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Category: Roots

Hot Rize – When I’m Free

Note to Hot Rize: 24 yrs between albums is too long!!   When I started to listen to a lot of music and collecting CDs, thanks to the used CD bins at Tunes in Marlton, in the early 2000s,  I found the music of Tim O’Brien, an amazing multi-instrumentalist and singer.  I also discovered the music of guitarist Charles Sawtelle. It took a while before I stumbled upon a great bluegrass album So Long a Journey (2002)  from the band Hot Rize. I discovered that both O’Brien and Sawtelle were members of the band, along with  Pete Wernick, and Nick…

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“Into the Morning” with the progressive bluegrass of Greensky Bluegrass – “Demons”

One of the albums that has been in my rotation since it’s release last week, is If Sorrow Swims from Greensky Bluegrass. Greensky Bluegrass is one of my favorite progressive bluegrass bands. I discovered their music a few years back and loved the album Live at Bells,  on that album the band really displays their musicianship. I liked their last album Handguns, but not as much as the earlier albums. If Sorrow Swims reminds me more of their earlier albums. Here’s a statement from the band’s website about the band… “There’s this great duality to our band,” reflects Greensky Bluegrass…

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High Marks for The High 48s’ Great Northern Railroad – Check them out!!

Yesterday, I was reviewing the Roots Music Bluegrass Chart and way down near the bottom, I came across a band whose name  was unfamiliar with, The High 48s. Their latest release Great Northern Railroad was fittingly #48 on the chart. Since the album obviously had a train song on it, I thought it would be a good album to check out!! So I headed over to Spotify, found the album, listened to a few of the songs, and since my foot hadn’t stopped tapping since the album began, I knew this one was a winner!! The High 48s were formed in…

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Love the Way You Roll from The Alexis P. Suter Band – You’ll Love the Way She Does!!

Some voices are made for the blues among them is Alexis P. Suter leader of the aptly titled Alexis P Suter Band!  Alexis who calls Brooklyn NY has IT when it comes to the blues and it on display in full force in the band’s sixth release Love the Way You Roll The Blues Music Association agrees, in 2012 she was a nominee for the Soul Blues Female  Artist of the Year. I don’t think that the nomination will be her last and it won’t be too long before she wins the award!! The first time she shared the stage with B.B….

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2014 Blues from Jarekus Singleton – Refuse to Lose….. watch out Blues World here he comes!!

Over the last few weeks, I have been watching the steady rise of Refuse to Lose the new album from Jarekus Singleton up the Roots Music Report’s Blues chart, last week and again this week the album is Number 1! Since the Jarekus Singleton Band has only been around since 2009, when Jarekus formed the band, I really don’t feel too badly that I haven’t found them until now! The downside to that is that i could have been listening to a great band for the last five years!! The blues community has known Jarekus for a while now. According to his website Jarekus and the band have……

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Janiva Magness – Blues’ Superstar Voice and more!

Janiva Magness – Detroit Michigan Born: January 30, 1957 (age 58), United States of America Albums: Stronger for It, What Love Will Do, Original…… Record labels: Northern Blues Music, Alligator Records Janiva Magness celebrated her birthday on Friday, January 30th. If you do not know about her,Janiva is a blues superstar. She was named the Blues Foundation’s B.B. King Entertainer of the Year in 2009, becoming only he second woman, after Koko Taylor, to be so honored. She was also named the Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year in that same year! She had won that award in both…

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Lunchtime Music from Molasses Creek “An Island Out of Time”

  The other band that I’ve been listening to over the last few days is Molasses Creek and their new album An Island Out of Time.  The island in question is Ocracoke Island, NC. which according to their website is: Only accessible by ferry, Ocracoke is an enchanting step out of modern times into a world of captivating natural beauty, rich maritime history, ghostly shipwrecks, heroic lifesavers, crafty pirates, and a community of 900 independently minded residents.  An Island Out of Time is  the twelfth albums they’ve recorded over the past 19 years. In April of 2012, An Island Out…

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Twang Tuesday – Loudermilk and Cumberland River Band!

So I’ve been listening to some good bluegrass over the last few days first from The Cumberland River Band and their latest album The Rock Island Express and today I added a couple of more bluegrass albums,  Edgar Loudermilk’s new album Roads Traveled and  Driftwood and their new album Stronger Every Day. Edgar Loudermilk started playing  bass in his family’s band when he was nine years old and continued in the family band until he was 20, during that time he was exposed in some great music from his famous relatives, The Louvin Brothers. When he was 20 he joined…

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Twang Tuesday – The Blackberry Bushes

So as I looked down the Folk DJ list of airplay for the month of October 2010 the group at number 25 (32nd Top Artist) caught my attention The Blackberry Bushes and their new release Little Bit of Grace. So I headed over to Rhapsody and downloaded the album onto the ZenV. Their music certainly fits in the Americana genre there music is high energy and infectious and certainly will set your toes a tapping. Here’s a description of their music from their Myspace page Their music is progressive Americana “like someone threw a radio from yesteryear high into the…

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Tuesday Powered by Bluegrass!

So I listened to a lot of bluegrass today. I started the day with XM Radio Bluegrass Junction and on the way to work I heard a song by Steve Gulley and I thought about the new album that I read about the day that he did with Tim Stafford. So I went to Rhapsody to look for it but they didn’t have it, actually,  I don’t know if it has even been released yet. Anyway they did have other albums so I listened to Tim Stafford’s album Endless Line and then Steve Gulley’s album Sounds Like Home. Both albums…

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