Powerhouse tenor singer Kevin Prater has left the The James King Band, a group Prater has been associated with for the past 11 years.

Mandolin player Ron Spears has taken Prater’s place in the band lineup. Spears left Special Consensus a couple of years ago and did an extremely short stint with Doyle Lawson…

Pinecastle Records this week released two new CDs, The Hangman by Ernie Thacker and Route 23 and 3 Silver Dollars from David Parmley & Continental Divide.

In a news release, Pinecastle called the release of the The Hangman “a monumental achievement for Ernie Thacker and Route 23.”

Peaches and cream. Burgers and fries. Moms and apple pie.

David Parmley and honky-tonk music.

They’re all great combinations. Yes, indeed, Parmley is considered bluegrass and not honky-tonk country, thank you.

Mandolin player and in-your-face bluegrass singer Ron Spears has joined David Parmley’s Continental Divide.
Spears played mandolin for Greg Cahill’s Special Consensus and left the group about a year ago to join Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, a move that didn’t work out. Spears spent the summer driving tourist and band buses in Nashville before accepting [...]