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Sullivan Banjos

Putting The Fun In Banjos All Photos Courtesy of Eric Sullivan “Banjos = fun” is the lifelong philosophy of one American luthier. “Sullivan Banjos is fairly recent,” its current proprietor, Eric Sullivan of Alabama, shared during a recent interview. “It started in 1970 when Dad (Bill Sullivan) was working at General Electric in the tool and…

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Water Tower // Photo by David k. Cupp

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…

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The barn with its new donated roof. //  Photo by Jack Poston

Bluegrass from a Coffee Can

The 60th Anniversary of Suwanee, Georgia’s Everett’s Music Barn “We had a lot of company” Rena (Everett) McDaniel reflected. “It seemed normal to stay up until four, five, or six o’clock on Sunday morning because there were still people here playing…right outside my bedroom door.” She was relating childhood memories of her life in the…

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Lead and Iron

Chicago-based Henhouse Prowlers call themselves the Bluegrass Ambassadors, for in the past 16 years or so the band has toured over 25 countries in Europe, Africa, and Asia and has even traveled to Siberia. The Henhouse Prowlers are Jon Goldfine (bass, vocals), Chris Dollar (guitar, vocals), Jake Howard (mandolin, vocals) and Ben Wright (banjo, vocals)….

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Triple Shot

Growing up in Georgia, Reynolds liked rock and roll and performed around her home. While in college she discovered that country and bluegrass were the kinds of music she wanted to sing. In the 2000s, she moved to the Washington, D.C., area, found a home performing with local bluegrass bands and teamed up with banjoist…

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The Spilled Pint

Dale and Darcy Cahill are joined here by long-time friends Neil Rossi and Will Patton to produce an interesting project of mostly Irish/Celtic flavored instrumental medleys.   Rossi and the Cahills have been playing together for over 15 years in the New England area and are often joined by Patton on bass. Dale plays guitar,…

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