In the midst of all the announcements of new bands and changing personnel that have been made this year, there is one that we have yet to mention. After 8 years, Jim Hurst and Missy Raines have decided to call an end to their performing together as a duo. Both will continue to tour and record as members of The Claire Lynch Band, but Jim and Missy both felt that the time commitments with Claire, and their other side projects, simply left them with too little time for too many projects.

Missy has a new band with whom she will perform as time allows. She’s calling it Missy Raines & The New Hip, a play on words relating to her recent surgery - and the youth of her bandmates. They are working now on a debut CD project and some audio is available on their MySpace page, along with their limited tour schedule.

Jim will be dedicating some more time to teaching at workshops and clinics, and doing some duo shows with Steve Smith. Jim’s schedule is listed on his web site.