Samuel John Mougin was born on October 12 at 12:30 p.m. (CDT) to Jana and Stephen Mougin in Nashville.

Stephen and Jana are both musicians, with Stephen currently working as guitarist with Sam Bush, and as a free lance producer and session player.

Jana was the bass player and lead singer for Fragment, a very popular group from the Slovak Republic.

We visited with them during IBMA in late September, where Jana was clearly ready for the baby to come. Stephen sent along a few photos, along with a brief status report…

“We’re up to our eyeballs in baby stuff here at the hospital! Things are well, baby is rockin’, momma is rockin’!”

Congratulations to Stephen and Jana from The Bluegrass Blog!

While at IBMA last week, we were able to get a few minutes to sit down with Sugar Hill recording artist Sam Bush.

Our good friend Doug McKelway conducted the interview. He and Sam spoke at length about Sam’s new CD, Circles Around Me. The CD is due to be released on October 20, on Sugar Hill Records. They also spoke about the digital age of music, recording a duet with Del McCoury, Sam’s place in the mandolin world, and more.

Thanks to Donica and all the folks at Sugar Hill Records for making this interview possible.

The interview lasted close to 15 minutes, and we’re bringing it to you in full. Enjoy…

While at IBMA last week, we were able to get a few minutes to sit down with Sugar Hill recording artist Sam Bush.

Our good friend Doug McKelway conducted the interview. He and Sam spoke at length about Sam’s new CD, Circles Around Me. The CD is due to be released on October 20, on Sugar Hill Records. They also spoke about the digital age of music, recording a duet with Del McCoury, Sam’s place in the mandolin world, and more.

Thanks to Donica and all the folks at Sugar Hill Records for making this interview possible.

The interview lasted close to 15 minutes, and we’re bringing it to you in full. Enjoy…

Still catching up on IBMA reports and impressions…

Our Thursday started with a Sam Bush interview, conducted by Doug McKelway. Sam talked about his new CD, Circles Around Me, due for an October 20 release on Sugar Hill. That interview will be posted in the next few days.

From there we shot for the elevator to make it in time for an interview with Katy Daley at WAMU’s Bluegrass Country. This time, it was Brance and I – and Doug McElway – who were being interviewed, and we had a lovely chat with Katy about that night’s upcoming awards celebrations. The four of us were conspiring for the Awards Show Red Carpet coverage, which was scheduled just a few hours later.

We all hustled down to the ballroom to set up before Thursday’s pre-awards show reception, where we set up our little Red Carpet, with cameras and lights. Katy and Doug, both arrayed in their finest formal duds, spoke to the bluegrass glitterati as they passed along media row. Most of the nominees for the IBMA awards stopped to speak with us, and many a memorable exchange took place.

Some were funny, some more serious, and everyone was in a celebratory mood. Interviews with Doyle Lawson, Dale Ann Bradley, Sammy Shelor, the McCoury family, Dailey & Vincent and many, many more will be included when we start posting these videos over the next few days.

Thursday’s big event, of course, is the awards show, and this one was perhaps the best ever. Producers Cindy Baucom and Chris Stuart did a fine job choosing performers, mixing new and established acts, traditional and modern bands, and it moved along at a very comfortable pace.

Some of the jokes were worse than corny, though. You know what they say about the theater…  “Dying is easy – comedy is hard.” Maybe the best plan is to let the musicians do music, and save the comedy for pros in that realm?

The music was the main attraction, though, and boy was it good. Lonesome River Band, Dale Ann Bradley, Hot Rize (with Kathy Mattea), Del McCoury Band, Dan Tyminski Band…  Each came on stronger than the next, though it seems safe to suggest that Dailey & Vincent stole the show with their pitch-perfect, a capella performance of Don’t You Want To Go To Heaven When You Die. (more…)