British Bluegrass News #52

British Bluegrass News #52 (spring 2010) has been posted out to members of the British Bluegrass Music Association (BBMA).

At 48 pages, it is 9% larger than the 'bumper' winter issue and packed with solid content, including an overview of festivals in Britain in 2010, and an interview by Rick Townend with Lilly Drumeva (Bulgaria), who has recently joined the BBMA.

The issue also includes features on bluegrass cruises, the late Jack Cooke, and 'The art of practising' by Steve Kaufman. Hannah Johnson of the Toy Hearts reveals her ‘Favourites’, and 'The story behind the song' looks at ‘No school bus in heaven’. All this plus the regular 'What’s on', tour details, CD and book reviews, 'Light in the window', 'SmallTalk', and nine area reports.

This issue is the fourth to appear with Richard F. Thompson as editor-in-chief. British Bluegrass News is published by the BBMA, which was founded in 1990. To join the BBMA, contact the Membership Team, Clare and David Rozzell, by e-mail. You can also join online through the BBMA website.

For further information about the BBMA and the BBN e-newsletter, contact Richard F. Thompson, Press Relations, 14 Lime Grove, Lichfield, Staffordshire, England, WS13 6ER; 'phone +44 (0)1543 252683; e-mail.

Blue Dew concert schedule 2010-11

Blue Dew (NL), whose unique style combines bluegrass and Irish traditional music, announce their concert schedule for 2010-2011:

Sun. 30 May 2010 Muziek op De Welle, Markelo
'Little whisky child', 14:30-16:00. More info here.

Sat. 11 Sept. 2010 Buitengewoon Buitenconcert, Wekerom
'Little whisky child' & CD launch; begins 20:00. More info TBA.

Sat. 25 Sept. 2010 De Oude Remise, Nieuweschans
'Little whisky child'; begins 20:30; admission €12.50 advance booking, €15 at the door. More info here.

Sat. 6 Nov. 2010 Theater Prismare, Enschede
'Little whisky child'; begins 20:00; admission €10. More info here.

Sat. 20 Nov. 2010 Kronkeltheater, Slagharen
'Little whisky child'; begins 20:00. More info TBA.

Fri. 26 Nov. 2010 Deventer Schouwburg
'Little whisky child'; begins 20:00. More info here.

Sat. 11 Dec. 2010 Capellenborgtheater, Wijhe
'Little whisky child'; begins 20:15. More info here.

Thurs. 3 Mar. 2011 Theater Globe, Hilversum
'Tales for the ever-young'. More info here.

Fri. 9 Apr. 2011 Theater Carrousel, Ommen
'Little whisky child'; begins 20:00. More info here.

Sat. 21 May 2011 Theater Idea, Soest
'Little whisky child'; begins 20:00. More info here.

There is still space in our schedule for appearances in Jan.-June 2011.

Blue Dew can be booked through the StudioKLEINkunst agency. If you are interested in the performance 'The long journey home', the story-programme 'Roasted barley', the programme for those aged 6 and over 'Tales for the ever-young', or the new performance 'Little whisky child', contact:

Marius Klein
Burg. Tonckensstraat 12
7921 KC Zuidwolde (dr)
Tel: +31 (0)6 26552185
e-mail

A joy to see you again and may joy be with you all!

Radio playlists

Kabel 87.5 MHz - Omroep Venray - Ether 90.2 MHz:
Peelgrass Country Programme playlist 2648 (25 Apr. 2010)
PeelGrass is now also broadcast on Huissentv (the Netherlands). The programme supports the European World of Bluegrass Festival.

Radio Vrolek, 107.7 MHz; local cable 105.5 MHz; Information TV-channel 2:
Country Music Round-up playlists, Tues. 19.00-20.00, Sat. 12.00-13.00

Radio Free FM Ulm, UKW 102.6:
Americana playlists* 321 (5 Apr. 2010) and 322 (12 Apr. 2010)
Antistatic Country Time playlist 22 Feb. 2010

* Programmes in this series are broadcast live on Radio Free FM and Countrymusic24.com and will be repeated on Countrymusic24.com on Saturdays at 1:00 p.m. (European Continental time) in future, instead of Tuesdays at 5.30 p.m. as heretofore.
Antistatic Country Time can be heard on Radio Free FM's live streaming Digital Audio Lounge.

Europe in Laurie Lewis's April newsletter

The April 2010 e-mail newsletter from Laurie Lewis gives much space to her tour with Tom Rozum in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy last month, with photos of snowy trees in Sachsenheim and sunlight in Portofino (left), and descriptions of seeing art and architecture in Rome and (under the guidance of Red Wine) buying chocolates in Genoa (Genova).

The newsletter also includes a performance schedule for April and details of summer instruction camps in May, June, and July.

BBMA e-newsletter #9

Thanks to Richard F Thompson, editor of British Bluegrass News, the magazine of the British Bluegrass Music Association, for the news that BBN has issued the ninth (April 2010) in its series of e-newsletters to BBMA members, carrying news that breaks between issues of the quarterly magazine.

The 13-page newsletter, which can be read here, has a further improved format and includes many items of bluegrass news outside Britain, leading with a feature on the 13th EWOB Festival (13-15 May 2010). The lineup for the Willisau festival in Switzerland and the new Lilly Drumeva CD are reported, and a new one-day bluegrass event in England, the Appleby Bluegrass Day, is announced for 30 August 2010.

Those interested in joining the BBMA can do so by contacting the Membership Team, Clare and David Rozzell, 26 Martin Road, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO3 6JZ; e-mail.

News for the European Bluegrass Blog...

... can be posted to any member of the team of contributors listed on the right of the EBB during the period 4-10 April, except Richard Hawkins, who will be attending Sore Fingers Week in England during that period, on the bluegrass banjo course taught by Alan Munde.

Any news that you would normally send to Richard can be sent to the blog e-mail address shown at the top of the EBB. Please make sure that everything you wish to send is included in the text of the e-mail, as attachments do not come through this link.

Latest news on G2 from the Bluegrass Blog

Read the Bluegrass Blog for the latest news on the G2 Bluegrass Band from Sweden, #1 European Bluegrass Band 2007 - especially the appreciative comments by John Lawless on the music from their new album, Untapped routes. One track from the album, the song 'Still standing', was released today as a digital single and can be bought on Klicktrack and heard on their website.

Read also how the band are searching for a base in the Nashville area for their forthcoming US tour.

EWOB Festival featured in Bluegrass Music Profiles and Moonshiner

The current (March-April 2010) issue of the US magazine Bluegrass Music Profiles includes a 'Promoter profile' on the European World of Bluegrass Festival at Voorthuizen, the Netherlands. This article, written by Don Kissil (formerly editor/publisher of Pickin' magazine, USA), will also be appearing in translation in the venerable Japanese bluegrass publication Moonshiner this spring.

This year's event will be the thirteenth EWOB Festival, and the twelfth held at 't Trefpunt, Voorthuizen. The Festival website includes a new press release, issued yesterday (22 March 2010), which gives full details of EWOB 2010 and can be read here.

Bluegrass in DreamWest magazine

Thanks to Country France for the news that the latest issue of the French-language country music magazine DreamWest includes features on Bill Monroe (p. 45), on the history of bluegrass music (pp 46-7), and on Steve Martin (p. 62). Issue #17 of DreamWest can be read online here.

Discovering folk music

Award-winning writer, photographer, and broadcaster Stephanie P. Ledgin - author of Homegrown music: discovering bluegrass and From every stage: images of America's roots music - has recently published Discovering folk music, a survey of folk music in America ranging from the colonial era to '60s protest music to avant-garde 21st-century performers, embracing America's multicultural traditions, and demonstrating the relevance of folk music in everyday life. The book has already been welcomed with very positive reviews. The full jacket description can be read here. For interview or review copy requests, please e-mail.

Stephanie Ledgin's many awards and honours include IBMA Print Media Person of the Year (2005). She is also a strong supporter of bluegrass from outside America: a chapter of Home grown music is devoted to international bluegrass.

Lovin' you on CD Baby and YouTube: update

Lilly Drumeva writes from Bulgaria:

Dear friends,

My new album Lovin’you is now available on the internet through CD Baby.

You may watch a video on YouTube of the song 'If I needed you', duet with Jakub Racek (CZ).

Lilly Drumeva
Lilly of the West
e-mail
M: +359 888 660 990

Update 12 Mar.: Erio Meili of the Sao Paulo Bluegrass Music Association in Brazil sends his translation from Portuguese into English of a short original review of Lovin' you, written by Quesia Nunes, singer for the Brazilian band Bluegrass 4 union (MySpace):

I enjoyed the CD overall. It is the first time I am listening to a CD of that singer, and enjoyed it very much. Her smooth voice timbre is pleasant, and the choice of repertoire has a very good taste! I found the tracks in Bulgarian being different and bold!... and it shows the pride from her roots. The music that I liked most on the CD was 'Red clay halo'... and also the Bill Monroe song 'Cry, cry darlin''. I think it's wonderful to hear bluegrass from other regions of the world. Each country and interpreter is giving its touch. I loved the CD and I will recommend it to bluegrass lovers... and I will do more follow up on Lilly Drumeva's career.

The original review by Quesia Nunes can be read here.

Kudos for Acousticure

Congratulations to Acousticure from Hungary, current #1 European Bluegrass Band, whose CD Bluegrass van (Gryllus Records GCD 073) has been reviewed in the March 2010 issue of Bluegrass Unlimited magazine. The reviewer, Bill Conger, writes:

This acoustic quartet demonstrates the worldwide influence of bluegrass music. Labeled a Hungarian bluegrass band, I really would not have known these guys were from across the pond... tight vocals and superb chops... make this album a must have for your collection.

Another European reference in the same issue of BU: David McCarty's article on Chuck Ogsbury of Ome Banjos mentions the 'eighty-year-old Swedish woodworker' in Ogsbury's home town of Louisville, KY, who helped him get started in building banjos. Perhaps Swedish bluegrassers should identify and commemorate this craftsman as a Bluegrass Pioneer?

Toy Hearts: March 2010 newsletter

Thanks to Sophia Johnson of the Toy Hearts (UK) for the four-page March 2010 issue of the band's magazine-format, fully illustrated newsletter, which includes the big news that their third album, Femme fatale, is scheduled for release in June 2010 with distribution from a record label. The Toy Hearts will be touring in the UK and Europe during the summer in connection with the new album before their next trip to the US.

Other features include the band's endorsement of BlueChip picks (also featured in the March 2010 issue of Bluegrass Unlimited magazine); Hannah's new Collings mandolin; and many photos from the Bluegrass Jamboree tour in December, and from the Femme fatale recording sessions. The list of forthcoming appearances on page 4 includes the Picnic Festival at Namur, Belgium (3-5 September 2010).

View the Toy Hearts' March newsletter here.

Crooked Still in Europe, Mar. 2010: update

The tour schedule for Crooked Still (USA) which was published six weeks ago on the European Bluegrass Blog should have been twice as long.

Before the band (leaders in the field of 'alternative bluegrass') begin their dates in the UK and Sweden, they will be making five appearances in the Republic of Ireland, beginning on 15 March. This includes a slot on one of the longest-running programmes on the national TV station. Full details are on the Bluegrass Ireland Blog.

Deadline for Bluegrass Europe

Paolo Dettwiler, editor of the EBMA magazine Bluegrass Europe, says:

If you have any news items, concert dates, feature articles, or anything relevant to the next issue of Bluegrass Europe (April-May 2010), please e-mail it to me by 5 March 2010 - thanks!

'Sunday Afternoon Breakdown' on the internet

Ernie & Debi Evans, whose 'Sunday Afternoon Breakdown' radio show was featured on the European Bluegrass Blog on 21 October 2009 under the title 'Good morning Europe', announce that from this Sunday, 28 Feb., the programme will be streaming live on the internet from 3.00 p.m. to 6.00 p.m. EST, and can be accessed through this link.

Contact Ernie and Debi by e-mail.

Suzanne and Jim on YouTube

Suzanne and Jim (USA), whom many will remember from their appearances at the EWOB Festival and elsewhere in Europe during 2007, send Glorious Ground Hog Day greetings to their friends, together with the news that they can be seen playing 'Si bheag, si mhor' here - the first upload on their own YouTube channel.

Irish Flatpicking

EBB editor's note: The following message from Frank Simon has been received, under the above title:

Please find attached, message for European Bluegrass blog.

To users of the EBB in general: Unfortunately, although e-mails can come through the link shown at the top of the blog, attachments to them do not, and nor does the address of the sender; so please put any text and contact data in the main body of the e-mail if you are using this link.

Frank, we look forward to receiving and publishing your news.

Bluegrass Europe #73

The deadline for Bluegrass Europe #73 (April-May 2010) is 5 March.

Paolo Dettwiler, editor of BE, has a new postal address:

Paolo Dettwiler
Liestalerstrasse 30
CH-4412 Nuglar
Switzerland

News, articles, letters, concert dates, and other material for publication can also be sent in by e-mail.

The banjo: from Africa to America and back

Thanks to Veit Doehler of Banjoree for this news of a broadcast on 31 January on the origins, history, and future of the banjo:

Liebe Banjoisten und deren Freunde,

wir sind gerade von einem treuen BANJOREE – Teilnehmer aus Hamburg auf diese Sendung aufmerksam gemacht worden: „Von Afrika nach Amerika und zurück, Die Odyssee des Banjos von den Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart, Von Christoph Wagner“ am Sonntag, 31.01.2010 · 15:05 Uhr

Das klingt alles sehr vielversprechend und spannend und soll euch deshalb auch nicht vorenthalten werden. Banjo-Features im Radio gibt’s ja selten genug.

Beste Grüße in den wahrscheinlich ebenfalls viel zu eisigen Rest der BANJOREE-Welt.

Belgium: concerts and other news

Les Impertinents (photo: Véronique Marchand)

Bluegrass in Belgium reports:

Dear friends

The Sons of Navarone give a free concert in Tervuren on Sunday 31 January at 20:00. The number of seats is limited, so you only get in by making a reservation by e-mail.

The Sons will also do a five-day tour in the UK in February. Details on their website. It seems the Sons are in great shape (except for one who has the 'flu and sounds more like a Snot of Navarone). They are on the cover of British Bluegrass News and will also be on the cover of the next issue of Bluegrass Europe magazine.

Belgium celebrates the arrival of a new bluegrassy band! Les Impertinents - with all except one member of the legendary Gold Rush.

Two American and one Dutch bluegrass bands are visiting Belgium soon: the Grascals, Hayseed Dixie, and 4 Wheel Drive. Check all details on the calendar of Bluegrass in Belgium.

'If I needed you': video clip

Hi all,

Below is a link to the clip of 'If I needed you' from my new album [see the EBB post of 21 Jan.]: 'If I needed you'

Kind regards,

Lilly Drumeva
Lilly of the West
e-mail
M: +359 888 660 990
website

Thanks to Richard F. Thompson of the BBMA for the news that issue #37 (Oct. 2009) of Vagabond, an English-language monthly publication, includes an article by Ani Ivanova about Lilly Drumeva and bluegrass in Bulgaria. It can be read here.

May 2010: Worldwide Month of Bluegrass

The EBMA is now collecting dates of all bluegrass events happening in May 2010, and offers to feature any festivals in or near this period on the back of this year's EWOB Month T-shirt. Please send in information to the EBMA by e-mail.

The 2010 EWOB logotype will be available for download to be used on flyers for your events shortly. As usual, the EBMA will present an information booth at the EWOB Festival in Voorthuizen, the Netherlands (13-15 May 2010), which is organised under the auspices of EBMA by the EWOB Voorthuizen committee.

Bluegrass Jamboree! on World Wide Radio: 17 Jan., 15:05-17:45 (CET)

Rainer Zellner, organiser of the successful Bluegrass Jamboree! package tour, writes:

Hello all,

On Sunday 17 January, Radio WDR3 will broadcast a large part of the show plus interviews recorded 19 December 2009 in Kaarst, Germany. Steep Canyon Rangers, the Toy Hearts, and Beverly Smith & Carl Jones plus a festival finale session with all on stage. Public radio WDR3 covers a large part of Germany via antenna and cable and can also be heard worldwide.

The program is designed for the ambitious music-lover; you can hear classical, jazz, world music, and other exciting genres. It is the first time ever they will present a bluegrass show in an almost two-hour segment and put it right beside those other established styles!

Stream address
Info for the program

Look for Bluegrass Jamboree.

To convince this radio to broadcast bluegrass more, it would be very helpful to contact them after the show via e-mail and let them know you liked it! They will be surprised to receive mails from all over the world, I am sure.

Bluegrass Rules!

Rainer Zellner
MUSIC CONTACT
Roots Music Booking and Production
Saarstrasse 8, D-72070 Tübingen, Germany
+49 (0) 7073 2250; fax +49 (0) 7073 2134; mobile +49 170 2134 999
UStID: DE146940684 (German tax number)
media download
E-mail

Listen to the Bluegrass Jamboree! online
Sunday 17 January 2010, 4.05 p.m.

Lovin' you - new album from Lilly Drumeva

Lilly Drumeva has released a new album entitled Lovin' you, featuring Monogram (CZ) and Lilly of the West (BG). It contains fifteen tracks of traditional bluegrass, country, and swing; among them two duets with Monogram's singer/guitarist Jakub Racek. A video to the song 'If I needed you' will be posted shortly on YouTube.

A new website is being designed to launch the new album. Lovin' you will be soon available through cdbaby. Samples of tracks from the new album can be heard on MySpace, till the physical CD is out.

Bluegrass on the Tube

EBMA board member Dagfinn Pedersen reports:

I have just been thrilled by Alison Krauss singing 'A living prayer' for me on a professional video with very good sound. The last couple of weeks I have enjoyed videos by IIIrd Tyme Out, Jimmy Martin, Lester Flatt, Ricky Skaggs, Rhonda Vincent, Bill Monroe, Doyle Lawson, and a number of other bluegrass greats. All thanks to Bluegrass On The Tube, a website dedicated to bring you the best bluegrass videos on YouTube.

Anyone can have free access to their extensive bluegrass video library; but in addition they will send you a link to a new song every day. All you have to do is become a member, that is signing up with your first name and your e-mail address. A great inspiration every day in your mailbox. Here is the Alison Krauss video, and here you find the Norwegian artist Jonas Fjeld and Chatham County Line (USA).

Good wishes for 2010

Thanks to the Petr Brandejs Band for the above New Year's greeting. 'We'll concentrate on children' is a good New Year resolution for all bands.

Messages of goodwill also received during the holiday season include greetings from Christopher Howard-Williams and Didier Philippe of the La Roche Bluegrass Festival; Joel B. Espesset of Kehl, Germany; Lluís Gómez of Barcelona, Spain; Nugget and New West of Vienna, Austria; the Toy Hearts of Birmingham, England; Luca Bartolini of Genoa, Italy; and Monika and Eberhard Finke of Germany. In recognition of the support given by the International Bluegrass Music Museum (IBMM) to bluegrass outside the USA, here's a photo of Monika and Eberhard with Gabrielle Gray, IBMM director.

British Bluegrass News #51

British Bluegrass News #51 (winter 2009/10) has been posted out to members of the British Bluegrass Music Association (BBMA).

The 44-page bumper winter edition (10% larger than the autumn issue) features the Belgian band Sons of Navarone on the cover; inside is a substantial interview with the Sons by Rick Townend, a full-page ad for the band, and a list of dates for their UK tour in mid February 2010.

The issue also includes features on bluegrass in Northern Ireland, songwriter David Rozzell, the late Terry Holland, and the Crocker Brothers band. Tom Adams (USA) contributes an article and a banjo tab, 'BBN blues'. Multi-instrumentalist and BBN production editor Pat Francis reveals his ‘Favourites’, and 'The story behind the song' looks at John Henry Newton‘s ‘Amazing grace’. All this plus the regular 'What’s on', tour details and 2010 festival dates, CD and book reviews, 'Light in the window', 'SmallTalk', and ten area reports.

This issue is the third to appear with Richard F. Thompson as editor-in-chief. British Bluegrass News is published by the BBMA, which was founded in 1990. To join the BBMA, contact the Membership Team, Clare and David Rozzell, by e-mail.

For further information about the BBMA and the e-newsletter, contact Richard F. Thompson, Press Relations, 14 Lime Grove, Lichfield, Staffordshire, England, WS13 6ER; 'phone +44 (0)1543 252683; e-mail.

New website for the Al Ras Festival, Barcelona

Thanks to Lluis Antonio Gomez Martinez for the news that the annual Al Ras Bluegrass and Old-Time Festival at Barcelona, Spain, now has a new website which carries information about the Festival and also about all bluegrass and old-time activity in the Barcelona area.

Readers can register to be informed of any new developments. The website is in Spanish, Catalan, and English. Its mission statement on the home page points out that the main purposes of the festival are to raise public awareness of the music, to bring people together to enjoy it, and to encourage and inform

groups and individuals who play these musical styles in our land, helping them to show their performances and music-making. Al Ras is a meeting place, even once a year, to enjoy all this and both the performer and listener are able to make friends. Guitars, banjos, fiddles, mandolins, dobro, bass, accordions, bagpipes...

Eight Al Ras festivals have been held so far; the ninth will be held on 6 November 2010.

News for the European Bluegrass Blog

From the European Bluegrass Blog editorial team:

Anyone who normally sends news to Richard Hawkins for posting on the European Bluegrass Blog should please send it instead to the blog's own e-mail address between 21 and 27 December, when he will be unavailable for posting news.

We recommend that the blog address should be used at all times. When Richard is available, he can deal with news received there; and when he is not, it can be handled by another member of the EBB team.

Updates 31 Jan./3 Feb 2010: If you use this link, everything you want to transmit should be in the main text of the e-mail, including full URLs and e-mail addresses. Although the blog's address will receive e-mails, it will not receive any attachments.

The next European Bluegrass Directory

The EBMA's European Bluegrass Directory is at present in its seventh edition (2008/2009), with over 770 entries. There have been many developments in European bluegrass since it was compiled two years ago, and the EBMA board of directors has decided that an eighth edition (2010/2011) shall be produced in print, using the same format as for previous editions.

Thierry Schoysman of Bluegrass in Belgium is in charge of compiling the new edition. While the EBMA national representatives will have an important role in gathering and forwarding information, the board welcomes contributions from bands, event organisers, luthiers, media people, and everyone else who is active in bluegrass in Europe. All material should be delivered to Thierry Schoysman not later than February 2010.

The format for a European Bluegrass Directory after 2011 will be considered in the context of other European bluegrass publications.

Mismountain Boys December newsletter

In the latest newsletter from the Mismountain Boys of Bergamo, Italy, you can read a review of their latest CD, Spaghetti Western Cafe, by Fabrizio Poggi from Folk Bulletin magazine; buy the mp3 of their single 'Jingle Bells (Suna Campanèll)' with a donation to the Red Cross; see photos from their Eurobrasserie live concert on 14 November; and check on their upcoming shows.

The Mismountain Boys are Roberto 'The Hook' Braiato (mandolin, guitar, background vocals), Remo 'Mr Cadillac' Ceriotti (5-string banjo, dobro), Franco 'The Captain' Fanizzi (guitar, lead vocals), Fabio 'Cowboy Smile' Bestetti (upright bass, background vocals), Italo 'Babayou' Gualandris (accordion, vocals), Isabella 'Belle Starr' Saradini (vocals, guitar, and Tista 'West Point Records' Rota (drums and percussion).

The band are also on Facebook, MySpace, and YouTube.

A new member of the G2 family

The second son of Erik Igelström of Sweden and his wife Hanna was born on the afternoon of Thursday 26 November at home in Södersjukhuset, Stockholm. Not yet named when the first announcement was made, the new arrival is a robust (about 4.5 kg) new brother for two-and-a-half-year-old Milton.

The proud father is the mandolin player for the G2 Bluegrass Band. Read more in today's post on the original Bluegrass Blog.

Lilly of the West concert at the Bulgarian national radio

L-r: Rumen Boyadjiev, Lilly Drumeva, Svoboda Bozduganova

Lilly Drumeva reports from Bulgaria:

25 November 2009 was a memorable evening for musicians and fans at the Bulgarian national radio in Sofia. It was a special concert, recorded live at the beautiful Studio 1 Hall, and packed with more than 250 people. Recordings will be archived in the 'golden Bulgarian radio fund' to be played on special occasions. Lilly of the West performed a mix of country, bluegrass, western swing, blues, and some original material.

The band featured Lilly Drumeva (vocal), Yasen Vasilev (guitar), Ivan Penchev (fiddle), and Svoboda Bozduganova (upright bass), with guests Rayko Pepelanov (guitar), Michail Shihskov (dobro, piano) and Rumen Boyadjiev (drums). The concert finished on a high note with 'My window faces the south', on which everyone played a solo, followed by Leonard Cohen’s 'Hallelujah' as an encore. Guests were treated to a glass of wine and snacks after the show.

The encore, 'Hallelujah', can be seen on YouTube.

4 Wheel Drive at Omagh

Thanks to Jan Michielsen, guitar player with 4 Wheel Drive (D/NL/B), fans of the band can find photos of 4WD on the Bluegrass Ireland Blog, showing them at this September's Omagh festival in Northern Ireland. On the left: Ulli Sieker in the background as Joost van Es and Jurgen Biller get intense on fiddle and banjo.

Videos of seventeen live numbers by the band at a show in the Netherlands can also be seen on YouTube.

New stock in the New Acoustic Gallery

Oliver Waitze of the New Acoustic Gallery in Solingen, Germany, reports that in the last few days many interesting new items - books, instruments, accessories, and CDs - have been added to the Gallery's stock.

The books include Jim Mills's Gibson Mastertone flathead 5-string banjos and Manfred Fuchs's Gypsy jazz workshop; the accessories include new Blue Chip picks and Paige capos, mandolin tailpieces, arm-rests, and ToneGards; the CDs include Mike Marshall albums (left); and the instruments include the Weber mandocello (right).

All of these can be ordered through the NAG Internet Shop or by the Hotline: +49 0212/2474007.

Tony Trischka School of Banjo online

The Tony Trischka School of Banjo makes it possible for pickers anywhere in the world to register ($60 for three months) for online lessons at beginning, intermediate, or advanced level from one of the greatest living banjoists. The student body now includes pickers from England, Germany, Spain, and Australia.

The website already has over 160 video lessons, and more are being added - clawhammer lessons from Bob Carlin are coming soon. In addition, a student can get personal banjo instruction by sending Tony Trischka a video via the site and receiving his response.

The many features of the site are well worth checking out. A YouTube video taken at IBMA's World of Bluegrass 2009 includes a lot of good music: the 'blazing Czech player' mentioned is Martin Fridrich of COP (CZ). Thanks to Lilly Pavlak for forwarding news of the TTSB.

G2: back from 'two incredible weeks'

The G2 Bluegrass Band (Sweden), #1 European Bluegrass Band 2007, are back from the 'two incredible weeks' of their third trip to the USA. The highlights included appearing on the Bluegrass Legends concert series in Chicago, on the WoodSongs Old-Time Radio Hour in Lexington, KY (the show can be seen here), and of course at IBMA's World of Bluegrass 2009 (see photo above).

The band will spend an extended period in North America from June 2010. To book them in the US and Canada, contact Roe Entertainment; for bookings in Europe, contact

Tobias Strömberg
Åsegård 72
686 97 Lysvik
SWEDEN
Cell: +46-070-2294505
e-mail

You can sign up here to receive G2's newsletters.

Banjo Roots

The UK old-time music organisation FOAOTMAD draws attention to Banjo Roots, a MySpace site set up by the Banjo Roots Network, hosted by Shlomo Pestcoe and Greg C. Adams as one of a series of linked sites that explore the earliest phases of banjo development from the roots in West Africa.

Banjo Roots is already a useful reference work for early banjo history, and the Network is intended to assist future cooperation among researchers. The MySpace site includes a video shot by the late Theo Lissenberg, formerly bass player and lead singer with 4 Wheel Drive, at the 1992 Tennessee Banjo Institute. This video was edited by the Swedish banjo historian Ulf Jagfors, and can also be seen on Ulf Jagfors's YouTube channel.

New Acoustic Gallery news

Oliver Waitze of the New Acoustic Gallery (NAG) in Solingen, Germany, announces two main events remaining on the NAG's 2009 schedule:

(1) A flatpicking guitar workshop by Oliver Waitze on 21 November 2009, from 10.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.

This workshop is for everyone who wants to improve their plectrum playing. All levels of players are welcome! Fields coveredwill include bluegrass fiddle tunes, rhythm, melody, right-hand exercises, Lester Flatt G-runs, endings, crosspicking in the styles of Clarence White & Tony Rice, lead picking, gourmet licks a la Tony Rice, scales... and previews of new publications. Admission: €90.

(2) A solo concert by Beppe Gambetta on 6 December, beginning at 8.00 p.m. He will be presenting his new CD Rendez-vous, of which he says:

... I'm trying to break the borders of the flatpicking technique in a creative way, experimenting new 'full sounding' solutions to obtain a sort of a 'plectrum-fingerstyle' sound in an unusual synthesis.

Admission: 18 € VV; 22 € AK; 14 € ermäßigt. For more info and bookings, contact Oliver Waitze
Tel.: +49 0212/2474007
e-mail

Oliver Waitze and his setting of 'President Garfield's hornpipe' are also featured in Flatpicking Guitar Magazine, xiv, no. 1 (Nov./Dec. 2009) and the NAG itself is featured in the current issue of Folker magazine. Read more on the NAG online newsletter.

Video trailer for Bluegrass Jamboree!

Bluegrass Jamboree! Festival of Bluegrass and Americana Music 2009 - which will bring the Steep Canyon Rangers (USA), Beverly Smith & Carl Jones (USA), and the Toy Hearts (GB) to sixteen venues in Germany and Switzerland between 5 and 20 December 2009 - now has a new video trailer, including photos of all three acts.

The trailer can be watched on the Jamboree's own website, on YouTube, or on Ruth Ellen Gruber's Sauerkraut Cowboys blog.

A busy autumn for Lilly of the West

Lilly in the recording studio

Lilly Drumeva reports:

October was a busy month for Lilly of the West. The band worked with guest musicians from the UK (Mike Black), USA (Daniel Beaulaurier), Hungary (Zsolt Pintér and Géza Kremnitzky of Acousticure), and the Czech Republic (Jakub Racek of Monogram). The events featured concerts, jam sessions, and appearances on national radio and TV.

A full report, with photos, on the special reception at the Hungarian embassy in Sofia, Bulgaria, for the Hungarian National day on 21 October (see the EBB for 23 Oct.) can be seen on the Lilly of the West website.

Recordings have been finalised for Lilly Drumeva’s new album, Lovin’ you. Scheduled for release in January 2010, it will contain sixteen tracks recorded in two sessions, in Sofia with Lilly of the West and in Prague with Monogram. The repertoire is traditional bluegrass, swing, country ballads, Bulgarian folk songs, an original song by Lilly, and two duets with Jakub Racek. Jakub visited Bulgaria at the end of October to co-produce Lilly’s album. A video clip was made to one of the duet songs; it will be featured on the album in multimedia format. More info and photos are here.

On 25 November 2009 Lilly of the West will perform live at the Bulgarian National Radio. The concert will be recorded in Studio 1 for the Golden Radio Fund and may be released on CD in 2010. The band will close the season with a Christmas concert on 10 December at the Czech Cultural Center in Sofia. Special guests are invited, among them Mr Martin Klepetko, Czech ambassador in Bulgaria. All info here.

2nd Annual Bluegrass Jam Session in Amstenrade, NL, 12 Dec. 2009

Thanks to Hans Wolters, DJ of 'Hans's Super Service Grass Station' on the World Wide Bluegrass network, for the news that Jan van Cep's Second Annual Christmas Bluegrass Jam Session will be held at 3.00 p.m. on Saturday 12 December 2009 at the Country Home, Jan van Cep, Hoofdstraat 11, Amstenrade, the Netherlands.

Everybody is welcome - both musicians (beginners and experienced) and listeners. For info call Jan van Cep (+31 046 4421408) or Hans Wolters (+31 046 4755980). You can see and copy the Jam Session flyer here.

'Hans's Super Service Grass Station' is broadcast on Thursdays from 12 noon to 2.00 p.m. Eastern Time on the World Wide Bluegrass network, corresponding to 6.00 to 8.00 p.m. (GMT+01:00) in Amsterdam.

Wayne Taylor's tribute to Scottish Bluegrass Association

Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa (USA) recently made an eighteen-show, thirteen-day tour of Scotland and England under the auspices of the Scottish Bluegrass Association (SBA), including workshops and two Music in the Schools presentations funded by the SBA and the IBMA. Photos from the band's trip can be seen in a photo gallery on their website.

In a post on the original Bluegrass Blog on 2 November, Wayne Taylor explains how the tour had been the realisation of an idea first put forward by John Sheldon (now secretary of the SBA) in 1995, at Rosine, KY. On the same occasion, John Sheldon promised Bill Monroe, the Father of Bluegrass Music, that he would do all he could to promote bluegrass music in the United Kingdom. The Bluegrass Blog post is entitled 'A promise fulfilled'.

Special Consensus tour journal complete

The Special Consensus (USA) ended their latest tour of Europe last weekend, with shows at the Gemeindehaus, Bochum-Harpen (D), on 24 October, and the Hall Theater Jicine, Prague (CZ), on 25 October. Both shows are mentioned in the last episode of the tour journal kept by mandolinist and singer Ashby Frank, for whom it was his first trip to the Czech Republic:

It’s a beautiful country, with really nice and hospitable people... you can sense an appreciation for traditional and acoustic music in the people there... and what an awesome bluegrass community of pickers and singers!

... Thanks to all of the bluegrass music fans in Europe for making this tour possible! Hope to see you again soon.

Read more on the original, award-winning Bluegrass Blog.

Attention, festival organisers...

Thanks to Richard F Thompson of the BBMA for drawing the attention of festival organisers to the deadline (12.00 a.m., 7 Nov. 2009) for entering details of their events in the January 2010 issue of Bluegrass Unlimited magazine.

To qualify for an entry, your event must have at least five bands/acts and not less than five hours of music per day, and must feature bluegrass, old-time, or acoustic music.

Send, e-mail, or fax the following info to Bluegrass Unlimited magazine:

**Festival dates
**City, state, and country of event
**Name of event
**Location & brief directions
**Contact name
**Contact address
**Phone number
**E-mail address
**Website URL

Fax to +1-540-341-0011
e-mail
Postal address PO Box 771, Warrenton, VA 20188, USA
For info: +1-800-258-4727

Diary of a band's tour in Europe

A Special Consensus-G2 reunion in Stockholm

Ashby Frank (on left in above photo), mandolinist and singer with the Special Consensus (USA), who are nearing the end of a ten-day, six-country tour in Europe, has been keeping a diary of the band's experiences during the tour.

You can read episode #3, in which the band travels from the Netherlands to Switzerland, on the original Bluegrass Blog, where there are links to earlier instalments - or you can read the whole journal on Ashby's own website.

More banjo revolutionaries

Recent additions to Tom Nechville's Picasa web album of 'Famous Revolutionaries with Nechvilles' include these photos: above, Lluís Gómez (E), Leon Hunt (GB), and Tim Carter (USA), taken backstage at the Longford Arms Hotel, main concert venue of the 2009 Johnny Keenan Banjo Festival in Longford, Ireland; and right, Tom Hanway (USA, but now resident for several years in Longford). For developments on Tom's new MySpace site, see the Bluegrass Ireland Blog.

'Good Morning Europe' on World Wide Bluegrass network

Ernie and Debi Evans (left), who jointly host the 'Sunday Afternoon Breakdown' on WFCF 88.5 FM in St Augustine, Florida, will present a new radio show over the internet as part of the World Wide Bluegrass network in the coming weeks. Ernie, who is also president of the North Florida Bluegrass Association and runs the Evans Bluegrass Journal blog, says:

We are a charting station based out of Florida, not to mention the largest college radio station in the US, but want to reach more people. Our recent trip to IBMA this year opened our eyes as to how many talented European artists there are and we had no interaction with them... They make a strong effort and have an unbelievable passion and appreciation for bluegrass music... This is an opportunity for us to help share some of the great music coming out of Europe and give them a chance to hear more bluegrass from the US to start their day off right. After all, they are all part of our bluegrass family.

Programming is already in progress for this international morning show that will bring Europe and the US together for music enthusiasts in both continents. It will feature music, live interviews and news of what's happening and about to happen. Debi says:

This is going to be a great venture and we would like you to come and 'Experience Bluegrass With Us' on the World Wide Bluegrass network. We have access to many domestic entertainers and events, but are collecting information on events and material from European artists, promoters, and agents to help expose them to the US market. We will be airing in a few weeks so don't wait, please respond ASAP.

You can make contact by e-mail. 'The Evans Midnight Round Up/Good Morning Europe Show' will be broadcast on Tuesdays at:
12.00 a.m.-2.00 a.m. EDT
5.00 a.m.-7.00 a.m. GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
6.00 a.m.-8.00 a.m. CET (Central European Time)
7.00 a.m.-9.00 a.m. EET (Eastern European Time)

Ernie and Debi Evans are also members of IBMA and IBMM, and co-promoters of the Florida State Bluegrass Festival.

News media from the bluegrass scene in Britain

British Bluegrass News #50 (autumn 2009) has been posted out to members of the British Bluegrass Music Association (BBMA).

The 40-page issue includes a major obituary of Mike Seeger, features on the Steve Martin phenomenon, the Jaywalkers band, Monroe's Revenge (part 2), 'The state of bluegrass', and an interview with Tony Furtado. Sophia Johnson of the Toy Hearts reveals her ‘Favourites’, and 'The story behind the song' looks at Hazel Dickens‘s ‘Carry me across the mountain’. All this plus the usual 'What’s on', tour details and 2009 festival reports, CD reviews, 'Light in the window', 'SmallTalk', twelve area reports, and a bluegrass recipe.

This issue is the second to appear with Richard F. Thompson as editor-in-chief. British Bluegrass News is published by the BBMA, which was founded in 1990. The third BBMA e-newsletter has also recently been issued to members. To join the BBMA, contact the Membership Team, Clare and David Rozzell, by e-mail.

For further information about the BBMA and the e-newsletter, contact Richard F. Thompson, Press Relations, 14 Lime Grove, Lichfield, Staffordshire, England, WS13 6ER; 'phone +44 (0)1543 252683; e-mail.

************

The Scottish Bluegrass Association has brought out its fourth issue (October/November 2009) of Bluegrass and More, the e-magazine formerly issued by Dee Hallett. Bluegrass and More can be accessed on the SBA website or received by e-mail on application to the SBA.

Press conference on 8th Bühl Bluegrass Festival

Thanks to Wolfgang Mark of the press office of the city of Bühl, in Baden, south-west Germany, for the news that a press conference on the 8th Bühl Bluegrass Festival (14-15 May 2010) will be held at 11.30 a.m. on Tuesday 20 October 2009 in the Rathaus I, Alter Trausaal, Hauptstraße 47, 77815 Bühl.

Hans Striebel, mayor of the city, Wolfgang Jokerst of the Bühl culture department, Walter Fuchs, festival director, and Rüdiger Schmitt of Kleinkunst im Schüttekeller will be present to give all information on the new Festival.

If you will be attending as a media representative, or wish to receive the press package, contact Wolfgang Mark at the above address; tel. +49 (0) 72 23) 9 35-2 82, fax -2 89; e-mail.

A copy of the 2010 Bühl Bluegrass Festival flyer can be seen here. Bands taking part include Uncle Earl (USA), the Midnight Ramblers (USA), G2 Bluegrass Band (S), the Sons of Navarone (B), and 4 Wheel Drive (B/D/NL), who will perform both with James Talley (USA) and with Jolanda Peters (NL).

Roberto Dalla Vecchia: news October 2009

Thanks to Roberto Dalla Vecchia ('Flatpicking Guitar with Italian Gusto') of Vicenza, Italy, who sends his latest newsletter:

Roberto's YouTube channel has undergone recent changes, and he thanks Vlado for putting up some great videos from the Acoustic Guitar Workshop. You can also join Roberto on Facebook.

Roberto thanks everyone whose vote has helped his music win recognition this year. Among over 42,000 albums and over 560,000 songs submitted from 160 countries for the Instrumental Album category of the 2009 Just Plain Folks Music Awards, Roberto's CD Grateful won second place. His tune 'Sunflowers', from his new CD Unknown legends, won the Channel Prize for Instrumental Solo in June 2009, receiving the highest rank in OurStage's Instrumental Solo Channel.

Both CDs can be bought or downloaded on line; the options are shown on Roberto's website, which also has a new digital store, where sheet music and tabs are available for purchase and download in PDF format at $3.95 for each title, and can also be bought in packages at a discount.

Each purchaser will receive an e-mail with a link to the download. You can preview each tab and hear a sound clip before buying. Roberto will be adding more transcriptions each month; e-mail him if there is a song that you'd like to see made available as sheet music.

Roberto Dalla Vecchia
Website (sign the Message Board)
MySpace

Bluegrass progress in Portugal

Andre Lentilhas reports:

Finally bluegrass is starting to appear in Portugal. Next Friday, 16 October, there will be a banjo workshop held by Stephen Kierniesky in Lisbon. I never heard of this banjo player, but what is good is that finally there's a banjo workshop in Portugal.

Also my band [Stonebones & Bad Spaghetti] is getting some attention - not much, but enough, as we're scheduled to play at some FNAC shops on 24, 25 and 31 October. You can check it out on MySpace. The audio is not very good but the video recordings are alright, I reckon.

Finally, my newsletter about bluegrass, which I started when Tony Trischka came to Portugal, last February, is getting more and more subscriptions.

EBB note: Stephen Kierniesky's playing can be heard on YouTube.

Europe in the Oct. 2009 Bluegrass Unlimited

G2, the young Swedish bluegrass band, fascinates American audiences. Seeing a group of good-looking Swedes who love bluegrass so much that they want to play it for a living is stunning.

That's the beginning of 'G2 - Europe's hottest young bluegrass band', an article in the October 2009 issue of Bluegrass Unlimited magazine by Casey Henry. The article - written before the band's appearances at this year's World of Bluegrass - covers in four pages the individual and collective background of the members of G2, including how they came to the music and where they hope to be going.

The 'Letters' page of the same issue includes one from Joe Hickerson of Wheaton, MD, USA, on his recent visit to the bluegrass jam night at the U Supa Country Saloon in Prague (CZ), run by Peter O. 'Sam' Ruby. In addition to being impressed by the quality of Czech picking and Czech instruments, Joe says: 'I was especially impressed with Sam's expert leadership of the event... I highly recommend that visitors to the Czech Republic contact Sam... Tell him Joe sent you!'

BBMA: new e-newsletter

Since August 2009 the British Bluegrass Music Association (BBMA) has sent out to all its members the first two issues of a new 'semi-regular' e-newsletter providing bluegrass and old-time news from Britain, Ireland, the USA, and elsewhere. Inquiries about being added to the circulation list should be sent by e-mail to Richard F Thompson, editor-in-chief of the BBMA's quarterly journal, British Bluegrass News.

Lluís Gómez: Famous Revolutionary

Lluís Gómez of Spain (above) is one of the 'Famous Revolutionaries with Nechvilles' whose pictures appear on a Picasa web album set up by Tom Nechville of Nechville Musical Products, who was in Europe during June-July 2009.

Lluís also appears in the summer 2009 issue of the Nechville News among six 'Nechville players around the world' - the others are Lubos Malina of Druha Trava (CZ), Leon Hunt (GB), Andy Glandt (D), Jean-Marie Redon (F), and Hiro Arita of Japan.

Lluís Gómez will be leading the Barcelona Bluegrass Band in the Johnny Keenan Banjo Festival, held from 24 to 27 September in Longford town, Ireland.

Strictly Country and its artists on air

Thanks to Liz Meyer for news from the Folk & Bluegrass Radio Airplay Chart, which is now also the official chart for the Folk Alliance. The following facts come from the August 2009 chart, compiled by Richard Gillmann from FOLKDJ-L radio playlists, and based on 15,350 airplays from 140 different DJs.

Jonathan Edwards's album Rollin' along (produced by Liz for Strictly Country Records) is at #4 among top albums and songs for August 2009, while Liz's own THE STORM (SCR-59) is at #15 - no small achievement for an album released in 2005.

In the chart of top songs for August 2009 Jonathan Edwards's 'Red light, green light' from Rollin' along is at #18, and Edwards shares the #6 place among thirty-eight Top Artists of the Month with Catie Curtis, while Liz herself appears at #23. Strictly Country Records appears at #11 among the forty top labels for the month.

These lists are compiled and posted every month (since October 1997) to the official FOLKDJ-L website, where the archive of past Top Album lists is also available. An extended version is at Richard Gillman's personal website.

New Acoustic Gallery Mandolin Festival Trailer

Mandolin workshop

Oliver Waitze of the New Acoustic Gallery (NAG) has published two video trailers from the first NAG Mandolin Festival in Solingen, Germany, on YouTube and on the NAG website under the link 'News'. There are also 66 photos taken at the Festival. Oliver reports:

We had overwhelming concerts with Mike Marshall, Caterina Lichtenberg, Don Stiernberg Trio, Trio Vibracao, and very successful workshops. I hope you like it! The atmosphere of the festival was fantastic and a highlight so far. I try to do it again next year....

New Acoustic Gallery
Neuenhofer Str. 122
D-42657 Solingen
Germany
Tel.: +49 (0) 212/2474007
e-mail

First European band to play on IBMA Awards Show

The original Bluegrass Blog carried yesterday a post on the forthcoming appearances in the USA by the G2 Bluegrass Band (Sweden), #1 European Bluegrass Band 2007. These include playing on the IBMA Awards Show, where they will be the first European band ever to do so.

The post also includes sound clips from their next CD (still in preparation) and a video from the band's show at the Station Inn in Nashville during their 2008 visit.

Joan Pau Cumellas & Lluís Gómez on YouTube

Thanks to Lluís Gómez for this link to a short video on YouTube of himself (banjo) and Joan Pau Cumellas (harmonica) playing the Irish traditional tune 'Ward's jig'. This is the latest of twenty-six videos on Lluís's YouTube channel, where other videos include his playing with UK banjoists Leon Hunt, John Dowling, and Richard Collins.

Bluegrass in eastern Europe

Lilly Drumeva, EBMA national representative for Bulgaria, reports:

This summer was a busy one for Lilly of the West. We traveled to Hungary (Budapest concert), France (La Roche bluegrass festival), and the UK (Sevenoaks bluegrass festival). You can see detailed reports on my website. Half of the new album has been recorded in Sofia, mid July as well. The next session will be in Prague late September with Monogram.

I made contact with musicians and festivals in Rumania. One is a singer-songwriter 7-days event in Calafat, on the Danube river. They would welcome a bluegrass band as well, but you have to have a song in Rumanian in the repertoire. Dan Vana, the organizer, has also a radio show and is a musician himself. Another contact is Maria Gheorghiu in Bucharest. She is a well known folk singer and has her own show on Rumanian national radio. There is a country club in Timishoara where bluegrass music could be played. One of the contacts there is Sandy Deac, leader of country music band Desperado. I plan to visit Rumania soon and report more in detail about the acoustic scene there.

Early September in the town of Lovech, Bulgaria, I visited the festival of the 'Poets with guitars'. It is a singer-songwriter event, organized by the municipality. It is mostly singers with acoustic guitars, but there are also bands who play folk, blues, country... and why not bluegrass? Musicians get free accommodation, meals, and some gifts from the committee.

In the next months Lilly of the West will have the following gigs:

9 Oct. Stara Zagora, Il Mondo Club (promotion of Tullamore Dew whiskey)
21 Oct. Sofia, Hungarian Embassy (together with Zsolt Pinter and Geza Kremitsky from Acousticure, Hungarian national day)
25 Nov. Sofia, Bulgarian National Radio, Studio 1 (concert is going to be recorded for the Golden Fund, with special guest Rayko Pepelanov on guitar)
10 Dec. Sofia, Czech Cultural Center (Christmas show)

Swiss bluegrass news

Kent Miller, EBMA national representative for Switzerland, reports:

We have enjoyed another wonderful year of summer festivals in Switzerland. We enjoyed having Amy Gallatin, Roger Williams, Chris and Sally Jones and Chris's band stop here on their ways through Europe. Add the excellent European and Swiss bands and good weather to the mix and we have a banner festival season to look back on.

The long tradition of having largely local events present excellent bluegrass in a festival situation is a 'win/win' situation for the otherwise tiny, but tenacious, Swiss bluegrass community. This community is looking forward to celebrating bluegrass and old-time music at its annual Fan Fest on 7 November. The popular open mike, jam rooms, instrument raffle, and cinema room attracts SBMA members as well as other fans of acoustic music in large numbers.

We hope any visitors in the area will make it a point to stop by for what is always a fun evening. Yes, we call it Fan Fest because the Swiss Bluegrass scene has always tried to be 'bigger than its britches' in any way possible. That is why we also now have our own radio show in Swiss German every Sunday and Monday. All of this is presented on the Swiss Bluegrass Music Association website. There is also going to be a Bluegrass Jamboree in December...

International Bluegrass Meeting at Birkenried, 4-6 Sept. 2009

Thanks to Peter Wroblewski and Friedrich Hog for the news that the Country & Western Friends Kötz 1982 e.V. will hold their International Bluegrass Meeting in the Kulturgewächshaus at Birkenried (89423 Gundelfingen-Birkenried), Germany, from Friday 4 September to Sunday 6 September 2009.

Concerts begin at 8.00 p.m. on Friday with Amy Gallatin & Stillwaters featuring Roger Williams on Dobro (USA), GrassCountry with banjo virtuoso Roman Ac (SK), and singer-songwriter Stephen Simmons from East Nashville (USA).

Saturday's events begin with a Thanksgiving Party (including an Open Stage) for Eberhard Finke, who is retiring as editor of Bluegrass Bühne after twenty-nine years and 172 issues, though he will continue to write for the magazine. The programme then continues till midnight with bands including Driftwood, Foxchase, the Grassroots Philosopher (Olaf Glaesmer), Rüdiger Helbig & Huckleberry Five, Wolfram Hochstetter, Sacred Sounds Of Grass, and Zydeco Annie & the Swamp Cats (in their acoustic version).

At 10.00 a.m. on Sunday 6 September a religious service will be held with bluegrass and country gospel songs from Mandy Strobel and Sacred Sounds of Grass. A special event before the close of the Meeting will be a reunion-concert by Helmut & the Hillbillies. In the 1990s the band was considered one of the best European bluegrass groups, and often played for the Country & Western Friends.

More details and photos can be seen on the Friends' website or here.

Bluegrass publishing in Europe: the way ahead

Left to right: Eberhard Finke, editor of Bluegrass Buehne; Angelika Torrie, treasurer and webmaster of the EBMA; Rienk Janssen, editor of Strictly Country; Paolo Dettwiler, editor of Bluegrass Europe

Thanks to Paolo Dettwiler for the above photo from a meeting of the three editors of Strictly Country, Bluegrass Buehne, and Bluegrass Europe on 4 August 2009 in Lausen, near Basel, Switzerland. Paolo reports:

The meeting was productive and took place in very good spirits as there will be a future for a bluegrass magazine in Europe. Angelika Torrie will be in charge of leading a task force to outline the possibilities for this magazine, possibly in connection with the European Bluegrass Summit 2010. More details will be announced in the next issue of the magazines.

New postal address for Bluegrass Europe

Paolo Dettwiler, editor of the EBMA magazine Bluegrass Europe, reports that as of 1 September 2009 his new postal address will be

Paolo Dettwiler
Lehenmattstrasse 177
CH-4052 Basel
Switzerland

This address has also been added to the EBMA website. Paolo, as editor, can also be contacted by e-mail.

Reports on La Roche Bluegrass Festival 2009

The fourth La Roche Bluegrass Festival is being studied by Ruth Ellen Gruber on her Sauerkraut Cowboys blog. Two instalments have so far appeared (10 August and 15 August), and the series is to be continued.

A personal report on the festival has also appeared on the Bluegrass Ireland Blog.

On Sunday 2 August M. Thabuis, mayor of La Roche-sur-Foron (right, in suit), welcomed festival guests to a reception at the town hall, at which the New Essex Bluegrass Band (UK) played; they had just come from singing gospel songs in the church of St-Jean-Baptiste (photo: Carol Hawkins)

Toy Hearts' August 2009 newsletter

Thanks to Sophia Johnson of the Toy Hearts (UK) for the band's latest newsletter - the second to appear in the new, improved magazine-like format, and already bigger than the July issue.

Three pages of text, photos, and graphics include the Toy Hearts' appearance at the Maverick magazine festival (see more in the forthcoming issue of Maverick) in July; a genuine Texas-style railroad diner in Derbyshire, England, where the band will be playing in October 2009; past and future shows in their home city, Birmingham; their recent appearances at the Craponne and La Roche festivals in France and the Ely Folk Festival in England; and Sophia's recent feature in Flatpicking Guitar Magazine. A Gig Guide on page 4 gives the band's schedule for August, September, and October 2009.

Read the Toy Hearts' August newsletter here.

Charlie Moore’s Stetson Donated To Bluegrass Museum

Pieter Groenveld of Strictly Country Records (SCR) sends news that he has shipped Charlie Moore’s trademark black J. B. Stetson hat to the International Bluegrass Music Museum (IBMM) in Owensboro, Kentucky.

For those not familiar with Charlie Moore, he wrote the Charlie Waller & The Country Gentlemen hit “Legend Of The Rebel Soldier” as well as many other well known country and bluegrass songs in his short career.

Moore toured Europe in 1976 and 1979. The Dutch band “The Bluegrass Clodhoppers” backed Charlie during his first tour in ’76. The Dutch/Belgian band “Smoketown Strut,” with members Jan Michielsen of “Four Wheel Drive” (guitar), Pieter Groenveld of SCR (mandolin), Peter Van Eijk (banjo) and Jef van Gool (bass) toured with Charlie in 1979.

It was on that 1979 tour that Pieter Groenveld acquired Charlie’s legendary Stetson hat.

Pieter writes, “Charlie Moore was in Holland in 1979 shortly before he passed away and stayed at my place. When he left, at the airport he gave me his J.B. Stetson hat. I told that years ago to Gabrielle Gray [IBMM Executive Director] and they asked if I would send the hat to the museum. Today [July 29] I mailed them the Stetson, and this is their one and only item of Charlie’s.”

In a phone conversation I had with Pieter this week, I asked if he recalled the exact date that Charlie had given him the hat. He did not know, but continued to describe the scenario.

Before they parted ways at the airport Charlie (whose hat size was slightly larger than Pieter’s) had ripped a page out of the day’s newspaper, folded it, put it into the hat, and placed his big ol’ black Stetson on Pieter’s head. A very personal parting gift from Charlie Moore.

Pieter confirmed that the hat was indeed shipped to the IBMM in Kentucky…but the newspaper page had not been sent along with it. So, being the scholars that we are (insert laughter), Pieter and I suddenly realized the date would be on that paper! A few minutes of shuffling noises followed and then Pieter returned to the phone, still unfolding that paper, and announced: “Thursday, February 22, 1979.”

That was the date of Charlie’s return to the USA, leaving his treasured Stetson behind as a memento to his Dutch friend. That 1979 tour would be his final trip to Europe. Charlie Moore died on December 24, 1979.

Make your own journey to Owensboro, Kentucky …and you might recall that little story as you stand looking at Charlie Moore’s Stetson hat in its display case at the International Bluegrass Music Museum.

Photo: Pieter Groenveld [Holland 1979]

L.Bow Grease (Germany): “Let’s call it Home“

Thanks to Guntmar Feuerstein for the news about L.Bow Grease's activities and their latest CD.

Guntmar reports: "...Their third CD, “Let’s call it Home“ (ruhrfolk 4005), has just been released on which, alongside the trusted regular line-up, numerous guest musicians can be heard such as Nils Tuxen (Texas Lightning), Andrew Cadie (Broom Bezzums), Chris Hall und Hartmut Hegewald (Cajun Roosters), as well Matthias Malcher and Ulli Sieker (Looping Brothers). L.BOW GREASE will be presenting their new album on their 30-day “Let’s call it Home“ – Tour 2009. As well as concerts all across Germany, there are also six appearances in England and Scotland on the tour plan, including the Cornish Bluegrass Festival in Newquay, the Dunbar Traditional Music Festival and the Moniaive Bluegrass Festival. L.BOW GREASE are “back to the roots“, and they give each of their songs convincing authenticity with their seemingly effortless virtuosity and their fantastic voices..."

Contact:
signatur feuerstein
Guntmar Feuerstein
Harpener Feld 11
D-44805 Bochum
www.guntmarfeuerstein.de
www.myspace.com/lbowgrease
www.sonicbids.com/lbowgrease
www.acoustic-live.de
www.ruhrfolk.de

LBOWGREASEinfoE.pdf
LBOWGREASEcdMedia.pdf

New Barbara Lamb Release and Video!

Thanks to Brigid from Totem Pole PR (Denver CO), who is spreading the word about something that European Bluegrass Blog readers might be interested in.

Go ahead and download two mp3s from Barbara Lamb's newest album "Twisty Girl" here:

"Frying Pan" - www.mediafire.com/download.php?ut4nzvjlxkn
"What Are You Doing Today" - www.mediafire.com/download.php?cmmmenzttgg

...and check out the video for "What Are You Doing Today" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6NMA92fO9E

Barbara Lamb's newest album "Twisty Girl" incorporates elements of Americana, bluegrass, traditional folk, live looping and electronic beats. A fiddler by trade, Barbara gathered inspiration from her transition to electronic looping and from tales about her friends, relationships and her dog. Produced by Barbara herself, "Twisty Girl" is a hodgepodge of genres and stories and a landmark in her career.

Barbara started the expertly run NashCamp in Nashville in 1996 and is a producer, composer and a teacher. She's been featured on albums with Peter Rowan, John Cowan, Asleep At The Wheel, Laura Love, Peter Rowan, Tony Trischka, Riders in the Sky and many more.

For any questions, contact Brigid Moore directly. Thank you for supporting independent music!

--
Brigid Moore
Totem Pole PR
Denver, CO