Bad news for bluegrass fans who enjoy listening to bluegrass on one of the Music Choice networks. They have announced that their bluegrass music channel will be discontinued as of April 15, 2009.

Music Choice provides the music channels for most cable television systems in the US, as well as many business applications. If you have multiple music channels available through digital cable TV, chances are the service is from Music Choice.

A total of nine music channels are being discontinued this month.

It seems safe to presume that this decision is final, but it can’t hurt to leave them a comment about the move to drop bluegrass from Music Choice.

The Bluegrass Mix has added a new feature to their 24/7, streaming bluegrass radio service.

In addition to hosted programming and nationally-syndicated shows, they now offer an uninterrupted, “no talk” stream for online listeners who prefer to hear their bluegrass without announcers or commentary.

Bluegrass Mix is supported by donations from listeners, so the streams can be offered without traditional advertising spots.

To tune in, just visit www.bluegrassmix.com, and click on the Listen icon to choose between the hosted and non-hosted versions of their stream.

BluegrassRadio.org has announced that they will shut down their 24/7 online bluegrass audio stream online at the end of March.

President Clyde Scott has this message posted on the site’s front page:

It is with deep regret that I must announce Bluegrass Radio and BluegrassRadio.org will discontinue its streaming service effective April 1st 2009. Effective immediately, we will no longer accept donations of support and will close the web store. Thanks to you for our success over the past five years.

We contacted Scott yesterday afternoon, and he shared a few more thoughts about his decision to close up shop.

“With some of the decisions being made in our Capitol, I see a better investment in my grand children than this station. They will need all the help they can get in the future.

Bluegrass Radio has been by far the most successful bluegrass music stream in the history of internet radio. For that we are grateful. The friends I have made over the last five years will last a lifetime for me.

The financial support has always been there for us so it is not a financial decision. I’m just tired of the fight.”

A great many folks will be sorry to see Clyde and Bluegrass Radio disappear.

Starting next week (2/14), the live bluegrass radio series Bluegrass Underground will move to a weekly, Saturday evening slot on WSM AM 650 from Nashville.

The new time is 6:00-7:00 p.m. (ET), just ahead of the Saturday Grand Ole Opry broadcast.

Live concerts are held monthly in The Volcano Room at Cumberland Caverns in McMinnville, TN - in an underground cavern 300 feet below the surface.

Bluegrass Underground producer Todd Mayo explains how a monthly concert can turn into a weekly program.

“The show is still taped once per month but we have added a second act to each show, and will be able to produce enough content (with a few months having second shows added) to move the show to a one hour, once per week progam.”

You can find lots of photos, as well as video and audio clips from past concerts, on the Bluegrass Underground web site. Here’s one from an appearance by The Infamous Stringdusters late last year.

Later today (1/18) on KBCS, a special tribute to Butch Baldassari will air during Bluegrass Ramble.

The show airs from noon to 3:00 p.m. (PST), and has been a staple on KBCS for almost 25 years. They feature a format of bluegrass mixed with old-time and vintage country, co-hosted by Pete Goodall, Dave Long, Christine Linde and Tom Keeney.

This afternoon’s show finds Keeney joined by recently retired KBCS host Susan Madden for the Baldassari tribute from 1:30-3:00 p.m., west coast time.

KBCS broadcasts from Bellevue, WA at 91.3 FM, and via online streaming at www.kbcs.fm.

It’s not often that we see much in the way of televised bluegrass programming, much less broadcast in High Definition.

If you live in central Ohio, and don’t mind staying up late on Saturday evenings, you’ll be able to catch some High Definition Bluegrass for the next two weeks. WOSU TV is celebrating the 30th anniversary of The Bluegrass Ramble on WOSU AM, with two one-hour high definition bluegrass programs.

Each episode will hosted by Rich Baker, 20 year veteran of The Bluegrass Ramble. The two episodes will feature The Special Consensus and The Spinney Brothers.

WOSU has placed a 5 minute video from the program on the web page for The Bluegrass Ramble. The video features each band performing one song in full. It’s encoded for the web so the size is small, but the footage itself looks fantastic.

When WAMU’s Ray Davis notched his 60th year in radio broadcasting, Richard Thompson put together a nice career retrospective for us here on The Bluegrass Blog.

This past week, Ray was celebrated with a profile in Radio World, an influential trade journal for the broadcast radio industry. The article by Ken Deutsch follows Ray from the time he left his home in Maryland to take a radio job in Delaware, to his current position with WAMU’s Bluegrass Country doing five live bluegrass shows each week.

There is a classic photo of Ray from 1951, and some wonderful stories about his early days in radio.

“I sold every kind of product on the air,” said Davis. “You had to ad-lib copy back then and you could tell if you were doing OK by how many orders came in.

“They had a mailroom in Del Rio, Texas, where I lived. It was huge. I’d drive across the border every day to work at the station, which was in this compound with armed guards. One night when I was leaving, I found a scorpion in my car.”

Long before Ronco’s Vegamatic, Davis had his own unique items to peddle.

“The weirdest thing I ever pitched on the air was something called the ‘Walk-Away,’” he said. “That was a concoction that claimed to cure rheumatism or something. I said on the air that it was made from the sands of the testing grounds of the atomic bomb. That product was only on for a few days.”

Read the full article online at www.radioworld.com.

Here are two other special bluegrass shows being cybercast online today.

Blue Plate Special on WDVX has live sets from banjo picker extraordinaire Danny Barnes, and fiddler/vocalist Barbara Lamb. The show airs at noon in the Knoxville market at 102.9 FM, and via live streaming online. You can also listen to the show online via live streaming.

Then at 1:oo, Gracie Muldoon kicks off a special extended version of Muldoon In The Afternoon on WorldWideBluegrass.com. She’ll speak with Tim Seabolt, whose debut CD, Grandpa’s Gibson, was released earlier this year, and then at 2:00 with the one and only Charlie Daniels who will join her live from Las Vegas.

The timing works out just great. If you are tethered to your computer today, you can catch Ron Block at 11:00, Danny Barnes and Barbara Lamb at noon, Tim Seabolt at 1:00 and Charlie Daniels at 2:00. All times (EST).

Later this evening, you can also catch Ralph Stanley, Mike Snider and Bobby Osborne on The Grand Ole Opry broadcast, streamed live at wsmonline.com from 9:00 to 11:00.

And don’t forget IIIrd Tyme Out and Barry Scott on WDVX on Saturday at noon.

We mentioned the new Rural Rhythm radio sampler last week in our post about their upcoming bluegrass CD for Michael Martin Murphey. It has been mailed to DJs and show hosts, and you should be hearing these new tracks shortly.

The disc is entitled Fresh Cuts & Key Tracks No. 3 and includes seven new singles from current or soon to be released projects.

• Whispering Waters - Audie Blaylock & Redline
• Carolina In The Pines - Michael Martin Murphey
• Lone Cowboy - Michael Martin Murphey
• A Hard Row To Hoe - Tommy Webb
• Love Letters In The Sand - The Marksmen
• Roving Gambler - Mashville Brigade
• Run On - Cody Shuler & Pine Mountain Railroad

More details about each of these tracks can be found online.

The disc is not offered for sale to consumers, and is distributed solely for radio promotion. If you host a bluegrass program and have not received the sampler, you can contact Rural Rhythm to get on their distribution list.

WorldWideBluegrass.com has announced a new show hosted by Jay Armsworthy, a popular radio host and bluegrass singer in Maryland.

His show, Bluegrass On The Bay, debuts tonight (11/26) at 6:00 p.m. and will air every Wednesday evening from 6:00-8:00.

Jay has hosted a show by this name on terrestrial radio in Pennsylvania for many years on AM1510 WWSM, and is looking forward to broadcasting live weekly on WWB as well.

To catch Jay and the rest of the WorldWideBluegrass.com crew, just visit the WWB site and click on the Listen button to start their live, 24/7 bluegrass feed, available in several different streaming formats for either high speed or broadband connection.

Banks of the Ohio: Music from the Homeplace of Bluegrass, the weekly syndicated radio broadcast produced by the International Bluegrass Music Museum in Owensboro, KY, has announced a new host.

George McKnight will take over the duties from founding host Fred Bartenstein effective November 29. George has a long history in both bluegrass music and commercial radio, serving as stage emcee on numerous festivals each year near his home in British Columbia, and has hosted the syndicated radio program Uptown Bluegrass since 1982.

Banks of the Ohio runs three hours each week, broken into 30 minute segments that focus on music from different periods in the brief history of bluegrass music. Their mission is to both educate and entertain, offering historical background to the songs and artists, geared to long-time fans and new listeners alike.

Bartenstein welcomes McKnight as he prepares to dedicate his time to other museum work.

“I am pleased and excited about George McKnight taking over the program, as I turn my attention to other projects at the International Bluegrass Music Museum.  I hope you get a chance to tune in to my farewell show, airing the week of November 22, and to George’s maiden voyage the following week.”

Fred tells us that he has plenty on his plate moving forward…

“I’m already working with the International Bluegrass Music Museum on planning for the Bill Monroe Centennial in 2011, and also expect to be helping them with editing video oral histories of bluegrass pioneers. I will continue to be the facilitator for IBMA’s Leadership Bluegrass program. I’m participating in the Bluegrass Hotel project, celebrating the 40th anniversary of events in Kentucky which revitalized both traditional bluegrass and initiated newgrass.

In early 2009, I will be facilitating an all-Europe bluegrass music summit in Germany. All those projects are in the context of my ongoing organizational consulting practice, which goes beyond the music industry.”

There are two special bluegrass radio shows on Friday morning (10/24) that will be streamed live online. Unfortunately, their air times coincide, so you’ll have to choose your own best option.

First up at 10:15 a.m., Jeanette Williams will join Carol Beaugard on WFDU to talk about her new CD, Thank You For Caring, and her participation in the third release from the Daughters Of Bluegrass, Bluegrass Bouquet, a celebration of female bluegrass artists and musicians. Music from these recordings will be featured as well.

Then at 11:00 a.m., Carol will welcome the ear-shattering instrumental duo Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile into the WFDU studio. The two have been out in support of their CD, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile, a CD/DVD combo project of mandolin/bass duets, ahead of their final show at Carnegie Hall next week.

Carol is a huge Thile fan so she’s sure to talk about his meteoric career at length, in addition to his current work with Meyer. Expect lots of music early in the show and in the 11:00 hour from the Meyer/Thile album, plus Nickel Creek, the Punch Brothers and Chris’ various solo CDs.

Her show, Lonesome Pine RFD, is broadcast from 9:00 a.m. to noon (EDT) on 89.1 FM in the NYC area, and streamed live online at WFDU.fm.

Also at 11:00 a.m., there will be live music over at WAMU’s Bluegrass Country.

Claire Lynch will be in the studio with host Lee Michael Demsey to spread the word about her show at The Birchmere Friday night. Guitarist Jim Hurst and bass player Mark Schatz will accompany Claire for an impromptu set in WAMU’s Studio 3. They will also talk about what The Claire Lynch Band is up to for the rest of 2008 and beyond, and whatever else Lee Michael might come up with.

You can catch their 24/7 online bluegrass feed at www.bluegrasscountry.org.

All in all, a good morning to tune in online.

A new, weekly bluegrass radio show is set to launch this coming Sunday (10/5) in southwestern Virginia. FiddleFest Radio will air each Sunday afternoon on The Bull, FM 106.1 from Roanoke, VA from 5:00-7:00 p.m., simulcast live online via audio streaming.

The show will be hosted by Mike Conner, proprietor of Roanoke FiddleFest, and Jay King of The Bull. They will feature the latest in bluegrass music, plus classic tracks and music from local and regional bands.

CDs can be sent to the station at:

I’m just barely old enough to remember bluegrass shows that ran on television in the early mornings. During the summer I could often find Don reno, Arthur Smith or sometimes even Flatt & Scruggs appearing on one of the early morning “farm shows” that ran before the morning news.

Before those days, such shows ran on radio and most nationally touring bluegrass acts had a home radio station where they would perform live each early morning. If the station had a good reach, the band could book shows throughout the listening area, and still get back each morning for the next show.

Straight Drive, from Hasbrouck Heights in New Jersey, starts a show this week that offers something of a throwback to those golden days of bluegrass radio.

On Wednesday mornings following the 7:30 a.m. news break, they will be featured during Susan Rose’s Bluegrass Breakfast show on WDVR-FM. The new mini-show, Straight Morning Drive, will run for 15 minutes, and is pre-recorded live.

Banjo player Terry McGill has had this concept brewing for some time.

“For a long time I have wanted to do a short radio program that would be recorded live and feature our brand of traditional bluegrass music. Our show will be run much like our regular stage show. It will feature traditional and original bluegrass music as well as old time duet singing. In between the songs I will tell about each song or talk with band members and generally have a good time.

During the 1940’s through the 1960’s there were many shows of this type throughout the US, but most had faded out or switched to records by the 1970’s. I feel that today’s listeners will enjoy the vintage feel of a live band on the airwaves.”

McGill went to WDVR with this show idea based on their ongoing support of traditional music, and since he feels like the station is run like radio was in an prior era.

In addition to McGill on banjo, Straight Drive features Jen Larson on guitar and vocals, Ronnie Feinberg on fiddle, Ben Fraker on mandolin, David Hampton on guitar, and Dave Gandin on bass.

WDVR broadcasts at 89.7 and 91.9 FM with coverage in the Delaware and Lehigh Valley of western NJ and in eastern PA. Their signal is also simulcast online via live streaming.

Bluegrass Underground, the new live performance radio show we posted about last month, debuts tonight (8/29) on WSM. The show features a live performance by The Steeldrivers, recorded August 16 more than 300 feet underground at Cumberland Caverns in McMinnville, TN.

The show’s premise is based around the unique environment where it is recorded, this underground cavern completely removed from any sound generated at the earth’s surface. Each month, a new episode will be taped before a live audience, using as few microphones as possible to capture the natural acoustic sound, and aired on the last Friday night of the month.

Producer Todd Mayo told us that this first concert taping was a sellout, and that The Steeldrivers put on a whale of a show. He also sent along some photos that demonstrate the dramatic surroundings where they record.

Here’s a video clip that gives an even better look at the concert hall.

Tennessee Shines is a new live music radio show which debuts tonight (8/27) on WDVX, broadcasting at 89.9 FM in Knoxville, TN and via live audio streaming at wdvx.xom. The two hour show will be hosted by Jim Lauderdale and broadcast live on the last Wednesday of each month from Knoxville’s historic Bijou Theater.

Tonight’s guests will be The SteelDrivers, Darrell Scott, Shawn Camp and the everybodyfields.

In addition to live performances from each of the musical guests, Jim will be chatting with the bands, finding out what they have been doing, and what they have on the horizon. He will also participating in a songwriters session with Shawn Camp and both Mike Henderson and Chris Stapleton from The SteelDrivers.

WDVX will be the base radio home for Tennessee Shines, and discussions are now underway to bring the show into wider syndication, and hopefully satellite radio as well.

Guests have been booked for the September edition of Tennessee Shines, and the lineup will be announced during this evening’s program. Tonight’s show is sold out, but tickets to attend future shows can be obtained through the Tennessee Theater box office, and as available, at the door.

Tune in from 7:00-9:30 p.m. to catch the debut program tonight.

I’ve made no secret of the fact that I like Pandora.com. The internet radio service is one of my two favorite (iLike is the other) ways to discover new music. Pandora might be shutting down soon however.

With the increase in royalty rates dictated by the CRB recently, Pandora is facing a situation in which 70% of their revenue will be eaten up by song royalties. That doesn’t leave a lot for paying the bills, and staff, let alone expansion.

Founder Tim Westergren says Pandora’s funding comes from venture capitalists who won’t be inspired to continue supporting a business who’s revenue model is broken.

We’re losing money as it is. The moment we think this problem in Washington is not going to get solved, we have to pull the plug because all we’re doing is wasting money. We’re funded by venture capital. They’re not going to chase a company whose business model has been broken. So if it doesn’t feel like its headed towards a solution, we’re done.

Jon Simson, of SoundExchange, has said Pandora needs to adopt a new business model that includes audio ads placed between songs, if it is to survive as a viable business. Pandora, however, doesn’t seem to keen on that idea. Pandora’s thinkers feel that such a model would be a turn off for listeners and simply drive them away.

Pandora is hoping for relief from Washington lawmakers, who they are hoping will alter the royalty system as it currently stands. They feel the disparity in revenue percentages paid by internet radio (70-300% depending on which internet station you talk to), when compared with satellite radio (6%) or terrestrial radio (0%), is unfair and should be amended.

On the other hand, SoundExchange points out that satellite radio brings in a total revenue of $115 per listener per year, whereas internet radio stations average only $3.50 per listener per year. Their argument is that the percentage must be higher to generate a similar amount of royalties for a similar amount of listening. The thought process being, if the internet radio stations can’t figure out how to earn income, that’s no one’s fault but their own.

On the one hand, I understand the sentiment. If I were the creator of a product, which others sold, and one retailer sold it for a price I liked while another told me they needed a steep discount because they couldn’t sell it for much, I might choose not to sell to that retailer.

On the other hand, at a time when the industry is hemorrhaging due to slumping CD sales, some revenue is better than none. I don’t buy the argument that the industry needs time to develop, it’s had the time and just hasn’t developed a revenue model that will generate the kind of royalty rate SoundExchange would like to see. But they are generating a royalty. 25% of something, is more than 70% of nothing.

If you’ve read about such award winning bluegrass radio programs as Cindy Baucom’s Knee-Deep In Bluegrass or Terry Herd’s Into The Blue, but couldn’t find them on a local station near you, Bluegrassmix.com offers the solution.

Bluegrassmix.com is a 24/7 streaming internet radio station that plays bluegrass and old traditional country music. They’ve just announced that these two award winning shows will now be included in their lineup.

We are so proud AND honored to annouce that Nationally known DJ’s, Cindy Baucom and Terry Herd, will be added to our broadcasting line-up!!!

Cindy Baucom’s Knee Deep in Bluegrass is scheduled to air on Wednesday nights 10 pm - 12 midnight EST.

Terry Herd’s Into the Blue is scheduled to air on Sunday mornings 9am - 12 noon EST.

The site/station was started in December of 2007 by Roger Randolph and Julie Raye. The two have many ideas and goals, adding these syndicated shows to the lineup was one of those goals.

So visit Bluegrassmix.com and tune in to some great bluegrass 24/7.

In December of 2007 we told you the story of Bluegrass FM. An FM radio station that was starting a second station and pursuing an unusual business model. General Manager, Pete Stover, contacted us recently with an update and some more news.

The FCC has approved a request to increase the original station’s (WWED 89.5 in Fredericksburg, VA) power from 380 watts to 16,000 watts. Together with its sister station, WWEM 91.7 in Lynchburg, VA, Bluegrass FM broadcasts bluegrass music 24 hours a day in a non-commerical format.

The two stations are run as a private business, broadcast commercial free, and depend on corporate/business underwriting and listener support in a way similar to public radio.

This power increase is not without associated costs.

WWED will need to replace its current transmitter, antenna and antenna cable before the power increase can take effect. The project will cost an estimated $100,000 and will need to be raised from donations from listeners and corporate sponsors. Once the project funds are received, equipment can be ordered and installed.

Such changes will increase the station’s coverage dramatically toward Richmond, Charlottesville and Culpeper, as well as providing a denser and more listenable signal into portions of Northern Virginia south of Washington, D.C.

Completion of the power increase is anticipated in mid-2009.

I asked Pete how the new station in Lynchburg was fairing and he stared this report. (more…)

Bluegrass fiddler and legendary Ohio Valley radio personality Paul ‘Moon’ Mullins passed away on August 3. He had been in a nursing home for about a month. He was 71 years old.

Mullins was diagnosed with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy in 2007, a neurological disease often misdiagnosed as Parkinson’s Disease. He was cared for at his home in Franklin Township until 6 weeks ago when admitted to Hillspring Nursing facility in Springboro, Ohio, where he passed away on Sunday evening.

Born September 24, 1936 in Frenchburg, Menifee County, Kentucky, Mullins was an exceptional fiddler, learning to play the instrument while in the army in which he served from 1955 through to 1958. He played with some of the elite from the first generation of bluegrass bands, notably the Stanley Brothers, with whom he worked from September 1958 through to January 1959. Stage fright got the better of him.

In 1962 he joined The Bluegrass Playboys and wrote and recorded one of his best contributions to the bluegrass genre, namely the song, Katy Daly, which has been a bluegrass standard for 40 years.

For several years beginning in 1967, Mullins assisted the late Bill Monroe, serving as the Master of Ceremonies for the Bean Blossom Bluegrass Festivals in Brown County, Indiana. For over 10 years, Bean Blossom was the biggest bluegrass event of its kind in the country. In addition to his role as a Master of Ceremonies at bluegrass events, he also personally promoted dozens of other area festivals and concerts.

In 1974 he helped to form The Boys From Indiana and he remained with the band until 1979. The group recorded seven LPs for King Bluegrass during that time. A recent Rebel collection, ‘Good Time Blues’, features Mullins on a 14-song retrospective look at this very talented and entertaining band.

Mullins formed The Traditional Grass in 1983, (more…)