Update - 2:04 PM
Steeldrivers on televised portion of Grand Ole Opry

Recently named the #1 “Band to Watch in 2008” by American Songwriter, The SteelDrivers will be performing at the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday, May 3 in support of their self-titled debut album. Their performance will be broadcast live on Opry Live on GAC (8 PM EST/7 PM CST) with encore performances airing several times during the week. Check out air dates here: http://www.gactv.com/gac/shows_goo/

The SteelDrivers were recently featured on CMT’s Unplugged at Studio 330.

The SteelDrivers are: mandolinist/guitarist/vocalist Mike Henderson, guitarist/vocalist Chris Stapleton, fiddler/vocalist Tammy Rogers, banjo player Richard Bailey and bassist Mike Fleming.

Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson along with Mike Bub will play the Station Inn May 2 at 9:00 P.M.

Iconic country-rock pioneers Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson play the Station Inn May 2

Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson, along with Mike Bub will perform, what’s sure to be a great evening of music, at the Station Inn on Friday, May 2. in Nashville, Tenn. The show takes place at 9:00 P.M. and tickets are $20. For more information visit the Station Inn online or call 615-255-3307.

The trio will play the hits from their former groups’ repertoire, including The Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers, Stephen Stills’ Manassas and Desert Rose Band, as well as selections from their recent solo projects. Come hear old favorites like “Turn,Turn, Turn,” “Tambourine Man,” “Eight Miles High,” “Wheels,” or “Devil In Disguise” from the original source! For more on Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen, visit them online at www.chrishillman.com or www.herbpedersen.com

Audie Blaylock and Redline climbing the charts

Audie Blaylock and Redline’s “Lonesome Weary Heart” is currently sitting at #12 on the Sirius Bluegrass CountDown Yonder Charts.

Blaylock and company also are staying busy as the festival season begins to roll full steam ahead. The month of May will see Audie and Redline performing on “Song of the Mountains,” a syndicated show that is broadcast on 165 plus PBS stations, on May 3 in Marion, VA at the Lincoln Theatre. The group is also making stops at the Fire on the Strings Festival in Montgomery, TX (May 16), the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival in Gettysburg, PA (May 18), a radio appearance on the WDVX Blueplate Special (May 30) and The 1st annual Jimmy Martin Memorial Bluegrass Festival in Sneedville, TN (May 31).

Songsmith, Sarah Siskind to play Nashville, Tenn. Date May 22

Sarah Siskind will play a May 22 show at 3rd and Lindsley in Nashville, Tenn.

Sarah Siskind will play an 8:00 P.M. show at one of Nashville’s premier live music clubs, 3rd and Lindsley in Nashville, Tenn. on Thursday, May 22. Cover charge for the show is $12.00.

Alison Krauss has championed Sarah and values her songs so highly that she’s recorded two of them, both of which became singles and videos that received widespread airplay. The Infamous Stringdusters have recorded the Siskind penned “Lovin’ You” for their forthcoming album on Sugar Hill Records. Not yet 30, Sarah has become a respected and acknowledged master of her craft in the crowded scene of Nashville. In the years to come, the wider world will come to know her as an artist of striking originality and emotional complexity. Sarah is currently working on a new album.

The Marksmen have their sights set on Ringold, GA.

The Share America Foundation will host Dove Award nominees The Marksmen Quartet Friday, May 9 at 7:30 p.m. at the Ringgold Depot, corner of Depot Street and U.S. 41 in Ringgold, GA. Also appearing are the Frettin’ On Faith Dulcimer Club and the event will feature an art exhibit by Chuck Frye. Randall Franks from TV’s “In the Heat of the Night” will emcee.

The event is a fundraiser for the Pearl and Floyd Franks Scholarship Fund helping musicians achieve higher education. Donations for tickets are adults: $5, Children 5 and under free with adult. Seating is limited to 300. Tickets may be purchased locally in advance during business hours at The Catoosa County News (706) 935-2621 in Ringgold and SonShine Christian Books (706) 861-7675 in Fort Oglethorpe. For more information, Share America Foundation, Inc. P.O. Box 42 Tunnel Hill, Ga. 30755.

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Upcoming Bluegrass Festivals

April 25-27 — Benson Bluegrass Festival at the Lions Park in Benson, Arizona - Featuring the music of lllrd Generation, Digger Davis & Tombstone Flint Hill Special Titan Valley Warheads, Fiddlemania ~ Bost Family Traditions, Trusting Heart, The Hermit Tree, and the Jam Pac Neighborhood Band

Tickets: Fri - $8.00 Sat & Sun - $12.00 and a 3-day pass is $25.00

May 8-10 — The Doyle Lawson Bluegrass Festival in Denton North Carolina - Scheduled to perform are: Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, Dailey and Vincent, Dan Paisley and Southern Grass, Dale Ann Bradley, The Grascals, Randy Waller and The Country Gentlemen, Cadillac Sky, Bill Yates and Friends, Cherryholmes, Paul Williams and Victory Trio, Special Consensus, J.D. Crowe and the New South, and Goldwing Express.

For ticket information contact Denton Farmpark via telephone at (336) 859-2755.

May 16-17 — Blackwater Bluegrass Spring Festival at the Blackwater Park near Jasper, Alabama - Bluegrass artists scheduled to perform include: Marty Raybon, Clear Blue Sky, Iron Horse, Crossing the Gap, Cottonmouth Creek, Foggy Hollow, Canaan’s Crossing and Stan Nelson and Hurricane Creek.

Tickets at the Gate will run $15 and $20 for Friday and Saturday single day passes respectively and a weekend pass is $30.00

Blueplate Special serving up Bluegrass

WDVX’s Blueplate Special will be serving up a heapin’ hot helping of fiddle licks Friday, May 2 when Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper stop by the studios for visit. Also scheduled to appear on May 2 are the Pea Ridge Ramblers.

Clinton, Tenn. Bluegrass baand Laycee Lee and Granite Station will perform on the Blueplate on Tuesday, May 6 wiht guest Alex Leach.

• Fri., May 2: Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper / Pea Ridge Ramblers
• Tue., May 6: Laycee Lee and Granite Station w/ Alex Leach

East Tennessee’s Own® WDVX will host several great Bluegrass bands on the Blue Plate Special, an hour long radio program featuring bands playing live in the studio. Locals are encouraged to be part of the WDVX studio audience weekdays at noon (Eastern Time) for free performances in downtown Knoxville, Tenn. at the WDVX studios and for those who can’t make it down for a show, listen live on-line.The WDVX studios are located in the Knoxville Visitor’s Center at the corner of Gay Street and Summit Hill Avenue in downtown Knoxville, Tenn.

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Kenny and Amanda Smith kick off Collings Guitar Tour April 20th - May 1st

Award winning Kenny and Amanda Smith will be doing their second Collings Guitar tour from April 20th-May 1st. Each stop on the tour is a product information and performance clinic featuring Collings guitars. Participating dealers are Fretted Instruments, Olde Town Pickin’ Parlor, Telluride Music, Lidgett Music, and Morgan Music.

• Apr 20 — Birmingham, AL - Fretted Instruments 2906 Linden Avenue Homewood, Alabama 35209 - Phone (205) 879-6489
• Apr 24 — Arvada, CO - Olde Town Pickin Parlor 7515 Grandview Ave. Arvada, CO 80002 - Phone (303) 421-2304
• Apr 28 — Teluride, CO Telluride Music Company 201 East Colorado Avenue Telluride, CO 81435 - Phone (970) 728-9592
• May 1 — Lebanon, MO - Morgan Music 689 N. Washington Ave. Lebanon, MO - Phone (800) 869-5559

Bluegrass on the Blueplate

Thurs, April 17, The Carolina Chocolate Drops will be playing their brand of fiddle and banjo music on the blueplate.

“The nuances of piedmont stringband music stem from the demographics of the piedmont and thereby its focus on the banjo as the lead instrument. Among black ensembles, the banjo often set the pace and if a fiddle was present and it often was not, it served as accompaniment and not as the lead instrument as is more common in the Appalachian tradition. A guitar or mandolin would have been rare, but not unheard of, in these bands but the foundation of this tradition lies rooted in the antebellum combination of fiddle and banjo.” The Carolina Chocolate Drops Website

Tuesday, April 22, Bill Mize, a former winner in the National Finger style guitar Competition in Winfield, Kansas, splits the bill withBoogertown Gap, a husband and wife team, will bring to you some Old-Time Appalachian music.

Dale Ann Bradley and Charlie Sizemore drop in on Friday, April 25th for performances on WDVX’s popular “Live in the Studio” lunch hour.

East Tennessee’s Own® WDVX will host several great Bluegrass bands on the Blue Plate Special, an hour long program featuring bands playing live on air, during the month of Arpil. Locals are encouraged to be part of the WDVX studio audience weekdays at noon (Eastern Time) for free performances in downtown Knoxville, Tenn. at the WDVX studios and for those who can’t make it down for a show, listen live on-line.

The WDVX studios are located in the Knoxville Visitor’s Center at the corner of Gay Street and Summit Hill Avenue in downtown Knoxville, Tenn.

Dale Ann Bradley playing Station Inn

Dale Ann Bradley, the reigning 2007 IBMA’s Female Vocalist of the Year will bring her brand of bluegrass to the Station Inn in Nashville, Tenn. on Saturday, April 19. Bradley and company will kick off the show around 9:00pm and cover at the door will run $10 a head. To sample audio clips of Bradley’s latest release, “Catch Tomorrow” visit Compass Records online.

Upcoming Bluegrass Shows at the Station Inn

• Fri. May 2 — Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson - $20
• Sat. May 3 — The Steeldrivers - $12
• Wed. May 14 — Sierra Hull CD Release Party for “Secrets” - $10
• Fri. May 16 — Bradley Walker - $10
• Thu. May 22 — Billy Smith CD Release Show w/Shad Cobb, Dave Talbot, Jon Weisberger, Chris Henry - $10
• Frid. May 23 — 3 Fox Drive - $10
• Sat. May 23 — Jeff White Band - $10
• Wed. May 28 — The Biscuit Burners CD Release Party - $10
• Fri. May 30 — Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time - $10

The Station Inn, located in downtown Nashville, Tenn., is the premier Bluegrass and Acoustic music venue in Music City. Their address is 402 12th Avenue S. Nashville, TN 37203.

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The bluegrass community is rallying to the aid of Wes and Teri Thacker in Remington, Va., with plans for an April 20 benefit. Teri Thacker has been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.

The Larry Stephenson Band will be one of the featured performers at the benefit. This event is personal for Larry, since he was a long-time member of the Virginia community.

Additional acts who will have volunteered to perform are IIIrd Tyme Out, Milford Station, The Fitzmaurice Band, Jollett Lane, All4Hym, Dark Hollow, and Bill Yates and the Country Gentlemen Reunion Band.

Also appearing will be a band that includes Red and Murphy Henry, David McLaughlin and Marshall Wilborn with guest, Wes Thacker, Teri’s husband.

The event will begin at noon at the Remington Lions Club, 11326 James Madison Highway in Remington. Doors open at 11:30 a.m.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for ages 13-18. Those 12 and younger will be admitted free.

Those who buy a $20 admission will also receive a raffle ticket. Prizes include a guitar courtesy of Pickers Supply, mandolin courtesy of Culpeper Music, a TKL mandolin case, CDs, DVDs and other items being donated by Pinecastle Records, Rebel Records and Bluegrass Unlimited.

The full list of sponsors includes: Pickers’ Supply, Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine, Pinecastle Records, Rebel Records, Mr. B’s Bluegrass Festival, Lil’ Margaret’s Bluegrass Festival, Lawson Entertainment/Grottoes Family Bluegrass Festival, Campbell Equipment of Palmyra, Va., Culpeper Music, Cabin Fever Pickin’ Party, Hard Times Cafe and Cue of Fredericksburg, Va., Meadows Nursery, TKL Cases, and Jenny Smith Custom Embroidery of Petersburg, Va.

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Karan Casey released “Ships in the Forest” (Compass Records) this week.

Gibson Brothers “Iron & Diamonds” Release Party happens April 10

The Gibson Brothers will celebrate the release of their latest album “Iron & Diamonds” (Sugar Hill) during a CD Release Party at the Station Inn in Nashville, Tenn. later this week. The show and celebration kicks off at 9:00 PM this Thursday evening. Cover Charge is $10.00 at the door. It should be an outstanding show based on the strength of their latest release.

Irish Singer Karan Casey released “Ships in the Forest” on Compass Records this week

On “Ships in the Forest,” her fifth solo album and debut on Compass Records, Karan Casey’s warm soprano ebbs and flows around ballads both timely and timeless. Produced by and featuring founding Capercaillie member Donald Shaw, Casey surrounded herself with a wealth of special guests including Caoimhín Vallely (piano), Cillian Vallely (pipes), Kate Ellis (cello), Kris Drever (vocals), Martin O’Neill (bodhrán), Niall Vallely (concertina) and Robbie Overson on guitar. The songs found on “Ships in the Forest” range from fresh arrangements of tried and true folk standards (“Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair” and “Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye”) to “The Fiddle and the Drum”, Joni Mitchell’s 1969 anti-war madrigal.

Among the dates on her North American Tour are a pair of dates at Merlefest. For other dates and information visit Karan Casey online.

Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum’s up coming events.

Friday, April 11, 2008
Curators Exhibit Tour: Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy — 11:00 a.m.

Saturday, April 12, 2008
Songwriter Session w/ Dave Robbins — Noon
Interview and Performance w/ Jett Williams — 2:00 p.m.
Autograph Signing w/ Jett Williams — 3:30 p.m. (FREE)

Sunday, April 13, 2008
Banjo Demonstration w/ Rik Palieri — 1:00 p.m.
Film Screening: Kate Smith Evening Hour (1952) — 2:00 p.m. (FREE)

Saturday, April 19, 2008
Songwriter Session w/ Freddy Weller — Noon
Family Program: Musical Petting Zoo — 1:00 p.m. (FREE)

Sunday, April 20, 2008
Fiddle, Mandolin, and Guitar Demonstration w/ Maddie Denton — 1:00 p.m.

The Museum is located at 222 Fifth Ave. S. in downtown Nashville, and is open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily. Admission is $17.95 for adults, $9.95 for children ages six to 17, and free for children under six. The Museum offers discounted admission ($16.15) to seniors (55 and older), the military and students (with valid IDs). Group rates are available for tours of 15 or more. There is no charge to visit the Curb Conservatory or the Museum Store.

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