tuneful, with lyrics that stand out for their maturity and thoughtfulness. The performances are top flight as well, with both the singers and the pickers shining in turn on music that runs from modern bluegrass to Celtic, with plenty of authentic American acoustic music in between.

Audio samples, lyrics and photos from the sessions can be found on Chris’ web site, along with online ordering.

The New Essex Bluegrass Band has released its first CD, entitled Hot Off The Press.

The New Essex Bluegrass Band has been in existence since 1994 and has been one of the UK’s most popular traditional bluegrass acts from the beginning. Typical of bluegrass the band has experienced many personnel changes in its 14 year existence. The present line-up is Paul Brewer (guitar, lead and baritone vocals), Terry Hymers (mandolin, tenor vocals), Mike Stanhope (bass, lead and baritone vocals), Grahame Turner (banjo) and Greg Smith (fiddle). However, the banjo player heard on Hot Off The Press is Dixon Smith, currently back in his native USA, playing with GrassKickers from Fresno, California.

The CD has been more than a year in the making and contains a mixture of the songs that the New Essex Bluegrass Band has played since it was founded, plus some more recently learned material.

All the material, except for the Louvin Brothers’ song The Angels Rejoiced Last Night, has been part of the bluegrass catalogue for some time or other. There are a couple of Monroe numbers, one from the early days, True Life Blues, and a tune from the Kenny Baker era, Lonesome Moonlight Waltz. Two other classics are The Lonesome River and I’ll Take The Blame. Alongside these are two songs associated with Jimmy Martin, Pretending I Don’t Care and That’s How I Can Count On You.

Of more recent vintage are Keith Little’s Till The Day I Die, the Jonathan Edwards song that he recorded with the Seldom Scene, How Long Have I Been Waiting For You, the quartet written by Keith Whitley and learned from Chris Jones, Zion’s Hill and another Gospel song, Solid Rock, from the Lonesome River Band’s repertoire.

The album begins with a favorite from Joe Val, a very popular visitor to the UK, namely Cold Wind. Strangely, the most obscure song to be included is the title track, brought to the band by Smith, who had recorded when with an earlier band, Hybrid Grass.

In all the CD features 18 tracks and samples of some can be accessed from the band’s web site, from whence more information about the band can also be found.

Here is a You Tube video of them performing the aforementioned Till The Day I Die.

Family bluegrass band Cherryholmes is making its first attempts to cross over to country radio.

According to a Reuters/Billboard report, Cherryholmes is remixing - with added piano and drums - This Is My Son, one of the cuts from their forthcoming album, Cherryholmes III - Don’t Believe, and releasing it as a single to be promoted to country radio.

The band has a few other ambitious plans that make this fall a very busy time for them.

You can read the full story at reuters.com.

There are audio samples from the new CD at the Skaggs Family Records’ website.

Songs From The Road is a loosely-knit side project band that features members of such noted touring acts as Steep Canyon Rangers, The Emmit Nershi Band, Shannon Whitworth and the Refugees, Larry Keel and Natural Bridge, Town Mountain, Super Grit Cowboy Band and The Grit Pixies.

Their debut CD, Songs From The Road, was released in 2006, produced by Charles Humphrey III of Steep Canyon Rangers, who also played bass.

A second project is in the works, Songs From The Road Vol II - As The Crow Flies, is due on January 15, 2009. A download-only, three song EP will be released shortly featuring a sneak peek of material from the upcoming CD. It will be available from CD Baby and iTunes.

The lineup on the new CD has Charles on bass, Mark Schimick on mandolin, Andy Thorn on banjo, Nicky Sanders on fiddle, and Sam Wharton on guitar. Guest vocalists include Robert Greer, Lance Mills and Shannon Whitworth.

One song from As The Crow Flies can be heard now on the band’s MySpace and ReverbNation pages. The songs is Taxman, and the lyric is one that may grab the attention of a lot of folks in the US during an election year.

Taxman, taxman leave me alone.
Stop knocking on my door ’cause there ain’t noboby home.

Blue Circle Records has announced the release of Bluegrass Bouquet (BCR-017), what they describe as “an organic all-female album” from the IBMA Recorded Event of the Year award-winning Daughters of Bluegrass.

This CD, the second album for the Blue Circle Record label by the Daughters of Bluegrass, is a landmark extravaganza featuring over 50 daughters and 17 songs.

The opening cut, Proud To Be A Daughter Of Bluegrass, certainly is an extravaganza with Dale Ann Bradley leading 20 other ladies in a remembrance of their forebears in bluegrass and delighting in their own involvement in the music. Such esteemed members of the fairer sex as Heather Berry, Lisa Martin, Gloria Belle, Sierra Hull, Rhonda Vincent, Lisa Ray, Linda Lay, Sally Jones, Carol Lee Cooper, Jeanie Stanley, Sonya Isaacs, Becky Isaacs Bowman, Michelle Nixon, Jeanette Williams, Sophie Haislip, Louise Tomberlain, Mindy Rakestraw, Lizzy Long, Frances Mooney, Lorraine Jordan, Annette Kelly, Lily Lieux, Dixie Hall, Judi Marshall, Beth Lawrence, Melissa Lawrence, Donica Christensen, Rebecca Frazier, Jenni Lyn Gardner and Lisa Manning all share in that pride.

In varying combinations that cast of songstresses, re-enforced by the talents of vocalists Janet McGarry, Valerie Smith, Stacy York, Dara Wray, Alecia Nugent and Jennifer Strickland bring to luscious life some exceptional songs each of which was written by the people at Good Home Grown Music, namely Dixie Hall, Tom T Hall and Troy Engle, with an assist on one song by Billy Smith, who is himself no slouch with a guitar and a pen.

Providing the instrumental drive and finesse are Gena Britt, Vicki Simmons, Megan McCormick, Becky Buller, Tina Adair, Kristin Scott Benson, Rebekah Long, Jenee Fleenor, Jeana Martin, Janice Martin, Larita Martin, Martha Adcock, Amber Burks and Beth Stevens.

Song samples and ordering can be found at the Daughters’ website and on CD Baby. Albums are also available for purchase from most of the featured artists at their live performances and their respective websites.

Tennessee Pusher, the new project from Old Crow Medicine Show is scheduled for release this coming Tuesday (9/23).

OCMS chose eclectic producer Don Was for this new project, whose previous credits have included music megastars like Bob Dylan and Elton John. The band has always gone after a Dylanesque vibe on much of their material. Could it may be even more pronounced with Was at the helm?

Audio samples for all of the tracks are available online if you want to check for yourself.

The band has special pricing for pre-orders on their web site, and a very special pre-release download price of $5.00 for the full album, good through Monday.

Rebel Records has announced the signing of Colorado’s Spring Creek, which they note marks the first time the Virginia label has contracted with a band based west of the Mississippi.

It may also mark the first time a new band hits the national scene composed entirely of players who studied bluegrass music at South Plains College under the tutelage of Alan Munde and Joe Carr.

Spring Creek is made up of Jessica Smith on bass, Chris Elliott on banjo, Alex Johnstone on mandolin and fiddle, and Tyalor Sims on guitar. All four members contribute vocally, trading off on lead and harmony. They write much of the material they record and perform, and feature a good bit of duet singing.

The band will be at IBMA at the end of this month performing on a variety of showcase stages, and will be in the studio later this fall getting started on their debut CD for Rebel. A Spring 2009 release is anticipated.

You can hear hear audio samples from current releases on the band’s web site or MySpace page.

When we posted not long ago that audio samples from the upcoming Cherryholmes CD were available online, we teased that an interview would be forthcoming. And so it has come to pass.

Cia, banjo player, lead vocalist, and the senior member of the young Cherryholmes sibs, talked with us about Cherryholmes III - Don’t Believe, and what the family band has on tap in the next little while.

“We feel it is our finest work to date, and we have been told it has something for everyone. Our approach to bluegrass has allowed us reach a wide spectrum of musical tastes and genres. We are now playing all over the world, not just around the country, and are introducing bluegrass music everywhere to enthusiastic audiences.”

I first met the Cherryholmes in 2002 at the IBMA convention, held then in Louisville, KY. Cia was 18 and the band unknown when they performed on an auxiliary stage as part of a family band showcase. In perhaps the most meteoric rise in bluegrass history, they found themselves a big hit on the festival circuit in no time, and were selected as the IBMA Entertainers of the Year in 2005.

Longtime bluegrass fans know well the long-established tradition of family bands in the history of our music, starting with Bill Monroe who performed with his brother Charlie for several years before launching his Blue Grass Boys. These brother teams continued with the Stanleys, Osbornes and McReynolds boys, while The Carter Family notched radio hits with a parents and children format.

The Lewis Family cemented forever the bluegrass family band template, with retiring family members being replaced with children, grandchildren and their spouses over four generations. Now, the sight of two parents with their bluegrass brood on stage is a common one, with dozens of such groups plying their trade. You’d be hard pressed not to see one at most every bluegrass festival in the the US and Canada.

The Cherryholmes got their start in 1999, and have been growing and maturing musically since that time, as each of the four sibs (Cia, B.J., Skip and Molly) have developed into professional players and entertainers over the course of 8 years of constant touring. Perhaps most notable about this family band is the fact that they refuse to be pigeon-holed as such, and aren’t afraid to ruffle feathers in the bluegrass world.

They write the overwhelming bulk of the material they record, both together and alone. As Cia tells it…

“We had been writing songs for the album all year, and as we got closer to actually starting the recording process, we began narrowing our selections down, picking what we felt to be the strongest. (more…)

The Steep Canyon Rangers have decided that those who haven’t seen them live, shouldn’t be excluded from the experience. To that end, they’ve began posting live tracks from recent shows on their myspace page. Currently there are two tracks from a performance in Gettysburg last month. Both tracks were previously recorded on SCR CDs.

The band tells me they are planning to start posting live versions of new material soon. The idea being to obtain fan feedback on a broader scale than could happen only at the shows. Most bands do perform new material while working out arrangements and deciding which material to record.

Fans could tell us anything they’d like us to know about a song, just to have people involved in the process; kind of like how we play new songs live and gauge the fan response.

The idea, I suppose, is to build interest in the new music and give fans an ongoing look at the creative process, two things that the internet is well suited for.

The Steep Canyon Rangers are uniquely positioned to function in this way since they write all their own material and won’t be bound by any copyright issues. In addition to the fan feedback, this serves to allow fans a chance to hear the live sound.

Right now the tunes are offered on myspace and reverbnation, but other sites may be included in the future.

This weekend is the 3rd Annual Mountain Song Festival in Brevard, NC. The Steep Canyon Rangers organize this festival each year to raise money for the Boys and Girls Club in the community. It’s a great event that has raised $63,000 for the club in the last two years. This year is sure to be a great festival and maybe we’ll get a couple more live tracks.

The latest CD from Lonesome River Band, No Turning Back, was released earlier this week on Rural Rhythm Records.

Band leader Sammy Shelor told us that he was psyched about the new album, and was especially pleased that Rural Rhythm was able to get the CD into much wider distribution than their last few projects.

Sam Passamano with Rural Rhythm talked to us about the early response.

“I am very pleased with the initial retail product coverage and strong support from our music accounts and our national distributor, RYKO Distribution. On street date we had strong product coverage with all the key racks, large, medium & small chains, independent stores and online retailers. It sure is nice to see the solid level of account commitment for the new LRB album being in line with a group that has been on top of the bluegrass world for over 25 years. We’re off to a very good start and in position for success with No Turning Back.”

Shelor has been hearing from radio hosts since promos went out several weeks back, saying that their listeners are reacting positively to the new music.

“When a band has been together this long, it’s encouraging that there is still so much interest in a new release. I’ve been doing radio interviews much of the past two weeks, and have plenty more still to do.”

No Turning Back is now available wherever bluegrass music is sold, from Rural Rhythm and from LRB directly online.

Bass player, song writer and journalist, Jon Weisberger has announced the release later this month of his first solo CD. The independently labeled, If This Road Could Talk, is scheduled for release on September 16.

The collection consists of a dozen songs, each of which Weisberger has written either alone or with a partner. None has been recorded before except for Losing Again (which the Chapmans cut in 2000).

Three of them were co-written with Mark Simos, while Alan Bartram, Jennifer Strickland, Justin Carbone, Jeremy Garrett and Tim Stafford helped with one each. The last five sang lead or harmony on their respective songs.

Most of the songs were penned in the past five years and they reflect the various facets of bluegrass music during that period of time. Two, My Turn To Laugh and Stepping Stone, are both traditional in character, albeit that the latter reminds one of Johnny and Jack with its rumba beat. Some, like When She’s By My Side, At The Bottom Again, Aim High and the title track, are among the majority in being contemporary bluegrass. A couple, including Nothing Against Memphis and Lonely Town, are acoustic country while The Very Next Hello has the broadest appeal.

Weisberger has been playing bluegrass bass since his late twenties, playing with at various times Union Springs, the Wildwood Valley Boys, Chris Jones and the Night Drivers, Larry Cordle and Lonesome Standard Time and recently the side project band, Lonesome Heirs. The musicians that he has asked to help him - Chris Jones, Tim Strong, Aaron Till, Mike Witcher, Ron Block, Jesse Brock, Andy Falco, Jeremy Garrett and Ned Luberecki, among others - are largely those with whom he has appeared on stage in recent years, with Tim Stafford and new friends Jenni Lynn Gardner and Megan McCormick could be described as ‘hired guns’ in the usual meaning of the term. (more…)

Sugar Hill Records has announced that international acoustic trio The Greencards have signed with the label to release their fourth CD project. Producer Jay Joyce is in the studio with the band now and the new album is expected in the spring of ‘09.

The band is composed of Australians Kym Warner on mandolin and Carol Young on bass, along with Englishman Eamon McLoughlin on fiddle and viola. All three sing, with Young handling the bulk of the lead vocals.

The band name came to them when the group got its start in Austin, TX, with all three members being non-natives. Their sound has been a hit with audiences at clubs and eclectic music festivals, mixing various elements of acoustic American folk music with their original songs.

Sugar Hill A&R rep Gary Paczosa brought them into the family, and is psyched to have them on the label.

“The Greencards are a natural fit for us. I worked with them on two previous projects and have always been impressed by their musical vision and their focused approach to their career and development.”

Video journals from the studio are promised over the next few weeks, so keep an eye on their web site and MySpace page for updates.

We recently concluded a promotion in which we gave away a large quantity of free CDs from GrooveGrass Records. The CD being, The Best of Del McCoury - The GrooveGrass Years.

If you were one of the lucky winners, be patient, your CD is coming. It has been such a hot seller that the first manufacturing run sold out in only four days. The label has ordered another production run and is expecting delivery this Thursday.

The winners’ discs will be shipped once the label has received the newly pressed CDs.

If you weren’t one of our lucky winners, then get yourself over to TheBestofDelMcCoury.com and order your copy for only $12.99, shipping included.

Thank You For Caring, the new CD from singer/songwriter Jeanette Williams, will be released tomorrow (9/9) on Blue Circle Records, the independent label run by Tom T. and Dixie Hall.

Among the 14 tracks are songs which Jeanette has written, along with contributions from Paul Williams, Paul Williams, Tom T. and Dixie, Brandon Rickman, Laurie Lewis, Shannon Slaughter and Marcie Horne.

Joining her on the new CD are several prominent bluegrass artists (Tony Rice, Tim Stafford, Aubrey Haynie, Ronald Inscore, Randy Kohrs, Ben Isaacs) along with hubby Johnny Williams, members of her road band and well known performers from Jeanette’s home in southwest Virginia (Michelle Nixon, Heather Berry, Jacob Eller, Jesse Finney, Stephen Fraleigh, Jody King, Tony Mabe and Josh Pickett).

The biggest name guesting on Thank You For Caring is country music legend George Jones, who duets with Williams on the title track, written by the Halls. The song is a testimony to the generosity of the human heart, and Miss Dixie explained how it was inspired…

“After the hurricane, there were so many people in need of so many things. We took my motor home and took a little tour, gathering up, buying and begging at yard sales looking for clothing items for the hurricane victims.

We came up on a small sale and I thought, we won’t get much here, but ended up finding a lot of goodies - baby clothes and what have you.

The folks who were running it invited us in, and this one little girl found out what we were doing, collecting for the children in Louisiana. When we were leaving, she came up to me and put her hand in mine and said, ‘thank you for caring.’

She donated her little chest of drawers for some little boy or girl in New Orleans and I was inspired to put down this song.

When Jeanette heard the song she told me, ‘Gosh… I would just love to sing this with George Jones.’ Well, I’ve known George for years and I called him up to ask if he would come in and sing. He said, ‘Well by God, if Miss Dixie wants it, I’ll do it!’ “

The song was released to bluegrass radio some months ago, so you may have heard it already, but it has not been available for purchase until now. A portion of the proceeds of the CD will be donated to the Red Cross to benefit their ongoing work in the Gulf coast regions still affected by Katrina.

You can hear audio samples from all 14 tracks online.

Jayme Stone and Mansa Sissoko’s cross-cultural musical adventure, Africa To Appalachia, will be released in the US next Tuesday (September 9) with a lengthy tour of the states starting on September 15.

Stone, the Canadian banjoist, and Sissoko, a Malian kora player and vocalist, collaborate on the CD in a genre-bending mix of tones and styles. The music is beautiful and transparently recorded and, should be welcome to ears open to new and different sounds.

Audio samples and more details can be found on Jayme’s web site, where you can also find details for the tour stops on this upcoming tour.

Jayme and Mansa will also be performing tonight (9/4) on WNYC’s New Sounds program at 11:00 p.m. (EDT). The show is broadcast at 93.9 FM in New York City and streamed live at www.wnyc.org.

Archives are maintained on the WNYC site where you can listen to the show after the fact if you miss the Thursday night broadcast.

For those who are close to Pigeon Forge, TN, Ricky Skaggs will be appearing at the Cracker Barrel on Highway 441 this Friday evening from 7-8:30 PM.

Skaggs recently released a new CD on the Cracker Barrel label. The CD, titled The High Notes, contains 12 of Skaggs’ previous country hit songs, redone bluegrass style. I’ve been hearing good things about this CD, though I haven’t heard it myself, other than the two sample Cracker Barrel has up.

If you were a country fan in the 80’s, you’re sure to recognize a few of these tracks.

1. Crying My Heart Out Over You
2. Heartbroke
3. Highway 40 Blues
4. I Wouldn’t Change You If I Could
5. You’ve Got A Lover
6. Cajun Moon
7. Honey (Open That Door)
8. Cat’s In The Cradle
9. Uncle Pen
10. Country Boy
11. Lovin’ Only Me
12. Somebody’s Prayin’

The CD is exclusive to Cracker Barrel, so if you want a copy, you’ll have to visit one of their stores. If you want your autographed, you’ll want to head over to the Cracker Barrel on Highway 441 tomorrow evening.

The long-awaited third Skaggs Family CD from Cherryholmes is still almost a month away, but audio samples for all 13 tracks can be found online, along with pre-order links.

Cherryholmes III - Don’t Believe is scheduled to hit on September 30 with a sound that has a more contemporary edge that previous projects, with nods to old time, Texas fiddle and Celtic music among the songs, made up primarily of band originals.

We’re planning to run an interview with one of the many Cherryholmes between now and the release date, but for now, go check out the online audio and see what you think.

Doyle Lawson in in a celebratory mood today. Help Is On The Way, the title track from his latest Gospel bluegrass release, has the #1 spot on the Top 80 Radio Airplay chart published in the September 2008 issue of Singing News magazine.

Not only is it Doyle’s first #1 in Singing News, but he believes that it is also the first time a bluegrass song has reached the pinnacle of this highly respected chart.

The magazine, billed as “The Voice Of Southern Gospel Music,” has published monthly for almost 40 years.

Congratulations to Doyle - and to bluegrass music - for this achievement.