What a tough gig…

Béla Fleck, Zakir Hussain and Edgar Meyer are touring in Hawaii, and we are all invited to join them today – in the cyber sense of the word. Their live show in Honolulu at the Road Runner Music Hall will be broadcast live by KSSK, starting at 4:00 p.m. (EDT) this afternoon (9/18).

KSSK may be a radio station, but they will be carrying a live video feed of the concert.

The trio is touring in support of their new CD, The Melody Of Rhythm, a collaborative set of compositions for banjo, bass and tabla. They will perform the title piece, a work in three movements, with the Honolulu Symphony this Saturday and Sunday.

Fleck, Hussain and Meyer will be out through the end of October doing live shows. You can find their schedule online.

The Melody Of Rhythm – Triple Concerto & Music For Trio, is the name of a new collaboration CD released today (9/25) on E1 Music (formerly Koch Records). It features B?©la Fleck on banjo, Edgar Meyer on bass and Zakir Hussain on the tabla.

The are seven pieces of new music, but the album is centered around a triple concerto for their three instruments composed by Fleck and Meyer. Entitled The Melody Of Rhythm, it consists of three movements, and was recorded live for this project with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Slatkin.

The goal of the composers was to blend the sound of Indian classical music with American roots and traditional string music. Given the stunning level of virtuosity these three musicians bring to the table, the results are remarkable, though the music truly defies an easy description.

Audio samples can be found on the sites of a number of online resellers, and in iTunes.

This unlikely trio will be on tour throughout September and October, including dates with a number of symphony orchestras.

We just got our advance copy of the new Sam Bush CD, Circles Around Me.

Sam had told us that it was one that his bluegrass and newgrass fans would really appreciate, and he wasn’t kidding. Other than the subtle percussion from Sam’s regular drummer, Chris Brown, this is pretty much a bluegrass record – and Bush has quite a bluegrass group lurking underneath his rock-edged road band.

Through all 14+ tracks, Scott Vestal shows why he has been held in such high regard by banjo players these many years, initially as a hard-driving Scruggs/Baucom/Crowe picker with Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, and later as an envelope-pusher with his own recordings. On Circles his playing is simply brilliant, as is Stephen Mougin’s tasteful acoustic guitar. Byron House has been a bass player’s, bass player for years, and he delivers solid timing with a huge tone – as always.

Sam is in fine voice, and the production is transparent, leaving the sound of the acoustic instruments to ring true with very little compression or effects. He is featured most prominently on mandolin, and Del McCoury even joins in for a couple of duets. Jerry Douglas, Edgar Meyer also appear as guests. Courtney Johnson even makes a posthumous appearance in a banjo/fiddle duet recorded in 1976.

We hope to be able to stream some audio from this terrific CD soon, but in the meantime, here’s Sam with a few words about when you can get your own copy…

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.