Summer is upon us here in Cleveland, Ohio and I have been oblivious to the great music that is coming up real soon. Guess my mind is still on vacation..........oh my!

June 3RD Yawnni, I mean Yanni is going to be at the Q with tickets starting at a mere $47.50, but the real deal on Wednesday is Moya  Brennan who will be at Nighttown for $25. Moya of course was/is? with Clannad, the Celtic group of fame.

June 4TH The Dixie Beeliners hit the stage at the Beachland Ballroom starting at 8PM.  At this same venue on June 8TH will be Trampled by Turtles and JP & the Chatfield Boys. The very next night on June 9TH will be The Waybacks with Paul Kovac and Bill Lestock. Good One.

Here's some of the excellent entertainment that will be at Cain Park this summer: Anne Cochrane will be there on June 13TH, Judy Collins has a show on June 27TH, Livingston Taylor comes in for a July 2ND appearance, and Arlo Guthrie and Richie Havens will team up on July 18th. The Squirrel Nut Zippers have a show there on July 25TH.

A couple of our new "buds" will be playing at the Vine and Bean (formerly Cafe Limbo) on June 11TH from 8 to 10PM. The Troubadours of Divine Bliss find their way in from Louisville Kentucky. They will complete their big Cleveland tour at Laurello Vineyards in Geneva on the 12TH from 7 to10PM and on the 13TH they will be at Harpersfield Vinyards also in Geneva from 7 to 10PM. On June 14TH (Bluegrassroms Anniversary) they will be at The Mustard Seed Restaurant in Montrose (Akronish) from 11AM to 2PM. for the 'Bliss' Buffet.

There's a ton more and I'll keep you up regularly as I can. I know there are some 'of interest' artists coming to the House of Blues, the Winchester, and the Barking Spider. Keep on coming back to see why you should stop by Cleveland for a few days, a weekend, or a whole week. There's a lot  to do that won't empty your bank account (if you still got one).

Look for me at The Vine and Bean on the 11TH,

Peace out,

Bluegrassrom

      

NEWS FROM THE FRONT LINES

Just got back from my vacation: one word..........RAIN...................

..........but on to the important stuff!!
Made it to the Ohio River Valley Folk Festival in Madison, Indiana on May 15&16th. Yeah, it rained a little, but not enough to cancel any of the music, which was awesome! Everyone gave excellent performances
and hopefully you came only for the music. I will say however, that both the storytellers were also excellent.

What was cooler than having workshops with the likes of Tim O'Brien, and Richard Shindell?And having an opportunity to actually meet and greet the artists? My wife and I made some new friends, like Brigid Kaelin and like the Troubadors of Divine Bliss. We also got to hear the likes of Guy Davis, and Sam Bush!!! Sam was totally awesome as always, even though it took an hour to set up for him and the inconsiderate fans crowded the stage so those that were there at noon set up in their folding chairs all day to have a good seat at 11PM (when Sam Bush finally got started) were unable to see anything!!!!

The music was totally awesome as I mentioned, however the rest of the promises of this festival fell far short of the mark. There was no quilling, no gourd painting, no dulcimer making, no basket making, no wood crafting. There was hand made soap for sale, and hand thrown pottery for sale. There were also rumors of spinning taking place, I saw an actual spinning wheel sitting alone everytime I passed. You could also buy some hand made scarves and stuff.

The food was also quite expensive, purchased with tickets that you pay $1 each for, you could easily spend 10 for a sandwich and sides. Food okay, somewhat overpriced, and very few vendors. Find a place in town for meals, or head up the hill for fast food if you aren't health conscious.

I gotta tell you, if you advertise a lot of things that aren't there, why come back? I won't be back to Madison most likely. There are too many festivals that live up to the promise, and with this being the fourth year of this festival, it might explain why there were probably only about  1,000 people there for the main artist on Saturday night. My guess is that the town of Madison turned out for their own event, but were really looking forward to this weekends "ribberfest" instead.

Peace,
Bluegrassrom

      

Yet another excellent festival coming up this spring is The Ohio River Valley Folk Festival on
May 15 & 16TH in Madison Indiana on the banks of the Ohio River.

This fesitival is smaller and runs Friday evening and Saturday afternoon and evening, but the
lineup of musicians is really awesome. The price of the festival is only $21 for both days so
this one is a steal!

The musicians are: Sam Bush, The Kennedy's, Brigid Kaelin, Tim O'Brien, Paul Birch and the
WPA Ball Club, Richard Shindell, Troubadours of Divine Bliss, and Guy Davis.

The only story teller that is currently listed is Tom Cunningham, but the entire schedule for
storytellers is not yet posted. I will update as soon as it comes up.

In addition to the entertainment, there will be Folk Art that includes; Quilling, Basket Making,
Gourd Painting, Woodcrafts, Pottery, and Bill Berg the Dulicimer Craftsman will also be there.

Naturally there will be lots of food and handcrafted beers and wines made locally.

For the children there will be a lot of history, games, and activities.

Look for Bluegrass Rom at this festival, I'm planning on being there!!

For more information and to get your wristbands go to www.ohiorivervalleyfolkfestival.com

See ya there!

Bluegrassrom

      

Yepper another great festival. This one is twice a year in Black Mountain, North Carolina about 15 minutes from Asheville.

This is much more than just music. This is four days of total sensory absorption. There are many musical groups from all over the world that encompasses most every genre imaginable. In addition there is a multitude of art, performance art, and art you can participate in. There is much dance in performance and participation, a poetry slam, puppets, camping, swimmin', canoein', a zip line and way too much to even imagine.........

Here's just a sample of what will be happening this May 7-10th: These performers and activities:

Natalie MacMaster (celtic fiddle), Martin Sexton, Nagata Shachu (Japan), The travelin' McCoury's,
The Lee Boys, Emiline Michel (Haiti), Robin and Linda Williams and Their Fine Group,
Cedric Watson & Bijou Creole, The Dynamites, The Overtakers (Jamaican), contra w/Elixir & Evening Star,
The New Orleans Bingo Show,David Wilcox & Friends, Nuevo Montuno (Salsa Orchestra),
One Leg Up (swing), Boulder Acoustic Society, Shane Pruitt Band, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo,
Skinny Legs and All, Tanably African Dance Company w/Kevin Meyame,Allegra Huston,
Poetry Slam (jams and workshops), Sol Driven Train, Paperhand Puppet Intervention,
And much much more............

For complete listings, details, schedules, photos, etc., visit the website at www.LakeEdenArtsFestival.org .
**Note: Tickets are only available in advance! There are campsites available (and recommended) and other
options for accommodations. I urge you not to wait to purchase tickets for this event if you intend to go,
else you be left out until October.

Got another May event coming that I'll post soon.

Start Planning!!

Bluegrassrom

      

Hi again,

The season for great music and festivals approaches. DelFest is coming to Cumberland Maryland over Memorial Day
weekend, May 22-24th at the Allegany County Fairgrounds.

This festival rivals Merlefest, but is only three days and three nights long. There will be late night shows, on site camping, kids area and activities artist playshops, Bluegrass band competition, food, drink, and an Art and Craft Faire, and a whole lot more.......

You gotta check out this lineup:

Del McCoury Band    The Travellin' McCourys    Old Crow Medicine Show   Leftover Salmon

Sam Bush   Railroad Earth   Dark Side Orchestra   J.D. Crowe and the New South

Peter Rowan and The Free Mexican Air Force  Tim O'Brien    Ollabelle   The Lee Boys

The Infamous Stringdusters   Steep Canyon Rangers   Joe Craven   Cornmeal

Crooked Still    Great American Taxi    Don Paisley & The Southern Grass

Ronnie Bowman and the Committee   Dre's Awakening   Davisson Brothers Band

and    Vinegar Creek Constituency...............WOW!

Go to www.delfest.com for all the details, tickets, directions, places to stay, and anything else
you need to know.

Check back regularly as I will be featuring several more fests, bands, musicians, and some cool interviews.

Also, a lot of these bands have websites and myspace pages. If you got a mind to surf,
you can listen togreat music all day and night. There are just too many for me to link to all of them,
so you'll have to find them on your own. It'll be worth the effort, I promise.

Keep grinnin'
Bluegrassrom

      

                                         
                                                                                


Greetings,

Happy to be back after a long absence.

Is Merlefest the "Best Festival in the World"? Believe it!

This festival happens April 23-26, 2009 in Wilkesboro, North Carolina on the campus of Wilkes Community College.

The festival began in spring of 1988 as a memorial concert in honor of Merle Watson, son of the legendary Doc Watson. It has grown to  a massive festival that includes workshops, jam sessions, instruction, contests, arts and crafts, food, shops, and the most impressive line up of musical groups imaginable. Over 75% of attendees travel over fifty miles to be there.

Here is a partial list of who is going to be performing this year:

Doc Watson   Richard Watson  David Holt   Laura Boosinger   Josh Goforth   Scythian     Bearfoot

The Lovell Sisters    The Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band    Dailey and Vincent     The Duhks

Travis Tritt and Jerry Douglas   The Dixie Beeliners   Olabelle   The Grascals   The Waybacks

Mountain Heart with Tony Rice   Del McCoury Band   The Steeldrivers   The Farewell Drifters

Cadillac Sky   The Greencards   Tift Merritt   Blue Highway   Docabilly   Sam Bush   Emmylou Harris

Sierra Hull and Highway 111   Missy Raines and the New Hiip   The Carolina Chocolate Drops

BeauSoleil Avec Michael Doucet    and Linda Ronstadt featuring Los Camperos de Nati Cano. 


There will be Americana, Old Timey, Bluegrass, Folk, Blues, and Jazz and probably some genres I missed.
This is an absolute experience that will likely produce sensory overload that will last a very long time!

Follow this link   www.merlefest.org  for all the particulars, tickets and accomodations. You may want to figure out where
you want to stay like NOW, as this festival is very well attended. There are daily shuttle services from as far as
two hours away.

Hope to see you there!

Bluegrassrom

      

                         Here is Rita Hoskings title song from her Silver Stream album.
                                                                                                                                  

Download | Duration: 00:03:46

Have a great day,
Bluegrassrom

      

                       


Great day in the morning!

I just spoke with Rita Hosking. Rita is the 2008 Dave Carter Memorial Songwriting Contest Winner.

You gotta hear this podcast. Rita is from Davis California and is Folk, Bluegrass, and Country, but most importantly, she's Acoustic.

Her band is called Cousin Jack and she'll tell us what that means in the following podcast.

She's got two CD's out and will be working on a third starting next week. The first two are: Are You Ready? released in 2005 and Silver Stream  her 2007 offering. You can hear the title cut Silver Stream at the end of this podcast. 

Check out Rita at www.ritahosking.com and on myspace at www.myspace.com/ritahosking .

And ...........you can buy her cd's on itunes and CD Baby.

Enjoy the podcast and let me know what you think.

God Bless,

Bluegrassrom                                                                      

Download | Duration: 00:20:12

      

      

                            

I came across something really interesting yesterday!

This 'project' is called Wilderness Plots and it is based on the book by Scott Russell Sanders titled:
Wilderness Plots Tales About the Settlement of the American Land. The book is a great compilation of interesting characters that settled in the Ohio Valley.

The author and the musicians all seem to be from the southern part of Indiana, so I'm just guessing that this is where these folks that are sketched out are from that area long ago.

What Scott Russell Sanders did, was round up five very gifted song writers and musicians to tell his story in song. The result is pure magic. This is a production the whole family will enjoy.

I love the early history of America, partly because the very guts of Folk music and what became Bluegrass music, Old Timey music, and even country music came from these early settlers.  Sanders fleshes out characters that we can really catch hold of, and through the musical and lyrical interpretations of the songwriters, brings home a holistic experience of his book.

The five artists are: Carrie Newcomer, Tim Grimm, Krista Detor, Tom Roznowski, and Michael White.
I found most of their web sites and enjoyed much of their music and some of their performances. You can start your own journey by navigating to www.myspace.com/wildernessplots .

Let me know what you think (about anything).

Have a great season.
Bluegrassrom

      

Hello Again,

This is somewhat of a follow up to the Sam Bush podcast. Sam wasn't sure who it was that led the New Christie Minstrels, and I had absolutely no clue. The Answer: Randy Sparks. Randy began the group in 1961 and has had a hand in it ever since.

The New Christie Minstrels, as you heard Sam say, were the inspiration for he and his sisters to start a folk group of their own.

Sam Bush, though only partially influenced by this group (a real long time ago), leads a list of many other musicians that may sound familiar to you. Past members of the Minstrels include Barry McGuire, Kim Carnes,
Kenny Rogers and the First Edition, as well as members of the Byrds, The Association, and The Modern Folk Quartet.

Others of note that are former New Christie Minstrels include actress Karen Black, and Cleveland's own
Scott Newell.

This group has a facinating history and is actually still together today with Randy Sparks leading them. You can check out The New Christie Minstrels at www.thenewchristieminstrels.com

The only question left unanswered for me is: When, after 47 years of existence, will they become the Old Christie Minstrels?

God Bless,
Bluegrassrom