As Westeros readies for battle, Bluegrass enters the fray with an acoustic rendition of HBO's Game Of Thrones theme by Flatt Lonesome from Mountain Home Music Company.

Prepare for Sunday's epic battle at Winterfell by listening HERE.

In cooperation with Mountain Home and SiriusXM's Bluegrass Junction, Flatt Lonesome recorded this song at Crossroads Studios in Arden, North Carolina.

This epic instrumental received a treatment that moves from the familiar 3/4 tempo fans of the show know so well, into a rousing 4/4 romp that only an outstanding, top-flight Bluegrass outfit like Flatt Lonesome can render.

Watch Flatt Lonesome perform the theme at SiriusXM here:

Continuing to reflect on the American South and its rich musical history, songwriter Thomm Jutz has released two more singles from his upcoming album, this time capturing the storied careers of musical legends John Hartford and Jimmie Rodgers in portraits imbued with the spirit each brought to his own music.

The pair of songs — “Hartford’s Bend” and “Jimmie Rodgers Rode A Train” — is another example of the breadth of songwriting and musicianship on Jutz’s upcoming body of work, two volumes of music to be released under the apt title, To Live In Two Worlds.

"Hartford’s Bend” is a haunting tune that deftly incorporates song titles and aphorisms from the renowned entertainer’s life and music as it pays homage to “every riverboat captain’s friend.”  With wistful harmonies from banjoist Justin Moses, the song instantly brings to mind many of Hartford’s own stately waltzes. 

Though he didn’t know him, Jutz often looks to Hartford’s work for inspiration, saying, “John Hartford — where do you begin? His humor, sense of history and tradition. His virtuosity and timing, his grace and his love of the river …Where do you stop? John Hadley, who I wrote this song with, was a close friend of John Hartford’s. I wouldn’t have dared to write this song without him.”

Of the song, Hartford’s daughter, Katie Harford Hogue says, “Thomm Jutz and John Hadley have written a lovely tune called 'Hartford’s Bend,' which beautifully captures the unhurried pace of the riverboats that Dad loved; you can almost hear a paddlewheel turning.”

“Jimmie Rodgers Rode A Train” is the solo offering in this pair of releases, featuring Jutz’s intimate vocal, fingerpicked guitar and nothing more. Drawing on Rodgers’ own blues and Tin Pan Alley influences, the song punctuates a laconic recounting of the Singing Brakeman’s career with equally spare interludes that reveal Jutz’s quiet virtuosity.

Though Rodgers had a short life and career, Jutz views it as unparalleled.

“He wanted to be every American’s favorite singer. He was the singing brakeman, the cowboy, the dapper crooner. He only had six years to make it all happen and boy did he ever make it happen,” says Jutz.

Like the rest of the extensive set Jutz has recorded for his initial projects with Mountain Home, these are songs infused with a deep knowledge and understanding of the rural southern music — and those who made it — that brought Jutz from his native Germany to Nashville at the beginning of the century.  

“Hartford loved the riverboats, Jimmie loved the trains and his fancy cars. American history and musical history is one of movement,” he says. “Its past so close behind and its future moving still — that’s what draws me to it.”

Listen to “Hartford’s Bend” HERE and “Jimmie Rodgers Rode A Train” HERE.

Bluegrass powerhouse Sideline saw great success with their acclaimed 2018 release Front and Center and its single, “Thunder Dan,” which topped the year-end chart as the #1 Bluegrass song in radio, and followed that accolade by winning the IBMA’s Song of the Year in 2019. 

Now, the finely honed sextet pushes forward with Breaks To The Edge, a collection of songs that range from high-energy traditional Bluegrass to progressive destinations and all points in between. The album, to be released January 10, 2020, is now available for pre-order.

Reflecting the North Carolina group’s roots and experiences, the set includes stories of traveling troubadours like that told in their radio single, “Return To Windy Mountain,” a nostalgic reminiscence of country living in “Southern Wind,” a classic bluegrass ballad of tragedy, “Down In The Willow Garden,” the reproachful Stanley Brothers favorite, “Your Selfish Heart” and more. 

On the more progressive side, Breaks To The Edge offers a cover of Steve Wariner’s “Crash Course In The Blues,” with Skip Cherryholmes taking the vocal lead on a wry tale that justifies the album title with Southern-rock style jams. At the other end of the spectrum, the classic southern gospel song ”I’ll Live Again” highlights Sideline’s refined vocal abilities with supremely blended 4-part harmony. 

The high lead vocal of guitarist Bailey Coe flies above Sideline’s blended harmonies in a pair of furiously up-tempo barnburners (“Digging My Own Grave” and “Roll On Blues”), providing a flavorful contrast to Troy Boone’s aggressive lead vocals and mandolin playing on the tragic love song “Amy.” Supple, energetic fiddling from Daniel Greeson spurs songs like “Square Dance Town” but also lends a haunting, mournful opening to “Return To Windy Mountain.”

Throughout, the band’s tight mix of power and dynamics is driven by the pocket and pulse of original member Steve Dilling’s award winning banjo and co-founder Jason Moore’s bass, while Cherryholmes, the third colleague at the group’s heart, dishes up impressive flatpicking from start to finish.

With a loaded national performance schedule and now their 5th studio album, Sideline continues to be a tour de force in bluegrass. Breaks To The Edge captures this power, making a statement that Sideline will continue to do what’s propelled them to this point. 

Pre-order Breaks To The Edge HERE.

With music that is part bluegrass and part roots rock with a dose of funk-influenced danceable rhythms, Fireside Collective is stylishly blurring the lines of traditional roots genres. The Asheville, North Carolina-based group is out to make a unique artistic statement through a diverse approach — one that has already gained the quintet a fervent fanbase and the attention of their peers.

On Elements, Fireside Collective blends the characteristic interplay of bluegrass instrumentation and harmonies with strong original material and exuberant energy. The album, now available for pre-order, will be released March 20.

Fireside Collective members Joe Cicero (guitar); Alex Genova (banjo); Jesse Iaquinto (mandolin); Tommy Maher (resonator guitar) and Carson White (upright bass) each bring a strong, original voice to his instrument, and the unique contributions of different lead and harmony vocalists complement the variety in the group’s songwriting.

Produced by Travis Book of the Infamous Stringdusters, Elements is distinctive, continuing to use a wide influence of sounds to create a body of work that belongs to Fireside Collective alone.

The album is preceded by two singles, “She Was An Angel” — premiered by The Bluegrass Situation — and “Don’t Stop Lovin’ Me,” which gained ground for the band with national radio airplay and critical acclaim. 

Brian Carroll of Red Line Roots noted, “Fireside Collective’s ‘Don’t Stop Lovin’ Me’ is bluegrassy twang with a soulful groove. The dobro lines running wild, the rhythm and chop keeping perfect time. There is such a vibe to this tune. It’s the expert blend of tradition with modern pizzaz that is impossible to not jive with and groove to. I may have found one of my favorite new-to-me bands here. Dig it folks. Dig it deep."

The groovy “Winding Road” and the funky “Bring It On Home” show what can be done with bluegrass instrumentation outside the genre’s conventions, while songs like “Waiting For Tennessee” and “High Time” capture the band’s ability to bring their live energy to recording.

“Circles” and “Done Deal” bring an introspective restlessness, accentuated by the former’s musical pointillism and the latter’s insistent, loping rhythm and regretful lyrics, and the instrumental, “Night Sky From Here,” shows off Fireside Collective’s mastery of moods with an ever-moving spotlight on each member in “breakdown” passages that alternate with driving bluegrass rhythms.

Elements announces the arrival of a band that has found its place in the contemporary era of roots music by both reflecting and shaping new sounds of the genre. Pre-order it HERE.

TOUR DATES
2/15: Athens, GA @ Georgia Theatre
2/21: Richmond, VA @ River City Roll
2/22: Norfolk, VA @ Smartmouth Brewing
3/13: Raleigh, NC @ The Pour House
3/14: Asheville, NC @ The Grey Eagle Tavern & Music Hall
3/20: Oak, FL @ Suwannee Spring Reunion Live
3/22: Decatur, GA @ Eddie's Attic
3/27: Johnson City, TN @ The Down Home
3/28: Yadkinville, NC @ Yadkin Cultural Arts Center
4/9:   Mansfield, PA @ Steadman Theatre at Mansfield University
4/10: Wellsboro, PA @ Deane Center Coolidge Theater
4/17: Harrodsburg, KY @ Terrapin Hill Festival
4/18: Greer, SC @ SpringSkunk Music Fest
4/24: Asheville, NC @ Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre
4/25: Wilkesboro, NC @ Merlefest

Bluegrass sextet Sideline has been on a roll since “Thunder Dan,” the 2018 single that earned them the top spot on Bluegrass Today’s year-end airplay chart — and the Song of the Year trophy at 2019’s International Bluegrass Music Association Awards. They’ve released a string of hit singles, including the chart-topping “Crash Course In The Blues,” “Return To Windy Mountain,” “Digging My Own Grave” and a special version of “I’ll Live Again” that featured legendary southern gospel bass singer Ray Dean Reese, all drawn from the group’s latest album, Breaks To The Edge. Now, fresh from a visit to the recording studio, Sideline is back with their first new bluegrass single for the year, “Fast As I Can Crawl.”

Starting with the ringing notes from Steve Dilling's banjo, “Fast As I Can Crawl” reveals itself as purely bluegrass, brought to life with Sideline’s trademark drive, timing and finesse. The song offers a portrait of a man whose bad choices in love have left him in a state of desperate regret — a story often told throughout bluegrass history, but rarely with the sense of urgency and consummate skill Sideline brings to the job. New member Zack Arnold (mandolin) convincingly voices the narrator’s despair, with polished harmonies provided by Dilling and another newcomer to the band, guitarist Jacob Greer, while virtuosic solos are delivered by Dilling, Arnold, lead guitarist Skip Cherryholmes and yet another recent arrival, fiddler Jamie Harper.

“I think ‘Fast as I Can Crawl’ really puts our best foot forward as individuals and as a collective unit,” notes Jason Moore, who supplies the band’s rhythmic foundation on upright bass. “It also truly represents how we feel about the direction of our music: it’s straightforward and to the point — and that is Sideline!”

Cherryholmes adds, “When we heard the demo for this song it had Sideline written all over it. With the aggressive rhythm, high tenor vocal, and the chance to feature every instrumentalist, the arrangement almost wrote itself. We started our studio session with it, and the vibe of the session was nothing but awesome from there.” 

From its pleading chorus — ”Forgive me and you’ll see me on my hands and knees, coming back as fast as I can crawl” — through the shimmering cascades of notes served up in every solo, “Fast As I Can Crawl” is, indeed, a perfect example of the Sideline sound: simple, to the point, and always supremely powerful. 

Listen to "Fast As I Can Crawl" HERE.

About Sideline
Sideline is a pedigreed six-piece powerhouse whose style has set the pace in Bluegrass for over two decades. Founders Steve Dilling, Skip Cherryholmes and Jason Moore can all claim their own historical significance to the genre as members of highly awarded groups, multiple Grand Ole Opry appearances and years of national and international touring. What started as a side project for the seasoned players soon moved to the front and center and they began to record and release albums in earnest. This year, Sideline won the IBMA Song Of The Year Award for their hit single, "Thunder Dan."

To listen to Sideline reminds the fan of why so many people fall in love with Bluegrass in the first place; pulse-pounding drive, songs sung from the heart, perfected timing and dynamics as well as a visceral emotion in the rendering. A band that was started as an off-season fun experiment has become a full-time dream team of players and singers.

The band, recorded or live, move dynamically from well chosen, hard-hitting neo-traditional covers of classic songs to new material curated by a band with a perfect sense of who they are and what they have to say. Combine all this with their on-stage energy and finesse as well as their powerful and affecting harmonies, and you have the embodiment of the North Carolina Bluegrass sound. Sideline has released 4 national projects and records for the highly awarded Mountain Home Music Company based near Asheville, NC.

Since the music’s earliest days, regret for leaving the childhood home and a longing to return have been among the most durable themes in bluegrass. From “The Fields Have Turned Brown” to “Old Home Place” and beyond, generations of songwriters and musicians have contrasted cold, uncaring city life to rural family traditions, sometimes in mournful laments and sometimes through deceptively up-tempo sounds. Now, with the release of “Sleepy Little Town,” award-winning sextet, The Grascals, are writing a new chapter in this long-running bluegrass story.  

Co-written by IBMA Songwriter of the Year, Jerry Salley, “Sleepy Little Town” serves up its tale through distinctive melodic lines and phrases, as its narrator recalls “Dad’s old John Deere, cranking up at the crack of morning light,” gets family news in a conversation with his mother, and compares these touches of familiar life to a place where “the rats are winning the race.” “I’d give anything to wake up in that sleepy little town,” lead vocalist (and the newest Grascal) Chris Davis sings, as the song slides seamlessly from a half-time pre-chorus into a lush, harmony-rich chorus.

As they always do, The Grascals have created an arrangement that places the song and its message front and center, offering instrumental support that works this time out through deft, sympathetic touches rather than more conventional solos.  

“When we came to cutting ‘Sleepy Little Town,’” Davis notes, “It was an easy pick. We instantly fell in love with both the melody and the lyrics. I left home at 18 myself, and I learned early on just how easy I had it with mom and dad. I know we all, at one point or another, wish we could go back to that ‘Sleepy Little Town.’”

Listen to “Sleepy Little Town” HERE.

For his first solo project in more than a decade, mandolinist Mark Stoffel releases Coffee & Cake, his debut album for Mountain Home Music Company. Made with an array of guests that range from friends around his southern Illinois home to colleagues from around the world, the all-instrumental collection —now available — is a showcase both for his graceful, sophisticated playing and his equally distinctive compositional flair.

"The time was just right for this album,” Stoffel says. “Long before we started recording in the summer of 2019 I had a pretty clear vision of both music and the overall concept, which is to create an instrumental album with melodies that stick and an overall feel that appeals to the heart and soul. With that in mind, the tunes kept coming and it felt almost like my mandolin was guiding me along during the whole process. And because I grew up in Germany, where the daily afternoon Coffee & Cake ritual has been delighting people for centuries, I didn’t have to search long for the title of the album!”

With a stellar set of musicians drawn largely from the rosters of Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records, Bluegrass At The Crossroads, a new series of special collaborations, kicks off on a high-energy note with “Start Walking Back.” A slice of down-to-earth advice set to a hard-edged beat, the song was written by singer and fiddle player Jeremy Garrett —  an Organic artist and a member of the Infamous Stringdusters — and series producer and frequent writing partner, Jon Weisberger.  

The debut single is one of four tracks laid down at a socially-distanced July recording session by guitarist Skip Cherryholmes (Sideline), Zoe & Cloyd’s Kevin Kehrberg (bass), mandolin player Darren Nicholson of two time IBMA Entertainers of the Year, Balsam Range, and five-time IBMA Banjo Player of the Year, Kristin Scott Benson (Grascals). Once Garrett’s parts had been integrated, his Infamous Stringdusters colleague Travis Book and Nicholson added harmony vocals and “Start Walking Back” was finished.

“We wrote ‘Start Walking Back’ a few years ago,” says Weisberger.  “At the time, Jeremy and his wife were living in an RV near the Grand Ole Opry, and I would head out there to write on a regular basis. This time, we got onto the topic of how perseverance and persistence aren’t always virtues; sometimes, the right thing to do is to remove yourself from a situation and try to reset and find a new approach. As often happens, Jeremy had a musical seed already in mind, and once we nailed down the music, the lyrics followed pretty quickly. Even though we’d had it for a while, when we started planning this Bluegrass At The Crossroads session, it came to mind right away as one for him to sing — and we knew that this band would crush it.”

Starting off with a bang, the song drops immediately into a ferocious, straightforward bluegrass groove that shows how easily these players were able to meld their disparate backgrounds and wide-ranging influences into a cohesive blend that sounds as if they’d been playing together for years. Garrett’s trademark wail delivers the song’s message — "When you see the road is full of trouble, start walking back — find another way to go” — in an urgent, exuberant tone, while solos are passed among the musicians in fast-paced bursts of dynamic energy.  

“Bluegrass is a collaborative music by its very nature,” Weisberger notes, “and bluegrass musicians have a tendency to be one another’s biggest fans. It was even more fun than we imagined to get these great pickers and singers together to bounce musical ideas off each other and come together to create something fresh and new. ‘Start Walking Back’ serves as a wonderful sort of ‘proof of concept’ for our Bluegrass At The Crossroads series — and I like to think it’s a pretty outstanding recording in its own right, too!” 

Listen to "Start Waking Back" HERE.

After nearly four decades, the award-winning Lonesome River Band can look back at a career filled with hits that have become as firmly entrenched in the bluegrass parking lot pickers’ songbook as any first generation classic. And though many of its members have long since gone on to other ventures, the band’s quintessential musical hallmarks — hard-grooving rhythm, sparkling banjo, distinctive leads and smooth, yet muscular harmonies — have not just survived but matured, and always in service of the song.

With “That’s Life,” the first new follow-up to 2019’s Outside Looking In, the quintet returns with a song that fits not only this tumultuous moment, but any time that we pause to consider the ups and downs of our personal journeys. Cast as a look back at the narrator’s path to lasting love and family, the song unreels in almost cinematic terms, as he endures heartbreak on the way to finding “the girl God had in mind when He made me” and then to fulfillment as a new parent.  

“I wrote this song years ago with my friend Billy Droze,” says lead singer Brandon Rickman. “I wanted it to be an authentic telling of losing and finding love. There is a lot of my own story in there, but it’s also a story I hope folks can relate to as a realistic one about the struggles that we all go through. Many of us experience a long road to love, with many ups, downs, twists and turns — but as we all know, that’s life.”

Like so many of the Lonesome River Band’s most memorable songs, “That’s Life” foregoes blistering tempo for a relaxed, yet unstoppable groove that lets the melody breathe and draws attention to the words and story. Still, there’s plenty of room for the quiet virtuosity that’s another of the band’s signature elements, and whether it’s Sammy Shelor’s rippling banjo rolls, the sympathetic fiddling of Mike Hartgrove, the steady pocket of the rhythm section — Rickman on guitar, mandolinist Jesse Smathers and bass player Barry Reed — or the polished harmonies from Rickman, Shelor and Smathers, the band works together so tightly that it’s almost as if they’d been playing together for all those decades.  

From start to finish, “That’s Life” is a distillation of the Lonesome River Band’s enduring appeal — strong, rooted in tradition, yet fresh and dynamic — telling the world that, while years have already passed, the best of the Lonesome River Band may still lie ahead.

Listen to “That’s Life" HERE.

"Grit and Grace," the latest single from award from award-winning quintet Balsam Range, has reached the No. 1 spot on Bluegrass Today's monthly chart. The song is the band's second No. 1 on the chart this year, following "Richest Man."

Written in a surprising collaboration between singer Buddy Melton’s mother, Ann, and the powerhouse team of Milan Miller and Beth Husband, "Grit and Grace" is an emotional meditation on meeting hard times with perseverance and spiritual courage — “one part moxie [and] another part mettle,” as it’s put in the song’s soaring chorus.

“Every once in a while a song comes along that has a purpose beyond entertainment. I felt this with 'Grit and Grace' from the start, and with so many folks reaching out with their personal connections and positive impacts, it has confirmed my belief," says Buddy Melton. "As an artist there is no greater reward than impacting others' lives in a positive way through your music. I am so proud of 'Grit and Grace' and what it means to so many. Thanks to everyone involved in helping to get this wonderful song to the top of the chart and most importantly, shared with others.”

For their first single since the Dove Award-nominated No Depression In Heaven: The Gospel Songs of the Carter Family, Mountain Home Music Company’s Chuck Wagon Gang has turned to the world of bluegrass music for a somber, yet ultimately uplifting classic, “I’ve Just Seen The Rock Of Ages.”  

First released over 40 years ago by Bluegrass Hall of Famer Larry Sparks, and soon after by the legendary Ralph Stanley (with a young Keith Whitley singing lead), the song — written by John B. Preston while he was in solitary confinement during one of the several times he was incarcerated — quickly became a favorite for its haunting, mournful melody and stark, direct lyrics that capture both the sadness of loss and the promise of eternal life.  

"In choosing the music for our new record, we ran across this old song used mostly in Bluegrass circles,” says the Chuck Wagon Gang’s Shaye Smith. “2020 dealt the Chuck Wagon Gang multiple blows of death to immediate family members — especially relating to Stan [Hill] and I, as we both lost our Moms this year — so this song really hits home for us. But we know we are not alone, as so many experienced loss in 2020. We pray that the message of this song will be an encouragement to all those who will hear it. May the lyrics remind us all that the loss of a Christian mother (or family member) has an assurance that as they 'cross the River of Jordan' they will be 'homeward bound.'"

With its spare instrumental backing, the Chuck Wagon Gang’s approach to “I’ve Just Seen The Rock Of Ages” gives the enduring number a new and distinctive dimension, focusing attention on Hill’s hushed, emotive lead and sweetly innovative harmonies from the rest of the quartet — and just as with their acclaimed interpretation of the Carter Family’s gospel songbook, the group blends echoes of treasured past performances with a new arrangement to create a compelling performance that is unmistakably theirs, and theirs alone.  

Listen to "I've Just Seen The Rock Of Ages" HERE.

About the Chuck Wagon Gang
Although the Chuck Wagon Gang has been around since 1936 — undergoing many personnel changes over the years — its sound and devotion to old-fashioned gospel has remained much the same. Their greatest significance is that the band provides an important link between country music and traditional sacred songs of the South. This music, has moved Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Charlie Daniels, and generations of gospel singers and open-eared listeners. For more than 80 years, the Chuck Wagon Gang has offered hope and harmony, faith and family. Now in its third generation, the Chuck Wagon Gang features alto singer Shaye Smith, tenor singer Stan Hill, soprano singer Melissa Kemper and guitarist and bass singer Karl Smakula.

With two full albums of refreshingly original material already to her credit, singer-songwriter and banjoist Gina Furtado has quickly become one of the most powerfully individualistic artists working in the bluegrass vein today. Now, following the success of the whimsically lighthearted “Alley Cat,” The Gina Furtado Project is back with “Gone,” a new single that offers further evidence of her unique melodic, rhythmic and lyric sensibilities.

Produced, like “Alley Cat,” by GRAMMY®-nominated Mountain Home artist Thomm Jutz, “Gone” is a showcase for the Project’s virtuosity, as Furtado, her sister Malia (fiddle) and guitarist Drew Matulich dish up inventive solos, while the latter’s percussive mandolin teams with Max Johnson’s robust bass for a dose of classic bluegrass muscle that keeps the music moving along. Furtado delivers the solo vocal with characteristic confidence, navigating her way with determination through the tangled emotions of a lyric that oscillates between conveying the pain of abandonment and the persistence of hope:

“Why don’t you lock me in a cell
Throw out the key, you might as well
Those memories keep hanging on
And you’re gone.

Just look at me
Left at the pound
Your loyal hound
Here waiting by the door
A fool could see that you don’t want me anymore”

"I always enjoy dipping my toes into various genres with my songwriting, but at the core I'm a bluegrass banjo player through and through,” notes Furtado, a 3-time nominee for the IBMA’s Banjo Player of the Year award. "'Gone' draws from some of my earliest influences, which go back to songs about heartache, hopelessness and the hard driving bluegrass style of South West Virginia. It was really fun to cut loose a little on this one!"

Though it’s known as a genre filled with sad, lonesome songs — "plumb pitiful" is a phrase often heard — it’s nonetheless true that bluegrass music, like classic country, has room for the occasional wry, self-deprecating song about lost love, too. And when an artist like the award-winning Lonesome River Band gets hold of a deftly written one from the pen of a favorite writer, what emerges is a song that can bring a rueful smile to the face of a listener, even as their foot surrenders to an irresistibly feel-good beat.

Written by Adam Wright, who’s found equal favor with country, Americana and bluegrass artists and audiences, “Love Songs” depicts a frustrated songwriter who just can’t write the happy love songs the market demands — because, as the eminently catchy chorus notes, “They say write in what you know / And all I really know is the losin’ and the leavin' and the left.” Sung by Lonesome River Band guitarist Brandon Rickman, who perfectly captures the mood of wistful resignation, it’s an amusing slice of humor that nevertheless works on multiple levels and rings true on each.

“‘Love Songs’ is another great song written by our friend Adam Wright,” says band leader Sammy Shelor.  “It tells the story of a songwriter who has had bad experiences with love and can’t find ways to be positive about it. Adam puts a comedic twist to selling sad songs, and Brandon portrays it in his unique way.”

Still, as clever as the song itself is, it’s ultimately the quintet’s smooth, yet driving recording that makes “Love Songs” such a satisfying record. From the instantly recognizable banjo kickoff from Shelor — a recipient of the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Bluegrass and Banjo and a multi-year recipient of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Banjo Player of the Year — through brisk, energetic solos by mandolinist Jesse Smathers and veteran fiddle player Mike Hartgrove, and a strong yet polished vocal trio of Rickman, Smathers and bassist Barry Reed, this is Lonesome River Band at its best, surrounding the melody and lyric of a well-written song with its signature blend of power and finesse.  

Remarkably, this is a group that’s closing in on the 40th anniversary of its founding, and on the 30th anniversary of its groundbreaking Carrying The Tradition, a project that catapulted LRB into the ranks of the most influential groups in bluegrass music’s history. Today, one listen to “Love Songs” is enough to tell every listener that this is one band unwilling to rest on its laurels — and with a lot more music still to come.

Listen to "Love Songs" HERE.

One of the most distinctive features of bluegrass is the way that an artist’s vocal prowess is frequently paired with instrumental virtuosity. Carley Arrowood fits comfortably in that mold, for while she’s a compelling singer, she’s also a powerful fiddle player who’s studied generations of bluegrass stylists and forged those influences into a style that’s all her own.

For her first Mountain Home Music Company single of 2021, Arrowood is offering her distinctive take on an enduring classic, “Ducks On The Millpond.” Though it shares its name with an old-time tune, this “Ducks” traces its lineage back to a 1975 recording by Kenny Baker, Bill Monroe’s longest-tenured fiddler and a member of the Bluegrass Hall of Fame. Even so, Arrowood’s version comes from a more recent example.

“I’ve been playing this tune since I was 15 years old,” she says. “Just a green bluegrass fiddler taking lessons with Bryan McDowell. He had my mom order all these albums by different fiddlers for me to listen to and study their different styles, and one of them was Aubrey Haynie’s Bluegrass Fiddle Album — still one of my favorite fiddle albums ever. ‘Ducks on the Millpond’ instantly became a favorite, and I remember trying to learn exactly what Aubrey did. When we recorded it, we made it our own by creating an arrangement of multiple split breaks, and I couldn’t be more excited about it! It’s so much fun, and I hope y’all enjoy our take on this great tune!” 

With a stellar group that includes musical partner Daniel Thrailkill on guitar, five-time IBMA Banjo Player of the Year, Kristin Scott Benson, mandolinist Wayne Benson and bass player Paul Watson, Arrowood attacks the tune with a strong bow arm and vibrant tone in classic fiddle-and-banjo style before giving way to an intricate succession of handoffs from one player to the next. The result is a neatly kaleidoscopic unfolding that brings a uniquely elegant energy to one of the most popular tunes in the bluegrass fiddle repertoire. Coming on the heels of Arrowood’s first hit song, “Ducks On The Millpond” is a refreshing reminder that she’s not just a fine singer, but an instrumental force to be reckoned with, too.

Listen to "Ducks On The Millpond" HERE.

The latest entry in Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records' groundbreaking set of collaborations under the Bluegrass at the Crossroads banner drives home once again the project’s essential characteristic: bring together some of the best musicians in the genre over fresh material for recordings that blend individual mastery with the excitement of new musical conversations.

Co-written and sung by mandolinist Darren Nicholson of Mountain Home’s award-winning Balsam Range quintet, “Lonesome is the Price I Pay” is an archetypal bit of bluegrass — a happy-sounding song with miserable lyrics, as many observers have put it. In this case, the lyric’s narrative is built around a “get out of town” theme, punctuated with plenty of opportunities for the group to showcase the energetic, inventive playing that’s earned its participants acclaim from every corner of the bluegrass tent. In addition to Nicholson, they include Steve Martin Banjo Award recipient Kristin Scott Benson (The Grascals); Skip Cherryholmes of the award-winning sextet, Sideline; Organic Records’ artist and member of the GRAMMY®-winning Infamous Stringdusters, Jeremy Garrett (fiddle, harmony vocals), and Kevin Kehrberg, bassist for Organic Records’ Zoe & Cloyd, with Garrett’s Stringdusters bandmate Travis Book contributing a harmony vocal, too.

"Sometimes lonesome is the price you pay when you give your heart away,” notes Nicholson, who wrote the song with frequent collaborator, Charles Humphrey III (Songs From The Road Band). “It’s a bluegrass frolic about starting over. It hurts when we fall on the ground, but we also use the ground to get back up — that's the sentiment.”

From its muscular, banjo-driven kick-off to the final statement of the song’s title by the vocal trio, “Lonesome Is The Price I Pay” is an undeniable illustration of the way that Bluegrass at the Crossroads’ collaborations add up to more than the sum of their parts.  

Listen to "Lonesome Is The Price I Pay" HERE.

Even with a long list of accolades to their name, Western North Carolina’s Balsam Range still knows it's all about the song. As one of the quintet’s fastest rising singles ever, “Rivers, Rains and Runaway Trains,” which is No. 1 on this month's Bluegrass Today chart, is an example of the undeniably appealing combination of meaningful songwriting and thoughtful arrangement — not to mention the stellar performance for which Balsam Range earned so many of those honors in the first place.

Co-written by Milan Miller, whose regular hit-making contributions make him nearly an adjunct member of the group, and frequent collaborator Beth Husband, the song is a well-crafted account of how its cautious narrator gets swept away by a love that overcomes every reservation. With its irresistibly catchy, tightly-rhymed chorus, propulsive rhythm and dazzling instrumental work, the song captures everything that’s earned Balsam Range a legion of devoted fans and a reputation as one of the genre’s leading contributors—enhanced by the fact that the group retains all of its original members: Buddy Melton (fiddle); Darren Nicholson (mandolin); Marc Pruett (banjo); Caleb Smith (guitar) and Tim Surrett (bass).

“‘Rivers, Rains and Runaway Trains’ is another hit from Milan Miller and Beth Husband,” says Surrett. “We’re very fortunate to have their songs to record. We’ve had so many hit songs that feature Buddy’s singing — and rightfully so, I love them all — but personally I’m excited to see a song featuring Caleb go to No. 1. He’s one of the best vocalists in the business, and a great strength of our band is being able to switch singers to keep the music fresh.”

In a genre where creativity and longevity don’t always go hand in hand, Balsam Range stands out for its continued dedication to quality, inspiration and the excitement of transforming the raw material of a great song into a great recording.

Listen to "Rivers, Rains and Runaway Trains" HERE. 

In the wake of “Love Songs,” their most recent bluegrass single, the iconic Lonesome River Band offers an energetic reminder that it is not only one of the best interpreters of secular bluegrass, but of bluegrass gospel, too. “Little At A Time,” from the collective pen of the legendary Easter Brothers, is a muscular affirmation of faith and perseverance married to what aficionados will immediately recognize as the quintet’s signature groove.  

The story of a humble character trying to make it day by day through a life of hard work with gratitude for the Lord’s blessing, “Little At A Time” features a lead vocal from mandolinist and tenor singer Jesse Smathers and powerful harmonies from guitarist Brandon Rickman and Sammy Shelor, the group’s leader.

“Growing up in Patrick County, Virginia, I was influenced by a lot of Bluegrass Gospel,” notes Shelor. “One of the strongest groups in that genre was The Easter Brothers from just down the road in Mount Airy, NC. Their songwriting and harmonies were so strong and inspiring to me in my youth, and it has stayed in my heart all these years. We are so happy to be able to pay tribute to these fine gentlemen and the legacy they have created.”

Indeed, with Shelor’s driving banjo kickoff — he’s the second recipient of the Steve Martin Prize for Bluegrass and Banjo and a five-time winner of the IBMA’s Banjo Player of the Year award — and sizzling solos from Smathers and fiddler Mike Hartgrove, “Little At A Time” keeps the bluegrass element front and center, while lifting up the song’s gospel message with a heartful delivery.

“‘Little At A Time’ is a song for everyday life,” says Smathers. “It’s for anyone trying to tread the seas of life. The lyric especially rings true as we have all struggled through the pandemic and the troubles of the world. The lyrics and optimistic bounce remind us though, that our faith can guide us through life ‘a little at a time’ and of the glory that is waiting for us in the end.” 

Listen to "Little At A Time" HERE.

Following the racing, contemporary feel of her debut single, “Something You Didn’t Count On,” Mountain Home Music Company’s Jaelee Roberts returns with a thoroughly traditional-sounding gospel entry, “Still Waters.” The single, produced by Tim Surrett of the award-winning Balsam Range, offers ample evidence of the young singer’s stylistic and expressive range.

Though it’s barely two and a half minutes long, “Still Waters” has room for more than simple exposition. Beginning with the durable pairing of mandolin and guitar — from IBMA Mandolin Player of the Year Alan Bibey and veteran Tony Wray respectively — the intricate arrangement leads into the song’s chorus, delivered by Roberts and harmony singers Kelsi and Paul Harrigill (Flatt Lonesome), followed by the full band, which includes Steve Martin Banjo Prize winner Kristin Scott Benson (The Grascals) and ace fiddler Jimmy Mattingly (Garth Brooks, Dolly Parton). Roberts delivers the verses with conviction — the first by herself, the second with a crescendo of added harmonies — alternating with choruses and twin fiddle passages that recall the sound of bluegrass pioneers such as Bill Monroe and Mac Wiseman.  

“When I started gathering songs to record, I knew I wanted to include gospel songs, of course,” says Roberts. “Immediately I reached out to Kelsi Robertson Harrigill to see if she had written anything, she could send me. Kelsi is an amazing songwriter and especially of gospel songs — ‘In The Heat of the Fire,’  ‘In The Morning,’  ‘Draw Me Near,’ ‘Happy ‘Til He Comes,’ ‘Just Any Moment’ recorded by Flatt Lonesome and ‘There Is You’ by The Grascals — so I was very excited when she said she had something for me! As soon as I listened to the demo of ‘Still Waters’ I knew I had to record it; the lyrics, the melody, the tempo — it all spoke to me right away. I’ve grown up singing in church and gospel music is very special to me and the words to this are especially comforting: ‘He takes my hand and leads me beside Still Waters.’”

With the recent announcement that she has joined reigning IBMA Entertainer of the Year, Sister Sadie, as guitarist and lead singer, “Still Waters” serves not only as a convincing addition to the bluegrass canon — and, of course, as a heartfelt profession of faith — but, like “Something You Didn’t Count On,” compelling evidence that Jaelee Roberts is on her way to a place among the music’s leading interpreters. 

Listen to "Still Waters" HERE.

With their first full-length album for Mountain Home Music Company, the Alex Leach Band and its youthful leader make a bold statement that their fresh take on bluegrass — one that draws on a wide-ranging set of historical sounds, yet remains as authentic as Alex himself — is just what 2021 needs.

Produced by award-winning Americana music icon, Jim Lauderdale, I’m The Happiest When I’m Moving — now available wherever music is streamed and sold — shows off a healthy dose of creativity that builds on, but is never overwhelmed by influences that range from Leach’s tenure as a member of the veteran Clinch Mountain Boys to the exuberant sounds of a myriad of obscure and semi-obscure groups that he has been spinning on-air since he was a pre-teenaged DJ at Knoxville’s legendary WDVX.

Indeed, though there are a couple of covers from such groups — and a title track from Lauderdale and Susan Gibson (“Wide Open Spaces”) — on the project, the emphasis is on original songs, with half bearing Leach’s name. And between the uber-traditional sound of “Rambler’s Return,” the folk-flavored lilt of the group’s second single, “October Fall,” and the distinctive melange of “Take Me Back” (written and sung with his wife, Miranda), and all the rest, what emerges is a convincing portrait of a young artist as comfortable striking out in new directions as he is within the bluegrass mainstream.

In addition to vocalist Miranda, The Alex Leach Band’s members — JT Coleman (bass), Joshua Gooding (mandolin), Brandon Masur (banjo) — are, like Leach himself, musically omnivorous students of bluegrass, giving the group both an unusual stylistic depth and a rare ability to sound as if they’d been playing together for decades. And with Leach’s former Clinch Mountain Boys bandmate John Rigsby on hand to supply just the right touches of fiddle, the result is an undeniably impressive introduction.

“I love Alex’s writing, picking and singing,” enthuses Lauderdale. “And I think Alex has created new classics with this album. The Alex Leach Band really shines and shows how great they are together.”

For those who’ve known Alex Leach only for his mastery of the quintessentially bluegrass Stanley style — and, indeed, for just about everyone — I’m the Happiest When I’m Moving is bound to be a revelation that, for all his devotion to bluegrass tradition, The Alex Leach Band is standing tall in a thoroughly modern musical world.  

Listen to I'm The Happiest When I'm Moving HERE. 

About The Alex Leach Band

Hailing from the mountains of East Tennessee, Alex Leach is no stranger to the world of music. Just 30 years old, he has already been in the business for more than two decades, earning two “DJ of the Year” awards from the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America by the time he was 15, and appearing on CMT's "Big Ticket," the BBC, and Peter Jennings' "ABC World News Tonight."  

Yet even as he was building his reputation as one of the premiere radio voices in bluegrass, Alex was honing his skills as a guitarist and banjo player. He began his professional career as a musician at the age of 19, and was recruited a few years later by Ralph Stanley II, the son of iconic bluegrass pioneer, Ralph Stanley, with whom he had the opportunity to play banjo on the Grand Ole Opry in 2014. In the years that followed, he toured widely with “Two,” earning critical accolades for his playing, his compelling lead and harmony vocals, and for his additions to the bluegrass canon with songs like “Mountain Heartache.”  

In late 2019, Leach took another giant step in his career when he and his wife, singer Miranda Jo, launched the Alex Leach Band, a quintet that includes JT Coleman (bass), Joshua Gooding (mandolin, vocals) and Brandon Masur (banjo). ​With influences ranging from The Stanley Brothers to The Beach Boys, and Curtis Mayfield to Porter Wagoner, Alex Leach's music is both traditional and original, nostalgic and forward-looking — the sound of a new generation of bluegrass artists.

After a steady stream of original songs by its namesake, the Mountain Home Music Company’s Gina Furtado Project takes a nifty side trip with an energetic version of a classic old-time-by-way-of-bluegrass instrumental, the “Kansas City Railroad Blues,” their first single produced by award-winning banjo player Kristin Scott Benson. The latest release places the spotlight squarely on the group’s impeccable virtuosity, while offering an introduction to new contributors to the Project’s authentically unique sound.

The newest member of the Gina Furtado Project is bassist Lu Furtado, joining sisters Gina (banjo) and Malia (fiddle) in what’s both a personal and, given their past performances as teens in a family band, a musical reunion, too. “Kansas City Railroad Blues” is tailor made for a muscular rhythm section, and after Lu’s brief, punchy introduction, she’s joined by guitarist Drew Matulich in a convincing demonstration of driving train rhythms — cast first in bluegrass mode and then, mid-way through the track, shifting to a more swing-flavored feel. The foundation serves as an irresistible platform for deft solos in both styles by Matulich, Gina — twice nominated for the IBMA’s Banjo Player of the Year award — Malia and guest mandolinist Wayne Benson (Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out), and the result is a performance that shows off the distinctive, multi-dimensional playing of each.  

"How in the world I made it all these years as a banjo player and not heard of ‘Kansas City Railroad Blues,’ I have no idea,” confesses Gina. “Nonetheless, I heard this tune for the very first time last year, and it quickly became my new favorite. This tune has the magic fire that drew me to the banjo as a kid and hasn't let me put it down since. I chose it knowing it would be a great way to show off the hot pickers in the band. It provides a perfect template for Drew and Malia to exhibit their pristine swing style chops. 

“This is also the first single of ours that includes our newest band member, Lu Furtado,” she adds. “And boy, does she make a grand entrance with her stellar bass playing! Lastly, Wayne Benson and Kristin Scott Benson, joining us on mandolin and from the producer's chair, respectively, made this a super special recording. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed recording it!"

Listen to "Kansas City Railroad Blues" HERE.

About The Gina Furtado Project

Formed by innovative artist Gina Furtado, The Gina Furtado Project brings unique musicianship and songwriting that breaks free from the assumed constructs of traditional music modalities and makes a new musical statement influenced by emotion, played with the highest skill, and expressing an enormous verve and vitality.

Furtado, known for her work as the banjo player for Chris Jones & The Night Drivers, has a long history with her banjo. Born and raised in Front Royal, Virginia, Gina began touring up and down the east coast in her tween years with her siblings, earning countless ribbons from fiddlers conventions, a strong reputation in the regional bluegrass scene, and a stamp from Bluegrass Today as “absurdly talented.” She later played in a number of regional acts before making her international touring debut with Chris Jones and the Night Drivers soon after joining the group in 2016.

While touring, she is joined by Drew Matulich on guitar and her sisters Malia Furtado, on violin and Lu Furtado on bass, and each brings experience and energy to the band.

Now based in Asheville, NC, Matulich grew up in Georgia and began playing guitar at 8.  While studying music in college he performed with several bands of various styles in and around Georgia and Florida before immersing himself in the Bluegrass scene of Western North Carolina. He has toured and recorded with Billy Strings, made a guest appearance on Roland White's album and shared the stage with the likes of David Grisman, Bryan Sutton, Sam Bush, Cody Kilby, and Sierra Hull. 

Malia’s musical journey began at the age of 3 with classical violin lessons and took a turn, when she attended her first festival, Galax Old Fiddlers Convention, a few years later. Since then, she has performed with a number of different groups, taken home a range of prizes, graced the stage of numerous venues up and down the East Coast and given private lessons in both bluegrass and classical playing. Malia is the Director of Education at the Front Porch Music School in Charlottesville, VA, and currently teaches adult continued education courses in bluegrass fiddle at Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave, VA.

Lu Furtado has been attending bluegrass and old time music festivals since she was born. She began playing multiple instruments at the age of ten, and has been a winner at the Galax Old Fiddlers Convention playing the Clawhammer banjo, as well as flat foot dancing. She has toured and recorded with multiple bands of varying styles, including Banana Express and the Hi Flyers. She taught banjo for several years at the Galax Elementary School and private music lessons for many years. She brings double trouble to the Gina Furatdo Project with her silky, low harmony vocals as well as her stylish, groovy bass playing.

The latest single from Bluegrass at the Crossroads, the innovative collaborative project featuring artists drawn mostly from the rosters of Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records, presents the series’ second ensemble, first heard on the January bluegrass gospel release, “Lift Your Voice, Bow Your Head.” Serving as a musical meeting ground for musicians working in a broad range of bluegrass styles, “On The Lonesome Breeze” showcases rich creativity, deep skills — and a lot of musical muscle, too.

Sung by bassist Travis Book (Infamous Stringdusters) and written by him with series producer Jon Weisberger, “On The Lonesome Breeze” gets a robust treatment that offers distinctive instrumental work from award-winning banjo player Sammy Shelor (Lonesome River Band), fiddler Carley Arrowood, mandolinist Wayne Benson (IIIrd Tyme Out) and Fireside Collective’s Joe Cicero on guitar, with harmonies provided by Arrowood and Zoe & Cloyd’s John Cloyd Miller. With the exception of Arrowood and Benson, who have shared the studio on the former’s Mountain Home singles, none of them had recorded together before this session, making the collaboration not only a musically rich venture, but a historic one, too.  

“One of the first times I met Jon, more than ten years ago, he suggested the hook and soon thereafter we wrote ‘On The Lonesome Breeze,’” recalls Book. “I jumped at the chance to help bring this song to life, and I loved being a part of Bluegrass at the Crossroads — the recording session is already the stuff of legend!”

Starting with Arrowood’s forceful fiddle introduction, the track lays down an energetic, classically propulsive bluegrass groove, demonstrating — despite their varied backgrounds in different corners of the genre — the ensemble’s ability to meet on common musical ground, while solos from Shelor, Cicero, and Benson emphasize the creative diversity and individualism of its members.  

“I’ve loved this song ever since Travis and I wrote it,” says Weisberger. “When I put this session together, it came to mind right away — and I knew not only that he would turn in a great vocal, but that it would be a chance to really underline what can come from bringing together these masterful musicians from different backgrounds: a memorable recording, and a lot of fun in the studio, too. Making good music and building community are what Bluegrass at the Crossroads is all about!”

Listen to "On The Lonesome Breeze" HERE.

Though Andy Leftwich is best known for his years-long stint as the fiddle player in Ricky Skaggs’ award-winning Kentucky Thunder, insiders have known him as a ferociously talented mandolin player, too — and with the release of his second single for Mountain Home, the word is sure to spread among bluegrass and acoustic music fans of every stripe.

“Over Cincinnati” puts Leftwich’s mandolin front and center from the first chords of its vigorous, syncopated opening section. With the mellow tone he coaxes from the instrument and the smooth cascades of notes that articulate the tune’s elegant central melody, Leftwich shows that he belongs in the front ranks of today’s pickers, alongside peers such as Sierra Hull and Chris Thile. Not surprisingly, brief solo passages from guitarist Cody Kilby, resonator guitarist Rob Ickes and banjo player Scott Vestal — all, along with bassist Byron House, frequent collaborators — serve not only to illuminate each one’s take on the tune, but also provide contrasting textures that underline Leftwich’s virtuosity on both the mandolin and fiddle.  

“This is a song that I wrote a few years back while playing with Ricky Skaggs and the Cincinnati Orchestra,” recalls Leftwich. “The hotel I stayed in that night overlooked the beautiful skyline of Cincinnati, Ohio, so I decided to name the song after it. A lot of the songs I write usually get named after towns or cities that I have visited, and this one seemed to capture the exciting feeling you get when you come to the city.”

“I couldn’t imagine recording this song,” he adds, “without the wonderful creativity of the musicians that picked on it with me!”

With its distinctive blend of modern, progressive sounds built on a classic fiddle tune framework, “Over Cincinnati” is a powerful illustration of the 21st century relevance of instrumental roots music — or, at least, its relevance in the hands of a master like Andy Leftwich.  

Listen to "Over Cincinnati" HERE

Though they’re acclaimed as masters of contemporary bluegrass, the Lonesome River Band issue a reminder of their long-standing appreciation for old-time string band music with a new Mountain Home Music Company single, “Cumberland River Shore.” And though it’s not about him, the song, from its writing to recording, is suffused with the spirit and sound of the late and legendary John Hartford.

“Billy Smith and I wrote this song in the early aughts up at my old rental house in Madison, Tennessee,” recalls Hartford colleague and fiddle tune book editor Matt Combs, “just down the road from John Hartford’s place on, you guessed it, the Cumberland river shore. You could sit in the living room and watch the boats and the tempo of the river.”

“Matt had John's hat hanging on the wall, along with a song scripted by John — it seemed like Hartford's spirit was all around us that day,” adds Smith — writer, too, it should be noted, of one of the Lonesome River Band’s most enduring hits, “Hobo Blues.” “Matt and I had the song demoed before lunch, and went out and had sushi, something John and I did quite a few times together.”

“Billy sent me this song a couple of years ago,” says the Lonesome River Band’s award-winning banjoist and leader, Sammy Shelor. “It was a tribute to John’s days on the Mississippi River. Having gotten to know John myself in the later years of his life and really valuing that experience, I really wanted to do this song as a tribute from the band and myself.  John was one of my favorite musicians and entertainers, and I regret not getting to know him years before. Long live John Hartford’s music!”

Shelor and his bandmates — Jesse Smathers (mandolin), bassist Barry Reed, guitarist Brandon Rickman and Mike Hartgrove on fiddle — know exactly how to pay tribute to Hartford. The track starts with just fiddle and banjo before Jesse Smathers begins the song’s story of a man who roams far from his childhood home and sweetheart, only to pay the price upon his return. Yet even when the band’s entrance jumpstarts the rest of the song’s bluegrass feel, Shelor’s distinctive style keeps the old-time flavor front and center, a reminder not just of Hartford’s influence, but of Shelor’s own family connection to earlier generations of stringband musicians.  

“There’s a lot of music inspired by the river and I’m glad this song is one of them,” concludes Combs. “I love LRB’s treatment — great job guys!”

Listen to "Cumberland River Shore" HERE.

Those acquainted with The Gina Furtado Project already know something of its namesake’s fresh, deeply individualized approach to songwriting, but with the release of each one of her singles, Furtado proves anew her ability to use old forms in new ways — and the group’s latest release, “Made Up My Mind” is no exception.

Built around a durable chord progression that feels instantly familiar to the listener, the verses of “Made Up My Mind” display the banjo-playing Furtado’s talent at contrasting melodic and rhythmic patterns before sliding into an undeniable sing-along of a chorus that affirms her strength and determination to grow:

It’s been a long time coming but now I know
There’s always room to grow
There will be people fighting, other people crying
And people who are kind
I’ve made up my mind

Still, a careful listen reveals that “Made Up My Mind”’s positive outlook is hard-won, with its roots in “The day my heart was broke and buried in my pain.”  As Furtado explains: “‘Made Up My Mind’ is about accepting, and even welcoming, life's challenges as opportunities for growth. The idea came from my experience of having lost my newborn daughter ten years ago to a heart defect. Her name was Phoebe, and I have an Eastern Phoebe bird tattooed on my chest now. In the pain of that loss, I was forced to discover a strength in myself I wasn't aware that I had had before. 

“I learned that we can't stop life from throwing those curve balls, we can ONLY control our reactions. We are all tempted to let anger take over when something like that happens, or self pity, but the only escape from the hurt is to look outward and choose kindness. Or, that was my experience, anyway.” 

With sympathetic, gently swinging backing from the rest of the Project — sisters Malia and Lu Furtado on fiddle and bass respectively, along with veteran member Drew Matulich on guitar and a guest appearance by mandolinist Wayne Benson (Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out) — Furtado lets the melancholy aspects of her experience find expression in an instrumental interlude that introduces new minor chords before returning with renewed optimism for the final verse and chorus.  

“I feel that I owe it to my life's toughest lessons for the perspective they have given me,” she concludes. “As outlined in the song, they have led me to being happier and connecting with people who share similar life philosophies — and that is a limitless blessing.”

Listen to "Made Up My Mind" HERE.

Bluegrass songs about bluegrass seem to be turning up everywhere these days, but while there are plenty of single songs name-checking the music’s pioneers and all-star collaborative albums honoring generational legacies, a full-length tribute by one working band honoring another working band from days gone by is still a rarity. That makes Singing Up There: A Tribute to the Easter Brothers, the new album from Lonesome River Band — itself a legendary group heading toward its 40th anniversary — almost necessarily of note, but from the project’s opening notes, the music itself makes the decisive argument that this is one exciting set.

Pioneers in turning the already significant strain of gospel themes in songs performed by first-generation bluegrass artists like Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs and, especially Reno & Smiley — friends from the group’s earliest days — into an exclusive focus, the Easter Brothers helped to pave a “bluegrass gospel” road that would be traveled by a steady stream of acts who channeled their Christian convictions into a musical world ruled by banjos and fiddles, flat-top guitars and mandolins. For well over a half century, the Brothers were a regular presence in churches, at festivals, on television and radio shows, and made an avalanche of records, while contributing a number of songs to the bluegrass, and especially bluegrass gospel songbooks.

“Growing up in Patrick County, Virginia, I was influenced by a lot of Bluegrass Gospel,” recalls Lonesome River Band’s award-winning banjo player, harmony vocalist and leader, Sammy Shelor. “One of the strongest groups in that genre was The Easter Brothers, from just down the road in Mount Airy, North Carolina. Their songwriting and harmonies were so strong and inspiring to me in my youth, and it has stayed in my heart all these years. We are so happy to be able to pay tribute to these fine gentlemen and the legacy they have created.”

With years of playing together under their belts, this edition of LRB — Shelor, fiddler Mike Hartgrove, singers Brandon Rickman (guitar), Jesse Smathers (mandolin) and bassist Barry Reed — echoes the Brothers’ long familiarity with one another as they explore the breadth of the Brothers’ career and catalog. There are Southern Gospel-flavored songs like “Standing On The Banks,” mountain-flavored meditations like the classic “Lord, I’m Just A Branch,” the early favorite, “Every Minute Means A Mile,” the more recent “Little At A Time” — this version already a hit single for LRB — and more, each showing a different facet of the Brothers’ catalog and sound, delivered by musicians for whom this sound and these songs are almost second nature.  

“We want to sincerely thank the Easter Brothers for all the years these gentlemen shared the blessing of their music all over the country,” adds Shelor, “and the many miles they traveled to do so. It was truly anointed, and done for the glory of God; you can hear it in the lyrics. Please go back and listen to the original recordings of these great songs — it will be a blessing!”

Pre-order, add or save Singing Up There: A Tribute to the Easter Brothers HERE.

As the legendary Lonesome River Band heads toward its 40th anniversary, the band is paying homage to another great musical legacy with a full-length tribute by one working band honoring another working band from days gone by. Singing Up There: A Tribute to the Easter Brothers is out now from Mountain Home Music Company.

Pioneers in turning the already significant strain of gospel themes in songs performed by first-generation bluegrass artists like Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs and, especially Reno & Smiley — friends from the group’s earliest days — into an exclusive focus, the Easter Brothers helped to pave a “bluegrass gospel” road that would be traveled by a steady stream of acts who channeled their Christian convictions into a musical world ruled by banjos and fiddles, flat-top guitars and mandolins. For well over a half century, the Brothers were a regular presence in churches, at festivals, on television and radio shows, and made an avalanche of records, while contributing a number of songs to the bluegrass, and especially bluegrass gospel songbooks.

“Growing up in Patrick County, Virginia, I was influenced by a lot of Bluegrass Gospel,” recalls Lonesome River Band’s award-winning banjo player, harmony vocalist and leader, Sammy Shelor. “One of the strongest groups in that genre was The Easter Brothers, from just down the road in Mount Airy, North Carolina. Their songwriting and harmonies were so strong and inspiring to me in my youth, and it has stayed in my heart all these years. We are so happy to be able to pay tribute to these fine gentlemen and the legacy they have created.”

With years of playing together under their belts, this edition of LRB — Shelor, fiddler Mike Hartgrove, singers Brandon Rickman (guitar), Jesse Smathers (mandolin) and bassist Barry Reed — echoes the Brothers’ long familiarity with one another as they explore the breadth of the Brothers’ career and catalog. There are Southern Gospel-flavored songs like “Standing On The Banks,” mountain-flavored meditations like the classic “Lord, I’m Just A Branch,” the early favorite, “Every Minute Means A Mile,” the more recent “Little At A Time” — this version already a hit single for LRB — and more, each showing a different facet of the Brothers’ catalog and sound, delivered by musicians for whom this sound and these songs are almost second nature.

“We want to sincerely thank the Easter Brothers for all the years these gentlemen shared the blessing of their music all over the country,” adds Shelor, “and the many miles they traveled to do so. It was truly anointed, and done for the glory of God; you can hear it in the lyrics. Please go back and listen to the original recordings of these great songs — it will be a blessing!”

Listen to Singing Up There: A Tribute to the Easter Brothers HERE.

About Lonesome River Band
Since its formation decades ago, Lonesome River Band continues its reputation as one of the most respected names in Bluegrass music. Five-time International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Banjo Player of the Year, and winner of the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass, Sammy Shelor leads the group that is constantly breaking new ground in Acoustic music. With two stellar lead vocalists, Brandon Rickman (guitar) and Jesse Smathers (mandolin), with impressive talents of Mike Hartgrove (fiddle) and Barry Reed (bass), the band seamlessly comes together, performing the trademark sound that fans continue to embrace.

Bluegrass powerhouse Sideline's newest full length album, Ups, Downs and No Name Towns, finds the celebrated sextet — recipients of 2019’s International Bluegrass Music Association Song Of the Year award for their hit song, “Thunder Dan” and a group known for their distinctively stylish and explosive bluegrass that has netted them chart-topping singles and well-received albums — reaching new heights with a set that includes the kind of hard-hitting arrangements of classics that brought them acclaim in the first place, yet focuses on new material, chosen and delivered by a band with a perfect sense of who they are and what they have to say. The album is now available from Mountain Home Music Company.

The album’s title, drawn from “Old Guitar Case,” not only describes the band’s journey, but also acknowledges the recent struggle of the music industry — and especially its professional touring musicians — to cope with a months-long, pandemic-driven shutdown.  Through the song’s depiction of the details of a road musician’s life, it reveals profound truths about journeys of hardship and triumphs, victories and defeats — all undertaken with the aim of reaching new heights as the music and the community it builds continue to grow.

“In the musical slump caused by the shutdowns of 2020, Sideline decided to pull together and start on a new project. We had time, we had each other, and we decided to put it all to work in a way we had never done before,” says Cherryholmes. “The inspiration and variety that make up this project really relate directly to the ‘Ups and Downs’ we were dealing with in real time. Working together to find ways to survive and remain relevant, while receiving dozens of calls day after day for canceled work — this became a whole new full-time, emotionally exhausting job. I truly feel that all of these experiences played the biggest part in the development of the music for this project. It affected every bit of attention and care to capture each performance exactly how we felt it, all the way down to the cover concept. In so many ways this tattered old guitar case represents the beating our band and career took through the pandemic. The fact that it still stands symbolizes our resilience and ability to persevere. Ups, Downs, and No Name Towns is by far the most musically developed project we’ve recorded to date, but it is also the most connected and inspired effort we’ve ever experienced, personally or musically.”

Among the highlights are the project’s first single, “Fast As I Can Crawl,” a hard core bluegrass release from 2020 that showcases Sideline’s trademark combination of power and finesse in a story of a man consumed by an urgent regret for his rejection of true love, and its early 2021 follow-up, “Just A Guy In A Bar,” which offers a more melancholy take on the same situation as its narrator offers a forlorn self-portrait co-written by bluegrass and country hitmaker, Ronnie Bowman. 

Listen to Ups, Downs and No Name Towns HERE.

Gospel songs have been an integral part of the bluegrass genre since its very first days, and within a few short years, groups appeared which devoted themselves exclusively to songs of faith delivered in bluegrass settings. In 1973, The Primitive Quartet took its place in the ranks of bluegrass gospel artists, and over the nearly 50 years that have followed, the durable group has made its way to the forefront. Known for their determinedly acoustic approach to instrumentation; their emphasis on unadorned, heartfelt singing; the depth of their contribution to the bluegrass gospel songbook, and, above all, the simple clarity of their Christian message, the Primitive Quartet have become a beloved presence at churches, festivals and gospel singing gatherings across the country.

Still, despite the breadth of their popularity, almost all of The Primitive Quartet’s music lay beyond the reach of a growing number of listeners as the distribution of music moved into the online world. To bring this deep catalog to new generations of listeners — and to keep up with a new generation of technology — Mountain Home Music Company announces the release to streaming services and digital sales platforms of the first two volumes in a groundbreaking series called Through The Years, with additional volumes to be released in the future.

“We released 3 albums with Crossroads back in 2009 which have been well received and have had people asking for more,” says the group. “We’ve recorded at Crossroads many times and are excited to partner with them again. We pray this series of nearly 150 songs will be a blessing to many folks as more people use the digital services to listen to music.”

Through The Years, Volume 1 and Volume 2 present over 40 selections that span some 30 years of the storied group’s recordings, ranging from acclaimed songs like “We’ve Been So Blessed,” “The Good Shepherd” (Volume 1) and “He Included Me” (Volume 2) to distinctive versions of classics like “Traveling Shoes” (Volume 1) and “How Tedious And Tasteless The Hours” (Volume 2) to a wealth of originals from Reagan Riddle and other members of the group such as “Brother John,” “When This Old Gravel Road Turns To Gold” (Volume 1), “God Is So Good To Me” and “I’m Looking Through New Eyes” (Volume 2).  

When completed, the series — curated by the Crossroads Label Group’s Greg Bentley and The Primitive Quartet’s Mike Riddle — will encompass eight volumes covering nearly 40 years of historic releases, including a collection of Christmas favorites and a compilation of songs from the several live albums the group has released over the years. Rarely has such an archival exploration been directed exclusively at digital platforms, and the combination of historical interest and forward-looking accessibility serves to guarantee that not only will long-time fans of the storied group have their favorites close at hand, but that the vital musical ministry of the Primitive Quartet will be available for discovery by generations of fans yet to come.  

Through The Years Volumes 1 and 2 will be out on streaming platforms October 22. Pre-order, add or save Volume 1 HERE and Volume 2 HERE.

About The Primitive Quartet
The Primitive Quartet began in 1973, when two sets of Western North Carolina brothers, Reagan and Larry Riddle and Furman and Norman Wilson, carried a guitar and mandolin with them on a fishing trip, where they discovered a love and a gift for harmony singing. With the encouragement of their parents and pastor, they began to sing together at area churches as the Riddle-Wilson Quartet. In 1978, with the decision to devote themselves to a full-time musical ministry, the group said goodbye to Furman Wilson, welcomed Reagan and Larry’s brother, Mike, into the group and renamed themselves as The Primitive Quartet. As their career developed, the Quartet added Indiana-born singer and instrumentalist Randy Fox in 1986 and, a decade later, another North Carolinian, Jeff Tolbert — first as an instrumentalist and then, with the passing of Norman Wilson in 2014, as a singer. Over the years, The Primitive Quartet has toured across the United States and overseas, recorded scores of albums, released more than a dozen videos and DVDs, and made their “Hominy Valley Singing Grounds” in Candler, North Carolina, into a popular home for gospel singing events.

Two-time International Bluegrass Music Association Entertainer of the Year Balsam Range and Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records' Bluegrass at the Crossroads series took home awards at last night's IBMA Awards at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh, North Carolina, with Balsam Range's "Richest Man" being named Song of the Year and Bluegrass at the Crossroads' "Ground Speed" winning Instrumental Recording of the Year. Earlier in the week, rising artist Jaelee Roberts won the Momentum Vocalist of the Year award.

Two-time International Bluegrass Music Association Entertainer of the Year Balsam Range has released an official music video for "Highway Side," the latest single from their new album, Moxie and Mettle.

“Highway Side” marries a Rashomon-like glimpse of a driver passing a hitchhiker to a propulsive bluegrass beat that delivers the song’s empathetic message — "I wonder how did he get there...Something tells me he and I are the same” — through strong harmonies, deft picking and an irresistible sing-along chorus. The video captures that story with the band looking back at themselves from the road.

The song follows the band’s four most recent singles from Moxie and Mettle — "Santa Barbara," "Rivers, Rains and Runaway Trains," "Grit and Grace" and "Richest Man" — each of which topped the bluegrass charts. "Richest Man" was named IBMA Song of the Year at last week's awards.

Watch the "Highway Side" video above, and stream Moxie and Mettle HERE.

Western North Carolina’s Unspoken Tradition has released a music video for their latest single, “Irons In The Fire,” which captures the corrosive effects of dreams deferred and the anxiety and urgency that surround our collective emergence from the enforced idleness of quarantine.

Though its musical drive is squarely in the bluegrass wheelhouse, “Irons In The Fire” takes level aim at a thoroughly contemporary state of mind in its insistent refrain, “Where’s all the freedom I’ve been hoping for for so long?” — and the result is, as lead singer Audie McGinnis notes, quintessential Unspoken Tradition: “This song spoke to me on first listen; there was no ‘break in’ period to allow it to grow on me. Early on in the band's life, we started using the slogan ‘working class bluegrass’ as an attempt to brand ourselves and connect with our audience. I still think we hold true to that slogan today. With that in mind, it just feels like this song was written for us.”

Songwriter Aaron Bibelhauser adds,  “In the bluegrass world, many of us juggle much more than just a career as a professional musician. Some of us have full time day jobs, side gigs as a session musician, radio host, songwriter, etc. — and there’s always behind-the-scenes music business work to be done as well. That sentiment is strikingly obvious within the top shelf delivery of ‘Irons In The Fire’ from Unspoken Tradition. Ironically, my co-writer and uncle, Steve Guenthner, retired from his own career in the business world shortly before I asked him to lend a hand with this song. He certainly provided some contrasting wisdom to bring the song full circle in recognizing that, no matter how much work there is left to do, or how challenging the road ahead appears, freedom lies in the path forward... the journey, not the destination.”

Watch the video above and stream "Irons In The Fire" HERE.

About Unspoken Tradition

Unspoken Tradition is about new, original bluegrass. Inspired by their own influences and the roots of traditional music, they bring a sound that is both impassioned and nostalgic, hard-driving but sincere. Their 2019 release from Mountain Home Music Company, Myths We Tell Our Young, debuted at #5 on the Billboard Bluegrass charts and has seen 5 top-charting radio singles, including a #1 spot on the Bluegrass Today chart for “Dark Side of the Mountain.” Their material is mostly original and reflects the ever-changing culture of Western and Central North Carolina where they call home. The band has earned a fervent following in the Southeast, selling out shows in Asheville, NC as well as the legendary Station Inn in Nashville, TN. With heavy airplay on Sirius XM’s Bluegrass Junction and ever-growing streaming numbers, Unspoken Tradition is a fast-rising voice of a new generation of roots music artists.

He’s been called a singer-songwriter who happens to front a bluegrass band, and though the choice is a little more deliberate than that phrase might suggest, there’s still a nugget of truth in the observation, and it arguably applies more than ever to the music on Make Each Second Last, the newest full-length release from Chris Jones and the Night Drivers, out now from Mountain Home Music Company. Filled entirely with material written by Jones and a handful of collaborators that includes both former and current Night Drivers, it’s the veteran artist’s most original and most varied outing yet — and one that, for good measure, introduces two new members of the ensemble.

Given Jones’ hit making track record, it’s no surprise that the first five singles from the album have already reached #1 on Bluegrass Today’s airplay chart. The title comes from “We Needed This Ride,” the first of those to introduce new members Grace van’t Hof (banjo, ukuleles, accordion, vocals) and Marshall Wilborn (bass, vocals) and, with its thrumming baritone ukulele-driven rhythm, a sign that the band would be serving up a broader range of tones and textures than before. Sure enough, the group’s latest single, “Riding The Chief,” goes still further, with its western swing foundation — right down to the twin mandolins, “sock” style guitar and tasteful fiddle from ace session player David Johnson — reintroducing a sound Jones hadn’t brought into the studio in decades.

Yet while the Night Drivers’ tonal palette might have expanded, there’s no doubt that Make Each Second Last is a Chris Jones album, focusing prodigious songwriting talent on enduring Jones themes that encompass more than the usual bluegrass subjects. There are takes on travel, from “We Needed This Ride” to “Whither You Roam” to “Riding The Chief,”  lost love (“Quiet Click”) and life at home (“Leave It At The Gate”) and abroad (“Silver City”), but there are also meditations on less intimate matters, whether it’s the encouragement to speak one’s mind in “We Need To Hear From You,” the compelling observation of “Everybody’s Got A Line” or the compassionate consideration of common humanity in “They’re Lost Too” and cautious, almost wistful hopefulness of “Bed Of Snow.” Whether written with GRAMMY-nominee Thomm Jutz, frequent collaborator Jon Weisberger, new colleague van’t Hof, veteran mandolinist Mark Stoffel — that would be the album’s lone instrumental, “Groundhog’s Retreat” — or by Jones himself, there’s not a song or performance in the collection that doesn’t bear Jones’ indelibly distinctive stamp.

With each of the albums he and the Night Drivers have made for Mountain Home — Run Away Tonight (2015), Made To Move (2017), and The Choosing Road (2019) — Chris Jones has dug deeper into a deeply personal synthesis of unique sounds, compelling themes and world-class songcraft, all embedded in a recognizably bluegrass setting, creating a sound whose appeal reaches far beyond the world of bluegrass while remaining firmly grounded within it. On Make Each Second Last, he serves notice that the journey continues.

“Make Each Second Last isn’t so much a departure for us, but a stretching of boundaries, and a fuller embrace of what makes us unique as a band, including some of the instrumental and vocal versatility brought in by new band members Grace van’t Hof and Marshall Wilborn. Mark Stoffel’s instrumental presence and creativity, always important to the Night Drivers’ sound, is also given an even bigger spotlight than on past releases,” says Jones. “This is our first record in which I’ve written or co-written all of the songs. The majority of the songs were solo writing efforts, or co-written within the band. I also wrote two with Thomm Jutz, which was really rewarding, and I’m also very glad to maintain my long co-writing relationship with former band mate Jon Weisberger, who co-wrote two of the songs.”

“The phrase ‘make each second last’ from the opening track ‘We Needed This Ride’ is all about savoring and being grateful for our experiences,” Jones continues, “especially those involving human contact, now that we know how much of that we had been taking for granted.”

Listen to Make Each Second Last HERE.

Mountain Home Music Company’s Darren Nicholson is a man on a mission — and if you think, based on his membership in award-winning bluegrass quintet Balsam Range, that you know what it is, his new EP is going to come as a mighty big surprise.

The aptly titled Man On A Mission — out now — shows the singer, songwriter and mandolin player in a brand new light, and the revelation comes less than a minute into the searing opener, “Love Is War,” when the sounds of old-time mountain banjo and fiddle give way to a flourish of drums and a muscular country-rock rendition of a lover’s plea to “call a truce — I can’t take it anymore.” From there, with expectations readjusted, the concise, six-song set offers a portrait of Nicholson as a musician as comfortable behind an electric mandolin as a vintage acoustic version, writing songs tailor-made for country-flavored Americana settings.

Working mostly with fellow Western North Carolinians, from songwriting partners like Charles Humphrey III (Songs From The Road Band) to the A-team session players and producer/keyboardist Jeff Collins, Nicholson boldly fulfills his redefinitional mission, serving up a variety of rootsy material — from the lonesome country ballad, “All Night Long” through the tongue-in-cheek boogie-woogie of “Them Hateful Woman Blues” to the gritty R&B of the closing title track (complete with wailing harmonies from local soul singer Leeda Lyric Jones) — without a moment’s hesitation or a single false note. To be sure, there are echoes of predecessors and heroes like Marty Stuart and Darrell Scott, but in the end, this is music that reflects a lifelong musician’s deepest creativity.

“This album is a journey into the human condition, with relationships and feelings turned into an Appalachian Americana roots tapestry,” says Nicholson, who uses a songwriter’s vivid imagery to convey the album’s breadth. “It’s a Saturday night raucous party with dancing, electric guitars and fiddles twangin’ feeding your energy. It’s rockabilly attitude, and it’s tongue-in-cheek. It’s the heartbreak of things not working out and having to return home to regroup. It’s triumph, hope, and positivity set to mountain soul. It’s breaking deals with yourself, and it’s also learning from your mistakes and looking for the bright spot. It’s a lonely Sunday morning, saying goodbye to an old friend. Saying hello to new ones! It’s up, it’s down. It’s a wide mix of music and emotion with the common thread of truth and honesty. It’s from the heart.

“I write about life and the human condition,” he concludes. “I write about things I’ve lived, and I just try to perform them as best I can.”
Listen to Man On A Mission HERE.

In October, The Primitive Quartet and Mountain Home Music Company released Through The Years Volumes 1 and 2, the start of a groundbreaking series that’s bringing the beloved gospel group’s music to new generations of listeners through streaming services and digital sales platforms for the first time. This holiday, the series continues with Through The Years Christmas, out now.

Featuring four songs written by Reagan Riddle — “Carolina Mountain Christmas,” “Memories of Christmas,” “Precious Holy Name,” and “Christmas In The Mountains” — and four classics — “Joy To The World,” “What Child Is This,” “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” and “Beautiful Star of Bethlehem” — this collection is sure to enhance the joy and reverence listeners feel throughout the Christmas season.

When completed, the Through The Years series — curated by the Crossroads Label Group’s Greg Bentley and The Primitive Quartet’s Mike Riddle — will encompass eight volumes covering nearly 40 years of historic releases, including this Christmas collection and a compilation of songs from the several live albums the group has released over the years. Rarely has such an archival exploration been directed exclusively at digital platforms, and the combination of historical interest and forward-looking accessibility serves to guarantee that not only will long-time fans of the storied group have their favorites close at hand, but that the vital musical ministry of the Primitive Quartet will be available for discovery by generations of fans yet to come.  

Listen to Through The Years Christmas HERE.

About The Primitive Quartet
The Primitive Quartet began in 1973, when two sets of Western North Carolina brothers, Reagan and Larry Riddle and Furman and Norman Wilson, carried a guitar and mandolin with them on a fishing trip, where they discovered a love and a gift for harmony singing. With the encouragement of their parents and pastor, they began to sing together at area churches as the Riddle-Wilson Quartet. In 1978, with the decision to devote themselves to a full-time musical ministry, the group said goodbye to Furman Wilson, welcomed Reagan and Larry’s brother, Mike, into the group and renamed themselves as The Primitive Quartet. As their career developed, the Quartet added Indiana-born singer and instrumentalist Randy Fox in 1986 and, a decade later, another North Carolinian, Jeff Tolbert — first as an instrumentalist and then, with the passing of Norman Wilson in 2014, as a singer. Over the years, The Primitive Quartet has toured across the United States and overseas, recorded scores of albums, released more than a dozen videos and DVDs, and made their “Hominy Valley Singing Grounds” in Candler, North Carolina, into a popular home for gospel singing events.

With a brand new IBMA Instrumental Recording of the Year credit to their names, the first group of musicians to participate in the Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records Bluegrass at the Crossroads collaborative series is back with the last of its efforts — this time, a contemplative, country-flavored excursion. Like its predecessors — the award-winning “Ground Speed” included — “Between Houston and Her” offers compelling proof of the creative energies summoned when musicians from across the bluegrass spectrum are brought together and turned loose.  

Starting with a sweetly melancholy fiddle intro from Organic Records’ Jeremy Garrett (Infamous Stringdusters), “Between Houston and Her” matches its lyric’s geographic setting with a laid back country groove reminiscent of classic records by artists like George Strait. Sung by Sideline’s guitarist, Skip Cherryholmes, the track unfolds as a meditation by a Gulf Coast oil rig worker who must leave his beloved behind as he heads to work, punctuated by supple, tasteful soloing by Cherryholmes, banjo player Kristin Scott Benson (Grascals) and Balsam Range mandolinist Darren Nicholson, before Garrett picks up the thread again in a final outro. Underpinned by the unobtrusive yet indispensable work of bassist Kevin Kehrberg (Zoe & Cloyd), it’s a track that testifies to the broad range of influences that permeate the entire Bluegrass at the Crossroads series.  

"It’s always exciting to have songs cut long after they’ve been written, and this one is such a case,” notes Bob Minner, ace flatpicker and songwriter (and long-time member of country star Tim McGraw’s band), who penned the tune with series producer Jon Weisberger. “I always enjoy the co-write with Jon — he’s never in a hurry and lets the idea and song develop at its own pace, so this one just found itself on paper easily. When Jon contacted me a few years after we had written it and said it was being cut, it was that feeling of enjoyment that the song had found a home. When he told me the group of musicians cutting it, it was exciting to hear that ensemble bring the song to life. It’s always great to hear musicians from different established groups come together and create a unique perspective."

Says Cherryholmes, “This song strikes deeply from the perspective of a married, full-time road musician. As a husband and father of two, it can get pretty tough packing another suitcase for another road trip. It wasn’t hard to identify with the lyrics and the call for the feel on this song.”

“It was a great experience to be involved in a session outside of a band setting,” he adds.  “All of these remarkable players, several of whom I had known but never recorded with, worked well together with deep passion and precisely executed professionalism. I am always looking to be challenged and pushed as a musician, and they certainly gave that to me. I was greatly honored to be involved with this project.”

Listen to "Between Houston and Her" HERE.

About Bluegrass at the Crossroads
A musical cauldron of distinctively American contributions largely rooted in the rural south, bluegrass has taken on a new identity in recent years, as new times and new musicians have naturally incorporated the sounds around them in every part of the country — and even the world. At the same time, an indispensable musical core has persevered, finding ever-changing ways to create performances that cause everyone familiar with the genre to say, “now, that’s bluegrass.”  

Over the years, Mountain Home Music Company and its sibling imprint, Organic Records, have become home to a family of artists who are collectively creating music that forms part of that core, but also exemplifies the adventurous, wide-ranging side of the genre. Bluegrass at the Crossroads is a series of unique encounters between members of that family from every corner — geographical, generational, stylistic and more — of the music and the communities it has inspired, inviting them to collaborate not only through fresh takes on bluegrass classics, but especially with new songs that reflect and engage with the contemporary world.

It all begins with a song. It’s a motto that Balsam Range has adopted and carried throughout their nearly 15-year career. Few artists can deliver songs that move people, and connect to audiences like this quintet from the mountains of North Carolina. With their newest album, Moxie and Mettle, Balsam Range released a series of singles that preceded the full album. The tremendous result was a coveted spot at the top of the Bluegrass Today charts for each of them.

“Richest Man,” released in May of 2020, was the first single from this collection to reach #1, followed subsequently by “Grit and Grace,” “Rivers, Rains and Runaway Trains,” “Santa Barbara” and the latest, “Highway Side,” which topped the chart in December of 2021.  

In “Richest Man,” an observation of shared humanity is revealed through a contrast between material wealth and other kinds of abundance. It asserts what we all have in common, especially at a moment when our universal humanity has never been more apparent.

“Grit and Grace” is an emotional meditation on meeting hard times with perseverance and spiritual courage — “one part moxie [and] another part mettle”— and a continuation of the tradition of reflecting genuine trials and the qualities it takes to overcome them, a heartfelt response to life’s struggles that gains its strength from the sense of community and values shared by both the band and their fans.

“Rivers, Rains and Runaway Trains,” offers a more narrowly drawn portrait from the pen of IBMA Songwriter of the Year, Milan Miller, and frequent co-writer Beth Husband; its depiction of a man long habituated to careful planning who finds his world turned upside down by a whirlwind romance is at once powerful and intimate.

Similarly, “Santa Barbara,” places the spotlight on a lone individual — here a man who’s too self-aware to deny the gap between the life he lives and the one he wants, or to deny his own responsibility for the difference.  

“Highway Side”’s concise two minute story marries a Rashomon-like glimpse of a driver passing a hitchhiker to a propulsive bluegrass beat that delivers the song’s empathetic message — "I wonder how did he get there...Something tells me he and I are the same” — through strong harmonies, deft picking and an irresistible sing-along chorus.

Each of these songs (like the rest of Moxie and Mettle) speaks to the broad range of human experience, an intent Balsam Range has always had.

Listen to the album HERE.

Following the radio success of last summer’s country-flavored single, “Think Again,” and its CMT-featured video, Mountain Home Music Company recording artist Jaelee Roberts returns to kick off the new year with a straightforward, energetic bluegrass song, “You Can’t Stop Me From Staying," first premiered by Wide Open Country.  

The track, which features an all-star team of players assembled by producer Tim Surrett (Balsam Range), bursts from the gate with strong banjo picking by oft-awarded labelmate Kristin Scott Benson soaring over a strong rhythmic bed from Surrett (bass) and guitarist Tony Wray before Roberts begins to reveal the narrative of a lover whose tenacity is embodied in the twist of the song’s title. Punctuated by energetic solos from award-winning mandolinist Alan Bibey and fiddler Jimmy Mattingly, Roberts’ fresh, expressive voice delivers each verse in tones of mounting confidence, with each chorus framed by harmonies from bluegrass power couple Kenny & Amanda Smith as the trio evokes the pledge that lies at the center of the song.  

The attractiveness of its unbridled optimism came as something of a surprise to the singer, who notes: “It’s no surprise to anyone who knows me that I always gravitate toward sad songs. However, when I heard ‘You Can’t Stop Me From Staying,’ it made me smile and I immediately fell in love with the song! The lyrics are about not giving up on someone even if they are trying to push you away because they don’t feel like they’re deserving of you to stay with them:

You can’t stop me from staying
These hard times ain’t gonna get me down
Nothin’ in this world is gonna break me
You can count on my heart to stick around

"That is just a good story and I’m sure thankful to have the opportunity to share something that is encouraging – to not give up on a relationship if you believe in it.  

"The message of the song is positive and the music is up-beat and up-tempo…all of which can be difficult for me to feel drawn to…but this great song written by Molly Tuttle and Jon Weisberger snagged me and I hope it will you, too!”

Listen to “You Can’t Stop Me From Staying” HERE.

Drawing on the distinctive sound that earned her a third consecutive International Bluegrass Music Association Banjo Player of the Year nomination in 2021, Mountain Home Music Company’s Gina Furtado starts off her 2022 with a new single, “It Won’t Be Me.” Backed by her eponymous Gina Furtado Project, which includes two of her sisters, the singer-songwriter serves up a characteristic blend of engaging music with a powerful lyric theme.

“It Won’t Be Me” mines the rich vein of Latin- and gypsy jazz-flavored sounds that has served Furtado well since her 2017 breakout hit, “Puppet Show” — and as it did there, the deft ensemble playing of sisters Malia (fiddle) and Lu (bass) Furtado, plus guitarist Drew Matulich, is deployed to support a woman’s declaration of independence from mistreatment.

Delivered in Furtado’s immediately recognizable voice, the lyric works its way over minor chords from an opening uncertainty — “I could see the writing on the walls/Sometimes it would fade/And sometimes it was all I saw” — to a dawning recognition (“You broke my heart, my home/And in my broken mirror/A woman said, ‘He’ll never break your spirit’”) before turning to a more optimistic sound that underpins the defiant lines of the chorus:

“I will be the one who’s standing firm and strong
And I will be the one who writes
Whatever kinda song I want
And when you treat somebody just exactly as you please
You better know it won’t be me, it won’t be me”

“This was a touchy song for me,” notes Furtado. “Domestic abuse is so prevalent that we're all bound to know someone who has, and/or is experiencing it. I know I do. It is often so confusing for victims, and so hard to leave a bad situation. I hope that this song might help somebody who just needs to hear an ending that is alternate to what they may currently be feeling they are destined for.”

Listen to "It Won't Be Me" HERE.

As they head toward a remarkable 40th anniversary of their founding, bluegrass’s Lonesome River Band have chosen not only to welcome in the new year with new music, but to introduce two new members with a new single that underlines both the durability and the freshness of the group’s unique approach and fabled history.

Sung by new mandolinist Adam Miller, “Mary Ann Is A Pistol” is a sly subversion of stereotypes first recorded over a quarter of a century ago and reclaimed from the record collection of bandleader and award-winning banjo player Sammy Shelor. Written by long-time Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer Dennis Linde, who penned the jovially transgressive Chicks hit, “Goodbye Earl,” it’s an extended appreciation of a woman who’s “been a tomboy since she could walk,” shows no interest in turning more conventional, and still earns the unstinting admiration of its country boy narrator. For Shelor, it was a natural partner to a song that’s been in the LRB’s set lists for even longer than this one’s been around.

“The LRB has been doing the Jimmy Martin classic, ‘Mary Ann,’ since around 1985,” he notes. “And it’s been a mainstay in our live shows ever since. Last year, I was digging through a bunch of cassettes I had from the 80s and 90s — I still love the sound of them — and ran across one of my favorite records ever by Brother Phelps (check them out if you haven’t heard these albums), recorded in 1995. They did a rocking version of this Dennis Linde song, and the more I listened to it, the more it became a Bluegrass song in my head and a perfect song to follow the Jimmy Martin ‘Mary Ann.’ We hope you enjoy our version of ‘Mary Ann Is A Pistol'!"

The first single to feature Miller, who joined the group straight out of East Tennessee State University’s high-powered Bluegrass, Old-Time and Country Music Studies program, “Mary Ann Is A Pistol” wisely puts its spotlight on the song’s good-natured lyric and a head-bobbing groove, underpinned by guitarist Jesse Smathers and new bassist Kameron Keller and moved along by Shelor’s hypnotic banjo roll and Mike Hartgrove’s supple fiddling. From its opening hammer-down guitar rhythm to the closing signature lick, “Mary Ann Is A Pistol” is musical proof that the Lonesome River Band are still at the top of their game.

Listen to "Mary Ann Is A Pistol" HERE.

Not content to rest on laurels like last year’s summer #1 for “California” and an autumn CMT.com feature for their “Irons In The Fire” video, the swiftly emerging bluegrass quintet Unspoken Tradition makes a fast break for 2022 with the release of “Lookout Mountain,” a tuneful reflection on the consequences of profit-driven development for traditional communities. With its fiddle-and-banjo opening that invokes the feel of old-time mountain music, melodic solos and mournful harmonies, the song’s well-crafted arrangement and melancholy mid-tempo delivery build on the deepening artistry exhibited in the group’s pandemic era singles.

It was almost inevitable that Unspoken Tradition, whose music has always incorporated a strong sense of place rooted in its Western North Carolina home, would pick up the tune, penned by local stalwarts and popular songwriters Charles Humphrey III (Songs From The Road Band) and Phil Barker (Town Mountain). Though its lyric refers to southeast Tennessee — Lookout Mountain sits above Chattanooga — the song’s story reflects trends that are shaping Appalachia as a whole, forcing long-time residents and institutions to give way to newcomers in a kind of rural counterpart to urban gentrification. The combination of regional and cultural specificity with a more universal experience of loss and relocation, of looking forward and looking back, has been a hallmark of the group’s approach, and resonated not only with singer and bassist Sav Sankaran, but with the entire band.

“‘Lookout Mountain’ first came to me as I searched for material to record back in 2010 and 2011,” says Sankaran. “I was immediately struck by the themes of gentrification, loss of place, and searching for a place to call ‘home.’ Growing up in an immigrant family, that search for a sense of place and grief for a home left behind felt very relatable to me. I was excited to give this song new life and brought it to the band when I joined.”

“Some songs just hit you hard, as this one did me,” notes guitarist Audie McGinnis. “The lyrics are almost haunting, and there are so many musical nuances that trigger those emotions we typically keep buried deep; this song accessed all of that for me. When Sav officially joined the group back in 2019, I was excited to integrate some of his catalog — this song included — into our live shows, and I'm thrilled that we’ve recorded it.

“With other single releases since our last album, I've talked about how I hoped this record showed a new side of Unspoken Tradition,” he adds.  “I think ‘Lookout Mountain’ does a really good job of showcasing some of the maturity and depth of the band's content choices, as well as dimensionality in our musical style. Sav's voice just fits this song so well, and in preparing for this song, I was delighted to see all of us dig deep to craft every element of this song in a way that resonated with the message and truly did the song justice.”

Listen to "Lookout Mountain" HERE.

Kristin Scott Benson (five-time IBMA Banjo Player of the Year, recipient of the Steve Martin Award for Excellence in Bluegrass and Banjo and member of the GRAMMY-nominated Mountain Home artist The Grascals) and her husband, award-winning mandolinist Wayne Benson (25-year veteran of the seven-time IBMA Vocal Group of the Year, Russell Moore and IIIrd Tyme Out) have signed with Mountain Home for their first joint creative endeavor, a duo simply named Benson.

This distinctive collaboration serves to bring a shared musical vision of the Bensons to life, as they embrace the modern music landscape of streaming and other digital outlets, beginning with the release of a new single (and eventually an album).

Ask Wayne what prompted a recording partnership with his wife, Kristin, and the answer is straightforward: “I think we have something to say,” he says. “We share a lot of the same vision musically.”  

That may sound simple, but the fact is, getting there took the better part of the 21st century for these veteran players, married since 2000 but only rarely collaborating in the studio, and never as jointly featured artists. Still, as Kristin notes, changes in the business of making records — and a global pandemic that shut down the touring schedules on which both relied for their living — eventually created a new opportunity that the two have embraced through the creation of Benson. “The paradigm for recorded music has changed so much during our careers,” she observes. “Success for bluegrass artists used to depend on a heavy touring schedule and selling physical product at those shows. Radio airplay was quite limited. It’s a totally different world these days, and the current landscape allows us the opportunity to share music through streaming, Sirius/XM, and many radio outlets that also include an online component. Certainly since COVID, we’ve all figured out alternative ways to connect with listeners.”

Benson’s first single, “Conway,” serves to validate both Bensons’ observations — thanks to their demonstrably strong shared musical vision, it’s likely to connect with listeners. With an informal-sounding intro that quickly slides into a mandolin statement of the tune’s melody over a funk-grass rhythmic bed supplied by guitarist and long-time friend Cody Kilby (Travelin’ McCourys) and electric bassist Paul Watson (Carley Arrowood Band), “Conway” establishes immediately that it’s the product of a unique interaction between the two principals. From there, the Bensons trade solos with Kilby, with long-time fiddler friend Jim VanCleve (Appalachian Road Show) and, of course, with one another in a strong musical announcement of this distinctive collaboration.  

“Wayne wrote ‘Conway’ several years ago, and I remember when he recorded it at home,” recalls Kristin. “It has a nice feel and it's fun to play. I thought Paul especially did a great job on bass, because this song requires some groove! We left the banjo out at times to give it some dynamics.”

“I wrote this tune in Conway, SC,” Wayne elaborates, “at a bluegrass festival we were playing. It was one of those songs that I wasn't sure about, but demoed it anyway. The folks at Mountain Home really liked it, so we recorded it and they decided to make it the first single!”

Listen to "Conway" HERE.

For their first single of 2022, Asheville, North Carolina’s Fireside Collective serve up a fiery number that proves once again the truth of award-winning banjo player and broadcaster Ned Luberecki’s observation that “bluegrass is happy, upbeat music with miserable, depressing lyrics.” The release comes in the middle of a packed late-winter touring schedule that shows the fast-rising group has resumed the upward career trajectory interrupted right after the early 2020 release of their critically acclaimed Mountain Home Music Company debut, Elements.

From its staccato opening chords to the closing unison lick, “Blue Is My Condition” — written by singer and resonator guitarist Tommy Maher with producer and award-winning songwriter Jon Weisberger — offers an unrelievedly bleak outlook, offset by a powerful harmony vocal from mandolinist Jesse Iaquinto and a dazzling sequence of virtuosic solos from both of the singers, along with banjo man Alex Genova and guitarist Joe Cicero. The result is quintessential bluegrass with a distinctly modern edge that’s likely to find favor with more traditionally-inclined listeners as well as fans drawn to the quintet’s mesmerizing live performances.  

“We all get the blues and experience sadness, but it can be taboo to talk about, especially when most of what we see on social media are happy people with smiling faces,” Maher observes.  “This song came to me at a dark time and is about embracing that darkness and not being ashamed of showing your pain to the world. It’s a sad song with no happy ending.”

Adds Weisberger, “The seriousness of the subject notwithstanding, ‘Blue Is My Condition’ was a fun song to write with Tommy — and a challenging one, too, with its brevity and intense rhyme scheme. We chose to underline its classic bluegrass nature with a lonesome duo harmony rather than a full trio, and the guys just crushed it in the studio!”

Listen to "Blue Is My Condition" HERE.

Gospel songs have been an integral part of the bluegrass genre since its very first days, and within a few short years, groups appeared which devoted themselves exclusively to songs of faith delivered in bluegrass settings. In 1973, The Primitive Quartet took its place in the ranks of bluegrass gospel artists, and over the nearly 50 years that have followed, the durable group has made its way to the forefront.

In October, The Primitive Quartet and Mountain Home Music Company began the groundbreaking Through The Years series that is bringing the beloved gospel group’s music to new generations of listeners through streaming services and digital sales platforms for the first time. Now, the series continues with Volume 3, which features songs like “Only Gone From Our Sight” featuring Jeff Tolbert, “Go And Tell Jesus” featuring Reagan Riddle, and “Thank You For Saving Me” featuring Mike Riddle.

When completed, the series — curated by the Crossroads Label Group’s Greg Bentley and The Primitive Quartet’s Mike Riddle — will encompass eight volumes covering nearly 40 years of historic releases, including a Christmas collection and a compilation of songs from the several live albums the group has released over the years. Rarely has such an archival exploration been directed exclusively at digital platforms, and the combination of historical interest and forward-looking accessibility serves to guarantee that not only will long-time fans of the storied group have their favorites close at hand, but that the vital musical ministry of the Primitive Quartet will be available for discovery by generations of fans yet to come.  

Listen to Through The Years Volume 3 HERE.

About The Primitive Quartet
The Primitive Quartet began in 1973, when two sets of Western North Carolina brothers, Reagan and Larry Riddle and Furman and Norman Wilson, carried a guitar and mandolin with them on a fishing trip, where they discovered a love and a gift for harmony singing. With the encouragement of their parents and pastor, they began to sing together at area churches as the Riddle-Wilson Quartet. In 1978, with the decision to devote themselves to a full-time musical ministry, the group said goodbye to Furman Wilson, welcomed Reagan and Larry’s brother, Mike, into the group and renamed themselves as The Primitive Quartet. As their career developed, the Quartet added Indiana-born singer and instrumentalist Randy Fox in 1986 and, a decade later, another North Carolinian, Jeff Tolbert — first as an instrumentalist and then, with the passing of Norman Wilson in 2014, as a singer. Over the years, The Primitive Quartet has toured across the United States and overseas, recorded scores of albums, released more than a dozen videos and DVDs, and made their “Hominy Valley Singing Grounds” in Candler, North Carolina, into a popular home for gospel singing events.

There’s a lot to be said for simple pleasures, and in the realm of American roots music, few are more elementally satisfying than an easily hummable, instantly memorable fiddle tune. Fiddler and mandolinist Andy Leftwich isn’t afraid of complex musical challenges — his stature as a first-call session player attests to that — and he’s more than capable of virtuosity and pyrotechnics on either instrument, as his previous single, “Pikes Peak Breakdown” demonstrated on its way to the highest reaches of the bluegrass chart. Still, Leftwich knows how to capture a down-home flavor as well as anyone, and he serves up the proof on “Kimper County,” his new single for Mountain Home Music Company.

Leftwich’s introduction of the tune evokes an Appalachian front porch right out of the gate, as Mark Schatz’s clawhammer banjo sets the rhythm behind the winding melody, before bringing in the rest of the rhythm section (Schatz on bass and legendary guitarist Bryan Sutton) and bearing down on the deft variation that constitutes “Kimper County”’s second part. Yet even as the tune’s air of familiarity takes hold, he surprises the listener by introducing an unexpected element with the entry of Jeff Taylor’s slinky accordion playing. From there, the tune gets handed off to mandolin — that’s Leftwich again — then guitar and banjo before the fiddle reclaims its leading role as the mesmerizing track heads towards its final sequence of fiddle and banjo, fiddle and accordion, and mandolin and accordion unisons that lope to the neatly syncopated ending. And while there are flashes of inspired improvisation, Leftwich and his cohort are careful never to stray too far from the tune’s spare elegance.  

“‘Kimper County’ is a simple melody I wrote a while ago and thought it would always make for a good fiddle tune,” says Leftwich. “It reminds me of something you might hear in the Appalachian Mountains. My friend, Jeff Taylor, adds the accordion on the melody lines and it almost takes on a Cajun feel which I love! I was honored to have Bryan Sutton and Mark Schatz picking with me on this one as well! It’s a fun tune to play — I feel like it brings out a joy that good fiddle music should have.”

Listen to "Kimper County" HERE.

About Andy Leftwich
Four-time GRAMMY®-winning instrumentalist Andy Leftwich began playing the fiddle at the age of six, entering his first contest at seven and winning the National Championship for Beginners at the age of twelve. By the time he was a teenager, he had appeared on the Grand Ole Opry  and “Music City Tonight” with Crook and Chase, and had established a reputation as a winning contest fiddler throughout the Southeast. At 15, he capped off his contest career by winning Winfield, Kansas’s Walnut Valley Old Time Fiddle Championship, one of the most prestigious contests in the country. At the same time, with mandolin and guitar added to his arsenal, Andy began playing professionally, and before he finished his teens, he had joined Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder in 2001. wIn addition to 2005’s solo album, Ride, Andy has recorded two critically acclaimed albums as a member of Three Ring Circle (with dobro player Rob Ickes and bassist Dave Pomeroy), and built an impressive list of studio credits as one of Nashville’s top session players.

Hosting the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Momentum Awards ceremony at its annual convention, and then appearing on the organization’s Wide Open Bluegrass festival Main Stage; releasing his first singles for Mountain Home Music Company; appearing on David Holt’s State Of Music series on PBS; signing with boutique booking agency Prater Day; earning coverage in publications such as The Bluegrass Situation, and graduating from college — all recent signposts along the way in the emergence of Tray Wellington. And now, with the May 13 release of his full-length debut, the young banjo player is taking that momentum to a new level.

Boldly titled Black Banjo, the set — now available for pre-order, add or save — ranges strikingly from old-time flavors through straight-ahead bluegrass and fresh newgrass to string band takes on iconic jazz. “In this album,” he says, “I wanted to re-envision people’s perspectives on who and what it means to play banjo. So many times people think playing banjo is for ‘white people,’ and I want to show people that that’s simply not at all the case, as anyone can play any form of music they want and whatever instrument they want. As well, I wanted to redefine and tackle certain genre boundaries people place on the banjo, with covers like ‘Strasbourg / St.Denis’ and ‘Naima’ showcasing the banjo’s versatility in multiple styles of music.”

Yet beyond those covers, Black Banjo shines its brightest spotlight on Wellington’s own compositions. Defying easy categorization, tunes such as the opening “Crooked Mind,” the moody “Unknown Days Waltz” and the driving “Georgia Turnaround” weave together elements of bluegrass, newgrass, old-time fiddle tunes, jazz and more to create a sound that is at once deeply rooted and refreshingly original. And in a step that offers evidence of his self-possession and artistic growth, Wellington also makes his recorded vocal debut on two of his own songs, including an inspired duet with Tim O’Brien that uses their two voices to underline the story of a man who can’t tell alcohol-induced dreams from reality.

To translate Wellington’s vision into a coherent yet multi-faceted set, producer Jon Weisberger turned to a core band of players with their own broad-ranging musical perspectives: guitarist Jon Stickley, acclaimed mandolinist Wayne Benson and bassist Kevin Kehrberg, supplemented by a trio of players — Carley Arrowood, Avery Merritt and Stickley bandmate Lyndsay Pruett — equally comfortable as both fiddlers and violinists. In their hands, each tune is explored to the fullest on its own terms, whether that means highlighting the old-time flavor of “Half Past Four,” popularized by John Hartford; delivering the relaxed swing of “Wasted Time”; powering through the stop-start rhythms and tricky timing of last year’s single, “Pond Mountain Breakaway,” or offering a compelling live-in-the-studio rendition by Wellington, Merritt and Kehrberg of John Coltrane’s lushly melodic ballad, “Naima.”

Throughout, though, it’s Wellington who’s in command, with a sense of confidence rooted in his identity as a creative Black banjo player. The journey to his full-length debut has been both challenging and exhilarating, and if there’s one thing Black Banjo makes clear, it’s that for Tray Wellington, his exploration of the world of music is just getting started.

Pre-order, add or save Black Banjo HERE.

Lonesome River Band introduced two new members with their latest single, "Mary Ann Is A Pistol," which underlines both the durability and the freshness of the group’s unique approach and fabled history. Now, that song has claimed the No. 1 spot on Bluegrass Today's Monthly airplay chart, which serves as further proof that Lonesome River Band is still at the top of its game.

"We are so happy and thankful that radio and our dear fans like this song," says bandleader and award-winning banjo player Sammy Shelor. "It's a fun, feel-good song that we think everyone needs to hear these days. Many thanks to the fans and DJs for getting behind the song and supporting us for the past 40 years!"

Sung by new mandolinist Adam Miller, “Mary Ann Is A Pistol” is a sly subversion of stereotypes first recorded over a quarter of a century ago and reclaimed from Shelor's record collection. Written by long-time Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer Dennis Linde, who penned the jovially transgressive Chicks hit, “Goodbye Earl,” it’s an extended appreciation of a woman who’s “been a tomboy since she could walk,” shows no interest in turning more conventional, and still earns the unstinting admiration of its country boy narrator. For Shelor, it was a natural partner to a song that’s been in the LRB’s set lists for even longer than this one’s been around.

“The LRB has been doing the Jimmy Martin classic, ‘Mary Ann,’ since around 1985,” he notes. “And it’s been a mainstay in our live shows ever since. Last year, I was digging through a bunch of cassettes I had from the 80s and 90s — I still love the sound of them — and ran across one of my favorite records ever by Brother Phelps (check them out if you haven’t heard these albums), recorded in 1995. They did a rocking version of this Dennis Linde song, and the more I listened to it, the more it became a Bluegrass song in my head and a perfect song to follow the Jimmy Martin ‘Mary Ann.’ We hope you enjoy our version of ‘Mary Ann Is A Pistol'!"

The first single to feature Miller, who joined the group straight out of East Tennessee State University’s high-powered Bluegrass, Old-Time and Country Music Studies program, “Mary Ann Is A Pistol” wisely puts its spotlight on the song’s good-natured lyric and a head-bobbing groove, underpinned by guitarist Jesse Smathers and new bassist Kameron Keller and moved along by Shelor’s hypnotic banjo roll and Mike Hartgrove’s supple fiddling.

Listen to "Mary Ann Is A Pistol" HERE.

The release of fiddler, singer and songwriter Carley Arrowood's debut album puts an exclamation point on an upward trajectory that not even a pandemic could stall. Goin' Home Comin' On is available now on all platforms.

“There was a time when this project was only going to be an EP; some of my favorite fiddle tunes and one or two songs I had written,” Arrowood recalls in her liner notes. “Something that just encompassed me as an aspiring solo artist….[A]s time progressed I was blessed to sign on with Mountain Home. I’ll never forget my first meeting with Mickey Gamble. When I told him I wanted to ‘see what happens’ with my EP, he looked at me with raised eyebrows and a genuine heart, and said something like this: ‘You’ve got to be all in; there ain’t no "see what happens" here.’ From then on, it was all or nothing.”

That spirit of commitment animates every minute of Goin’ Home Comin’ On, from the first bold fiddle notes of the album opener and title track to the high octane reading of an early Alison Krauss classic that closes the project. And though she’s supported by award-winning banjo player Kristin Scott Benson and acclaimed mandolinist Wayne Benson while taking on a set list that includes songs from award-winning writers like Jenn Schott, Jenee Fleenor and bassist-producer Jon Weisberger, it’s a measure of that commitment — and her abilities — that Arrowood’s supple fiddle playing, songwriting skills and, especially, her confident, expressive singing, are never overshadowed.

Indeed, it’s Arrowood’s musical personality first and foremost that knits together the project, begun while she was still contemplating a solo career and recorded in three sessions over as many years. And while she’s grown as an artist during the process, the maturity of her artistry was already clear in the album’s first single, the contemporary-flavored, self-penned “Dear Juliana.” By the time she released the project’s title track in August, 2020, the way had been paved for a long-lived single that reached audiences across bluegrass radio through most of 2021, and since then, more singles — as well as a featured turn on one of the label’s all-star Bluegrass at the Crossroads collaborations, “Lift Your Voice, Bow Your Head” — have heightened anticipation for her full-length debut.

An instrumentalist since she was a child, Arrowood claims a place among the leading players of her generation in both traditional and contemporary styles with the durable Kenny Baker favorite, “Ducks On The Millpond,” and her own “Double Sunset”; offers heartfelt testimonials to the power of her faith in her “Jesus Drive The Train” and “You Are Mine,” and demonstrates her interpretive depth on both her own songs like “Letting Go Now” and “Dancing In The Rain” and more country-leaning material like the popular single, “My Kind of Nightlife” and “God Made the Country.”  The result is a wide-ranging collection that presents a well-rounded and compelling portrait of a musician coming into her own.  

“Almost every track is a brand new song,” Arrowood concludes. “Each with a different aspect that moves my heart in a way that feels like coming home. My hope is that they do the same for you.”

Listen to Goin' Home Comin' On HERE.

With a unique blend of masterful traditional sounds and edgy original songs by their namesake, the Alex Leach Band are blazing a new path in bluegrass — and “Little Secret,” their latest single for Mountain Home Music Company, illustrates the combination to perfection.

From Leach’s powerful opening guitar strum to the twin yodel with which he and harmony singer Miranda Leach end the song, “Little Secret” offers a pitch-perfect take on the classic “angry bluegrass” sound, as Band member JT Coleman’s bass and guest Roscoe Morgan’s mandolin lay down an irresistible beat behind label mate Carley Arrowood’s searing fiddle and fierce, driving banjo from the Larry Stephenson Band’s Derek Vaden. Still, though the lyric faithfully reflects the music’s dark mood, its indistinct yet vivid collage of hints and threats give the song an air of mystery that is unmistakably modern.

“With a brand new album of original music coming this summer, I couldn’t be more excited to share it with everyone,” enthuses Leach, “and ‘Little Secret’ is one of the high energy songs that will be included. It talks about a corrupt boss man who’s always taking advantage of everyone, and one of his workers is about to get back at him for all of his wrongdoings. Although the lyrics are pretty serious, this song has become one of our favorites to have fun with on stage. I hope you enjoy this one, and remember, it’s just a little taste of what’s to come on our new album this summer!"

Listen to "Little Secret" HERE. 
 

Releasing his first singles for Mountain Home Music Company; appearing on David Holt’s State Of Music series on PBS; signing with boutique booking agency Prater Day; earning coverage in publications such as The Bluegrass Situation, No Depression and Folk Alley; being interviewed by roots music authority Rhiannon Giddens for a BBC radio documentary, and graduating from college — all recent signposts along the way in the emergence of Tray Wellington. And now, with the release of his boldly titled full-length debut, Black Banjo, Wellington is taking that momentum to a new level.

“This is a record that breaks right through subgenre boundaries,” writes Barry Mazor in a review for the Wall Street Journal. “If bluegrass is about spotlighting virtuosos, here’s a new one people will be checking in on for some time to come.”

The set ranges strikingly from old-time flavors through straight-ahead bluegrass and fresh newgrass to string band takes on iconic jazz. “In this album,” he says, “I wanted to re-envision people’s perspectives on who and what it means to play banjo. So many times people think playing banjo is for ‘white people,’ and I want to show people that that’s simply not at all the case, as anyone can play any form of music they want and whatever instrument they want. As well, I wanted to redefine and tackle certain genre boundaries people place on the banjo, with covers like ‘Strasbourg / St.Denis’ and ‘Naima’ showcasing the banjo’s versatility in multiple styles of music.”

Yet beyond those covers, Black Banjo shines its brightest spotlight on Wellington’s own compositions. Defying easy categorization, tunes such as the opening “Crooked Mind,” the moody “Unknown Days Waltz” and the driving “Georgia Turnaround” weave together elements of bluegrass, newgrass, old-time fiddle tunes, jazz and more to create a sound that is at once deeply rooted and refreshingly original. And in a step that offers evidence of his self-possession and artistic growth, Wellington also makes his recorded vocal debut on two of his own songs, including an inspired duet with Tim O’Brien that uses their two voices to underline the story of a man who can’t tell alcohol-induced dreams from reality.  

To translate Wellington’s vision into a coherent yet multi-faceted set, producer Jon Weisberger turned to a core band of players with their own broad-ranging musical perspectives: guitarist Jon Stickley, acclaimed mandolinist Wayne Benson and bassist Kevin Kehrberg, supplemented by a trio of players — Carley Arrowood, Avery Merritt and Stickley bandmate Lyndsay Pruett — equally comfortable as both fiddlers and violinists. In their hands, each tune is explored to the fullest on its own terms, whether that means highlighting the old-time flavor of “Half Past Four,” popularized by John Hartford; delivering the relaxed swing of “Wasted Time”; powering through the stop-start rhythms and tricky timing of last year’s single, “Pond Mountain Breakaway,” or offering a compelling live-in-the-studio rendition by Wellington, Merritt and Kehrberg of John Coltrane’s lushly melodic ballad, “Naima.”  

Throughout, though, it’s Wellington who’s in command, with a sense of confidence rooted in his identity as a creative Black banjo player. The journey to his full-length debut has been both challenging and exhilarating, and if there’s one thing Black Banjo makes clear, it’s that for Tray Wellington, his exploration of the world of music is just getting started.

Listen to Black Banjo HERE.

During a recent performance at Isis Music Hall in Asheville, North Carolina, Mountain Home Music Company congratulated Chris Jones & The Night Drivers on having six songs from their album Make Each Second Last go to No. 1 on bluegrass radio charts.

The string of chart-topping singles began with “We Needed This Ride,” which was followed by “Leave It At The Gate,” “Quiet Click,” “Whither You Roam,” “Riding The Chief” and “Bed Of Snow.” Each is characteristically Chris Jones, highlighting a deeply personal synthesis of unique sounds, compelling themes and world-class songcraft, all embedded in a recognizably bluegrass setting, creating a sound whose appeal reaches far beyond the world of bluegrass while remaining firmly grounded within it.

“When this current lineup of The Night Drivers first started recording together, it was clear that we had really strong musical and personal compatibility and a shared vision. When our first release was a No. 1 song, we were overjoyed to receive that confirmation. When our next five singles all followed suit, it was beyond what any of us expected,” says Jones. “We’re grateful for the airplay, the support of fans and our Mountain Home family, and we’re just thankful for that kind of affirmation for what we’re doing, especially during this challenging time for any band.”

Listen to these songs — and the rest of Make Each Second Last — HERE.

About Chris Jones & The Night Drivers
Whether it’s in the studio or on stage, Chris Jones & The Night Drivers are making some of the most distinctively elegant yet driving music to be heard anywhere today, and they’re delivering it with a unique blend of dry wit, emotional authenticity and broad humor that’s won the loyalty of a growing number of fans across the country, from MerleFest in North Carolina to California’s Huck Finn Jubilee, and around the world.

Steve Martin referred to the Night Drivers as “. . . some of the best players in bluegrass! Chris Jones’ voice is there with the great masters.” Americana artist Jim Lauderdale said of Chris, “He continues to have one of the most distinctive and best voices in music, period.”

The band — which is Mark Stoffel on mandolin, Grace van’t Hof on banjo and ukelele and Marshall Wilborn on bass — is led by Chris’ soulful lead-singing, songwriting, and solid rhythm and lead guitar. Chris boasts extensive performance credits as a sideman with artists like Lynn Morris, Vassar Clements, Special Consensus, Dave Evans, Earl Scruggs, and the acclaimed Irish band The Chieftains.

Altogether, members of Chris Jones & The Night Drivers have won more than a dozen IBMA awards and have recorded more than ten #1 songs. The Night Drivers also bring name recognition in related fields, as bluegrass fans are well-familiar with Jones for his award-winning work as a SiriusXM DJ, on both Bluegrass Junction and Willie’s Roadhouse.

Bluegrass at the Crossroads, the collaborative sessions series that earned a quintet of Crossroads Label Group artists a 2021 IBMA Instrumental Recording of the Year award for “Ground Speed,” now releases “Timber Train,” a powerful tale of a Gilded Age logging boom’s impact on western North Carolina.

Written by Thomm Jutz, Charley Stefl and series producer Jon Weisberger — a team that includes two IBMA Songwriters of the Year — “Timber Train” features a broad-ranging group of musicians that includes legendary, award-winning banjo player Sammy Shelor, Mountain Home recording artist Carley Arrowood (fiddle, harmony vocals), acclaimed mandolinist Wayne Benson (Benson, Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out), the GRAMMY-winning Infamous Stringdusters’ Travis Book (bass, harmony vocals), guitarist Joe Cicero (Fireside Collective) and a soulful, heartfelt lead vocal from Zoe & Cloyd’s John Cloyd Miller.  

The song begins with a bluesy, modal figure from fiddle, banjo and mandolin over an insistently swaying rhythm section before diving into its revelatory, scene-setting chorus:

"Hear the ringing of the axe, the rattle of the logging chain
The whistle blowing down the tracks, hauling off the forest on the train
There goes the timber train"

From there, three tightly-rhymed verses offer vivid descriptions of hard, dangerous work and environmental despoliation that bring to mind he rich vein of bluegrass songs that runs through songs like “Paradise” and “Aragon Mill,” building on the legacy of artists like Bluegrass Hall of Famers Hazel & Alice.  

"'Timber Train' is a commentary on unchecked resource extraction policies that emerged in the Colonial Era and continue in some industries even to this day,” says Miller. “The Southern Appalachian logging boom began in earnest in the 1880s and continued through the 1920s, with extensive environmental and social impacts on the region. Outside timber barons would often ‘cut and run’ with little regard for local communities or conservation efforts. Let us hope that we can continue to value our shared heritage over short-term financial gain for the few.”

Listen to "Timber Train" HERE.

About Bluegrass at the Crossroads
A musical cauldron of distinctively American contributions largely rooted in the rural south, bluegrass has taken on a new identity in recent years, as new times and new musicians have naturally incorporated the sounds around them in every part of the country — and even the world. At the same time, an indispensable musical core has persevered, finding ever-changing ways to create performances that cause everyone familiar with the genre to say, “now, that’s bluegrass.”  

Over the years, Mountain Home Music Company and its sibling imprint, Organic Records, have become home to a family of artists who are collectively creating music that forms part of that core, but also exemplifies the adventurous, wide-ranging side of the genre. Bluegrass at the Crossroads is a series of unique encounters between members of that family from every corner — geographical, generational, stylistic and more — of the music and the communities it has inspired, inviting them to collaborate not only through fresh takes on bluegrass classics, but especially with new songs that reflect and engage with the contemporary world.

Few bluegrass groups have been around for forty years, and even fewer have been more popular, more widely admired or more influential for as long as Mountain Home Music Company recording artists, Lonesome River Band. By the early 1990s, they were winning key awards and topping the charts, and while members have come and gone, the quintet’s reputation for crafting essential, archetypal bluegrass has only grown with each passing year.  

Now, the bluegrass powerhouse is releasing a new album, Heyday, surrounding four hit singles with a set of songs that serves both to introduce new members and to extend the group’s influential legacy still further. The album is now available for pre-order, add or save ahead of its July 22 release.

Leading off the project is the group’s first single — and first No. 1 — of 2022, “Mary Ann Is A Pistol.” Sung by new member Adam Miller (mandolin), the song, written by long-time Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer Dennis Linde, is a sly subversion of stereotypes first recorded over a quarter of a century ago and reclaimed from the record collection of bandleader and award-winning banjo player Sammy Shelor.

Miller shares lead vocal duties with veteran mandolinist-turned-guitar player Jesse Smathers, who led on last year’s “Cumberland River Shore” (a song suffused with the spirit and sound of the late and legendary John Hartford). The lineup is rounded out by Shelor, iconic fiddle player Mike Hartgrove and new bassist Kameron Keller, and blends to perfection the group’s signature “bluegrass with a rock ’n’ roll attitude” sound with fresh energy and new influences.  

The result is a collection that leans strongly toward new songs — banjo legend Jimmy Arnold’s retelling of “Jesse James” and Jim & Jesse’s homespun “Tell Her Lies and Feed Her Candy” are the only covers here — that offer vivid sketches encompassing nostalgia (“Heyday,” the title track and next radio single), wry looks at love (“Love Songs”), old-timey romps (“Come On Down From The Mountain Top”), stern apocalyptic warnings (“Gabriel’s Already Standing”) and, of course, plenty of heartbreak and ramblin’ (“Waitin’ on a Train,” “Bye Bye Love,” “Headed North”). Lonesome River Band may be reaching middle age, but Heyday is here to say that, in some ways, they’re just getting started.  

“Heyday is a representation of the Lonesome River Band in transition from many years with Brandon Rickman and Barry Reed in the band to the introduction of Adam Miller and Kameron Keller as the newest members,” says Shelor. “After 40 years in the business, LRB is looking forward to many more years on the road bringing new music to our wonderful friends across the country. We hope you enjoy this collection!”

Pre-order, add or save Heyday HERE.

“When the world shut down and the music industry came to a halt,” recalls Fireside Collective singer and mandolinist Jesse Iaquinto, “we decided to head to a cabin in the Smoky Mountains. We didn't know when we'd be back on the road, or what touring would look like, but we knew if we kept creating music, it would be the best way to ensure we could return to playing music. Over the course of 3 days, we began arranging the songs that would become a part of our fourth studio album.”

Today, that process culminates in the announcement of Across The Divide, the Asheville, NC-based quintet’s second full-length for Mountain Home Music Company. Set to release on August 5, the project is, Iaquinto says, “a celebration of the journey from the familiar world into the unknown, and back into recognizable territory, but with new understanding. The songs speak of love, loss, fear and the comfort of home. The days in the studio were as much an outpouring of emotions as they were a recording project. We crossed over lines and explored new territory, while never forgetting the road that led us to where we are today.”

Across The Divide is now available for pre-order, add and save.

With award-winning songwriter Jon Weisberger (Billy Strings, Infamous Stringdusters, Travelin’ McCourys) producing, the group — Iaquinto, guitarist/singer Joe Cicero, Alex Genova (banjo, vocals), resonator guitarist and vocalist Tommy Maher and Carson White (bass, vocals) — crafted Across The Divide in three sessions over nearly a year, releasing two charting singles (“And The Rain Came Down” and “Blue Is My Condition”) along the way. With each session, the eventual themes and musical contours of the project came more clearly into focus.  

“Our second album, Life Between the Lines, was the band's attempt at finding the lines of bluegrass and learning to speak the language,” Iaquinto observes. “In Across the Divide, we aim to take that understanding and use it as our foundation, as we explore realms beyond the borders of bluegrass. From funk, to country, to blues and more, the roots of where we've been pave the way to where we're headed. Always honoring the road that brought us here, we seek to integrate it with the knowledge that one gains with each passing year, melding our musical journey into one familiar yet constantly evolving experience.”

The care and creativity brought to the process can be heard in each of the set’s songs. From the intricate, energetic opening of “When You Fall” to the bluesy snap of “Let It Ride” to the powerful classically bluegrass high lead trio of “House Into A Home” to the surprising country-flavored piano of “Not Today” to the churning groove of “Your Song Goes On,” Across The Divide acts as a musical kaleidoscope — each twist of the viewer offering up a different scene, yet with all marrying artful construction to inspired improvisation and engaging lyrics.

“This album was a joy to create,” says Cicero. “Everyone brought really interesting originals to the table, which made for a great challenge trying to bring them to life during the arranging process. The end result is very rewarding to hear. We really melded a lot of our influences together on this one and as a result, I think it’s the most ‘Fireside’ thing we’ve ever done.”

Pre-order, add or save Across The Divide HERE.

Mountain Home Music Company congratulated Unspoken Tradition on the success of their single, “California,” which reached No. 1 on the Bluegrass Today chart, during their album release show at 185 King Street in Brevard, North Carolina.

“‘California’ comes to us from our buddy Thomm Jutz, and was chosen specifically because it's a tremendously well written song with a feel that we've never explored as a band. It immediately stood out to me, and I'm glad it didn't take much convincing to get the guys on board with this one,” says Unspoken Tradition vocalist and guitarist Audie McGinnis. “There are plenty of us who leave home in search of something. But what happens when you get there, and it isn't what you expected? Or maybe the urge to go back home is stronger than you might have anticipated. That's what ‘California’ is all about. This musician has moved to Nashville to chase a dream, and amidst all the music, lights, and opportunity, they feel alone and homesick, lost in the crowd. That's lonely.”

 “California” is one of several charting songs from the band’s new album, Imaginary Lines, out now from Mountain Home. As they have from the start, the band — bassist Sav Sankaran, guitarist/vocalist Audie McGinnis, brother Zane McGinnis (banjo), mandolinist Ty Gilpin and Tim Gardner (fiddle, vocals) — ranges beyond typical lyric themes to dig into songs about work (“Irons In The Fire,” “Back on the Crooked Road”), reaching out across boundaries (“Carolina and Tennessee”), the changing nature of Appalachian communities (“Soldiers of Dust,” “Lookout Mountain”) and more. Rich instrumental work underpins lead vocals from Audie McGinnis and Sankaran, who take turns harmonizing with one another in a way that, paradoxically, encourages attention to each song’s theme even as it demonstrates the singers’ individual and collective versatility. As Zane McGinnis notes, the result is that “the work put forth on this record represents the malleable nature of Unspoken Tradition as a band, with numerous musical influences united  to produce our finest project to date.”

Rooted in the fiercely distinctive culture and landscape of western North Carolina and deeply committed to blazing their own trail within the larger music community, Unspoken Tradition have, in the words of the title track, “walked in the shadows of hard times, waiting for the sun to shine” — and now, this collection announces, the waiting is over. 

Listen to "California" — and the rest of Imaginary Lines — HERE.

The Alex Leach Band’s Jim Lauderdale-produced debut, I’m The Happiest When I’m Moving (2021), earned praise as “a bold statement [of] their fresh take on bluegrass—one that draws on a wide-ranging set of historical sounds, yet remains as authentic as Alex himself” (County Sales), while an archetypal example of Leach’s ability to unearth a “deep catalog” gem, “Golden Rule,” spent an unprecedented 19 weeks at #1 on Bluegrass Today’s weekly Gospel airplay chart.

As the summer of 2022 begins, the Band is back with a second effort that takes an even deeper dive into the fresh, authentic sounds that characterized the singer/songwriter’s first release for the label. All The Way is now available for pre-order, add and save ahead of its August 19 release.

Produced by award-winning songwriter Jon Weisberger, All The Way signals, as its title suggests, Leach’s commitment to a distinctive musical path. Opening with the exuberantly hopeful title track, the project quickly offers up two covers that serve to reveal the breadth of his influences — one, an intimate duo reading of Paul Simon’s “Slip Slidin' Away” that features Miranda Leach, and the other a breakneck rendition of “Walk A Mile In My Shoes” that nods both to songwriter Joe South’s original and to another “deep catalog” entry, Cliff Waldron’s ‘grassed up 1970 version. From there, the collection ranges through a dazzling assortment of originals — some by Leach alone, others written in collaboration with Miranda (who also contributes a lively look at love as a metaphorical gamble), Lauderdale and Weisberger — before concluding with a final cover, this one written by longtime friend Evan Whitten Ondriezek.

The eclectic set reveals Leach’s many gifts — as a wide-ranging songwriter, proficient guitarist, inventive arranger and, above all, instantly recognizable singer who convincingly inhabits each song’s character. There’s the lovelorn narrator of “Loveland,” the stern seeker of vengeance in “Little Secret,” the heartsick wonderer of “She’s On A Different Train,” the guilt-racked survivor of “Lineman In The Rain” and more, with each song given a setting that underlines and amplifies its essential character. With regular bassist JT Coleman present throughout, Leach presides over a cast of musicians that includes Jason Johnson (banjo), Joshua Gooding (mandolin), labelmate Carley Arrowood (fiddle), banjoist Derek Vaden (Larry Stephenson Band), fiddlers Chris Sexton (Nothin’ Fancy) and Bryan McDowell, pedal steel guitarist Chris Castle (Darryl Worley), legendary drummer Tony Creasman, and longtime friend and colleague Roscoe Morgan on mandolin. Carefully tailored to the needs of the song, each configuration of supporting musicians serves to bring Leach’s varied approaches to life, from the straight ahead, blazing bluegrass of “Little Secret” to the rolling country rhythms of “High Tide.”

"The Alex Leach Band has entered a new season of growth this past year,” Leach notes, “and I couldn't be more excited to share this fresh music that has been created as a result. This album is full of original tunes that I recently penned. I was honored to collaborate with Jim Lauderdale, Jon Weisberger, and my wife, Miranda, on a few as well. There are several special guests on this album and everyone involved knocked it out of the park. Thanks to all those who have helped make this project a reality. This is the beginning of a new era for The Alex Leach Band, and we are ready to go 'all the way!' Sit back, crank the knob up, and enjoy!"

Pre-order, add or save All The Way HERE.

From Bill Monroe’s “Walking In Jerusalem,” adapted from the Golden Gate Quartet, to Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver’s epic reworking of the Soul Stirrer’s “Jesus Gave Me Water,” bluegrass artists have drawn on the rich vein of African-American gospel singing. Now, The Gina Furtado Project serve up their own take on this tradition with “I Just Telephone Upstairs,” the group’s newest single for Mountain Home Music Company.

Pared down to instrumental essentials, the Kristin Scott Benson-produced track shines a spotlight squarely on Furtado’s distinctive voice, cooing harmonies from bandmates and sisters Malia and Lu (bass) Furtado, and deft Travis-style picking from guitarist Drew Matulich, with rhythmic punctuation from guest Wayne Benson’s mandolin. The result is a refreshing change of pace — for The Gina Furtado Project, certainly, but for the bluegrass gospel realm, too.

“When I first heard this song from the Golden Gate Quartet, I put it on repeat and left it there for a few days,” recalls Gina. “It made me smile ‘til my smile-muscles hurt. Sometimes I'd even laugh out loud to myself listening to it, driving down the road, with the sheer delight at the optimism in their performance and the lyrics. It's just so funny and fun! Recording this one with my siblings, Malia and Lu, was definitely a secret little dream come true for me. Drew Matulich absolutely knocked it out of the park with his tasty finger-style guitar picking, along with Wayne Benson's mandolin and Lu's bass. I had such a blast with this one.”

“Hats off to the Golden Gate Quartet” she adds, in a nod to the Black gospel legends. “They continue to be one of those groups I keep going back to when I need a boost and new inspiration!”

Listen to "I Just Telephone Upstairs" HERE.

Few bluegrass groups have been around for forty years, and even fewer have been more popular, more widely admired or more influential for as long as Mountain Home Music Company recording artists, Lonesome River Band. By the early 1990s, they were winning key awards and topping the charts, and while members have come and gone, the quintet’s reputation for crafting essential, archetypal bluegrass has only grown with each passing year.  

Now, the bluegrass powerhouse releases a new album, Heyday, surrounding four hit singles with a set of songs that serves both to introduce new members and to extend the group’s influential legacy still further.

Leading off the project is the group’s first single — and first No. 1 — of 2022, “Mary Ann Is A Pistol.” Sung by new member Adam Miller (mandolin), the song, written by long-time Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer Dennis Linde, is a sly subversion of stereotypes first recorded over a quarter of a century ago and reclaimed from the record collection of bandleader and award-winning banjo player Sammy Shelor.

Miller shares lead vocal duties with veteran mandolinist-turned-guitar player Jesse Smathers, who led on last year’s “Cumberland River Shore” (a song suffused with the spirit and sound of the late and legendary John Hartford). The lineup is rounded out by Shelor, iconic fiddle player Mike Hartgrove and new bassist Kameron Keller, and blends to perfection the group’s signature “bluegrass with a rock ’n’ roll attitude” sound with fresh energy and new influences.  

“Heyday,” the title track and next radio single, is a wistful reminiscence cast in the voice of a small town that’s “still sleepy but…still alive”; featuring another lead from Miller and subtle, sympathetic solos from Hartgrove and Smathers, it underlines the collection’s strong emphasis on new songs.

Banjo legend Jimmy Arnold’s retelling of “Jesse James” and Jim & Jesse’s homespun “Tell Her Lies and Feed Her Candy” are the only covers here, while the rest offer vivid sketches encompassing wry looks at love (“Love Songs”), old-timey romps (“Come On Down From The Mountain Top”), stern apocalyptic warnings (“Gabriel’s Already Standing”) and, of course, plenty of heartbreak and ramblin’ (“Waitin’ on a Train,” “Bye Bye Love,” “Headed North”). Lonesome River Band may be reaching middle age, but Heyday is here to say that, in some ways, they’re just getting started.  

“Heyday is a representation of the Lonesome River Band in transition from many years with Brandon Rickman and Barry Reed in the band to the introduction of Adam Miller and Kameron Keller as the newest members,” says Shelor. “After 40 years in the business, LRB is looking forward to many more years on the road bringing new music to our wonderful friends across the country. We hope you enjoy this collection!”

Listen to Heyday HERE.

Collaborative musical encounters between distinct artists have been woven into the fabric of bluegrass at least as far back as the in-studio meeting of Flatt & Scruggs with Doc Watson. So it was almost inevitable that, at some point, the idea would surface of bringing together musicians from the groups that make up the rosters of sister labels Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records. First laid on the table in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, when touring came to a halt and almost every musician’s calendar was suddenly wide open, the concept was quickly refined into what would become Bluegrass at the Crossroads: multiple groupings that would bring together players from different corners of the big bluegrass tent, from hard core traditional to edgy jamgrass; song choices focused on new, original songs; and a field of musicians broad enough to encompass not only label artists, but selected friends from the fertile musical territory around the labels’ Western North Carolina home.

Now, Mountain Home and Organic are releasing an album of these songs to streaming services and digital sales platforms. Bluegrass at the Crossroads is now available for pre-save, add and order on digital platforms ahead of its September 23 release.

The collection brings together nearly a score of the best in and around today’s bluegrass — musicians from the Lonesome River Band to the Infamous Stringdusters, the Traveling McCourys to the Grascals and Sideline to Zoe & Cloyd; and from the award-winning Sammy Shelor and Kristin Scott Benson to instrumental stylists like Gina Furtado, Wayne Benson, Jeremy Garrett and Andy Leftwich, to distinctive singers such as Sav Sankaran, Darren Nicholson, Carley Arrowood and Travis Book. In many cases, these sessions were the first time these colleagues had even met, much less played together — and yet, whether they’re taking on the only canonical entry (Earl Scruggs’ “Ground Speed,” which earned one of the groups an IBMA Instrumental Recording of the Year trophy) or tackling songs never heard before, they fit together musically in a way that underlines their sensitivity to and appreciation of one another’s talents.

“Choosing the musicians for each of these groups was probably the most challenging aspect of producing Bluegrass at the Crossroads,” notes producer Jon Weisberger, who also co-wrote much of the project’s material with collaborators ranging from Garrett and Book to Craig Market and the award-winning Thomm Jutz. “But it was also the most exciting, and maybe even the most rewarding. The respect these artists had for one another was evident from the moment they got into the studio, and it was gratifying to get to introduce Travis Book to Sammy Shelor, to learn that this was the first time Sammy and Wayne Benson had been in the studio together, to see Darren Nicholson and Skip Cherryholmes huddling over an arrangement, to hear Gina Furtado and Chris Davis compare notes on their kids — every session was filled with moments like those, and I believe they left their mark on the music that was made. We are so thrilled to have all this music available in one set for listeners to enjoy!”

Pre-save, add or order Bluegrass At The Crossroads on digital platforms HERE.

Ashby Frank’s “Midnight Highway” — his first single for Mountain Home Music Company — was No. 1 on this month’s Bluegrass Today chart.

“First of all, I’m very thankful for all of the programmers and listeners that have taken this song all the way to number one,” says Frank. “I’d also like to take this occasion to congratulate the writers of ‘Midnight Highway,’ as Gary Nicholson has been announced as one of the newest inductees of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and Peter Rowan has been announced as one of the newest inductees into the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame. It’s truly an honor to be singing their song. I’m on cloud nine!”

Featuring a harmony vocal from John Cowan and an all-star cast of musicians — Frank’s Mountain Heart bandmates Seth Taylor (guitar) and Travis Anderson (bass), banjoist Matt Menefee, Gaven Largent (dobro), fiddler Jim VanCleve and Josh Hunt (drums) — this version of Rowan’s early 90s classic offers a fresh take on classic newgrass sounds, with Frank’s confidently soaring vocals seizing center stage, relinquishing it only for brief solo turns from Largent and VanCleve.  

“I thought it was fitting for the first single from the first solo album that I’ve recorded since I was a teenager to be a song that I grew up listening to and have always loved,” says Frank. “The first time I heard Peter Rowan’s original version of ‘Midnight Highway’ was when I was around 15 years old. I was somewhere in North Carolina with my buddy Jim VanCleve in his old Honda Civic, going to a fiddler’s convention or picking party, and the song has stuck with me ever since then. Having Jim on this track so many years later makes it even more special for me. I hope we did it justice!”

“Midnight Highway” was followed by Frank’s second single, “Jump On It.” From the slinky, syncopated lick that bookends the track to the simmering groove in between, Frank and his all-star friends perfectly capture the song’s sly, countrified humor as it unreels a quirky story: “Granny's on the front porch spittin' in a cup, tryin' to fix a nightgown that the dog tore up / Mama's old clothesline finally bit the dust, so Brother got a broomstick and propped it back up / Well we could've had a dryer or a sewing machine, but Daddy went and bought us a trampoline / And we jump on it every chance we get, Mama and Daddy and all us kids / We ain't got much but we got this, and we jump on it.”

To those who have followed Frank’s career, the single will come as no surprise, for comedy, and especially country-flavored comedy, has been a persistent thread all along, including the intermittent appearance of his alter ego in comedy duo, The Darrell Brothers.

Listen to “Midnight Highway” HERE and “Jump On It” HERE.

Lonesome River Band has released a music video for "Heyday," the title track from their latest album, after a premiere by Bluegrass Today.

“Heyday,” the band's current radio single, is a wistful reminiscence cast in the voice of a small town that’s “still sleepy but…still alive.” It features new member Adam Miller (mandolin) on lead and subtle, sympathetic solos from fiddler Mike Hartgrove and guitarist Jesse Smathers.

“When we received this song from Barry and Will Hutchens, the visual aspect of the story jumped right out at me," says bandleader and banjoist Sammy Shelor. "When it became the title cut of our album, we started searching for the perfect town that had all the right places. Cherryville, North Carolina was that place, and we had a blast visiting with the locals and seeing their beautiful town."

"We don’t like what has happened to our small towns," Shelor continues, "and maybe this is our little contribution to helping the renovation, and bringing light to these forgotten places. We love Small Town America!”

"Heyday" follows the band's single "Mary Ann Is A Pistol," which topped the Bluegrass Today charts and set the tone for the album as a set of songs that serves both to introduce new members and to extend the group’s influential legacy even further.

Watch the video for "Heyday" above and stream it and the rest of the album HERE.

About Lonesome River Band
Since its formation decades ago, Lonesome River Band continues its reputation as one of the most respected names in Bluegrass music. Five-time International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Banjo Player of the Year, and winner of the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass, Sammy Shelor leads the group that is constantly breaking new ground in acoustic music. With stellar lead vocalists and impressive instrumental talents, the band seamlessly comes together, performing the trademark sound that fans continue to embrace.

After their 2021 album, I’m The Happiest When I’m Moving, earned praise as “a bold statement [of] their fresh take on bluegrass—one that draws on a wide-ranging set of historical sounds, yet remains as authentic as Alex himself” (County Sales), The Alex Leach Band is taking an even deeper dive into the fresh, original sounds that characterized that first release with All The Way, their new album out now from Mountain Home Music Company.

Produced by award-winning songwriter Jon Weisberger, All The Way signals, as its title suggests, Leach’s commitment to a distinctive musical path. Opening with the exuberantly hopeful title track and new radio single, "Together (We're Going All The Way)", the project quickly offers up two covers that serve to reveal the breadth of his influences — one, an intimate duo reading of Paul Simon’s “Slip Slidin' Away” that features Miranda Leach, and the other a breakneck rendition of “Walk A Mile In My Shoes” that nods both to songwriter Joe South’s original and to another “deep catalog” entry, Cliff Waldron’s ‘grassed up 1970 version. From there, the collection ranges through a dazzling assortment of originals — some by Leach alone, others written in collaboration with Miranda (who also contributes a lively look at love as a metaphorical gamble), Lauderdale and Weisberger — before concluding with a final cover, this one written by longtime friend Evan Whitten Ondriezek.

The eclectic set reveals Leach’s many gifts — as a wide-ranging songwriter, proficient guitarist, inventive arranger and, above all, instantly recognizable singer who convincingly inhabits each song’s character. There’s the lovelorn narrator of “Loveland,” the stern seeker of vengeance in “Little Secret,” the heartsick wonderer of “She’s On A Different Train,” the guilt-racked survivor of “Lineman In The Rain” and more, with each song given a setting that underlines and amplifies its essential character. With regular bassist JT Coleman present throughout, Leach presides over a cast of musicians that includes Jason Johnson (banjo), Joshua Gooding (mandolin), labelmate Carley Arrowood (fiddle), banjoist Derek Vaden (Larry Stephenson Band), fiddlers Chris Sexton (Nothin’ Fancy) and Bryan McDowell, pedal steel guitarist Chris Castle (Darryl Worley), legendary drummer Tony Creasman, and longtime friend and colleague Roscoe Morgan on mandolin. Carefully tailored to the needs of the song, each configuration of supporting musicians serves to bring Leach’s varied approaches to life, from the straight ahead, blazing bluegrass of “Little Secret” to the rolling country rhythms of “High Tide.”

"The Alex Leach Band has entered a new season of growth this past year,” Leach notes, “and I couldn't be more excited to share this fresh music that has been created as a result. This album is full of original tunes that I recently penned. I was honored to collaborate with Jim Lauderdale, Jon Weisberger, and my wife, Miranda, on a few as well. There are several special guests on this album and everyone involved knocked it out of the park. Thanks to all those who have helped make this project a reality. This is the beginning of a new era for The Alex Leach Band, and we are ready to go 'all the way!' Sit back, crank the knob up, and enjoy!"

Listen to All The Way HERE.

Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records have long been on the leading edge of music technology, always adapting to the ever-changing landscape of music consumption. Now, the two labels — imprints of the Asheville, North Carolina-based Crossroads Label Group — are continuing to break new ground in the roots music world by announcing the delivery of their first round of releases in immersive audio, powered by Dolby Atmos.

Allowing listeners to feel as if they're inside the song itself, Dolby Laboratories’ Dolby Atmos is familiar to many from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters. It is described by the respected sound technology innovator as “revealing depth, clarity and details like never before….a sound experience you can feel all around you.”

“From vinyl, 8-tracks, cassettes, and CD’s, we have lived with mass reproduction techniques that limit and change the pristine sounds that were originally performed. Tone, dynamics, and clarity have always been sacrificed by the various formats. Dolby Atmos changes all of that,” says Crossroads’ Mickey Gamble. “Exhilarating performances can now be experienced by the mass audience with no artifacts whatsoever. It’s an entirely new world."

To begin, our labels are issuing immersive audio releases of top songs from this year by a collection of artists from across the labels' rosters: Balsam Range, Lonesome River Band, The Grascals, Sideline, Chris Jones & the Night Drivers, Unspoken Tradition, Jeremy Garrett, Tray Wellington and Jaelee Roberts. Then, Mountain Home and Organic will begin releasing new music in Dolby Atmos, beginning with Sister Sadie’s “Diane,” set to be released on September 30.

The creation of immersive audio releases is the primary task of a new California facility — informally dubbed “Studio C” — built for Dolby Atmos mixing and operated by Crossroads chief engineer Scott Barnett.

“Crossroads is constantly adapting and ready to embrace the latest technology and apply new strategies,” says Tim Trudeau, Syntax Creative’s CEO and member of the Music Business Association’s Advisory Committee. “They consistently blaze trails by being a leader in their space and are often the first to do new things before everyone else.”

As Dolby Atmos has been embraced from the music producing side, so have audio system manufacturers moved to supply listeners with devices that can deliver the immersive experience. Audio produced in Dolby Atmos adapts automatically to your Atmos-compatible device and system to give you an all-enveloping sound experience you would not expect, “revealing every detail of the music with unparalleled clarity and depth.”

Whether it's called Spatial Audio (Apple Music), UltraHD (Amazon Music) or just Dolby Atmos (TIDAL), fans can now enjoy the immersive audio experience with some of their favorite recent singles from Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records — and know that they'll be able to do so from now on.

Listen to Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records’ playlist, Immersed In Bluegrass, now on Apple Music.

Collaborative musical encounters between distinct artists have been woven into the fabric of bluegrass at least as far back as the in-studio meeting of Flatt & Scruggs with Doc Watson. So it was almost inevitable that, at some point, the idea would surface of bringing together musicians from the groups that make up the rosters of sister labels Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records. First laid on the table in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, when touring came to a halt and almost every musician’s calendar was suddenly wide open, the concept was quickly refined into what would become Bluegrass at the Crossroads: multiple groupings that would bring together players from different corners of the big bluegrass tent, from hard core traditional to edgy jamgrass; song choices focused on new, original songs; and a field of musicians broad enough to encompass not only label artists, but selected friends from the fertile musical territory around the labels’ Western North Carolina home.  

Now, Mountain Home and Organic have released an album of these songs to streaming services and digital sales platforms.

The collection brings together nearly a score of the best in and around today’s bluegrass — musicians from the Lonesome River Band to the Infamous Stringdusters, the Traveling McCourys to the Grascals and Sideline to Zoe & Cloyd; and from the award-winning Sammy Shelor and Kristin Scott Benson to instrumental stylists like Gina Furtado, Wayne Benson, Jeremy Garrett and Andy Leftwich, to distinctive singers such as Sav Sankaran, Darren Nicholson, Carley Arrowood and Travis Book. In many cases, these sessions were the first time these colleagues had even met, much less played together — and yet, whether they’re taking on the only canonical entry (Earl Scruggs’ “Ground Speed,” which earned one of the groups an IBMA Instrumental Recording of the Year trophy) or tackling songs never heard before, they fit together musically in a way that underlines their sensitivity to and appreciation of one another’s talents.

“Choosing the musicians for each of these groups was probably the most challenging aspect of producing Bluegrass at the Crossroads,” notes producer Jon Weisberger, who also co-wrote much of the project’s material with collaborators ranging from Garrett and Book to Craig Market and the award-winning Thomm Jutz. “But it was also the most exciting, and maybe even the most rewarding. The respect these artists had for one another was evident from the moment they got into the studio, and it was gratifying to get to introduce Travis Book to Sammy Shelor, to learn that this was the first time Sammy and Wayne Benson had been in the studio together, to see Darren Nicholson and Skip Cherryholmes huddling over an arrangement, to hear Gina Furtado and Chris Davis compare notes on their kids — every session was filled with moments like those, and I believe they left their mark on the music that was made. We are so thrilled to have all this music available in one set for listeners to enjoy!”

Listen to Bluegrass At The Crossroads on digital platforms HERE.

It’s been four long years since award-winning quintet Sister Sadie released their last album, and while the group’s hardly been idle — they took home the International Bluegrass Music Association’s top Entertainer of the Year award in 2020, Vocal Group of the Year trophies in 2019, 2020 and 2021, along with a miscellany of other honors, all while bringing three new members on board — the clamor for new music has only grown since then.

Now, with the release of “Diane,” their debut single for Mountain Home Music Company that they played at last night’s IBMA awards, the demand has been answered — and not only is the new record a sizzling hot slice of contemporary bluegrass, it’s the first bluegrass single to be released right out of the gate in immersive audio, powered by Dolby Atmos.  

With a stunning a capella opening that features new members Jaelee Roberts (guitar) and Mary Meyer (mandolin) alongside founding member Gena Britt (banjo), “Diane” is tailor-made for maximum listener impact as it unwinds a story co-written and first sung by country singer Cam, who described the 2017 single as a kind of answer to Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.” Offering up the lyric’s frank tale of infidelity told from the point of view of an unwitting “other woman,” the group barrels through a dynamic arrangement that alternates between vivid, commanding lead vocals from Roberts, powerful trio harmonies and driving instrumental passages that feature Meyer, Britt, fiddler Deanie Richardson and even bassist Hasee Ciacco.  

“Deanie introduced the song ‘Diane’ to the band after hearing Cam perform it on the Grand Ole Opry while she was in the staff band,” says the band. “Once we started gathering material to record, we knew we had to try it! It’s the perfect fit for us. It features the intricate harmony vocals that this band is drawn to and showcases some stellar playing as well from every member. We had a great time learning this one! Once we dug in, the ideas and excitement started pouring out of all of us. This is an incredibly fun song to play and the audience response has been dynamite!”

Listen to "Diane" HERE and find it on Mountain Home's spatial audio playlist, Immersed In Bluegrass, on Apple Music.

Jason Moore, the bassist for bluegrass powerhouse Sideline who passed away last fall, was named Bass Player of The Year at the International Bluegrass Music Association Awards held last week in Raleigh, North Carolina.

A founding member of Sideline who was instrumental in bringing the group to Mountain Home in 2017, Jason was a masterful and influential musician whose talent contributed immeasurably not only to Sideline’s music, but to Mountain Heart’s during his long tenure there, to the James King Band before that, and to a broad range of foundational bluegrass recordings made over the past quarter century.

Beyond his deep and enduring musical contributions, his warm, easygoing manner and passion for the music helped to quickly make him, his partners, Steve Dilling and Skip Cherryholmes, and the entire band an integral part of Mountain Home’s musical family.

Jason was also a man of whom it can truly be said that he was a friend to all in bluegrass, whether a long-time veteran or an aspiring newcomer. He is deeply missed, and we are deeply grateful to the IBMA voters who chose to honor his memory by giving him this final award.

“Heyday,” the title track from Lonesome River Band’s latest album, is No. 1 on this month’s Bluegrass Today radio chart.

A wistful reminiscence cast in the voice of a small town that’s “still sleepy but…still alive,” the song features new member Adam Miller (mandolin) on lead and subtle, sympathetic solos from fiddler Mike Hartgrove and guitarist Jesse Smathers.

“Many thanks to all the Bluegrass DJs and programmers for their support of ‘Heyday’!” says bandleader and banjoist Sammy Shelor. “This is a well-crafted song by Will and Barry Hutchens that says how I feel about our small towns in rural America."

"We don’t like what has happened to our small towns," Shelor continues, "and maybe this is our little contribution to helping the renovation, and bringing light to these forgotten places. We love Small Town America!”

"Heyday" is the second song from this album to reach the top of the chart, following "Mary Ann Is A Pistol." Both set the tone for the album as a collection of songs that serves both to introduce new members and to extend the group’s influential legacy even further.

Listen to "Heyday" and the rest of the album HERE.

For their fourth Mountain Home Music Company single, Benson — that’s the husband-wife duo of acclaimed mandolinist Wayne Benson and award-winning banjo player Kristin Scott Benson and a stellar supporting cast — double down on the bluegrass of their last release with a blistering take on a sleeper from the 1970s, “Red Mountain Wine.”

The single — out now — can be found in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL and has been added to Mountain Home's Immersed In Bluegrass playlist exclusively on Apple Music.

Though Benson’s rendition makes the song sound like a dyed-in-the-wool ‘grasser, and though it’s been found mostly in the repertoire of new old-time string bands, “Red Mountain Wine” actually came from the pen of Cajun country-rocker Floyd “Gib” Gilbeau, who wrote and recorded it in the early 1970s, shortly before joining the Flying Burrito Brothers. “This is an old song that a lot of people have done,” notes Wayne Benson, before adding, “But we know it from the Lost & Found,” a staple on the bluegrass festival circuit for over 40 years. “I believe one of Kristin's banjo students was playing it as part of her band, similar to the Lost & Found cut. Then, Kristin had the idea of speeding it up and turning it into a barnburner.”

For help in creating their own version, the Bensons turned to a couple of long-time friends — guitarist Cody Kilby (Travelin’ McCourys) and singer Mickey Harris (Rhonda Vincent & The Rage), with whom Kristin once worked in a band led by Mountain Home labelmate Chris Jones’ wife Sally — a more recent one in the person of fiddler Jim VanCleve, and a newer one still in bassist Paul Watson, who regularly appears in the band of another labelmate, Carley Arrowood. Starting with Kristin’s driving banjo, the cut races through the song’s 3 verses, alternating solos from the two principals and a final chorus before wrapping up, in true bluegrass fashion, just under the two minute mark.

“This one is straight-ahead bluegrass with plenty of mandolin and banjo playing,” Kristin Scott Benson summarizes. “Uptempo and lots of fun to play!”

Listen to "Red Mountain Wine" HERE.

He may be one of the most recorded fiddle players of the 21st century, but Mountain Home Music Company recording artist Andy Leftwich qualifies as a musician’s musician — widely admired by his peers and colleagues, yet still one of the best-kept secrets in and around the world of bluegrass music. With a list of credits that goes on for pages — he’s recorded for everyone from superstars like Taylor Swift and Alan Jackson to bluegrass stalwarts such as Dailey & Vincent, Larry Cordle and his long-time boss, Ricky Skaggs, to a miscellany of surprise hosts like Keb’ Mo’ — Leftwich’s catalog as a featured artist has, up until now, been sparse.

That begins to change with the release of The American Fiddler, a jaw-dropping collection of mostly original tunes that makes a compelling case for Leftwich as not only among the very best fiddlers playing today, but one of the very best mandolin players, too.

The album is out now on all streaming platforms, and one song — "Made In France" — is in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL and has been added to Mountain Home's Immersed In Bluegrass playlist on Apple Music.

From its opening (and title) track, which finds him deftly incorporating strands of bluegrass and Irish music, to the blend of old-time string band and new acoustic music in the closing “Through The East Gate,” the set rings a dozen changes on instrumental music that encompass a wide variety of moods and styles while flowing from a singularly unified creative vision. Says Leftwich, referring to the title track as an emblem for the overarching idea:

“Influenced by Irish and bluegrass fiddling, I wanted to write a piece of music that showcased both styles. The melody reminds me of the great instrumentals Ricky Skaggs has written over the years, so I couldn’t imagine recording this without him. There is so much heart and spirit behind each note that Ricky plays and it inspires me greatly! Thanks to my friend, Fionan Debarra (RUNA, Keith and Kristyn Getty) for the help on this arrangement. This song exemplifies what this entire project is all about, so I thought it was fitting for this to be the title cut.”

Joining Leftwich in pursuit of this musically sophisticated, yet deeply rooted goal is a stellar cast of musicians, each notable for their own contributions to new acoustic music and bluegrass. A non-exhaustive list begins with stalwarts Byron House and Mark Schatz on bass (the latter also contributes clawhammer banjo and dancing feet!), along with long-time friend and colleague Cody Kilby (Travelin’ McCourys) on guitar, and extends through notables like award-winning banjo player Scott Vestal and dobro player (and Three Ring Circle bandmate) Rob Ickes to mandolin great Sierra Hull — she and Leftwich dish up a blistering dual mandolin version of Bill Monroe’s “Big Mon” — and former employer and inspiration Ricky Skaggs. There’s even a searing version of “Sally Goodin,” one of the most widely traveled measures of a fiddler’s skill, recorded live with a crackerjack lineup of Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder toward the end of Leftwich’s long tenure with the group.

Intertwining echoes of Irish, bluegrass, old-time and even classical music into his originals, Leftwich claims a place among the foremost practitioners of modern, forward-facing yet traditionally-based string music. Whether it’s the contemporary mandolin arpeggios. that punctuate “Over Cincinnati”; the spiky racing melody of “Pikes Peak Breakdown”; the dreamily contemplative “Back to the Garden” or the alternating new old-time modal and Celtic flavors of “Kimper County,” these are rich compositions that, while they carry echoes of better-known colleagues’ work, bear his own and unmistakable stamp.  Even his recap of the centuries-old “Liberty,” a tune he used to play in contests as a youngster, gets an unexpected and delightful twist by the time it’s through.

“The songs on this album represent some of my favorite styles of fiddling that have been passed down from Scottish, Irish and Appalachian heritages,” says Leftwich. “The generations of fiddlers before me and the many talented musicians I’ve met along the way have all taught me something I could incorporate into my own playing, composing and arranging. My hope is that this album honors those influences and embodies all of the diverse elements that come together to make up The American Fiddler.”

Listen to The American Fiddler HERE.

For more than half his life and all of this century, singer/songwriter/mandolinist Ashby Frank’s been too busy to find the time for making a follow-up to his 1999 debut album. So it should come as no surprise that Leaving Is Believing, his first full-length for Mountain Home Music Company, reveals an artist who’s saved up a lot to say — and given the care and sheer creative range that Frank and a distinguished list of colleagues brought to the project, it will be no surprise if the collection is found, when it’s all said and done, to be standing among the strongest releases of the year.

Indeed, Leaving Is Believing (now available for pre-order, add or save ahead of its February 10 release) acts almost as a musical jigsaw puzzle, fitting together aspects of Frank’s musical identity that have been shown in different contexts and circumstances across his career into a single, multi-dimensional portrait. Those familiar with him as a writer of hits for artists like Junior Sisk, Dale Ann Bradley, Lindley Creek and more will be excited to learn that he’s an accomplished, expressive singer; those who know him from his work with the genre-busting Mountain Heart will find a musician at ease with the vocabulary of traditional bluegrass, while those who’ve seen him with Jerry Douglas’ Earls of Leicester will be introduced to an artist with an affinity for deep catalog modern country; and those who have chuckled at the hillbilly humor of the Darrell Brothers will be dazzled by his elegant, incisive mandolin playing.  

For listeners in each of the different audiences Frank has touched over the years, familiar names and musical voices offer signposts throughout the collection, from the opening “Any Trouble,” an entry from a 2011 Glen Campbell album that features bandmates from Mountain Heart (who appear throughout the album) and from the critically acclaimed Likely Culprits, to the whimsical original, “Paintball Gun,” with appearances by Douglas, Ronnie Bowman and the Travelin’ McCourys’ Jason Carter, to Tom Paxton’s folk and bluegrass classic, “Where I’m Bound,” which includes Bowman, John Cowan, and former Mountain Heart fiddler Jim VanCleve. Still, there’s never any doubt as to whose album Leaving Is Believing is, and what emerges is a compelling distillation of several decades’ worth of artistic exploration. Few artists have Frank’s unique sensibility, and even fewer have the skills and vision to knit together each of its elements into a project at once focused and kaleidoscopic.

“I started my first professional road gig as a musician the week before I turned 16 years old, and I’ve spent most of my time since then either behind a microphone or traveling to get to another one,” Frank recalls. “When I decided to make this album, I knew I wanted to gather songs that meant something to me and represented my musical journey. I also wanted to make sure that I recorded a variety of songs, including a couple of the more quirky tunes that I’ve been known to write. I am so fortunate to have Brandon Bostic as a co-producer and engineer on this project, because he saw and heard what I wanted to do from day one. We were able to include so many of my amazing musician friends, and they brought these songs to life in a way that I couldn’t have imagined before. I am so excited to share this album with everyone. I couldn’t be more proud of the entire project.”

Pre-order, add or save Leaving Is Believing HERE.

Nearly 40 years ago, the legendary Marshall Family’s David Marshall issued a remarkable yet under-appreciated album on Mountain Home Music Company. Out of print for years, Clearwaters has been newly mastered and will be released for the first time as a digital-only album, available for purchase or streaming on all platforms. It's now available for pre-save/add/order on those platforms ahead of its January 27 release.

Recorded at the Horizon Music Group studios in Asheville, North Carolina for the then-fledgling label, Clearwaters knit together profound Christian conviction and a deeply personal creativity in a rare musical fabric. Best known for his work with his family’s bluegrass gospel group, which released three albums back in the 1970s that served as inspiration to artists like The Isaacs, Alison Krauss and Rhonda Vincent, Marshall was a distinctive, emotive singer, a deliciously individualistic banjo, mandolin and guitar player, and the composer of songs that not only suited the Marshall Family, but found favor with the likes of bluegrass Hall of Famers Ralph Stanley and Larry Sparks.

Together with co-producer Tim Surrett, who would go on to help found the label’s flagship group, Balsam Range, he assembled a group of musicians that included returning members of the Family, studio wizards such as multi-instrumentalist David Johnson (who, like Surrett, had just finished recording with iconic guitarist Tony Rice), friends like J.P. Pennington of country chart topper Exile, and an assortment of bluegrass players and singers then just beginning their rise to prominence: six-time IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year, Dale Ann Bradley; ten-time IBMA Guitar Player of the Year Bryan Sutton; acclaimed singer and songwriter Steve Gulley; bassist Ben Isaacs (The Isaacs) and mandolinist Jeff Parker (Dailey & Vincent, Joe Mullins & the Radio Ramblers).

The result is a collection that ranges from Marshall’s inspired rewrite of old-time favorite “Hammer and Nails” to the contemplative closing instrumental, “Daddy’s Darlin’ Dream,” offering hope, redemption and deeply personal reflections on God’s grace and the promise of eternal life. And while Clearwaters offers an intriguing glimpse into the early careers of some of bluegrass and bluegrass gospel’s most beloved artists, it also sounds as fresh and original as it did on its first release, enhancing a musical legacy that has yet to win the acclaim it deserves.

Pre-save, add or order Clearwaters on digital platforms HERE.

It’s just a happy accident that it will be 25 years almost to the day between the original February, 1998 release of Larry Sparks’ all-gospel New Highway by Mountain Home Music Company and its February, 2023 digital only re-issue (now available for pre-save, add and order ahead of its February 24 release), but it’s also a useful reminder of the upward trajectory of the legendary singer and guitarist’s career.

For over those 25 years, Sparks’ stature has grown from that of a much-admired but insufficiently recognized master to a member of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame, inducted in 2015 by one of his biggest fans — Alison Krauss — and a widely hailed link between the music’s first generation and stars of today like Billy Strings, who frequently performs songs from the vast catalog Sparks has delivered over the past half century and counts a June, 2022 guest appearance with him at Nashville’s Station Inn as a career highlight.

Recorded at Mountain Home’s western North Carolina studios, New Highway found Sparks backed by a couple of regular band members — Scott Napier on mandolin and Jim Britton on banjo — and a couple of the label’s own stalwarts in Tim Surrett (bass) and multi-instrumentalist David Johnson (fiddle, dobro), as well as occasional contributors John Bowman (guitar) and Tricia Robertson (harmony vocals); as has often been the case in the studio, the pragmatic Sparks leaned toward solo vocals and handled most of the harmonies himself. In the same vein, the project features a collection of songs typical for Sparks, who has often made quick choices just in advance of recording — two each from Homer and Bruce Jackson; two from long-time colleague David Marshall of the Marshall Family; one, “The Old Love Letter,” that had been recorded just a couple of years earlier for a sister label to Mountain Home by Southern Gospel legends, The McKameys; a pair of standards in “Just A Closer Walk With Thee” and “When The Savior Reached Down For Me,” and a left-field choice of Mississippi Fred McDowell’s “Gotta Move,” here given a classically up-tempo bluegrass treatment. 

Regardless of source, each of these songs gets the quintessential Larry Sparks treatment: simple, sturdy arrangements that center on the master’s powerful yet nuanced approach to both guitar work and singing and an emotional, compelling delivery especially well suited to the album’s gospel messages. For while many brilliant musicians have passed through the ranks of his band, the Lonesome Ramblers, there has never been any doubt as to who’s in command, whether in the studio or on stage. Long out of print, New Highway is an important addition to a catalog that stands among the best bluegrass has to offer.

Pre-save, add or order New Highway on digital platforms HERE.

On the heels of 2022’s hit single, “Small Town America,” Danny Roberts — best known as a founder of and mandolinist for bluegrass powerhouse, The Grascals — returns with a somber meditation that takes its place in a long line of powerful country and bluegrass songs reflecting the hard, dangerous working life of underground coal miners.  

“‘How I Live, How I’ll Die’ started off as a Monroe-style instrumental that I had written several years ago,” Roberts recalls. “I really liked the melody and decided it would actually be well-suited for a vocal song, and it just felt like it should be about coal mining. I’ve never worked in a coal mine, but I have a good friend that grew up in West Virginia in a mining family, and my wife’s family is from Southwest Virginia with a coal mining legacy and the lyrics came from the stories that I heard from them. I basically had the song written but felt like there was just something missing so I sent it to my friend and great songwriter, Daryl Mosley, and he added just what I felt like the song needed. ‘How I Live, How I’ll Die’ has a bit of a spooky, lonesome sound and feel and I believe that’s exactly what it’s like living a coal miner’s life.”

That lonesome sound and feel kick in with the very first notes of “How I Live, How I’ll Die,” as Roberts’ mandolin and Tony Wray’s guitar invoke the old-time brother duets that preceded and influenced bluegrass. Even when the full band joins in — Wray adding touches of banjo alongside long-time friend (and Grascals co-founder) Jimmy Mattingly’s fiddle and Andrea Roberts’ bass — the song’s minimalist accompaniment accentuates and keeps the focus squarely on the song’s fatalistic lyric and Roberts’ stoic delivery:

I’m growing old while I’m still young
And breathing death into my lungs
A life that’s short but it seems so long
One day you’re here, the next day you’re gone

If “Small Town America” explored Roberts’ appreciation of the quiet joys and warmth of one side of rural American life, “How I Live, How I’ll Die” reveals — in an offering that exemplifies the intertwining of modern creativity and traditional expression — a deeply thoughtful, multi-dimensional artist well aware of its darker side, too.

Listen to "How I Live, How I'll Die" HERE.

To everything there is a season, the saying goes, and for Wayne and Kristin Scott Benson, the time has come — not to abandon the successful musical ventures they’ve been involved in for years, but to add a new one: their first truly collaborative effort under their own name. Already, the mandolin- and banjo-wielding couple have released four successful singles, and now they’re proud to announce their first full-length project for Mountain Home Music Company, Pick Your Poison, now available for pre-order, add and save.

The album, set to be released March 31, will be the first full-length collection from the label to be released in Dolby Atmos spatial audio, a sound experience you can feel all around you. Familiar from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters” Dolby Atmos reveals “depth, clarity and details like never before,” and can be streamed on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL.

Wayne Benson, long-time mandolinist for Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out and a sought-after session player and teacher, recounts the genesis of the album: “COVID changed a lot of things for musicians and not all of them were bad. I don't think we would have ever recorded this album, if we had just kept moving along normally, but COVID created some opportunities. For us, we thought the chance to record together with the downtime would be a good idea.”

Adds Kristin, the veteran banjo player for the Grascals and the recipient of five International Bluegrass Music Association Banjo Player of the Year awards as well as the prestigious Steve Martin Prize, “We're 22 years into our marriage, and this is our first joint effort musically, so it was a fun, new venture. Mickey Gamble at Mountain Home encouraged us to do this and we're so glad we did. It's yet another blessing, and we're very thankful for the opportunity.”

The couple made the most of the opportunity, bringing together an assortment of friends and colleagues to tackle a set list that reflects the breadth of their friendships, their musical interests — and of the whole group’s talents. Reaching back to Kristin’s early days, they tapped one-time bandmates Cody Kilby (Travelin’ McCourys) on guitar and Mickey Harris (Rhonda Vincent & The Rage) on both lead and harmony vocals, long-time friends Jamie Johnson (vocals), Jim VanCleve (fiddle) and Jon Weisberger (bass), as well as more recent members of their circle in singers Grayson Lane and Heath Williams, bassist Paul Watson (Carley Arrowood Band) and ace drummer Tony Creasman.

Those who don’t know the Bensons might expect the two instrumentalists to focus on hot picking and flashy licks, but the couple’s artistic depth and maturity took them in a different direction. There are, indeed, a couple of tasty instrumental numbers written by Wayne — a straight ahead bluegrass workout titled "The Fest Of Rudy,” a funky “Conway” and a dreamily melodic “Riverside” — but the bulk of Pick Your Poison finds the Bensons putting their talents in the service of a joint sensibility that dishes up more than a couple of surprises. There’s plenty of nothing-but-bluegrass, of course — the opening “Icy Cold,” drawn from the repertoire of Mickey Harris’ uncle, Carl Tipton, and second single “What Kind Of Fool Are You?” both sung by Lane, and Harris’ blistering take on “Red Mountain Wine” — but there’s room, too, for Johnson’s plaintive rendering of The Beatles’ “I’ll Follow The Sun,” as well as Williams’ head-turning leads on an early 80s Crystal Gayle hit, “Living In These Troubled Times,” Christian singer-songwriter Matthew West’s “Oh Me Of Little Faith” and an early 90s Bryan White cut, “Look At Me Now.”  

Yet whether the selection is right in the bluegrass groove or reaches into other musical realms, the duo and their supporting cast give it a reading that is at once sensitive and confident — a sure sign of their interpretive mastery and years of thoughtful artistry. Taken as a whole, Pick Your Poison both summarizes the winding paths that have brought them to this moment and points in a multitude of directions for further exploration.

“We're really proud of how this album turned out,” says Kristin. “The players and singers did an outstanding job and the roster mainly consists of longtime friends.”

Adds Wayne, “This record is a nice mixture of us, musically. It isn't exactly what Kristin would do or what I would do. I'm glad we documented a collaboration between the two of us.”

Pre-order, add or save Pick Your Poison HERE.  

The new year brings new music from rising young bluegrass artist, Carley Arrowood, whose 2022 debut album, Goin’ Home Comin’ On, turned heads with hits like the title track, gospel favorite “Jesus Drive The Train” and her blistering cover of Alison Krauss’ “Will You Be Leaving?”

“Deeper In Love,” her first single following the album, finds the singer and fiddle player working with producer Jim VanCleve and a mix of returning musicians and new ones. Among the former, husband Daniel Thrailkill contributes guitar and harmony vocals and sister Autumn Arrowood Watson is back to sing harmony, while the latter includes Nick Dumas (mandolin), the Foreign Landers’ Tabitha Benedict on banjo, and Jeff Partin (Rhonda Vincent & The Rage), who does double duty on dobro and bass. And though Arrowood draws from a wide circle for support, the song knits the cast’s disparate sensibilities into a rich blend that is at once fresh and familiar, as her confident, emotive voice, punctuated by sympathetic solos, glides over a gently flowing harmonic progression and insistent bluegrass beat to deliver the song’s easily relatable message.

“‘Deeper In Love’ is a new favorite from Josh Shilling and Bill Whyte,” Arrowood says, as she explains that the song “highlights the emotions felt by a traveling musician. It starts by talking about how long and lonely the road can feel when you’re away from the one you love, but ultimately emphasizes that the steady love and support from them is what keeps the artist going, causing her to fall deeper in love with him! My personal situation is a little different since my husband travels with me, but it’s still amazing to have his full and steady support as I pursue my dreams, as he has mine in his. We hope this song just makes you think about your favorite person and smile!”

Listen to "Deeper In Love" HERE.

Even the most storied performing career must eventually come to an end, and for The Primitive Quartet — for more than half a century, faithful practitioners of an acoustic musical ministry rooted in the traditional sounds of Appalachian mountain churches and communities — that time has finally come.  

As a farewell to their many fans — and in addition to Through The Years, their remarkable digital multi-volume retrospective series for Mountain Home Music Company  — the group is releasing their last set of studio recordings, Stay Their Arms, to digital platforms. The collection, which reveals a group as musically compelling and spiritually powerful as they were at their founding in 1973, is now available for digital pre-save, add and order ahead of its March 17 release.

Hewing to the sturdy, down-to-earth approach that has characterized their music since the beginning, Stay Their Arms maintains a resolute focus on heartfelt originals that retell timeless truths in ways that inspire and comfort — although, as if to reaffirm their place in tradition one last time, the Quartet includes two of the best-loved songs from the canon in Albert E. Brumley’s “If We Never Meet Again” and R. E. Winsett’s “Will You Meet Me Over Yonder.” Yet new or old, each song glows with the warmth of wood and wire — mandolin, guitar, dobro, fiddle and bass — and the simple, straightforward tones of the human voice, sincere and unadorned, exemplifying the deep appeal that earned the group the devotion of countless audiences over their many years.

“After 50 years of music ministry, our touring days are coming to an end,” says The Primitive Quartet. “We hope our music will live on and be a blessing by way of our recorded songs. We’re releasing Stay Their Arms, the final recording that we made, to all digital platforms. Thanks to all who have loved and supported us these many years. We love you all!”

Pre-order, add or save Stay Their Arms HERE.

It’s just a happy accident that today's digital only re-issue of Larry Sparks’ all-gospel New Highway is almost 25 years to the day from the original February, 1998 release by Mountain Home Music Company, but it’s also a useful reminder of the upward trajectory of the legendary singer and guitarist’s career.

For over those 25 years, Sparks’ stature has grown from that of a much-admired but insufficiently recognized master to a member of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame, inducted in 2015 by one of his biggest fans — Alison Krauss — and a widely hailed link between the music’s first generation and stars of today like Billy Strings, who frequently performs songs from the vast catalog Sparks has delivered over the past half century and counts a June, 2022 guest appearance with him at Nashville’s Station Inn as a career highlight.

Recorded at Mountain Home’s western North Carolina studios, New Highway found Sparks backed by a couple of regular band members — Scott Napier on mandolin and Jim Britton on banjo — and a couple of the label’s own stalwarts in Tim Surrett (bass) and multi-instrumentalist David Johnson (fiddle, dobro), as well as occasional contributors John Bowman (guitar) and Tricia Robertson (harmony vocals); as has often been the case in the studio, the pragmatic Sparks leaned toward solo vocals and handled most of the harmonies himself. In the same vein, the project features a collection of songs typical for Sparks, who has often made quick choices just in advance of recording — two each from Homer and Bruce Jackson; two from long-time colleague David Marshall of the Marshall Family; one, “The Old Love Letter,” that had been recorded just a couple of years earlier for a sister label to Mountain Home by Southern Gospel legends, The McKameys; a pair of standards in “Just A Closer Walk With Thee” and “When The Savior Reached Down For Me,” and a left-field choice of Mississippi Fred McDowell’s “Gotta Move,” here given a classically up-tempo bluegrass treatment.  

Regardless of source, each of these songs gets the quintessential Larry Sparks treatment: simple, sturdy arrangements that center on the master’s powerful yet nuanced approach to both guitar work and singing and an emotional, compelling delivery especially well suited to the album’s gospel messages. For while many brilliant musicians have passed through the ranks of his band, the Lonesome Ramblers, there has never been any doubt as to who’s in command, whether in the studio or on stage. Long out of print, New Highway is an important addition to a catalog that stands among the best bluegrass has to offer.

Listen to New Highway on digital platforms HERE.

If “Diane,” Sister Sadie’s first single for Mountain Home Music Company, showed that the IBMA award-winning, GRAMMY-nominated quintet could convincingly recast the 21st century country song into a ‘grass-shaped mold, their new single serves notice that they know just as well what to do with a straightforward bluegrass banger.  

Written by another IBMA award winner, Becky Buller, along with widely admired tunesmith Craig Market, “Well” offers a clever lyric delivered via a classic-sounding melody and archetypal two-chord construction. And while group co-founder Gena Britt has won much attention for her banjo playing, here she reminds listeners that she’s also a commanding singer as she unwinds the complaint of a woman who knows her lover doesn’t want her even as he refuses to tell her goodbye. Verse lyrics ring changes on multiple meanings of the title’s single word, while the chorus employs it as a call-and-response element to hammer the point home. Punctuated with plenty of Britt’s banjo and virtuosic soloing — even bassist Hasee Ciacco gets a moment to shine before the song’s last verse — it’s a masterful performance of a well-crafted song that is, while not without a few surprises, squarely in the bluegrass vein.

“This song was given to the band from an amazingly talented colleague of ours, Becky Buller,” Gena notes. “[Fiddler] Deanie [Richardson] brought it back from another songwriting session she had with Becky and sent it to me, saying she thought this song might fit my style of singing, which is straight ahead bluegrass. She was right — I could hear the arrangement in my head from the very first note. The song lends itself to the thought that sometimes people just don’t have conversations that should probably happen, or don’t make decisions that would make it a lot easier for both parties. As the songwriters, Becky and Craig Market allude to, sometimes people don’t know whether to end a relationship or just keep being miserable. When we went in the studio to cut this song, the energy and creativity was palpable.”

Adds Buller, “Writing with Craig Market is a dazzling experience; he’s one talented cat. With Gena on lead vocals, Sister Sadie musically channels all the frustration our protagonist in ‘Well’ is feeling at her sweetheart’s indecision. I do love me a mean bluegrass song, and Sister Sadie satisfies with this one.”

Listen to "Well" HERE.

About Sister Sadie
Sister Sadie, which launched in the wake of an ostensibly one-off show at Nashville’s World Famous Station Inn in 2012, has both embraced and transcended its all-female identity, earning acclaim that includes being named as the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year in 2020, as well as Vocal Group of the Year in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Members range from acclaimed veterans to rising newcomers, who have won individual recognition, too, with founding member and fiddle player Deanie Richardson named as Fiddle Player of the Year in 2020 and banjo player/vocalist Gena Britt — SPBGMA’s reigning Banjo Player of the Year — having participated in three award-winning collaborative projects.The lineup is rounded out by 2021 IBMA Momentum Vocalist of the Year and Mountain Home recording artist Jaelee Roberts (guitar) and in-demand bassist Hasee Ciacco (Molly Tuttle, Laurie Lewis & the Right Hands). The band’s previous release, Sister Sadie II, earned them a GRAMMY nomination for Best Bluegrass Album in 2019.

For their first single following their run of eight No. 1 songs, Chris Jones & The Night Drivers released “The Price Of Falling,” an energetic slice of straight-up bluegrass. Now, that song has followed suit and reached the No. 1 spot itself on Bluegrass Today, the same day the band premiered their music video filmed in Asheville, North Carolina.

“This was our first release from what will be the second album by this lineup of the band, so it was thrilling for us to have the song go to No. 1. It continued a No. 1 streak for us and made us feel like we were starting off on the right foot!” says Jones. “We had so much fun recording this song and the same was true for the video. Playing together in that historic Asheville ballroom with the beautiful light streaming in through the windows got us in just the right frame of mind for it.”

With its intricate yet organically flowing arrangement and the cautiously optimistic, yet wry wisdom of its lyric, “The Price Of Falling” fits easily into the Jones canon. Backed by the Night Drivers — veteran mandolinist Mark Stoffel, Grace van’t Hof on banjo and award-winning bassist Marshall Wilborn — Jones delivers a meditation on the delicious uncertainty of new love over an insistent bluegrass beat. Alternating solos over the hooky chord changes of the chorus’s back half punctuate elegant lead and harmony vocals, creating musical momentum that reflects the headlong rush of emotions offered in the lyric:

Nothing’s ever gonna be the same
And it’s good and it’s not
You’ll learn to take the pleasure with the pain
Cold and hot
Sometimes an easy road
Other times you pay for your heart’s calling
The price of falling

“This is just an upbeat kind of song I wrote about the highs and lows of falling in love,” says Jones. “One way or the other, it changes how your world looks, whether it’s your first crush at age 7 or the more experienced version! We really had fun with this one in the studio.”

Watch the video for “The Price Of Falling” above and stream it wherever you listen to music HERE.

It’s been a long time since listeners have heard new music from Mountain Home Music Company’s The Cleverlys, but the irrepressible bluegrass-based humorists are finally back — and with a bang at that, dropping not one, but two new singles that will delight their fans and likely make them some new ones, too.

Following in the vein of their inspired bluegrass remakes of songs like Justin Bieber’s “Baby,” Beyoncé’s “Irreplaceable” and Kelis’ “Milkshake,” Paul “Digger Cleverly” Harris and his crew reach back some 20 years to make the Black Eyed Peas’ GRAMMY-winning “Let’s Get It Started” into a dobro, banjo and bass-driven rave-up that manages to be at once delightfully off-kilter and yet faithful to the spirit, if not the sonic palette of the original. Says Digger, “It’s a big risk taking on a song like, ‘Let’s Get It Started,’ being that it’s such a huge backwoods anthem and the Black Eyed Peas are steeped in Bluegrass tradition. I hope we were able to do it justice.”

"Let's Get It Started" is available in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Allowing listeners to feel as if they're inside the song itself, Dolby Atmos is familiar to many from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters. It is described by the respected sound technology innovator as “revealing depth, clarity and details like never before….a sound experience you can feel all around you.” Audio produced in Dolby Atmos adapts automatically to your Atmos-compatible device and system to give you an unexpected, all-enveloping sound experience.

On the flip side, The Cleverlys turned to an even older song: Steve Earle’s “Hillbilly Highway,” a 1986 single that helped to launch what Earle himself called “the great credibility scare” of late 80s country music. Here Digger and his nephews — Ricky Lloyd, Dale Vernon Dale and Steven Tyler Dale — along with his younger brother, Waspur, dish up their own kind of credibility, backing the twangy lead vocal with straight-ahead bluegrass picking and harmonies that make theirs the most down-home version yet.  As Digger notes, “Many of us get the story behind ‘Hillbilly Highway.’ It’s somewhat autobiographical. My grandpa, dad and I have all driven down the ‘Hillbilly Highway’ — then we crossed the double yellow and failed a series of tests, which led to my grandpa’s truck being impounded and a body cavity search. A day that we will never forget.”

Audience favorites at the Grand Ole Opry, where they earn standing ovations with every appearance, The Cleverlys are a unique — and uniquely entertaining — presence in popular music.  With the release of “Let’s Get It Started” and “Hillbilly Highway,” they are back — and while Digger Cleverly might add “for better or for worse,” there’s no doubt that fans are ready and waiting.

Listen to "Let's Get It Started" HERE and "Hillbilly Highway" HERE.

About The Cleverlys

The Cleverlys’ show is a one-of-a-kind comedy and music experience that consists of Dr. Digger and his nephews, Ricky Lloyd, Dale Vernon Dale and Steven Tyler Dale, along with Dr. Digger’s younger brother, Waspur. The New York Times wrote, “If Dolly Parton, Earl Scruggs and Spinal Tap spawned a litter of puppies, it would be The Cleverlys.” Their unique comedy and high-level musicianship has landed them on the stages of some of the largest festivals in the country, like Stagecoach, CMAfest, Telluride, RockyGrass, PAC’s, theaters and even the Grand Ole Opry.

Even the most storied performing career must eventually come to an end, and for The Primitive Quartet — for more than half a century, faithful practitioners of an acoustic musical ministry rooted in the traditional sounds of Appalachian mountain churches and communities — that time has finally come.

As a farewell to their many fans — and in addition to Through The Years, their remarkable digital multi-volume retrospective series for Mountain Home Music Company  — the group has released their last set of studio recordings, Stay Their Arms to digital platforms. The collection reveals a group as musically compelling and spiritually powerful as they were at their founding in 1973.

Hewing to the sturdy, down-to-earth approach that has characterized their music since the beginning, Stay Their Arms maintains a resolute focus on heartfelt originals that retell timeless truths in ways that inspire and comfort — although, as if to reaffirm their place in tradition one last time, the Quartet includes two of the best-loved songs from the canon in Albert E. Brumley’s “If We Never Meet Again” and R. E. Winsett’s “Will You Meet Me Over Yonder.” Yet new or old, each song glows with the warmth of wood and wire — mandolin, guitar, dobro, fiddle and bass — and the simple, straightforward tones of the human voice, sincere and unadorned, exemplifying the deep appeal that earned the group the devotion of countless audiences over their many years.

“After 50 years of music ministry, our touring days are coming to an end,” says The Primitive Quartet. “We hope our music will live on and be a blessing by way of our recorded songs. We’ve released Stay Their Arms, the final recording that we made, to all digital platforms. Thanks to all who have loved and supported us these many years. We love you all!”

Listen to Stay Their Arms on digital platforms HERE.

About The Primitive Quartet
The Primitive Quartet began in 1973, when two sets of Western North Carolina brothers, Reagan and Larry Riddle and Furman and Norman Wilson, carried a guitar and mandolin with them on a fishing trip, where they discovered a love and a gift for harmony singing. With the encouragement of their parents and pastor, they began to sing together at area churches as the Riddle-Wilson Quartet. In 1978, with the decision to devote themselves to a full-time musical ministry, the group said goodbye to Furman Wilson, welcomed Reagan and Larry’s brother, Mike, into the group and renamed themselves as The Primitive Quartet. As their career developed, the Quartet added Indiana-born singer and instrumentalist Randy Fox in 1986 and, a decade later, another North Carolinian, Jeff Tolbert — first as an instrumentalist and then, with the passing of Norman Wilson in 2014, as a singer. Over the years, The Primitive Quartet has toured across the United States and overseas, recorded scores of albums, released more than a dozen videos and DVDs, and made their “Hominy Valley Singing Grounds” in Candler, North Carolina, into a popular home for gospel singing events. 

To everything there is a season, the saying goes, and for Wayne and Kristin Scott Benson, the time has come — not to abandon the successful musical ventures they’ve been involved in for years, but to add a new one: their first truly collaborative effort under their own name. Already, the mandolin- and banjo-wielding couple have released four successful singles, and now they’re proud to release their first full-length project for Mountain Home Music Company, Pick Your Poison.

The album is the first full-length collection from the label to be released in Dolby Atmos spatial audio, a sound experience you can feel all around you. Familiar from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters” Dolby Atmos reveals “depth, clarity and details like never before,” and can be streamed on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL.

Wayne Benson, long-time mandolinist for Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out and a sought-after session player and teacher, recounts the genesis of the album: “COVID changed a lot of things for musicians and not all of them were bad. I don't think we would have ever recorded this album, if we had just kept moving along normally, but COVID created some opportunities. For us, we thought the chance to record together with the downtime would be a good idea.”

Adds Kristin, the veteran banjo player for the Grascals and the recipient of five International Bluegrass Music Association Banjo Player of the Year awards as well as the prestigious Steve Martin Prize, “We're 22 years into our marriage, and this is our first joint effort musically, so it was a fun, new venture. Mickey Gamble at Mountain Home encouraged us to do this and we're so glad we did. It's yet another blessing, and we're very thankful for the opportunity.”

The couple made the most of the opportunity, bringing together an assortment of friends and colleagues to tackle a set list that reflects the breadth of their friendships, their musical interests — and of the whole group’s talents. Reaching back to Kristin’s early days, they tapped one-time bandmates Cody Kilby (Travelin’ McCourys) on guitar and Mickey Harris (Rhonda Vincent & The Rage) on both lead and harmony vocals, long-time friends Jamie Johnson (vocals), Jim VanCleve (fiddle) and Jon Weisberger (bass), as well as more recent members of their circle in singers Grayson Lane and Heath Williams, bassist Paul Watson (Carley Arrowood Band) and ace drummer Tony Creasman.

Those who don’t know the Bensons might expect the two instrumentalists to focus on hot picking and flashy licks, but the couple’s artistic depth and maturity took them in a different direction. There are, indeed, a few of tasty instrumental numbers written by Wayne — a straight ahead bluegrass workout titled "The Fest Of Rudy,” a funky “Conway” and a dreamily melodic “Riverside” — but the bulk of Pick Your Poison finds the Bensons putting their talents in the service of a joint sensibility that dishes up more than a couple of surprises. There’s plenty of nothing-but-bluegrass, of course — the current radio single and opening song “Icy Cold,” drawn from the repertoire of Mickey Harris’ uncle, Carl Tipton, and second single “What Kind Of Fool Are You?” both sung by Lane, and Harris’ blistering take on “Red Mountain Wine” — but there’s room, too, for Johnson’s plaintive rendering of The Beatles’ “I’ll Follow The Sun,” as well as Williams’ head-turning leads on an early 80s Crystal Gayle hit, “Living In These Troubled Times,” Christian singer-songwriter Matthew West’s “Oh Me Of Little Faith” and an early 90s Bryan White cut, “Look At Me Now.”

Yet whether the selection is right in the bluegrass groove or reaches into other musical realms, the duo and their supporting cast give it a reading that is at once sensitive and confident — a sure sign of their interpretive mastery and years of thoughtful artistry. Taken as a whole, Pick Your Poison both summarizes the winding paths that have brought them to this moment and points in a multitude of directions for further exploration.

“We're really proud of how this album turned out,” says Kristin. “The players and singers did an outstanding job and the roster mainly consists of longtime friends.”

Adds Wayne, “This record is a nice mixture of us, musically. It isn't exactly what Kristin would do or what I would do. I'm glad we documented a collaboration between the two of us.”

Listen to Pick Your Poison HERE.

About Benson
Benson is a collaborative effort between two of bluegrass music's most treasured instrumentalists: Wayne and Kristin Scott Benson. With decades of experience in top-tier bands, both have established themselves as stalwarts in the community. After years of paving separate musical paths, the two finally decided it was time to integrate their identities and create something new together. Benson is their first combined effort, despite having been married for over 20 years.

Wayne Benson is a 25-year veteran of the seven-time IBMA Vocal Group of the Year, Russell Moore and IIIrd Tyme Out. He is on the short list of mandolin players who have signature models with Gibson Musical Instruments.

Kristin Scott Benson is a five-time IBMA Banjo Player of the Year and recipient of the Steve Martin Award for Excellence in Bluegrass and Banjo. She has been a member of the GRAMMY-nominated Grascals since 2008. 

Hot on the heels of his chart-topping single, “Arkansas Without You,” and the uplifting message of his “Leave It In The Hands of the Lord,” Darren Nicholson returns to complete a bluegrass trifecta of sorts — murder ballad, gospel song and instrumental — with a sly instrumental, “Dillsboro Blues,” serving up a healthy dose of virtuosity in a package that puts a few neat curves into an otherwise straightforward musical road.  

Starting out with Bill Monroe-inspired mandolin trills over a walking bass rhythm, “Dillsboro Blues” quickly re-settles into a steady mid-tempo groove laid down by bassist Zachary Smith (Town Mountain) and guitarist Colby Laney, underpinning Nicholson’s exposition of the tune’s slinky A part and Latin-flavored B section. Solos from fiddle phenom Billy Contreras (Béla Fleck, Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder), Laney and the Sam Bush Band’s Wes Corbett (banjo) follow — deftly mingling snatches of Nicholson’s melody with inspired flights of improvisational fancy — before Nicholson returns to drive the performance home.

“‘Dillsboro Blues’ is a tune I wrote in honor of my mother,” says Nicholson. “Dillsboro is the little town in Western North Carolina where she was born and raised. It’s known for a train depot as well as the famous Jarrett House Bed and Breakfast. My mom grew up in hard times. The tune, to me, represents struggles — the ups and downs of a hard life and the willingness to keep fighting to persevere. She’s got true grit and is an inspiration to me. It’s a hillbilly, moody blues tune. Love you, Mom!”

Listen to "Dillsboro Blues" HERE.

Banjo player, singer and songwriter Gina Furtado’s distinctive original songs are an aspect of her music that has won her a boatload of bluegrass airplay. Still, she’s an equally distinctive interpreter, as her previous single, a tip of the hat to African-American gospel favorites, the Golden Gate Quartet, showed — and now she’s following up with another tribute, this time to a couple of bluegrass giants: Bill Monroe and Hazel Dickens.

Recorded with her Gina Furtado Project and special guest Wayne Benson (mandolin), “True Life Blues” is a fresh take on a song that dates back to the music’s earliest days — in fact, even earlier, as it was first recorded by Monroe in early 1945, not long before what’s widely considered the “Big Bang” of bluegrass; his version featured his band’s first female member, accordionist and singer Wilene “Sally Ann” Forrester, though it was Monroe himself, along with singer Tex Willis, who delivered the song’s lament for the misfortunes of married life for too many women.

Monroe continued to perform the song for many years, even re-recording it in the 1980s, but it gained new life — and a sharper edge — when recorded in the mid-1970s for the final album made by Hall of Fame duo, Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard. Their version, which closed out the album, featured a typically powerful tenor vocal from Dickens, as well as banjo from former Blue Grass Boy Lamar Grier and mandolin by another Hall of Famer, Mike Seeger. Furtado’s take, produced by fellow banjoist Kristin Scott Benson, retains the classic instrumental lineup of both, but takes a more modern approach by splitting solos between fiddle and mandolin, then guitar and banjo, and serves up a closely matched sibling duet from Gina and sister Malia. The result both nods in unmistakable ways to the classic recordings that inspired it and brings new perspectives and sounds in a well-balanced blend.

“It was fun to honor two of my favorites, Bill Monroe and Hazel Dickens, with one song,” says Furtado. “As a very happy ex-housewife, this song sure feels relatable! As always, I feel so lucky to have been joined by some incredible pickers: Malia Furtado (fiddle), Lu Furtado (bass), Drew Matulich (guitar), and Wayne Benson (mandolin).”

Listen to "True Life Blues" HERE.

About The Gina Furtado Project

Formed by innovative artist Gina Furtado, The Gina Furtado Project brings unique musicianship and songwriting that breaks free from the assumed constructs of traditional music modalities and makes a new musical statement influenced by emotion, played with the highest skill, and expressing an enormous verve and vitality.

Furtado, known for her work as the banjo player for Chris Jones & The Night Drivers, has a long history with her banjo. Born and raised in Front Royal, Virginia, Gina began touring up and down the east coast in her tween years with her siblings, earning countless ribbons from fiddlers conventions, a strong reputation in the regional bluegrass scene, and a stamp from Bluegrass Today as “absurdly talented.” She later played in a number of regional acts before making her international touring debut with Chris Jones and the Night Drivers soon after joining the group in 2016.

While touring, she is joined by Drew Matulich on guitar and her sisters Malia Furtado, on violin and Lu Furtado on bass, and each brings experience and energy to the band.

Now based in Asheville, NC, Matulich grew up in Georgia and began playing guitar at 8.  While studying music in college he performed with several bands of various styles in and around Georgia and Florida before immersing himself in the Bluegrass scene of Western North Carolina. He has toured and recorded with Billy Strings, made a guest appearance on Roland White's album and shared the stage with the likes of David Grisman, Bryan Sutton, Sam Bush, Cody Kilby, and Sierra Hull.

Malia’s musical journey began at the age of 3 with classical violin lessons and took a turn, when she attended her first festival, Galax Old Fiddlers Convention, a few years later. Since then, she has performed with a number of different groups, taken home a range of prizes, graced the stage of numerous venues up and down the East Coast and given private lessons in both bluegrass and classical playing. Malia is the Director of Education at the Front Porch Music School in Charlottesville, VA, and currently teaches adult continued education courses in bluegrass fiddle at Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave, VA.

Lu Furtado has been attending bluegrass and old time music festivals since she was born. She began playing multiple instruments at the age of ten, and has been a winner at the Galax Old Fiddlers Convention playing the Clawhammer banjo, as well as flat foot dancing. She has toured and recorded with multiple bands of varying styles, including Banana Express and the Hi Flyers. She taught banjo for several years at the Galax Elementary School and private music lessons for many years. She brings double trouble to the Gina Furtado Project with her silky, low harmony vocals as well as her stylish, groovy bass playing.

Already well into a busy touring season that includes high-profile performances from Tahoe’s Winter Wondergrass to upstate New York’s Grey Fox festival, banjo phenom Tray Wellington is back with his first new music since last summer’s acclaimed Black Banjo (Mountain Home Music Company) — and for the first time, he’s got his band with him. With plenty of performances already behind them — the group was assembled during the run-up to Black Banjo’s release — the Tray Wellington Band is a tight-knit quartet of young players who provide plenty of musical muscle to push in all the directions the versatile bandleader is intent on going.  

Case in point, the new single: “Pursuit of Happiness,” a bold cover of the massive 2009 Kid Cudi hit. A deliciously creative arrangement engineered by the band — Wellington, bassist Katelynn Bohn, Josiah Nelson (mandolin, fiddle) and guitarist Nick Weitzenfeld — offers a startling revisioning of the original, transforming its electronic and processed elements into acoustic equivalents that maintain the urgency and edginess of the original in earthier tones. Wellington handles the verses’ mix of rapped and sung passages with unexpected yet unsurprising mastery, while Nelson’s and Weitzenfeld’s vocals come to the fore in memorable choruses. An extended outro features all of the vocalists, Bohn’s rumbling bowed bass, foot stomps and handclaps as the song subsides into a wistful, almost melancholy ending that accentuates the subtly somber aspects of the song.

With its organic tones, and deft alternation between complex, layered textures and more airy ones, listening to “Pursuit of Happiness” in the immersive audio format of Dolby Atmos is an especially engaging experience. Dolby Atmos spatial audio is a sound experience you can feel all around you. Familiar from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters” Dolby Atmos reveals “depth, clarity and details like never before,” and can be streamed on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL.

“In the past couple years the importance of appreciating hip hop for the poetic art form it is has been very developmental in my musical progress,” Wellington notes. “One artist I instantly felt drawn towards when starting that journey was Kid Cudi; with his unique sense of harmony and touching lyrical style, it really spoke to me. When I heard ‘Pursuit of Happiness,’ I fell in love, as it touched on issues we all struggle with in life — and with mental health ever present in everyone’s life, the ‘Pursuit of Happiness’ in today’s world is one of the most important and necessary journeys to embark on.”

Listen to "Pursuit Of Happiness" HERE.

Though Mountain Home Music Company’s Carley Arrowood is a compelling singer — for proof, look no further than her last single, “Deeper In Love” — she’s also a virtuosic instrumentalist who got her first gigs as a player. Like many of her fiddle heroes, she’s not only an interpreter of tunes old and new, but a gifted composer of them, too. And as a native of Western North Carolina with an appreciation both for its natural mountain beauty and its cultural legacy, it’s no surprise that she would turn for inspiration to a story set there when titling her latest single, a fiery instrumental called “Tsali’s Run.”

“I wrote this tune last summer as a fun attempt at something with a Celtic/bluegrass feel,” says Arrowood. “Little did we know it would come to have a Cherokee title! Last June, [husband] Daniel [Thrailkill] and I went on our first anniversary trip to Cherokee, NC, and saw ‘Unto These Hills’ as a part of it. I have a little Cherokee in my veins, and it was so moving to learn more about Tsali, a Cherokee hero who gave up his life to save the rest of his people before the Trail of Tears took place. He and his two oldest sons willingly surrendered to a firing squad after running ‘unto the hills’ to hide. Go see the play if you haven't! This tune found its name when we got home from our trip, as we both could just picture Tsali and his boys running through the woods. The studio band was incredible, and Tony Creasman made the song feel extra chilling with his hand drum.”

The band Arrowood refers to here was first heard on “Deeper In Love”: Thrailkill on guitar, Jeff Partin (Rhonda Vincent & the Rage) on bass and resonator guitar, Nick Dumas (mandolin) and banjo player Tabitha Benedict (the Foreign Landers), along with legendary session drummer Creasman, with master fiddler Jim VanCleve in the producer’s chair. From the pronounced Celtic flavor of the tune’s jig time opening into the rapid-fire bluegrass reel of the track’s remainder, each of the soloists offers a different creative take on the tune’s dazzlingly arpeggiated melody, underlining the desperate story of the tune’s namesake. It’s a timely reminder of Arrowood’s growing capabilities as an arranger and musical leader, as well as offering further insight into her deep feel for her instrument — all wrapped up in a performance that captivates with every note.

“If you listen closely,” Arrowood points out in closing, “you'll hear three subtle crash cymbals as the song closes, and they mimic the sound of the gunshots that marked the bitter but courageous end of Tsali and his boys. ‘Tsali's Run’ is so energetic and thrilling to play, and I hope that listeners will love and be moved by it as we are.”

Listen to "Tsali's Run" HERE.

Back with their first new music for Mountain Home Music Company since 2022’s Imaginary Lines, a collection that contained a remarkable seven charting singles, bluegrass powerhouse Unspoken Tradition highlights the distinctive voice of bassist Sav Sankaran on “Moments,” a reflection on the enduring power of memories and their touchstones.

The western North Carolina quintet creatively updates Sankaran’s original take on the song, which he first recorded some 10 years ago — auspiciously enough, at the very same Crossroads studio in Arden. And though they follow the contours of the earlier arrangement, the group — banjoist Zane McGinnis, Ty Gilpin (mandolin), fiddler Tim Gardner and Audie McGinnis (guitar) — leverage their years of playing together to create a performance with a deeply organic feel, while the latter adds an extra measure of soulfulness with a harmony vocal that masterfully complements Sankaran’s reading.

“I'm so happy to be giving ‘Moments’ a second life,” enthuses the singer. “I originally recorded this song, written by our producer, Jon Weisberger and Andy Hall of the Infamous Stringdusters, on my solo album, and in the intervening years it has grown to be one of my favorites. I think my own journey reflects the subject material — with more than a decade of hindsight, it takes on a different meaning in thinking about how fleeting time can seem, how the moments of our lives can ‘turn us all around, lift us up or knock us down.’ I'm excited for Unspoken Tradition to put our own spin on this poignant song!”

Favoring material that encompasses more than songs of lost love, nostalgia and other staple subjects of the modern bluegrass songbook, Unspoken Tradition has long been known for thoughtful songs that address a wider range of themes; with “Moments,” they burnish that reputation still further.

Listen to "Moments" HERE.

About Unspoken Tradition

Unspoken Tradition is about new, original Bluegrass. Inspired by their own influences and the roots of traditional and newgrass music, this North Carolina based quintet brings a sound that is both impassioned and nostalgic, hard-driving and sincere.

Seven singles from their 2022 album Imaginary Lines charted in the Bluegrass Today top 20 including “California” at No. 1, “Irons in the Fire” at No. 2 and “Carolina and Tennessee” at No. 4. Their 2019 release, Myths We Tell Our Young, debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Bluegrass charts and saw five top-charting radio singles, including a No. 1 on the Bluegrass Today chart with “Dark Side of the Mountain.”

Unspoken Tradition’s material is mostly original and reflects the ever-changing culture of Western and Central North Carolina where they call home. The band has earned a fervent following in the Southeast, selling out shows in Asheville, NC as well as the legendary Station Inn in Nashville, TN. They have also performed twice on the coveted Watson (main stage) at MerleFest. With heavy airplay on Sirius XM’s Bluegrass Junction and ever-growing streaming numbers, Unspoken Tradition is a fast-rising voice of a new generation of roots music artists.

When Mark Stoffel released his all-instrumental Coffee & Cake in 2020, Bluegrass Unlimited called him “a road-seasoned bluegrass mandolinist in peak form,” while Country Standard Time pronounced the album “charming,” and several of its distinctive numbers popped up on airplay charts. Now the German-born southern Illinois resident is back with his first new music, an aptly named “Curious Times” that distills what he calls the “somber vibe of uncertainty” pervading the spring of 2020 into an elegant composition.

“The tune came to me one morning during the early days of COVID lockdown in 2020,” Stoffel recalls. “The somber vibe of uncertainty that many of us felt that year has definitely found its way into the melody of the tune. Hence, the title: ‘Curious Times’! I finally got a chance to record it a couple years later at Crossroads Studios in Arden, North Carolina, and I just love how all the players really captured the mood of that tune.”

“Curious Times” features some of Stoffel’s favorite collaborators: labelmate and former fellow Night Driver Gina Furtado (banjo), Irish fiddler Niall Murphy (whom both Stoffel and Furtado first met on a 2018 Chris Jones & the Night Drivers tour of the island), guitarist Chris Luquette (Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen), longtime collaborator Ross Sermons (bass) and legendary studio drummer Tony Creasman.  Neatly bookended by two contrasting snippets of one of its melodic themes — the differences in time signatures and tones forming a sort of musical pun on the title’s “Times” — the tune is characteristic of Stoffel’s approach, with three sections each containing a distinctive melody and rhythm, yet all related to one another. And in a characteristically sophisticated move, though mandolin, banjo and fiddle each take a turn at leading through the form, the return of the mandolin signals a more elaborate arrangement that builds in energy until a closing passage leads to the final twist.
“Somber, but upbeat — Bluegrass with a dash of Celtic,” Stoffel says with a smile. “I couldn’t be happier about how it turned out. Hope you like it!”

"Curious Times" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, TIDAL and Amazon Music. Dolby Atmos is a sound experience you can feel all around you. Familiar from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters” Dolby Atmos reveals “depth, clarity and details like never before."

Listen to "Curious Times" HERE.

Since the release of Mountain Home Music Company album, Blue, The Cleverlys have been busy bringing their one-of-a-kind musical comedy experience to delighted audiences at the Grand Ole Opry (where they always get a standing ovation), Stagecoach, CMAfest, Telluride, RockyGrass and more stages and festivals across the country. And while the humor of Dr. Digger and his “family” members is certainly at the forefront, make no mistake: The Cleverlys’ music stands on its own with the instrumental chops expected from any top bluegrass group.

The Cleverlys continued to back up their reputation earlier this year with the releases of their takes on the Black Eyed Peas’ GRAMMY-winning “Let’s Get It Started” and Steve Earle’s 1986 single, “Hillbilly Highway.” Now, they announce their upcoming album, Solid Butter, which is sure to meet fans’ expectations set by their past remakes of songs at the forefront of popular culture. The album is now available for pre-save/add ahead of its July 28 release.

This time, they reach across decades, kicking off the album with Dr. John’s “Right Place, Wrong Time,” from 1973; adding in ‘80s hits like John Anderson’s “Black Sheep” and “Love Shack” from The B-52’s; making a stop in the 90s with Radiohead’s “Creep” and then moving on to the 2010s and beyond with Ed Sheeran’s “Shape Of You,” Psy’s “Gangnam Style” and “Fly As Me” from Silk Sonic, the duo comprised of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak.

The Cleverlys even throw in an original, here, with Dr. Digger’s “Climbing Up,” which fits seamlessly into the mix of songs turned bluegrass from their spot atop pop music’s charts.

Adding to what is already a unique listen, Solid Butter will be released in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, TIDAL and Amazon Music. Allowing listeners to feel as if they're inside the song itself, Dolby Atmos is familiar to many from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters. It is described by the respected sound technology innovator as “revealing depth, clarity and details like never before….a sound experience you can feel all around you.” Audio produced in Dolby Atmos adapts automatically to your Atmos-compatible device and system to give you an unexpected, all-enveloping sound experience.

Says Dr. Digger about the album, “You know when you’re down at the creek or at your cousin’s trailer or when you and Bumpy are road huntin’ or pitching horse shoes or when y’all’s at Fifty Six at a jackpot bull riding with Rusty, Buck, Killer and Beaner or when you’re grab hookin’ suckers at Lock 3 with Big Jim, Batten and Red or when you’re laying in the bed of your truck down at the Pour Off with a hippie girl you met at Folkfest or when y’all are riding backwards on that bucking machine behind the vet clinic with Martyjuana’s old bull rope or when you’re in your truck with someone you care about, possibly alone, or about to meet someone and you’re just like, ‘This would be a whole lot better if we had a little butter on the situation?’ Well, here’s a big ol block of SOLID BUTTER for you and yours from Dr. Digger and The Cleverlys.”

As they’ve proven with their past releases, The Cleverlys are a unique — and uniquely entertaining — presence in popular music, a place they’ll keep with this new collection.

Pre-save/add Solid Butter HERE.

After spending two weeks at the top of Bluegrass Today's weekly chart, Balsam Range's latest single, "What The Years Do," has reached No. 1 on the monthly chart, too.

On “What The Years Do,” the band's first new single in over a year, the quintet not only offered a song as powerfully moving as any they’ve done, they also introduced acclaimed mandolinist Alan Bibey as the first new member of the group since it was founded over 15 years ago.

"I'm so honored and excited to see 'What The Years Do' hit No. 1!" says Buddy Melton, vocalist and fiddler. "It's just one of those songs I truly felt connected to and I'm so grateful to have the opportunity to record it — and with the best group of guys and musicians. I feel blessed."

Though the title and its opening verses might cast “What The Years Do” simply as a meditation on the passage of time and the changes in life it brings, there is a deeper theme that reveals itself as the song moves on. A gentle, syncopated opening led by Melton’s fiddle and Bibey’s mandolin gives way to the first two verses, which sound almost like a lament for the disappearance of youth and the accumulation of life responsibilities and lead to a sophisticated yet organic-sounding first chorus:

They’ll put a wallet size of a baby and a wife
Where all your money used to be
They’ll make you realize, they’ll shine a light
On the things you never used to see
Change everything you need
Yeah, that’s what the years do

Yet following a supple instrumental passage that turns once again to fiddle and mandolin, “What The Years Do” takes a deeper, even more heartfelt turn, as Melton delivers a verse that uses down-to-earth language to articulate an insight that speaks a universal truth:

I never was much on that touchy feely stuff, Heaven knows
But it’s just crazy, pretty damn amazing how a heart grows
‘Cause it ain’t nothing for me to say I love you (and to mean it, too)
Yeah, that’s what the years do

The following and final chorus amplifies and extends the acknowledgement of growth, and the final echo that trails away at the end of the song seems to suggest that its lesson will persist through years still to come. All in all, “What The Years Do”is a remarkable song, delivered by a group that knew just what to do with it.

Listen to "What The Years Do" HERE.

After the thoughtful introspection of their last single, “What The Years Do,” bluegrass powerhouses Balsam Range turn the page with “Snake Charmer,” an up-tempo romp that highlights the quintet’s whimsical side.

Written by the team of Milan Miller and Beth Husband — responsible for several of the group’s hits, including “Grit and Grace” and “Rivers, Rains and Runaway Trains” from their last album, Moxie And Mettle — “Snake Charmer” jumps out of the gate in classic bluegrass fashion, with a bluesy intro provided by mandolinist, and the group’s newest member, Alan Bibey. As lead singer Buddy Melton notes, “Alan’s mandolin kick off sets the tone for this song so well, and his mesmerizing playing certainly fits the task at hand.”

Yet from the moment Melton begins to lay out the song’s chorus, it’s clear that this is no self-pitying lament — or, rather, that its narrator is self-aware enough to gently mock his own misery:

I’m gonna be a snake charmer
Palm reader, honey bee farmer
Gotta find something else to do
Anything but loving you

As the story unwinds and the singer reviews his options, a succession of blistering solos by Melton on fiddle, Marc Pruett (banjo) and guitarist Caleb Smith punctuate verses replete with rhyming wordplay:

I made myself a list of crazy things
Pipedreams, plans and ramblings
Jobs I’d like to try
Ways I think that I
Could maybe say goodbye
To the sting that heartbreak brings

A sardonic bridge and a couple of choruses round out the theme before Pruett returns to put the hammer down and Bibey follows with a virtuosic bookending coda that rides powerful rhythmic work from the band to the final chord.

Says Melton, “‘Snake Charmer’ is a fun twist on the classic song subject of lost love and breakups: rather than pining over someone, why not take up some unusual hobbies? No doubt it is hard to focus on lost love when you are trying hard to charm a snake!”

Listen to "Snake Charmer" HERE.

After two songs that spotlight his emotive vocals and original songwriting, mandolin master and Grascals founder Danny Roberts returns with “My Brown Eyed Darling,” a new single that not only features a guest singer in wife and bassist Andrea Roberts — that’s a 1994 photo of her on the cover — but offers an organic example of the way songs from the bluegrass canon resonate across the decades.  

“I’ve always loved this old song, written by Bluegrass Hall of Fame member Paul Williams and recorded originally by The Lonesome Pine Fiddlers in the early 1950s,” says Danny. “Larry Sparks recorded it, too, back in the 1980s. However, my favorite version was by my wife, Andrea, singing it back in the 1990s with her band, Petticoat Junction. When we started working on the album songs and jammed on ‘My Brown Eyed Darling,’ I knew immediately that we had to cut it — even though I had to twist her arm a little bit. She absolutely nails this vocal in her very traditional bluegrass-y way, and I love the groove of the track.”

Indeed, this husband-wife version follows Petticoat Junction’s lead by taking the song — a lament that begins with the memorable couplet, “I’ll never forget the morning you left me/I tried to smile, but instead I cried” — at a more measured pace and downbeat-heavy “mash” feel. With the solid playing of Andrea’s bass and Danny’s mandolin augmented by booming guitar and knowing banjo from long-time colleague Tony Wray, alongside bluesy, moaning fiddle from former Grascal Adam Haynes, this “My Brown Eyed Darling” is a true family affair, as daughter Jaelee Roberts — a Mountain Home Music Company recording artist in her own right and member of the label’s latest signing, Sister Sadie — adds a searing harmony vocal that puts the final detail on a recording that hits all the touch points of traditional, yet modern bluegrass.

Listen to “My Brown Eyed Darling” HERE.

"My Brown Eyed Darling" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, TIDAL and Amazon Music. Dolby Atmos is a sound experience you can feel all around you. Familiar from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters” Dolby Atmos reveals “depth, clarity and details like never before."

Since late last year, singer, songwriter and mandolinist Darren Nicholson has been revving up his solo career after his departure from Balsam Range, the award-winning quintet he helped to found some 15 years ago. Now, following the release of three singles — a chart-topping murder ballad, a spirited gospel number and a gripping instrumental, all self-penned — he's releasing Wanderer, an album that puts an exclamation point on his musical declaration of independence.

“I have been asked about this being my first release post-Balsam Range,” Nicholson notes, “and if there are any overarching themes. The answer is simply that it has no bearing on the way I approach music. I want top quality, period. Every recording, I try to pick a variety of the best material, musicians and singers to fit the direction of the album.”

“As with [2021’s] Man on a Mission,” he continues, “I wanted musicians who would push me to new places — ultimately taking my original songs and giving them a new flavor. I got youthful, progressive, creative minds involved, and it brought out the best in me. I think Wanderer is unique and original from top to bottom; it’s even vastly different from my previous works. I am so proud of that.”

Indeed, the selection of musicians who appear on Wanderer is powerful evidence of Nicholson’s thoughtfulness: longtime friend and colleague Colby Laney (guitar) and fellow western North Carolinian Zachary Smith (Town Mountain) constitute a powerful rhythm section, while banjoist Wes Corbett (Sam Bush Band) and musically omnivorous fiddler Billy Contreras add more wide-ranging tones, textures and explorations that nevertheless fit seamlessly into Nicholson’s distinctive approach to bluegrass. In the same vein, the all-original song list feels firmly grounded in tradition, yet never sounds rule-bound or formulaic. And though most of the album’s songs were written with frequent collaborator Charles Humphrey III (Songs From The Road Band), Nicholson reached out in new directions to partner with writers like bluegrass favorite Mark “Brink” Brinkman and Eric Gibson of the Americana-leaning Gibson Brothers.

The result is a collection that at once confirms Nicholson’s mastery of bluegrass’s most powerful musical currents and his burgeoning interest in moving beyond the mainstream. Whether it’s the rhythmically sophisticated meditation on liquor and love of “A Lot of Truth In An Empty Bottle,” the easy vibe of “Talkin’ To The Moon”’s extended exploration of its titular image or the good-natured story of a farm boy testing the limits of his energy in “Second Wind,” Wanderer serves as an impressive token of Nicholson’s determination to forge his own musical path — and as just plain good listening, too.

“Wanderer has been an absolute joy from beginning to end,” he concludes. “Writing and crafting all original music has become such a passion for me, and to see these songs turn out like this feels really good. The common thread is that they’re all songs about life: happiness, hardships, love and hope. They are all about me or things I can closely relate to. The only thing I’m qualified to write about is myself. I think being genuine, even if it’s not always pretty, can carry you a long way in life. I just want to keep growing with every recording and working to become a better version of myself.”

Listen to Wanderer HERE.

The Primitive Quartet and Mountain Home Music Company’s Through The Years series has been bringing the beloved gospel group’s music to new generations of listeners through streaming services and digital sales platforms for the first time. These releases continue the group’s half-century legacy as a bluegrass gospel artist — one that has now performed their last live show. The Quartet wrapped up their full time touring on May 20, with one final concert.

To commemorate this long career and to close the series, Mountain Home is releasing Through The Years Live, a collection that will allow listeners to continue to feel as though they’re enjoying a performance from the storied group. The collection stands as a great reminder of the energy and spirit the Primitive Quartet brought to the stage.

Through The Years Live features fan favorite songs like “My Hope Is In The Blood” and “Didn’t He Shine” as well as traditional songs like “He Will Set Your Fields On Fire” and “I’m Going There,” all from the several live albums the group has released over the years.

As a whole, the Through The Years series — curated by the Crossroads Label Group’s Greg Bentley and The Primitive Quartet’s Mike Riddle — encompasses eight volumes covering nearly 40 years of historic releases, including a Christmas collection. Rarely has such an archival exploration been directed exclusively at digital platforms, and the combination of historical interest and forward-looking accessibility serves to guarantee that not only will long-time fans of the storied group have their favorites close at hand, but that the vital musical ministry of the Primitive Quartet will be available for discovery by generations of fans yet to come.

Stream Through The Years Live HERE.

About The Primitive Quartet

The Primitive Quartet began in 1973, when two sets of Western North Carolina brothers, Reagan and Larry Riddle and Furman and Norman Wilson, carried a guitar and mandolin with them on a fishing trip, where they discovered a love and a gift for harmony singing. With the encouragement of their parents and pastor, they began to sing together at area churches as the Riddle-Wilson Quartet. In 1978, with the decision to devote themselves to a full-time musical ministry, the group said goodbye to Furman Wilson, welcomed Reagan and Larry’s brother, Mike, into the group and renamed themselves as The Primitive Quartet. As their career developed, the Quartet added Indiana-born singer and instrumentalist Randy Fox in 1986 and, a decade later, another North Carolinian, Jeff Tolbert — first as an instrumentalist and then, with the passing of Norman Wilson in 2014, as a singer. Over the years, The Primitive Quartet has toured across the United States and overseas, recorded scores of albums, released more than a dozen videos and DVDs, and made their “Hominy Valley Singing Grounds” in Candler, North Carolina, into a popular home for gospel singing events. 

Mountain Home Music Company congratulates these celebrated artists who were nominated for International Bluegrass Music Association awards during today's announcement at SiriusXM's downtown Nashville studio:

Vocal Group of the Year
Balsam Range
Sister Sadie

Song of the Year
"Diane" — Sister Sadie
"Heyday" — Lonesome River Band

Collaborative Recording Of The Year
"Big Mon" — Andy Leftwich with Sierra Hull

New Artist of the Year
Tray Wellington

Female Vocalist of the Year
Jaelee Roberts

Banjo Player of the Year
Kristin Scott Benson

Fiddle Player of the Year
Deanie Richardson of Sister Sadie

Mandolin Player of the Year
Alan Bibey of Balsam Range

The IBMA awards ceremony will take place September 28 at the Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh, North Carolina as part of its annual World of Bluegrass, which will be held September 26 - September 30

Following last year’s album, Black Banjo, and this spring’s inspired cover of Kid Cudi’s massive hip-hop hit, “Pursuit of Happiness,” Tray Wellington returns with “Moon in Motion 1,” an original instrumental that solidifies his reputation as not just a masterful banjo player, but as a composer—and as the leader of a band capable of making their own contributions to a unique sound.

From its opening passage, which places guitar and banjo arpeggios over a sustained bowed bass and fiddle chord, “Moon in Motion 1” reveals itself in consecutive sections that offer kaleidoscopic transformations of several rich themes. Departing from the conventions of bluegrass and newgrass instrumentals, the tune lands instead in the realm of blended composition and spontaneous improvisation that characterizes a kind of roots chamber music pioneered by artists such as Punch Brothers and Hawktail, abruptly shifting moods while combining and recombining elements in a carefully composed sequence. And while every member of the group — Wellington, bassist Katelynn Bohn, Josiah Nelson (who doubles on mandolin and fiddle) and guitarist Nick Weitzenfeld — shares in successive focal points, the emphasis is always on interplay, not conventionally focused solos, with ever-present trades, unisons and full group textures offering endless variations on memorable scraps of melody and chord patterns.

“I often equate music and nature as one in one,” says Wellington, “as music is a constant movement that is always progressing forward through time. With this idea in mind, I thought one thing that always moves around us like music is the moon. I thought what a better way to progress in my music than channeling this idea of continuous movement.”

"Moon In Motion 1" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, TIDAL and Amazon Music. Dolby Atmos is a sound experience you can feel all around you. Familiar from its “surround sound” application in thousands of movie theaters” Dolby Atmos reveals “depth, clarity and details like never before.”

Listen to "Moon In Motion 1" HERE.

Kristin Scott Benson, banjo player for the GRAMMY-nominated Grascals and duo Benson, won the Banjo Player Of The Year award at last night's International Bluegrass Music Association awards in Raleigh, North Carolina marking the 6th time she's won.

"I'm continually amazed that God has allowed me a life full of music because all I ever really wanted to do was play the banjo," says Kristin. "I love our entire bluegrass community and count it as a privilege to be a part of it. I'm eternally grateful to everyone who helps make this happen because there are many. No one does it alone. My heart is full. Thank you!"

Recognized as a top banjoist, Kristin, a South Carolina native, is known for her impeccable taste, timing and tone. In 2018, she won the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass, which seeks to bring recognition to outstanding accomplishment in the field. In addition to releasing new music with The Grascals this year (their latest single, "I Go," is streaming now), Kristin also released Pick Your Poison with her husband, Wayne, under the name Benson. This distinctive collaboration — their first as jointly featured artists—serves to bring a shared musical vision of the Bensons to life and puts their mastery of thoughtful artistry on display.

Listen to Pick Your Poison HERE.

About Kristin Scott Benson
Kristin Scott Benson, winner of the 2018 Steve Martin Prize For Excellence in Banjo & Bluegrass, is also a six-time International Bluegrass Music Association Banjo Player of the Year. She has been a member of the GRAMMY-nominated bluegrass band, The Grascals since 2008. Her most recent solo album, Stringworks, was released by Mountain Home Music Company in 2016.​

Kristin grew up in South Carolina, surrounded by a musical family. She started playing mandolin and stepped on stage for the first time at the age of 5. After receiving a much-anticipated banjo for Christmas when she was 13, Kristin became enthralled with the instrument and spent her teen years studying the playing of all the banjo greats from Earl Scruggs to Bela Fleck. After high school, she attended Nashville’s esteemed Belmont University, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BBA in Marketing and a minor in Music Business.​

Kristin has attained a national identity as one of the top bluegrass banjo players, exhibiting impeccable taste, timing, and tone. With an attentive ear to back-up, she is known and respected as a true team player:

“There was one grass ceiling no woman could cut through—until Kristin Scott Benson came along, that is. Almost two years ago, she joined The Grascals. Not to front the band, not to sing, not to be eye candy, but instead to drive the group with her five-string banjo. Until then, no woman had ever been hired to play one of the most defining of the bluegrass instruments in an A-list, festival-headlining, all-male band….It’s a high profile gig, as Kristin takes the banjo where no woman has taken it before.” — Larry Nager for Bluegrass Unlimited – “Kristin Scott Benson – Cutting the Grass Ceiling”  October 2010​

In addition to her latest solo album, Stringworks, Kristin has recorded two prior banjo albums, Straight Paths and Second Season. Both received stellar reviews, as well as an IBMA nomination for Instrumental of the Year for the self-penned, “Don’t Tread on Me,” on Second Season.

Maddie Dalton, bassist of Mountain Home Music Company recording group Sister Sadie, was named one of the International Bluegrass Music Association's Momentum Instrumentalists of the Year at Wednesday's Momentum Awards Luncheon in Raleigh, North Carolina.

"I am so honored to be one of the recipients of this award," says Dalton. "I am so grateful for all of the opportunities that I have been given. I’m so honored that I was nominated alongside such incredibly talented musicians. Never did I imagine that I would actually win a Momentum Award."

From the heartland of Missouri, Dalton, who joined Sister Sadie earlier this year, is a versatile musician that has been performing since her early teens. With a unique blend of classical violin training and a deep love for bluegrass, Dalton has carved out a remarkable musical journey that took her to the Grand Ole Opry earlier this year, where she made her debut with Sister Sadie.

At tonight's IBMA Awards, the band is nominated for Vocal Group of The Year and Song of The Year for "Diane." Listen to their latest single, "Willow," HERE.

About Sister Sadie

Sister Sadie, which launched in the wake of an ostensibly one-off show at Nashville’s World Famous Station Inn in 2012, has both embraced and transcended its all-female identity, earning acclaim that includes being named as the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year in 2020, as well as Vocal Group of the Year in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Members range from acclaimed veterans to rising newcomers, who have won individual recognition, too, with founding member and fiddle player Deanie Richardson named as Fiddle Player of the Year in 2020 and banjo player/vocalist Gena Britt — SPBGMA’s reigning Banjo Player of the Year — having participated in three award-winning collaborative projects.The lineup is rounded out by 2021 IBMA Momentum Vocalist of the Year and Mountain Home recording artist Jaelee Roberts (guitar), Dani Flowers (vocals and guitar) and bassist Maddie Dalton. The band’s previous release, Sister Sadie II, earned them a GRAMMY nomination for Best Bluegrass Album in 2019.

Mountain Home Music Company recording artist Carley Arrowood was named the International Bluegrass Music Association's Momentum Vocalist of the Year at Wednesday's Momentum Awards Luncheon in Raleigh, North Carolina.

"Honestly, winning Vocalist is so full circle. God is so kind," said Arrowood after the event. "I got to watch my husband Daniel win it in 2018 (before he was my husband), and in 2017 I was blessed with an Instrumentalist award on my 21st birthday. Today was my 'golden' birthday and it’s just been such a sweet time, spending it with my husband and my mom and my sweet 3-month-old daughter, Eliana. She’s had a blast so far at IBMA! We all have. It’s such an honor to win this, and I hope I can live up to it as we continue to pursue the music we love."

With the release of her debut album, Goin’ Home Comin’ On, in 2022, Arrowood turned heads with charting songs, features on The Bluegrass Situation and Bluegrass Today, a music video for the title track featured on Ditty TV and placements on several streaming platforms' playlists.

Arrowood quickly followed that release with three new singles in 2023 — "Deeper In Love," "Tsali's Run" and "Chasin' Indigo" — that encapsulate her contemporary acoustic style even more with her cutting-edge fiddling, singing and songwriting.

Her fourth single, "Moondancer," is now available for pre-save/add ahead of its October 27 release. Pre-save/add it HERE. And listen to all of Arrowood's music HERE.

On Tuesday, Bluegrass powerhouse quintet Sister Sadie released a music video for their latest single, "Willow," with a premiere by Wide Open Country.

Written by Ashley McBryde, the song — which has been in the top 5 of the Bluegrass Today radio chart two weeks in a row — features a driving performance that weaves old-time and modern strands into a mysterious yet muscular plea.

“When I first heard ‘Willow’ I could hear us doing it,” says fiddler Deanie Richardson. “I could hear Jaelee slaying this tune vocally. I could hear this funky groove that came to life in the studio. It's got a deep pocket and has been a crowd favorite on tour this summer. This Ashley McBryde-penned tune has become one of my favorite Sadie songs EVER!”

Banjoist and singer Gena Britt also takes note of the powerful lead vocal from Female Vocalist of the Year nominee, Jaelee Roberts: “When I first heard ‘Willow,’ I knew it would absolutely fit Jaelee’s voice — and boy, was I right! When we play a show now, I can’t wait ‘til we get to ‘Willow’ in the set. It’s as much fun to perform live as it was to record it! It rocks!”

With an arrangement built around Britt’s and Richardson’s searing fiddle and banjo unison passages over an irresistible rhythm bed supplied by new bassist Maddie Dalton (one of this year's IBMA Momentum Instrumentalists of the Year) and session guests Tristan Scroggins (who also offers a blistering mandolin solo), Mountain Heart’s Seth Taylor on guitar and ace drummer Tony Creasman,“Willow” puts Roberts’ voice squarely in the center. Joined on the choruses by Britt and the quintet’s fifth member, Dani Flowers, Roberts offers McBryde’s mournful lyrics, which offer evocative images bereft of narrative; only the chorus’s ending line offers a hint of storyline:

I know what makes the sunshine
Give into the moonlight
I know what makes the midnight blue
Ooo, they must have loved you too

Says McBryde, “Sister Sadie is the best thing that ever happened to this song. I wrote it on an afternoon where damn near everything was going wrong. Deanie and the girls tore it UP and gave it the best life a song can have! Jaelee Roberts’ voice could sing somebody back to life, I swear."

“Willow” is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, TIDAL and Amazon Music.

Watch the music video for "Willow" above and listen to it on your favorite streaming platform HERE.

They say the only thing constant is change, and after some 15 years of music making with their original lineup, change finally came last year for western North Carolina’s Balsam Range. Now, with the upcoming release of Kinetic Tone, their 10th collection for Mountain Home Music Company, the group puts an exclamation point on their embrace of the new as they welcome mandolin virtuoso Alan Bibey to the award-winning quintet. Yet beyond the refreshment of energy it embodies, the new project reveals Balsam Range as more committed than ever to expressing a broad vision of life through compelling artistry. And with three songs having already topped the charts, there’s no doubt that Kinetic Tone counts as one of the most eagerly anticipated full-length releases of the year.

The album is now available for pre-save, add and order ahead of its December 1 release.

“When Balsam Range went into the studio at the beginning of 2023 to begin this album,” the liner notes to Kinetic Tone recount, “it was immediately obvious to everybody present that something was different. A new level of excitement and joy of creating was present.” Indeed, that new quantum of energy was responsible for the project’s eventual title. “Kinetic Tone,” explain the notes, “is a not-so-well-known musical term defining how sounds move from being static to changing tone by the application of ENERGY. Could be a voice. Could be a guitar. Could be voices and instruments acting in concert. We would argue that it can also be a shared mindset of a musical group.”

Here, that newly-invigorated mindset is embodied in a wide ranging set of songs and performances that could only have come from what the notes call Balsam Range 2.0. From the dramatic opening of the first song, “Echo Canyon” and its tale of a place “where truth and time stand still,” Kinetic Tone separates itself from the ranks of the ordinary. Instead, it’s a collection of stories, portraits and meditations that encompass adventure (“Marshall McClain”), lost love (“Snake Charmer”), aging and growth (“What The Years Do”), faith (“God Knows”), the urge to roam (“Two Lane Highway”), and the changing ways of mountain and small town life (“Running Out of Reasons”).  

New single “Evergreen,” co-written by the group’s long-time friend, Michael Hearne, serves to reinforce the growing wisdom embodied in the album’s first hit, “What The Years Do,” as its narrator, voiced by guitarist Caleb Smith, offers a gently unfolding meditation on the passage of time that looks both backwards and forwards:

I don't mind things that don't matter these days
Time I've spent on worry never pays
Now the leaves are changing from green to gold
So I'll change with them, I'll be so bold…
Stuck out on this limb, dancing with the wind
How I long to be evergreen

And while there is a full measure of songs that feature the smooth, flowing grooves and burnished harmonies for which Balsam Range are renowned, there is a new emphasis on, and a bit of a new edge to the hard drive of straight-ahead bluegrass in songs like hit single “We’ll All Drink Money” and an inspired reworking of the signature Waylon Jennings song, “Just To Satisfy You.”  There’s even an exhortation — "all the worry in the world won't get you nowhere, so I wouldn't worry if I were you" — cast in the form of an old-time gospel-flavored quartet.

Kinetic Tone, then, serves to give long-time fans musical reassurance that, for Balsam Range, change has been good, and to grab the attention of a whole new circle of fans, too. Most of all, as the group prepares for its signature year-end “Art of Music” festival in Haywood County, Kinetic Tone is a bold statement that, for Balsam Range, the best is yet to come.

Pre-save, add or order Kinetic Tone HERE.

Is Mark Stoffel best thought of as a creative, sophisticated mandolin player or as a composer of creative, sophisticated tunes? The answer, of course, is “yes,” and the latest proof can be heard on his latest single for Mountain Home Music Company, “Barnyard Funk.”

Backed by some of his favorite friends and colleagues — bassist Ross Sermons, former Chris Jones & the Night Drivers bandmate Gina Furtado (banjo), Irish fiddler Niall Murphy, Chris Luquette (guitar) and ace studio drummer Tony Creasman — Stoffel serves up an earworm that opens with and periodically returns to an irresistibly rhythm-forward passage, seamlessly incorporated into a more traditionally structured two-part tune.

As the spotlight moves from player to player — even Sermons gets a moment out front — the tune insinuates itself into the listener’s memory, echoing generations of simmering soul classics and bluegrass favorites in a distinctive blend. From its opening pulses to the virtuoso unison arpeggios that bring it to an exciting end, “Barnyard Funk” highlights both aspects — composing and playing — of Stoffel’s talent.

“I caught the Bluegrass bug at age 14,” recalls Stoffel, “but before that, I was heavily exposed to soul and disco music thanks to my dad, who was a hobby disc jockey in the late 1970s. Well, I suppose some of it must have rubbed off on me, and I am proud of it! I certainly hope you’ll enjoy this funky little piece. Also, special thanks to my friend Marshall Wilborn who helped me come up with the title, ‘Barnyard Funk’!”

"Barnyard Funk" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.

About Mark Stoffel

Originally from Munich, Germany, Mark Stoffel spent literally decades traversing between two continents before finally settling down in Southern Illinois in 2001 with his wife Mary and his children, Finn and Oliver. Sealing his decision to make the United States his permanent home, he became a citizen in 2016.   

A self-described bluegrass music “addict,” he was introduced to the music in 1979, when as a teenager, he wanted a ukulele for Christmas and was mistakenly given a mandolin instead. The flub turned into a virtue, as he parlayed a classic mandolin instructional book; occasional exposure to bluegrass through radio and concerts by touring American musicians; and accumulated experience in folk, rock and bluegrass bands into a lifelong artistic pursuit.  During this time, he began to connect with American artists, helping to arrange tour dates and providing hospitality—including to the artist who would become his future employer, Chris Jones. As he spent more time in the United States, his tasteful approach to playing, growing expertise in sound engineering and supportive harmony vocal abilities earned him increased attention — first in regional acts, then with Jones’ singer/songwriter wife, Sally Jones, and finally with Jones himself, whose Night Drivers Mark joined around the time of the band’s 2009 recording, Cloud Of Dust.

Today his tasteful mandolin performances can be heard on countless recordings, including his first solo release, One-O-Five, and a string of Chris Jones and the Night Drivers projects, including Run Away Tonight (2015), Made To Move (2017) and the most recent, The Choosing Road (2019). “Mark is one of the most musical mandolin players I’ve ever played with,” says Jones. “ Mandolin players are really impressed with his playing everywhere we go.”  Yet despite his passion for bluegrass, Stoffel confesses ironically that he is highly allergic to — yes, really — Kentucky Bluegrass

They say the only thing constant is change, and after some 15 years of music making with their original lineup, change finally came last year for western North Carolina’s Balsam Range. Now, with the release of Kinetic Tone, their 10th collection for Mountain Home Music Company, the group puts an exclamation point on their embrace of the new as they welcome mandolin virtuoso Alan Bibey to the award-winning quintet. Yet beyond the refreshment of energy it embodies, the new project reveals Balsam Range as more committed than ever to expressing a broad vision of life through compelling artistry. And with three songs having already topped the charts, there’s no doubt that Kinetic Tone counts as one of the most eagerly anticipated full-length releases of the year.

“When Balsam Range went into the studio at the beginning of 2023 to begin this album,” the liner notes to Kinetic Tone recount, “it was immediately obvious to everybody present that something was different. A new level of excitement and joy of creating was present.” Indeed, that new quantum of energy was responsible for the project’s eventual title. “Kinetic Tone,” explain the notes, “is a not-so-well-known musical term defining how sounds move from being static to changing tone by the application of ENERGY. Could be a voice. Could be a guitar. Could be voices and instruments acting in concert. We would argue that it can also be a shared mindset of a musical group.”

Here, that newly-invigorated mindset is embodied in a wide ranging set of songs and performances that could only have come from what the notes call Balsam Range 2.0. From the dramatic opening of the first song, “Echo Canyon” and its tale of a place “where truth and time stand still,” Kinetic Tone separates itself from the ranks of the ordinary. Instead, it’s a collection of stories, portraits and meditations that encompass adventure (“Marshall McClain”), lost love (“Snake Charmer”), aging and growth (“What The Years Do”), faith (“God Knows”), the urge to roam (“Two Lane Highway”), and the changing ways of mountain and small town life (“Running Out of Reasons”).  

New single “Evergreen,” co-written by the group’s long-time friend, Michael Hearne, serves to reinforce the growing wisdom embodied in the album’s first hit, “What The Years Do,” as its narrator, voiced by guitarist Caleb Smith, offers a gently unfolding meditation on the passage of time that looks both backwards and forwards:

I don't mind things that don't matter these days
Time I've spent on worry never pays
Now the leaves are changing from green to gold
So I'll change with them, I'll be so bold…
Stuck out on this limb, dancing with the wind
How I long to be evergreen

And while there is a full measure of songs that feature the smooth, flowing grooves and burnished harmonies for which Balsam Range are renowned, there is a new emphasis on, and a bit of a new edge to the hard drive of straight-ahead bluegrass in songs like hit single “We’ll All Drink Money” and an inspired reworking of the signature Waylon Jennings song, “Just To Satisfy You.” There’s even an exhortation — "all the worry in the world won't get you nowhere, so I wouldn't worry if I were you" — cast in the form of an old-time gospel-flavored quartet.

Kinetic Tone, then, serves to give long-time fans musical reassurance that, for Balsam Range, change has been good, and to grab the attention of a whole new circle of fans, too. Most of all, Kinetic Tone is a bold statement that, for Balsam Range, the best is yet to come.

The album is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, TIDAL and Amazon Music. Listen to Kinetic Tone HERE.

In the fall of 2022, bluegrass-and-more quintet Sister Sadie released their first single in years (“Diane,” a vibrant country cover that the group premiered on the IBMA’s awards show), marking the beginning of a new era for the band, and stoking fans' anticipation for more new music. Today, the band meets that excitement with the release of No Fear, a dynamic and multi-dimensional album, that affirms Sister Sadie has overcome the challenges of the recent past to emerge stronger — and even more fearless — than ever.

Opening with the Ashley McBryde-written “Willow,” which features the powerful lead vocals of guitarist Jaelee Roberts and reached the top of the Bluegrass radio charts, No Fear moves quickly to reveal the band’s versatility.

The bluesy, down-home “If We Ain’t Drinking Then We’re Fighting” is followed by a melancholy “Blue As My Broken Heart,” co-written and sung by recent arrival Dani Flowers, and then the hard core bluegrass of “Baby You’re Gone,” driven by Gena Britt’s hard-edged banjo and muscular lead vocal, while the newest member, bassist Maddie Dalton, delivers a plaintive lead on another Flowers co-write, “Mississippi River Long.”

"Cannonball," the band's latest single, underlines their well-crafted blend of traditional and contemporary sounds, while the full-throated harmonies that surround Flowers’ foreboding lead vocal serve as a reminder of the group’s multiple IBMA Vocal Group of the Year awards.

As the set continues on, winding through country-flavored ballads, more hard-core bluegrass — including a fiery “Pad Thai Karaoke” that spotlights Richardson’s world-class fiddle — and the swampy groove of “Ode to the Ozarks,” which includes a guest appearance from McBryde, the depths of the group’s artistry and commitment become ever more apparent. And though they’re joined by a stellar group of supporting musicians, including frequent “Mister Sadie,” Tristan Scroggins, on mandolin, there’s no doubt who’s in the driver’s seat from the first note to the last.  

Says Richardson, “This is the record I have always dreamed of making with this band. The songwriting is strong among the Sadie ladies, as well as our talented circle of friends. You've got to have great songs; they will arrange themselves and come to life. I had a vision for this record before we even went in to record, and I am so grateful to Mountain Home Music for giving me the freedom to produce this record as I heard it, and as it evolved along the way. Gena, Jaelee, Dani, Maddie, Tristan, Seth, Tony, Catherine, Steve, Ashley, Mary and Hasee brought their very best. It takes a team and we have a great team.”

“This recording came together perfectly and each song was brought to life in the studio with No Fear,” notes Britt. “From the label to the songwriting and the musicians, I can't imagine a better dream team. My sisters in this band are incredible. We truly are a family, and it shows in this music — it has a new energy, and I'm so proud to be on this journey with these amazing women. The creativity happening in our music and the vocals in this band make me excited for what's to come! I'm so ready for everyone to hear this album, and I hope you love listening as much as we loved recording it for you.”

“I usually don't listen to one of my recordings after they are done,” confesses Richardson in conclusion. “I literally cannot stop listening to this one. Not because it's ours, but because it's damn good!”

Listen to No Fear HERE.

The album is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL.

For his first release of 2024, Mountain Home Music Company’s Tray Wellington has chosen once again to challenge assumptions by applying his unique artistic perspective to a song from beyond the musical realm in which his instrument — the 5-string banjo — is usually found. Recorded with members of his Tray Wellington Band and a trio of hand-picked guests, the North Carolina native’s take on John Hiatt’s “Lift Up Every Stone” reveals an artist who is confident that he can disregard musical boundaries — and who has every reason to trust his instincts.

“For me,” says Wellington, “‘Lift Up Every Stone’ encompasses a sense of encouragement to fight through the hard times in life. When I first heard the John Hiatt version of this song, I loved the use of imagery to convey the lifting atmosphere. It was also a chance to try something new musically, which for anything I record, I want to be challenged more and more — and this was the perfect way to step outside of my comfort zone.”

Sure enough, “Lift Up Every Stone” plows new ground by mating Wellington’s banjo, bassist Katelynn Bohn’s booming low end, the mandolin and fiddle of Josiah Nelson and Drew Matulich’s acoustic guitar to the soulful wail of DaShawn Hickman’s steel guitar and powerful harmonies from Wendy Hickman, who matches Tray’s vocal turns before launching into a powerful spotlight turn on a bridge that exemplifies the song’s veiled message:

Now the sun is bloody red
And when it's gone, somebody'll be dead
Don't you cry a tear for me
Because I did what I could just to be free

“I love telling a story where you don't exactly know who's doing what,” Hiatt told Stereophile magazine when the song first appeared at the turn of the century, and Tray Wellington’s take on “Lift Up Every Stone” honors and amplifies both the mystery of the story and the clarity of its darkly foreboding atmosphere in a concise, compelling performance that underlines the maturity and depth of the young bandleader’s musical vision.

"Lift Up Every Stone" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.

About Tray Wellington
Growing up in western North Carolina’s Ashe County, Trajan “Tray” Wellington heard a lot of music — and from the first time he heard the banjo as a young teen, he was, he says, “hooked.” Within a few years, he had joined with a few friends to form Cane Mill Road, an acclaimed band of youngsters whose wide-ranging brand of bluegrass quickly found favor with an equally wide-ranging audience. By the end of 2019, the quartet had released three well-received albums, recorded with bluegrass and Americana star Jim Lauderdale, and performed at festivals across the country, including Grey Fox, Merlefest and the IBMA’s Wide Open Bluegrass, culminating in a 2019 IBMA Momentum Band of the Year award — and, for Tray, individual recognition as an IBMA Momentum Instrumentalist of the Year.

With growing acclaim for his talent and a lengthening list of his own, individual accomplishments — including the release of his debut solo EP; leading workshops at Merlefest and Grey Fox; a coveted position as an assistant at banjo master Bela Fleck’s Blue Ridge Banjo Camp; a cover story interview in Banjo Newsletter; and an invitation to Mike Marshall’s prestigious Acoustic Music Seminar — Wellington decided to blaze his own musical and professional trail, showcasing with his Tray Wellington Band at the IBMA’s virtual World of Bluegrass in the fall of 2020. He returned the following year to host the IBMA’s Momentum Awards ceremony and perform on the organization’s Wide Open Bluegrass festival Main Stage. A recent graduate of East Tennessee State University, Tray currently makes his home in Raleigh, NC, where he works with Pinecone, the Piedmont Council of Traditional Music, when he’s not on the road. The Tray Wellington Band has already appeared at prestigious festivals and venues across the country, including the Pagosa Folk’n’Bluegrass festival, Wintergrass and Winter Wondergrass, with performances at others, such as the Strawberry Festival, Pickin’ In The Pines and Red Wing Roots on the books.

Though it has all the trappings and spirit of a well-worn bootlegging story of corn liquor and moonshiners (think “Mountain Dew,” “White Lightning” or “Dooley”), Darren Nicholson’s first single of the new year digs a little deeper than its upbeat, elemental bluegrass feel might at first suggest. Backed by an all-star cast that includes two award-winning instrumentalists in Kristin Scott Benson (banjo) and Sister Sadie fiddler Deanie Richardson, the singer-songwriter-mandolinist delivers a propulsive original that almost subliminally leavens its classic lyric touches and tale with a bit of clear-eyed, historically informed realism.

“'Ain't No Sin' is our raucous, tongue-in-cheek story of mountain folk separating sin from survival,” says Nicholson. “I wrote this with Charles Humphrey III, and it’s even more ironic as I’m currently several years into sobriety myself.

“It is a fictional tale of people who did what they had to do to provide for their families and communities,” he continues. “The moonshiner way of life was embraced and woven into so many rural circles. Heck, my dad made illegal whiskey to survive — and he made it for everyone from the grannies to the politicians to the preachers. In many cases, the quality of their liquor and how it benefited both producer and consumer, was a point of pride for certain areas. What many people fail to realize is that corn liquor production was a way for people to earn a living when times were hard, like during the Great Depression. Early on, it wasn’t a hobby so much as a way to supplement one’s income as a necessity.

“Where the ‘sin’ part comes into play is when one can acknowledge that whiskey by itself is not a sin; rather, it’s the overindulgence in or the behaviors resulting from too much to drink which are viewed as sinful. This song speaks to the ones who find it most sinful: the ones who can’t control the distribution of it or profit from it.”

“I hope all who listen have fun with this track,” he concludes. “That’s the intention!”  

“Ain’t No Sin” is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.

For more than half a century now, the word “bluegrass” has been followed by “community” almost as often as it has been followed by “music” — no surprise for a music shared between devotees spanning generations, regions and cultures. When Mountain Home Music Company’s Ashby Frank entered the studio for a recording session at the end of 2023, that sense of community was foremost on his mind, and “Knee Deep In Bluegrass,” his first single since the release of last year’s Leaving Is Believing, is both a tribute to a beloved member of that community and a compelling example of the musical power that created and sustained it.

“‘Knee Deep in Bluegrass’ is a tune written and originally recorded by my friend and former Mashville Brigade bandmate, banjo legend Terry Baucom,” Frank offers. “Sadly, Terry passed away in December. When we recently gathered to start recording my next album, it happened to be the day after his funeral. All of us had Bauc and his wife, Cindy, on our minds. Remembering this song, I messaged Cindy, asking if it would be ok to record a slightly modified version of ‘Knee Deep’ as a tribute to him, and she graciously approved.”

That “slightly modified” can be chalked up more to Frank’s attention to detail than to wholesale revision. For while his arrangement’s tautly rhythmic prelude and stripped down initial statement of Baucom’s memorable theme are new, what follows is the deepest kind of bluegrass tribute — one that pays homage in a sophisticated, nuanced way, resorting neither to simple imitation nor gratuitous re-imagining, but instead serving up an irresistible blend of deeply informed nods to the original and fresh, new touches that honor its creative spirit. And though “Knee Deep in Bluegrass” was born as a banjo tune, Frank and his mandolin are the animating forces behind each of his collaborators — banjoist Matt Menefee, Jim VanCleve (fiddle), guitarist Seth Taylor and a rhythm section of drumming legend Tony Creasman and bassist Travis Anderson — as the soloists take their turns front and center.

“Bauc was performing at the first festival I ever attended in Denton, NC,” Frank recalls. “His style and persona has been an inspiration to me ever since that first meeting. I think Matt, Travis, Jim, Seth and Tony really nailed their parts on the tune. I hope our recording brings back fond memories for anyone who knew Terry and will honor him as he so richly deserves.”

"Knee Deep In Bluegrass" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.

After three well-received singles drawn from the bluegrass-adjacent country music catalog, acclaimed bluegrass quintet, Lonesome River Band, returns with a new Mountain Home Music Company single that, even as it throws a couple of gentle curveballs, stands squarely on pure bluegrass turf.

In fact, “Hang Around for the Heartbreak” has “classic LRB” written all over it, kicking off with award-winning banjo man and bandleader Sammy Shelor’s signature rhythmic flair before singer Adam Miller launches into the mid-tempo tune’s confession of a love that transcends the uncertainty of its outcome:

It’s hard to keep a secret in a little town
Where everybody knows everybody they all talk about
….
Rumor has it we’re two of a kind
If I don’t break your heart first, you’ll break mine
It’s just a matter of time but that’s all right

With a distinctive chord pattern that sets up the mixture of brightness and melancholy found in its chorus:

If we chase this feeling down whatever road it leads us
We’ll never have regrets about a chance we didn’t take
But if we’re just pretending this might be a happy ending someday
I’ll still hang around for the heartbreak

“Hang Around for the Heartbreak” hits a durable thematic nerve, accentuated by an unusual structure that serves up a delicious round of solos from Miller (mandolin), guitarist Jesse Smathers and legendary fiddler Mike Hartgrove before taking a left turn into a moody bridge that summarizes the narrator’s determination:

The first time that we kissed, I knew right then
You and I could never be just friends
No matter how it ends
I’d do it all again

“This song was sent to us from my good friend, Barry Hutchens, who has been writing some material with his son, Will, and Jerry Salley,” notes Shelor. “I call it a ‘Happy Heartbreak’ song. It’s a great perspective put together by Barry, Will and Jerry. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do!”

"Hang Around for the Heartbreak" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.

Since the release of her debut collection, Goin’ Home Comin’ On, Mountain Home Music Company’s Carley Arrowood has been gifted one husband, one baby daughter and one IBMA Momentum Vocalist of the Year award while releasing four acclaimed singles — “Deeper In Love,” “Tsali’s Run,” “Chasin’ Indigo” and “Moondancer” — that have made an undeniable case for her growing power as a mature, confident creative force. Her second album, Colors, out now, is the closing argument.

“It’s always an artist’s goal to keep stretching the boundaries of who they are, finding new ways to make the music they love,” says Arrowood. “Creating Colors with such an amazing team and my sweet Mountain Home family has been nothing short of that experience for me. This new collection of music is definitely something I'm thrilled to present! While keeping deep roots in bluegrass, Colors offers nine fresh, new songs and one cover, each with a subtly different shade to add to bluegrass’s ever-expanding palette.”

Indeed, the project offers a well-rounded set that locates Arrowood within a vibrant community of like-minded colleagues, all well-versed in the fundamentals of bluegrass yet unafraid to range beyond them in search of a compellingly unique sound. Colors features an intriguing blend of names from her debut — guitarist, harmony singer, co-writer (and husband) Daniel Thrailkill, harmony singer (and sister) Autumn Watson, award-winning banjoist Kristin Scott Benson and co-writer Becky Buller — with a short list of new participants that includes mandolin phenom Nick Dumas, the Foreign Landers’ Tabitha Benedict (banjo) and multi-instrumentalist Jeff Partin (Rhonda Vincent & the Rage), along with ace studio percussionist Tony Creasman. Guided by producer Jim VanCleve, Arrowood and her friends have created a multi-faceted album that explores each aspect of her artistry: ever-deeper songwriting, forthright yet nuanced singing and dynamic, powerful fiddle playing that puts her among the music’s top ranks.  

Kicking off with two already-released singles, Colors enters new territory with the third, the title track, which delivers its thoughtful gospel message in a smoothly energetic, contemporary bluegrass setting:

Years of laughter, tears of pain smear together like drops of paint
On the palette of a Craftsman with passion for His trade
His choice of color might puzzle you, but His steady hand is making all things new
Before we know, those colors magnify His grace

Arrowood’s distinctive approach continues through the remainder of the collection, contrasting the modern shape of songs like “Moondancer,” the fiery instrumental, “Tsali’s Run,” and “This Mess We Made,” written by Autumn Watson, with the more traditional flavors of numbers such as the tragic ballad, “Silas and Cora,” which nods to bluegrass’ classic cautionary tales, and the set’s other fiddle tune, “Molasses Ridge.” By the time Colors reaches its final track, “Always Back To You” — penned by award-winning songwriters Tim Stafford and Bobby Starnes — listeners will find themselves utterly convinced that the promise of her earlier work has been fulfilled with a bold new step forward.

“I am so thankful for this project,” Carley Arrowood affirms, “and I sincerely hope listeners enjoy each tune and are moved by them the way that I am!”
Colors is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.

From her Grand Ole Opry solo debut last fall through this winter’s release of No Fear, the blockbuster album from Sister Sadie that features a half-dozen of her lead vocals, it’s been a busy stretch for Mountain Home Music Company’s Jaelee Roberts. Still, the young singer made the time to get into the studio with master bassist and acclaimed producer Byron House, and the first fruits of their work are now available in a new take on the classic rocker, “Stuck in the Middle with You.” From its opening notes to the long closing that features the all-star cast — and Roberts’ supple, expressive voice — jamming out over an irresistible groove, it’s a performance that proves Roberts’ 2023 IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year nomination was no fluke.

“‘Stuck in the Middle with You’ is a song that I have loved for a really long time,” Jaelee reveals, “and I’ve been keeping it in mind to record because I felt like it would be so much fun to cover. Of course I love the original version by Stealers Wheel (written by Gerry Rafferty and Joe Egan), but when I was pretty young I found Keith Urban’s version from the 90s with his band, The Ranch, and I was really hooked on it. I have listened to it literally hundreds of times, and it never gets old. I love all genres of music, and I recorded a 70s rock song (‘Landslide’) on my debut album; people really seemed to enjoy that, so I wanted to include a song from that era on my new album, too, and I knew ‘Stuck in the Middle with You’ was the one. I’m excited that it just happens to be the first single!

“I have to say that I am absolutely thrilled with how this song turned out, with the help of my producer and bass player, Byron House, and all of the other STELLAR musicians: Ron Block - banjo/guitar; Cody Kilby - guitar; Andy Leftwich - mandolin; Russ Pahl - dobro; Kevin McKendree - Wurlitzer; and John Gardner - percussion, along with backing vocals by John Cowan.”

Adds House, “Jaelee’s voice is THE GOLDEN THREAD shining so brightly in what feels to me like a well-woven tapestry of mighty fine playing, all supported by this classic groove. Her version of ‘Stuck In The Middle With You’ was every bit as fun to play and produce as I hope it will be for you to hear. So grateful to be working with Jaelee Roberts!”

“It was truly amazing to hear this come to life,” Roberts concludes, “and I really think we made it our own by combining two awesome versions and throwing in a twist or two for a new take on ‘Stuck in the Middle with You.’ I hope it makes you smile and maybe even want to get up and dance!”

“Stuck in the Middle with You” is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.

After a moody meditation on addiction (“I Go”) and a sweetly hopeful ode to lifelong love (“Just Let Me Know”), bluegrass stalwarts The Grascals are back with an energetic portrait of a lovelorn man who just can’t get the woman he’s wooing to reciprocate his feelings.

“I had the idea a few years back to write a song about Cupid,” recalls singer, guitarist and songwriter Jamie Johnson. “Except instead of using arrows, this time he would use a love gun. I took this thought to a writing session with the great Shawn Camp and we sat down and tossed ideas back and forth until we had penned ‘Pull The Trigger.’ We put The Grascals’ sauce on it in the studio, and voila!"

Starting off with a taut rhythm, “Pull The Trigger” dishes up three verses depicting its protagonist’s increasing frustration over beds of ensemble downbeats that release into a driving bluegrass feel as each ends. Accompanied by guitarist John Bryan’s soaring harmonies, Johnson delivers the chorus:

I keep praying you’ll fall for me before too long, hun
but if Cupid don’t shoot you down here pretty soon
I guess I’ll have to load up my old love gun
and I’m gonna pull the trigger on you

with a wry tone that’s simultaneously desperate and self-aware, culminating in the final verse’s confession:

I ain’t worth nothing in this whole wide world
If I can’t be your heart’s desire

“When Jamie sent ‘Pull The Trigger’ for us to listen to when we were picking songs for the new album, it hit me immediately that it would be a really good song for us to record,” says Grascals mandolinist and fellow founding member, Danny Roberts. “It has a completely different feel from anything that we’ve done before yet not straying too far from our sound. The lyrics and music are a lot of fun and we are ‘aiming’ for this to be a new crowd favorite!”

"Pull The Trigger" is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.