But neither Bush nor Jarosz can be described simply – or even  primarily – as a mandolinist. Both are distinctive vocalists and multi-instrumentalists as well, and Bush’s place as a seminal figure in the development of newgrass is uncontested. Where a young artist like Jarosz will take the music will be an interesting story to watch this next however many years.

All that aside, Saturday’s program will allow both to showcase music from their new releases with listeners invited to draw, or ignore any comparisons they wish. Sam will have his mighty band in tow, and Sarah will do a couple with the PHC house band (plus Byron House on bass), and one on her own.

The broadcast from the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul, MN goes out live September 26 at 6:00 p.m. (EDT) over hundreds of public radio affiliates across the US. It will also be simulcast live online and on Sirius-XM.

Many radio affiliates delay the broadcast until later in the evening, or Sunday morning, so check your local station for air times.

We are hoping to get a behind-the-scenes report from Sarah later this weekend. Should be a whale of a show.

The show will air live on Saturday (5/30) at 6:00 p.m. (EDT) from The Fox Theater in St. Louis, MO, though many stations choose to air the program on Sunday afternoon.

Check the station listing for when the show airs in your area, or you can catch the live airing via online streaming.

Perhaps host Garrison Keiller will ask Del about the Del-uge at last weekend’s DelFest in Maryland – or maybe they will sing Wasn’t That A Mighty Storm?

UPDATE 10:20 -  The folks at Maryland Mountainside (Allegheny County Tourism Department) have posted a video on YouTube that follows Del on The Bluegrass Train from last week, just prior to the opening of DelFest. It was created by videographer Ty DeMartino.

Unlike many recent Bush guest spots on PHC, Sam will have his fine band with him this time out – Scott Vestal on banjo, Stephen Mougin on guitar, Byron House on bass and Chris Brown on drums. Country superpicker Brad Paisley will also be appearing on the show.

The radio broadcast is sold out, but there will be a special “off the air” show at The Ryman starting at 9:00 p.m., Nashville time. Not sure what that will entail, but Sam and Brad will both be involved.

Though the show airs live in many radio markets, others hold it for broadcast on Sunday afternoon. You can check the official station list to double check when it airs in your area – or tune in online where the show will stream live at Saturday at 6:00.

Playing this august stage is seen by many artists as a right of passage.

“When we sat down to talk about our goals for the first couple years of our career, we put A Prairie Home Companion on that list,” says Jamie Dailey. “It was a lofty goal, but I’ve done the show with Doyle Lawson, Darrin’s been there with Ricky Skaggs, and we both had a wonderful time. For us to be invited as Dailey & Vincent is quite an honor, and we’re very excited.”

This duo swept the IBMA awards last fall, winning seven awards from the organization, including Emerging Artist and Entertainer of the Year. I’m looking forward to seeing them perform this Saturday in Christiansburg, VA. Check their tour schedule for a show near you.

Dailey & Vincent will release their second Rounder album, Brothers From Different Mothers, on March 31, 2009.

Heard by more than four million listeners each week on some 580 public radio stations and abroad on America One and the Armed Forces Networks, the appearance by The Del McCoury Band will be broadcast live from Tanglewood – the Koussevitzky Music Shed in Lenox, Massachusetts, at 5:45 pm (EST) on Saturday, June 28.

McCoury will bring more than new music to the stage of A Prairie Home Companion, he will bring a new attitude destined to shake up the right, left and center. He doesn’t claim to have the answers to America’s problems, just hopes that “Somebody a lot smarter than us will hear a song that moves them and decide to take action.” The producers of the project add in the liner notes. “Not only do we believe it un-American for Washington to be blind to the problems of small towns and rural areas, we believe it to be immoral.”

Noted music journalist Craig Havighurst has written, “I think when this album hits for real, it’s going to shock lefties and righties alike with its candor and its understated moral outrage.” The Austin Chronicle adds, “The album is equal parts empathetic consolation and political outrage at a government that has left the common folks behind.”

Moneyland is to be released on July 8 and features songs by The Del McCoury Band, Merle Haggard, Emmylou Harris, Bruce Hornsby, Chris Knight, Patty Loveless, Marty Stuart, Dan Tyminski and Mac Wiseman and includes special guest appearances by Rodney Crowell, The Fairfield Four, Tim O’Brien, Gillian Welch and David Rawlings.

For more information, please visit www.mccourymusic.com.

Editor’s note: It will be interesting to see if Del explains on PHC just what sort of governmental inaction has contributed to the plight of small town and rural America. PHC host Garrison Keillor is a well-known advocate of an interventionist federal government, so a discussion between he and Del could be enlightening, both as to how they see that such problems came to be, and how they might be addressed.

The show will broadcast live from Las Cruces, NM on May 31 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. (EDT) over a great many stations in the US, and on XM Satellite Radio track 133. Broadcast times vary from one affiliate to another, with many carrying the live feed on Saturday afternoons, and others running it instead early on Sunday afternoon. Check local listings for air times in your area.

You can also listen live online, accessed using Windows Media Player from the PHC web site. Past shows are also archived online, with audio files usually available by the Monday morning following a weekend broadcast.

The show will be broadcast from the Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park, Vienna, VA on Saturday (5/24). Actual broadcast times vary from one affiliate to another, with many carrying the live feed on Saturday evening, and others running it instead early on Sunday afternoon.

You can find the show on 580 public radio affiliate stations, on the Armed Forces Network, and on Sirius Satellite Radio’s Channel 134. The live broadcast is also available online via live streaming audio (Real Player format) from 6:00-8:00 p.m. (EDT).

The show will broadcast live from St. Paul, MN on February 9 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. (EST) over a great many stations in the US, and on XM Satellite Radio track 133. Broadcast times vary from one affiliate to another, with many carrying the live feed on Saturday afternoons, and others running it instead early on Sunday afternoon. Check local listings for air times in your area.

You can also listen live online, accessed using Windows Media Player from the Prairie Home Companion web site. Past shows are archived on the PHC site, with audio files usually available by the Monday morning following a weekend broadcast.

I had a chance to chat with Doyle’s wife, Suzanne, earlier this week who is going along for the NYC trip.

“I’m going to see the lights, tree, and decorations and I wouldn’t miss PHC if at all possible. There’s nothing like live radio.”

Suzanne said that she would try her best to get a couple of the guys to go with her and join the crowd that lines up for the cameras outside the Today Show studios on Saturday morning, so check NBC between 7:00-9:00 a.m. (EST) to see if you can catch a glimpse of them.

“When I asked [new banjo picker] Joey [Cox] is he was willing to get up early and go to the Today Show with me this Saturday morning, he asked me what the Today Show was!

Joey is really a hot picker and all the girls enjoy looking at him too! In fact, Doyle has a nice looking bunch of young guys. with him now. He has also found that 3 of the guys play piano: Carl, Alan and Josh. Josh also plays drums and they all play that new Nintendo Wii game. In fact, Josh threw his back out swinging at Tiger Woods golf on the bus and had to go to the doctor!”

A Prairie Home Companion broadcasts live over a great many public radio stations in the US, and on XM Satellite Radio track 133, at 6:00 p.m. (EST). Many other stations carry the show later on Saturdays, or on Sundays. Check local listings for air times in your area.

Suzanne also shared a bit of Quicksilver recording news. She tells us that Doyle is about half finished on his next CD, an all Gospel project. This will be the first release with the latest version of the band: Darren Beachley on guitar, Joey Cox on banjo, Alan Johnson on fiddle, Josh Swift on dobro and Carl White on bass – with Doyle on mandolin, of course.

She also mentioned that Doyle and Darren are thinking of recording a new Christmas project in 2008. Sounds like a busy year for Doyle and his crew.

Salt of the Earth marks the first time that Ricky and The Whites have collaborated on an entire CD.

The Whites consist of sisters Sharron and Cheryl, along with their father Buck. Joining the Whites and Ricky on the CD are Mark Fain, Cody Kilby, and Andy Leftwich from Ricky’s band. Ricky’s daughter Molly, and a cast of Nashville session players accompany on various instruments.

The disc contains 13 tracks, most of them overtly gospel in nature. The first track is the only one that might not be considered an outright gospel song though it does speak of heaven and God’s love in the last verse.

Several old hymns, including Farther Along, Near The Cross, Blessed Assurance, and The Solid Rock, found their way onto this recording and they are perhaps some of my favorite tracks. These songs seem to be missing from many churches today, and it’s nice to have them here done in a straitforward manner, but with a bluegrass sensibility. Andy Leftwich’s tasteful fiddle really sweeten these old songs.

Lead vocals are shared more or less evenly between the four family members, with Ricky singing one or two more than each of the others. Tight family harmonies are heard throughout. The arrangements are all very appropriate and tastefull, even sparce at times, allowing the listener to connect with the lyrics and not get lost in fancy picking.

For fans of Skaggs, The Whites, and gospel music, this CD will be a welcome addition to the collection.

In a related note, we’ve learned that Skaggs and The Whites will be performing tomorrow, November 10, 2007 on A Prairie Home Companion. Their performance will center around songs from this CD with members of Kentucky Thunder providing accompaniment. Broadcast times vary depending on station so you’ll need to consult the station list for a broadcast in your area.

Alternately, you can tune in live netcast from 5-7PM CST.

The show will be broadcast live from the Verizon Hall in the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia, PA. The show is already sold out, but you should be able to listen to your local NPR station or tune in online from 5-7 PM CT.

In addition to the performances previously mentioned by Doyle Lawson and Rhonda Vincent, the evening will also include Emmylou Harris, Suzy Bogguss, Old Crow Medicine Show, Robin and Linda Williams, John Randall, Cowboy Jack Clement, Stuart Duncan, and Buddy Emmons.

The show starts at 10 PM in most time zones and will be available online at 9:30 PM CST. On our local PBS station here in the Roanoke area it will be airing both at 10 PM and again at 3 AM for those that miss it the first time around due to celebrating for themselves.

We’d like to wish everyone a fun and safe New Year’s Eve and a great New Year in 2007!

The program will also be available online starting at 9:30 PM CST from the A Prairie Home Companion website.

Keillor will host the telecast featuring regulars from his show such as “sound effects guy” Fred Newman, Rich Dworsky, Guy’s All-Star Shoe Band, and others. In addition to the A Prairie Home Companion series regulars, this special event will also spotlight some of bluegrass music’s shining stars. Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver and Rhonda Vincent & The Rage are both set to perform as part of the evening’s festivities. My understanding is that each of them will perform an entire set as part of the evenings festivities. Put it on your calendar now.

The show is carried on 580 public radio affiliate stations, on the Armed Forces Network, and on Sirius Satellite Radio’s Channel 134. Broadcast times vary from one affiliate to another, with many carrying the live feed on Saturday afternoons, and others running it instead early on Sunday afternoon.

The show will also be webcast live (5:00 – 7:00 p.m. CST), and can be accessed using Windows Media Player on the Prairie Home Companion web site. Past shows are archived on the PHC web site, with audio files usually available by the Monday morning following a weekend broadcast.

Broadcast times vary from one affiliate to another, with many carrying the live feed on Saturday afternoons, and others running it instead early on Sunday afternoon.

Shows are archived on the PHC web site, and can be accessed online. The audio is usually available on the web by the Monday morning following a weekend broadcast.

Terry Baucom, banjo player with Quicksilver, shared with us how much he enjoys working the Prairie Home Companion show.

“I really enjoy doing the Prairie Home Companion show with Garrison Keillor. He and his staff are always very professional…and his house band is phenomenal. It’s so much fun to stand off-stage and just watch them. The variety of musical styles they do is just unreal. And Garrison is so highly intelligent, it’s like he came from another planet! I had always thought, from just listening to his show, that he was reading off a script…but he ad libs everything! He has told us what a big fan of Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver he is…and we are certainly fans of his.”

Broadcast times vary from one affiliate to another, with many carrying the live feed on Saturday afternoons, and others running it instead early on Sunday afternoon.

Shows are archived on the PHC web site, and can be accessed online. The audio is usually available on the web by the Monday morning following a weekend broadcast.

If you’re not sure who may broadcast the show in your area, you can search their station list, or you can log on and listen to the show online via live streaming audio (Real Player format). The show’s stream is netcast from 5:00-7:00 p.m. (central).