Articles

In my continuous journey to find and highlight exceptional songwriting, I arrived this month on “Oh, Me Of Little Faith,” a song written for the contemporary Christian genre and successfully introduced to bluegrass fans by the husband-and-wife team of Wayne Benson (Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out) and Kristin Scott Benson (The Grascals) as part…

A new record label launched by longtime songwriting collaborators Billy Droze and Chris Myers is turning heads in the bluegrass music industry.  RBR Entertainment is churning out hits on bluegrass radio these days by an ever-growing roster of talented newcomers and established veterans. Droze is the label’s creative director and founder who produces projects at…

Learning how to play a musical instrument by ear is a skill that is vital to your development as a musician in traditional genres of music.  While reading music can also be a valuable skill, in most forms of traditional music—folk, old-time, bluegrass, Celtic, blues—the music is historically handed down aurally.  Musicians who participate in…

Nearly seventy-eight years after Earl Scruggs first joined Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt, Chubby Wise, and Howard Watts on stage at the Grand Ole Opry—and defined bluegrass music as we know it today—the music is still thriving.  To a large extent, the continued success of the bluegrass genre is due to the hundreds of bluegrass festivals…

It’s not often that bands go on a 10-year hiatus and decide to give things another go.  Traditional bluegrass fans should be glad an old gravestone inspired Maine-based Breakin’ Strings to make the trek to Nashville to produce Hangovers & Heartaches. Cliff Gelena, a third generation bluegrass performer, heads up the group with lead vocals,…

North Carolina’s Gospel Plowboys are a group seriously dedicated to spreading the word of Christ through music. The group is Michael Jenkins (guitar, vocals), Kris Miller (vocals), Andrew Brown (bass, mandolin, vocals), Alec McCallister (fiddle), David Brown (bass, vocals), and Peden Williams (banjo). Joining the band on this project is guest Chris Burton (banjo).  The…