This week we feature banjo player Max Wareham. Max is the banjo player for Peter Rowan’s band and he has just published a new instructional book for banjo titled Rudy Lyle: The Unsung Hero of the Five String Banjo, which we reviewed in the October 2022 issue of Bluegrass Unlimited. After talking with Max about his background with the banjo, we talk about the details of Rudy Lyle’s life and banjo playing that are presented in the book.
This week we feature Kenny and Amanda Smith. We talk with Kenny and Amanda about how they met, their careers in bluegrass music, song selection, songwriting, and their newest album. You will also get to hear a couple of cuts from that album.
This week we feature a group of musicians—Johnny and Jeanette Williams and Jay Shelton, from Virginia, who have recently released a new album under the band name Shelton & Williams. The album is titled “So Much Time, So Much Love” and after getting some background information from Johnny, Jeanette, and Jay, we talk with them about each track of the recording and you will hear three cuts from the album.
This week we feature Alice Gerrard, one of the first ladies of bluegrass music. Her musical partnership with Hazel Dickens led her to being inducted, along with Hazel, into the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame in 2017. Alice was also part of the group that started Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine in 1966 and she later was the founder of the Old Time Herald. During the interview we talk about her music career starting in the 1950s all the way up to the present day.
This week we feature Sammy Shelor of the Lonesome River Band. Sammy has had a very long and successful career in bluegrass music and in this interview we will discuss the various stages of Sammy’s career leading all the way up to the Lonesome River Band’s newest album release titled “Hey Day.” You’ll also hear a couple of cuts from the new album.
This week we feature Brad Davis. In addition to being a talented songwriter and well-known performing and recording artist, Brad is also a recording engineer and record producer who teaches audio engineering at Texas A&M in Commerce, Texas. In this interview we will focus on Brad’s work as a recording engineer since our theme in August revolves around those important folks who work behind the scenes in the bluegrass music world.
This week we feature radio broadcaster Lee Michael Demsey. Lee has been in broadcasting since mid-1970s, was awarded IBMA’s broadcaster of the year award in 1991 and in 2019 received IBMA’s Distiguished Achievement Award. He also is the person who puts together our monthly National Bluegrass Survey chart.
This week we are talking with video producer and record label owner Sammy Passamano III. Sammy started out working with his family at Rural Rhythm Records. He is now involved with Bluegrass Music TV and owns 615 Hideaway Records, which is record label under the umbrella of his 615 Hideaway Entertainment Company.
This week we feature songwriter Mark “Brink” Brinkman. In our August 2022 issue we feature some of the behind-the-scenes folks in bluegrass music, including songwriters. Brink is one of the most prolific songwriters in bluegrass music. We talk about his background in music and songwriting and he lends some great advice to budding songwriters in bluegrass.
This week we feature banjo player Blake Williams. As most bluegrass fans know, Blake played banjo with Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys for about a decade and before that he also performed for a year or two with Lester Flatt and the Nashville Grass. He has some wonderful stories to tell us about being on the road with both Lester Flatt and then Bill Monroe.
This week we talk with Wes Corbett, the banjo player in the Sam Bush Band. Wes had a solo project titled “Cascade” released a year or two ago and he has since come out with an instructional book for banjo players that includes transcriptions from that album. We talk with Wes about the album and the new book and you’ll hear a couple of cuts from the album.
This week we feature mandolin player Scott Napier. In our July 2022 issue we a few of the many college-level programs that include instruction in bluegrass music. We talk with Scott a program that he is involved with called the Hazard Community College’s Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music. We also talk about Scott’s career in bluegrass and some other interesting projects that he is involved with these days.
