Reviews

It’s my honor to get to listen to this project by Caleb Bailey of Virginia, who has assembled 10 original vocal tunes into a must-have CD.  Bailey presents listeners with an all-star cast of artists who lend their musical and recording skills, resulting in one of the more memorable projects I’ve heard in a while. …

—New York: Ten Speed Press (2020)  Thirty years ago IBMA honored the late DJ Bill Vernon, who became estranged from his family after he left Wall Street for bluegrass record collecting. We located his brother, who turned out to collect classical records. Dust & Grooves illuminates 130 major collectors in many countries and genre in…

Fiddle Solos Annie Staninec has been playing the fiddle from the time she was 4 years old and was performing by the age of 11.  It seems that her love for music happened very early in life and endures into the present with her performing and teaching in Portland, Oregon and all over the world. …

The SPGMA award-winning band Coyote Ugly has released its debut album, Ponderosa.  The band may be new, but they bring years of bluegrass experience with some of the genre’s top groups. Banjoist Joey Cox held down five-string duties for Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, Blueridge, Kenny & Amanda Smith, Lou Reid & Carolina and The Jeff…

Marc Pruett, the banjo player in Balsam Range, has had a long and very impressive career in bluegrass music.  He was born in 1951 and raised in the town of Canton (near Asheville) in the mountains of North Carolina.  He may be one of the few guys around today performing in a top-tier active bluegrass…

Cardinyl Class Records Davis Bradley has traditional instruments and traditional songs, but in their latest gospel album, Believing in the Old Time Way, they offer a different take. It’s the fourth album for the Virginia-based duo who offer plenty of elements from bluegrass, old-time and gospel to build this 12-song collection.  Kathy Davis sings and…