McCoury Music has announced the formation of a Board of Directors who will oversee the management of the company going forward. The board will include Del, his wife Jean, his two sons Rob and Ronnie McCoury, and Chris Harris, formerly of Rainmaker Management, who has handled publicity and marketing for the company this past few years.

A new Nashville office will open within a month to handle all aspects of the business, which involves recordings for The Del McCoury Band and other artists (like Merle Haggard), publishing for Del’s original music, and the popular DelFest which is held each summer in Cumberland, MD. They will also manage The Travelin’ McCourys, which is made up of Del’s band, minus Del.

Harris expressed gratitude at being chosen to head this new expansion, and has high hopes for the future of McCoury Music.

“I think we’ve assembled the proper team, and taken the right steps over the past couple of years to allow McCoury Music to not only thrive during a difficult period for the music industry, but help others succeed as well. There are at least two more generations of McCoury pickers after Del, so I’m excited to be involved in something that can be around for a long time.”

Stan Strickland of Rainmaker will continue to handle touring for The Del McCoury Band but all other aspects of the “family business” will be run from McCoury Music.

We expect to speak with Del later today and hope to get some more details.

Want to study bluegrass music with The Del McCoury Band?

Well, that opportunity will be afforded to participants at the DelFest Academy, which debuts the week before the main festival this May in Cumberland, MD. Members of Del’s band, along with Ronnie Bowman and Steep Canyon Rangers will provide workshops and classes from May 19-21, just ahead of DelFest proper, which runs May 22-24.

Students will be segmented according to skill level with classes provided for guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, and bass. If sufficient interest is expressed by those registering in advance, instruction will also be offered in singing and songwriting.

Registration will be limited to ensure that everyone gets direct attention from each instructor. RV and rough camping is available on site, and a number of off site lodging options are available close by.

You can find further details and full regsitration details at the DelFest Academy web site.

Big-time country artist Dierks Bentley’s bluegrass roots have been chronicled a number of times on The Bluegras Blog, as has his ongoing support of bluegrass artists and songwriters.

His new CD, Feel That Fire, will be released on February 3, and the last track is a remake of Last Call, written by Ronnie McCoury and originally recorded on his 2000 solo project, Heartbreak Town. The Dierks cut features him in duet with Ronnie along with Alan Bartram on bass, Bryan Sutton on guitar, Randy Kohrs on resonator guitar, Jason Carter on fiddle and Rob McCoury on banjo. Ronnie also plays mandolin.

Dierks has been telling Ronnie for the last several years that one day he was going to record Last Call, and so he has.

GAC has a pre-release Feel That Fire TV special which debuts this evening (1/29) at 10:00 p.m. Ronnie will be part of the show, singing with Bentley on this bluegrass song.

The show will air several more times over this next week, in case you miss tonight’s initial broadcast. All times EST.

• 1/31 – 10:00 p.m.
• 2/1 – 2:00 a.m.
• 2/1 – 11:00 a.m.
• 2/3 – 8:00 p.m.
• 2/4 – 12:00 a.m.

UPDATE 3:00 p.m. – We just heard from Dierks’ people that they are uncertain whether the performance of Last Call made the final cut for the GAC special.

We should also mention that Bryan Sutton plays acoustic guitar on almost every track of Feel That Fire, and plays banjo on several as well.

Country artist Dierks Bentley is gearing up for the release of his new CD, Feel That Fire. As in the past Dierks is showing his love of bluegrass by including some bluegrass on his new recording.

His first, self-titled, CD included personnel like Shad Cobb, Glen Duncan, Terry Eldredge, Randy Kohrs, and Bryan Sutton, among others. The final track on the CD was recorded with the Del McCoury Band.

His second CD, Modern Day Drifter, again included a track recorded with the Del McCoury Band. His third CD, Long Trip Alone, included a track recorded with The Grascals.

Feel That Fire will be released on February 3rd and includes a duet with Ronnie McCoury, Last Call.

It seems Dierks is consistent in his dedication to introducing his country fans to his love of bluegrass. Thanks Dierks!

UPDATE 12:50 p.m. -  Furthering his “bluegrass cred,” Dierks is also quoted in Peter Cooper’s Tennessean piece on the occasion of Butch Baldassari’s death on 1/10.

In October 2007, Dierks Bentley, Mark O’Connor, Ricky Skaggs, Bela Fleck and many others performed a benefit concert at the Blair School.

"Butch really encouraged me, musically," Bentley said at the time. "I took mandolin lessons from him, and he’s full of information."