Valerie Smith has announced this morning that bass player and vocalist Rebekah Long has joined as the newest member of Liberty Pike.

Rebekah had been performing as a member of The Little Roy & Lizzie Show, along with her twin sister, Lizzie Long, and Little Roy Lewis. She is a recent graduate of Nashville’s School of Audio Engineering, and was featured as a member of the Daughters Of Bluegrass on their Bluegrass Bouquet album.

Long joins Becky Buller and Ernie Evans in Valerie’s band, and as is the custom in Liberty Pike, will do some instrument switching in the stage show.

You can see the Valerie Smith tour schdule on her official web site.

Valerie Smith and her musical crew are back home after a fun-filled Bell Buckle Music Cruise of the Caribbean on the Carnival Inspiration.

Back on solid ground, she and her band, Liberty Pike are in Nashville for a show tonight (1/31) at The Station Inn, and preparing to embark on a busy 2009 tour schedule. Valerie is also looking forward to a cover feature by Chris Stuart in Bluegrass Unlimited later this year.

Here are a few photos from the cruise.

       Liberty Pike includes Becky Buller on fiddle, guitar and vocals, Bobby Davis on bass, Chad Graves on resonator guitar and vocals, Ernie Evans on guitar, mandolin and banjo, with Smith handling lead vocals.

Valerie Smith and Becky Buller have been playing together for some time now, but they’ve recently teamed up to release a duet CD titled Here’s a Little Song.

The CD will be released September 9, 2008 on Bell Buckle Records. Taking a page from the great brother duets of the past, Smith and Buller have created a “sister duet” sound on this new CD.

We certainly aren’t out to send the Bluegrass world spinning sideways. We just both happen to be big fans of classic duet acts such as the Louvin and Everly Brothers. Our goal was to channel their sound into these new songs with stark arrangements that make the melodies, harmonies and stories the focal points of our presentation.

The sound samples presented on Valerie’s website do showcase the sparse arrangements, which direct your attention to the lyrics. Even so, it’s not as if the two are unaccompanied on the recording. A full band is tastefully present, including a mouth harp on one track.

The accompaniment is provided by an all star cast, including Alan O’Bryant, Mike Compton, Dale Ann Bradley, Wayne Benson, Kristin Scott Benson, Larry Cordle and Lonesome Standard Time, Justin Carbone, and Liberty Pike band mates Chad Graves and Bobby Davis.

A highly esteemed songwriter and fiddle player, Buller took on a new role for Here’s a Little Song, that of producer. Her first effort was not an easy one, considering the health issues that Smith had to deal with during the process.

“In April of ‘06 just after we finished up recording Val’s Bluegrass Gospel album, Wash Away Your Troubles, she had to undergo vocal surgery,” said Becky. “Later that year she was healed up and singing great so we made all our plans to begin the duet record,” she adds.

“Then in February of ‘07, we found out she had to have a second vocal surgery,” she continued. “Our sessions were scheduled for April at Paul Hopkins’ Studio near Shelbyville, Tennessee and Valerie wanted us to go ahead. So, in crazy faith, we did just that, getting most of our music recorded without any idea if Val would ever be able to talk again, let alone sing.”

“But this January, less than a year after that second surgery, we were back in the studio recording our vocals,” said Val. “It was truly a miracle and I can’t begin to thank all the promoters and fans who hung in there with me during the grueling recovery process.”

Quite often we report about new CD releases that have been sent our way. It’s not often that we are presented with a release from our European bluegrass brethern, so we’re excited to tell you about this release.

Richard Cifersk?? began his music journey with the banjo at the age of 15. He is a former member of the award winning band Fragment, based in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Cifersk?? was with the band from 2002-2005. Currently, he is a member of the bluegrass band Waterflow. He is also fronting his own band, Richard Cifersk?? & Rainy Day. The band takes its name from the title track of his new solo CD by the same name.

The band, and the CD reflect Cifersk??’s varied influences.

The CD consists of 10 tracks, eight are original compositions belonging to Cifersk??. The banjo is prominent on all tracks with a very pleasing tone and tasteful playing. The band is somewhat unconventional by American stanards, but the result is great listening for those who are free from the law of tradition.

The band is Richard on banjo, Linda Nov?°kov?° on flute, Ren?© Jankoviƒç on guitar, Richard Moln?°r on bass, and Adam J?°no?° on drums.

The CD features Moln?°r, J?°no?°, and Cifersk??, along with a host of special guests, including one American player.

• Becky Buller – fiddle, vocal
• Emil Form?°nek – guitar
• Roman S??kora – bass
• Michal Barok – mandolin
• Peter Szabados – dobro, pedal steel
• Sisa Michalidesov?° – whistle, flute
• Peter Prelozn??k – piano, strings
• Lubo?° Jurkoviƒç – vocals

These musicians represent several of the top Eastern European bluegrass bands, including Druha Trava, Meantime, and Waterflow.

In addition to her contributions on fiddle, Becky Buller also contributed vocals on two tunes, one from her own pen.

Becky’s distinctive vocals shine on John Lowell’s "When Will You Be Home" and her own song "Wrong Place, Wrong Time".

The title track, Rainy Day, displays Cifersk??’s virtuosity on a composition that is a blend of several musical backgrounds all finding their focus in the banjo. The sounds of the band work well alongside the flute, drums and other instruments.

Blue Nashville represents a more strict bluegrass sound (more…)