Articles

Every once in a while, a new recording comes out and piques your interest.  This collection of songs by various Dobro players from the UK and Ireland is one such recording.  Chris Eaton, a fine Dobro player from the UK, attended Rob Ickes’ Reso Summit in November of 2022 and was so inspired by the…

Coulee Creek features singer-songwriter Sarah Jackson and poet Rita Mae Reese. The group also includes Beth Becker (fiddle, cello), Michael James (resonator guitar), David Strudthoff (banjo), Tom Baker (guitar, bass), and Cori Vought (vocals). Guest artists are Brett Huus (harmonica), Terry Nirva (cajon), and Josh Rabie (mandolin). Most of them hail from the Wisconsin/Minnesota area…

Billy Swinson is a bluegrass artist that has been playing and writing music for a couple of decades and has now stepped up his game with his first solo project and the help of resophonic guitar player Randy Kohrs.  Swinson, a Florida resident, wrote eight of the ten tracks and contributes the mandolin breaks and…

Queries  Q: Can you tell me who the pickers and singers were on the 1950s recordings of the Country Pardners? Jerry Steinberg, Salem, Virginia. A: The Country Pardners was a short-lived group that came together in 1955 and disbanded two years later. Bill Price, a mandolin player/tenor singer from North Carolina was the founder and…

C.J. Lewandowski of the Po’ Ramblin’ Boys says that at fifteen years old, when he met Bobby Osborne, one of his heroes, he would never have dreamed of the friendship that would develop between the two musicians. Over the years that followed, Lewandowski, also a mandolin player, learned from Osborne—music lessons and life lessons. In…

Sound systems are an integral part of any musical event. No matter how talented the musicians, they are dependent on competent sound engineers to make sure their instruments and voices are heard in the best possible way. North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Sound, owned and operated by John Holder, is a valuable commodity for promoters and…