Articles

Photos by Jeromie Stephens Franklin Delano Roosevelt “Frank” Wakefield (June 26, 1934 – April 26, 2024) was an “authentic certified musical genius. He is the only man to build a complete, original mandolin style on the Monroe base.” Columnist Bill Vernon made that assessment in the pages of Muleskinner News magazine in 1972 when he…

It is not unusual for older folks to look at the younger generations coming up behind them and feel as though those youngsters don’t know anything about working hard or honoring tradition. It is an old story but, like all stereotypes, not always true. If you have ever found yourself having negative thoughts about young…

Harry Carpenter “Junior” Sisk, who has been penning, playing and singing songs modeled in the truest fashion of traditional bluegrass music for many years, has brought us another great record. Known for his tremendous vocals and locomotive sound, Sisk is sure to please the diehard purist. His 2020 album Load the Wagon, won the IBMA…

Bob Seger cut a wide swath across the rock ’n’ roll landscape for decades, giving us classic hits like “Night Moves,” “Turn the Page,” “Main Street,” “Like a Rock” and “Old Time Rock ’n’ Roll,” among others. These songs have endured because they often captured the uneasy spirit of their times. This fine collection reminds…

Tennessean Becky Buller is an award-winning multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. She has won awards for Fiddle Player and Female Vocalist, and her songs have won Grammy awards for groups like The Travelin’ McCourys, The Infamous Stringdusters, and Molly Tuttle. Her songs have also been recorded by such as Ricky Skaggs, Doyle Lawson and Rhonda Vincent. …

Jerry Salley can best be described as a songwriter’s songwriter. Since 1982, Salley has written over 540 songs and has had them recorded by country artists such as Loretta Lynn, The Oak Ridge Boys, Chris Stapleton and Reba McEntire, and bluegrass artists like the Osborne Brothers, Joe Mullins, IIIrd Tyme Out, Rhonda Vincent, Seldom Scene,…