Articles

The publicity photos accompanying this release show Eli West at work in a small country chapel. In one particularly striking photo, he is seated in a pew, bathed in wan sunlight with his head bowed reverentially over his notepad with a microphone and cell phone in front of him. This photo in particular foretells the…

MGPR0003 Martin Gilmore is a talented singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from the Denver, Colorado area. He has performed around the U.S. and he recently returned from a two-year stint living in Cairo, Egypt, where he was able to perform in both Europe and Africa. He has performed with artists including Hot Rize, Uncle Earl, Infamous…

Hailing from the Big River area around SE Missouri, the aptly named Riverbend is a five-piece band with a style rooted in traditional bluegrass. Over 11 tunes here, the band shows a deft hand with high tenor lead voices and the driving Monroe-style mandolin of Andy Navara to bring a very traditional sound to their…

NOTES “I was pleasantly surprised to see that you mentioned and pictured Lacey Jenkins Daugherty, writer of ‘Beautiful Lost River Valley’ in the March 2021 issue of Bluegrass Unlimited. Let me add to the story.  I used to own a Christmas tree farm in Hardy County, West Virginia. Friends there knew I was a bluegrass…

For over half a century, old-time/bluegrass music has connected the author with a wide variety of interesting and highly talented people, including autoworkers in Flint, Michigan, musicians in New Zealand, and Virginians transplanted to Detroit. The following is a selective appreciation. On the Fourth of July weekend in 1971, I attended Carlton Haney’s bluegrass festival…

Photo by Jamie Alexander “JT was a big wheel in the business,” said the award-winning songwriter and bluegrass musician Larry Cordle just days after the death of the Station Inn’s JT Gray on March 20th, 2021. “This is what blows my mind about him losing his life. I mean, he just got his due. He…