The Artists
Charles Humphrey III
Writing Songs One Idea at a Time Charles Humphrey III is equally adept playing bass guitar as he is casting a trout fly toward a school of rainbows on a winding mountain stream. But one could argue his true calling is writing songs for Songs from the Road Band (SFTRB), the Asheville-based bluegrass/jamgrass quintet he founded…
Laurie Lewis
Celebrating the Crooked Miles Consider Laurie Lewis. She modestly calls herself a “California hippie girl fiddler.” She’s a Grammy Award-winning recording artist, a two-time winner of IBMA’s Female Vocalist of the Year and a two-time winner of the California Women’s Fiddle Championship. She’s performed on both the Grand Ole Opry and the Prairie Home Companion…
Chris Jones
The Luck of The Draw Luck plays an uncomfortably large role in life. Though we like to think we have control over our fates, the truth is that a great number of events, actions and encounters are simply out of our hands. Sometimes, God will smile upon you and you will receive an opportunity that…
Mike Scott
50 YEARS OF BANJO You might call Mike Scott of Gallatin, Tennessee, a golden boy. Always smiling, always picking, the banjoist is celebrating 50 years of performance. This is his golden anniversary in the music business. “Fans can look forward to more songs, recordings and perhaps a book,” Scott relayed. A busy man, he definitely…
An Interview with Special Consensus Mandolinist
Michael Prewitt Special Consensus mandolin player Michael Prewitt grew up on an old tobacco farm in Whitley County, a 45-minute drive east of Somerset. It wasn’t until he left Eastern Kentucky for an English degree at grad school in North Dakota that he began to reexamine his bluegrass roots. “As far as making a conscious choice…
On The Fringe
Bands Blurring the Lines of Bluegrass “I tell people we are the tradition of bluegrass, the attitude of punk rock and the culture of hip hop,” explains Kenny Feinstein (singer, multi-instrumentalist) of Water Tower. That declaration perfectly sums up the unconventional musical personality of Water Tower, a Los Angeles-based string-band that is keeping old-timey, traditional…