Articles

Photos by Michael Weintrob In life, as in love, knowing when and how to make a change is crucial. For Mason Via, the youngest member of Old Crow Medicine Show, leaving the well-established band to focus on a solo career followed serious deliberation. Shortly after making the break official, Via released “Hey Don’t Go,” which…

Bluegrass and Life at 85 Photo By Jason Tanner At age 85, Bluegrass Hall of Famer and Grand Ole Opry member Del McCoury still presents an impeccable image of professionalism and musical excellence onstage. He is quite simply one of the most respected ambassadors and one of the best-loved artists in bluegrass music. With a…

Bands Blurring the Lines of Bluegrass “Roots music incorporates so many different cultures that it is bound for a glorious future,” says Julie Gussaroff, vocalist and bassist of the Sweet Lillies.  “Our place is right in the middle of it, alongside everyone else.” Gussaroff’s statement, while a recognition of the Sweet Lillies’ place in the…

By Sarah Pirkle “The Piney Rose,” written by Sarah Pirkle, was first released in 2001 on Dog Years (Jeff Barbra and Sarah Pirkle, Barb Hollow Music). Already a favorite at Pirkle’s shows, the song then found an even broader audience when Dale Ann Bradley released it that same year on her Cumberland River Dreams (Doobie…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimted Magazine August 1994, Volume 29, Number 2 Perhaps it was just ordinary human courtesy, but then again…My wife had accidentally locked our keys in our car while we were at the Jim and Jesse Bluegrass Festival near Elizabethton, Tenn., in June 1993. Our 16-month-old son, Daniel, had a slight fever and…

At the end of May, Jacob Jolliff released his latest album, Instrumentals, Vol. 2: Mandolin Mysteries on Adhyaropa Records. If you are familiar with Jolliff, you have probably listened to Instrumentals, Vol. 1, released in 2018 when Jolliff was a youthful 27 years old. Now in his mid-thirties, this new album of originals reflects Jolliff’s…