Ordinary Elephant, the husband-and-wife duo of Crystal and Pete Damore, had the top album (Honest) and the two most-played songs (“The War” and “Scars We Keep”) on folk radio during May 2019. The duo was also #2 on the monthly top artists chart, following the late folk icon Pete Seeger, while Joel Rafael’s Rose Avenue was the month’s #2 album and featured its third most-played song (“Abraham, Martin and John”). So say charts compiled by Folk Alliance International from radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in folk-based music on the radio.
Ordinary Elephant has been earning awards, accolades and critical acclaim over the past couple of years. The duo was named 2017 Artist of the Year in the 2018 International Folk Music Awards presented by Folk Alliance International. Ordinary Elephant secured a coveted Official Showcase during the 2018 Folk Alliance International Conference and also had official showcases during the conferences of three of FAI’s regional affiliates (FARM, SERFA and SWRFA) in 2017 and participated I that year’s Grassy Hill Emerging Artists Showcase at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival. Ordinary Elephant also took the Gold Award (first place) in the Folk/Acoustic category in the 33rd annual Mid-Atlantic Song Contest presented by the Songwriters Association of Washington. Crystal (acoustic guitar and lead vocals) and Pete (claw hammer banjo and harmony vocals) cite Gillian Welch, Guy Clark and Anais Mitchell among their influences).
The May 2019 Top Albums, Songs and Artists charts are based on 15,198 airplays reported on 579 playlists submitted by 127 different DJs. The number of reported spins is shown below in parentheses. The charts are compiled by Folk Alliance International (www.folk.org), a nonprofit organization that aims to serve, strengthen, and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation and promotion.
The monthly top albums and songs charts are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com, with permission.
Top Albums of May 2019
1. Honest by Ordinary Elephant (110)
2. Rose Avenue by Joel Rafael (101)
3. The Storyteller’s Suitcase by Ellis Paul (80)
4. To Everyone in All the World by John McCutcheon (76)
5. Visions by Alice Howe (71)
6. Songs of Our Native Daughters by Our Native Daughters (66)
7. Even the Sparrow by Kelly Hunt (63)
8. The Great Irish Songbook by Dervish (57)
9. Caravan of Dawn by Levins (56)
10. Standard Deviation by Danny Schmidt (55)
11. When You’re Ready by Molly Tuttle (53)
11. What Will We Do by Lula Wiles (53)
13. Patty Griffin by Patty Griffin (50)
13. Let’s Be Brave by Rain Perry (50)
15. In Sevens by Kora Feder (47)
16. The Butcher Shoppe EP by Della Mae (46)
16. Allison De Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves by Allison De Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves (46)
18. Dreams on Hold by Sarah Eide (44)
18. Tim O’Brien Band by Tim O’Brien (44)
20. Smoke and Ashes by Lonely Heartstring Band (42)
21. Pete, Woody and Me, Vol 2 by Spook Handy (40)
22. Dedicated to the Proposition by Spook Handy (39)
22. Hummingbird by John Smith (39)
24. The Point of Arrival by Carrie Newcomer (37)
25. Ten: The Errant Night by Runa (36)
25. Who I Am by Andrew Adkins (36)
27. Once a Day by April Verch (33)
27. Closing the Gap by Molsky’s Mountain Drifters (33)
27. It’s a Hard Life by Ruby Lovett (33)
30. Mint Condition by Caroline Spence (32)
30. Facets of Folk by Mara Levine (32)
30. Easy Money by Old Man Luedecke (32)
33. Right Before Our Eyes by Steve Eriksson (31)
33. Dirigo Attitude by Sara Trunzo (31)
35. Autumn of the World by Resonant Rogues (30)
35. The Bull Moose Party by Jackson Grimm (30)
37. Front Porch by Joy Williams (29)
37. Heartache Town by Eric Lee (29)
39. Rise Sun by Infamous Stringdusters (27)
39. Live in ’65 by Pete Seeger (27)
39. The Smithsonian Folkways Collection by Pete Seeger (27)
39. October in the Railroad Earth by Tom Russell (27)
43. Hide and Hair by Trials of Cato (26)
43. The Question by Anna Tivel (26)
45. Assiniboine and the Red by Small Glories (25)
45. What if This Is All There Is by Rj Cowdery (25)
45. Tides of a Teardrop by Mandolin Orange (25)
45. Unfortunate Point of View by Katherine Rondeau (25)
49. Monroe Bus by Andy Statman (24)
49. Riverland by Eric Brace, Peter Cooper, Thomm Jutz (24)
49. Pseudomyopia by Rachael Sage (24)
52. Better by Now by Benjamin Dakota Rogers (23)
52. Off to Here Land by Ashley and Simpson (23)
52. Yumpatiddly Bee by Princes of Serendip (23)
55. Starlight on the Rails by Utah Phillips (22)
55. The Hard Way by Dale Ann Bradley (22)
55. Pictures of Us by Braden Gates (22)
55. Caffeine and Nicotine by David Glaser (22)
59. No Water, No Flowers by Genevieve Racette (21)
59. Guy by Steve Earle and the Dukes (21)
59. Headlines and Footnotes by Pete Seeger (21)
62. The Long Road by Beth Wood (20)
62. Baked Not Fried by Paul Chet and the Whiskey Chickens (20)
62. Reasons by Grace Morrison (20)
62. North Country by Danny Burns (20)
66. Anything but Ordinary by Jan Aldridge Clark (19)
66. The Songs of Mother Jones in Heaven by Vivian Nesbitt and John Dillon (19)
66. Ride Me Back Home by Willie Nelson (19)
69. Driver by Michael Braunfeld (18)
69. When the Sun Goes Down by Kieran Kane and Rayna Gellert (18)
69. Cash Cabin Sessions, Vol 3 by Todd Snider (18)
69. Leylines by Rising Appalachia (18)
69. Reflections by Andy and Judy (18)
69. Grenades by Kaia Kater (18)
69. Caught on a Wire by Evie Ladin Band (18)
Top Songs of May 2019
Here’s a link to the official video for “The War” by Ordinary Elephant: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OF5Jvf7LA2o
Ordinary Elephant is the husband-and-wife duo of Pete and Crystal Damore (Photo: Olive & West)
2. “Scars We Keep” by Ordinary Elephant (22)
3. “Abraham, Martin and John” by Joel Rafael (20)
4. “Twilight” by Alice Howe (19)
4. “I Come From” by Ordinary Elephant (19)
4. “The Welcome Song” by Jan Aldridge Clark (19)
7. “Vapor” by Rain Perry (17)
7. “Strong” by Joel Rafael (17)
7. “Sixteen Tons” by Della Mae (17)
7. “Take Me Home” by Sofia Talvik (17)
11. “I Ain’t No Jesus” by Ellis Paul (16)
11. “Pete Seeger’s Life” by Spook Handy (16)
13. “The May Morning Dew” by Dervish (14)
13. “Fragile Heart” by Andrew Adkins (14)
13. “The Bridge Song” by Sarah Eide (14)
13. “Across the Great Divide” by Kelly Hunt (14)
17. “If I Had a Hammer” by Pete Seeger (13)
17. “Food and Medicine” by Sara Trunzo (13)
19. “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” by Alice Howe (12)
19. “Jenny & James” by Ordinary Elephant (12)
19. “Sailing Down My Golden River” by John McCutcheon (12)
19. “Under Our Skin” by Joel Rafael (12)
19. “You’ll Never Be This Young Again” by Ellis Paul (12)
19. “Big Mover” by Sarah Eide (12)
25. “The High Road” by Molly Tuttle (11)
25. “Well May the World Go” by John McCutcheon (11)
25. “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy” by Pete Seeger (11)
25. “Front Porch” by Joy Williams (11)
25. “Last Man Standing” by Danny Schmidt (11)
25. “The Story I Can Hear” by Levins (11)
25. “Mama’s Opry” by Iris Dement (11)
25. “Glory Bound” by Joel Rafael (11)
Top Artists of May 2019
Pete Seeger at the Newport Folk Festival in 2009 (Photo: Jake Jacobson)
2. Ordinary Elephant (111)
3. John McCutcheon (105)
4. Joel Rafael (102)
5. Spook Handy (85)
6. Ellis Paul (84)
7. Bob Dylan (75)
8. Alice Howe (71)
8. Kelly Hunt (71)
10. Our Native Daughters (66)
11. Tim O’Brien (59)
12. Dervish (58)
13. Molly Tuttle (57)
14. Danny Schmidt (56)
14. Levins (56)
16. Patty Griffin (54)
16. Lula Wiles (54)
18. Rain Perry (50)
18. Joel Mabus (50)
20. Della Mae (49)
20. Carrie Newcomer (49)
22. Tom Russell (47)
22. Kora Feder (47)
24. Allison De Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves (46)
24. Mara Levine (46)
26. Lonely Heartstring Band (45)
27. Sarah Eide (44)
27. John Smith (44)
29. Seldom Scene (43)
30. Judy Collins (38)
30. Runa (38)
32. Willie Nelson (37)
32. Molsky’s Mountain Drifters (37)
32. April Verch (37)
35. Old Man Luedecke (36)
35. Andrew Adkins (36)
37. Utah Phillips (35)
38. Ruby Lovett (34)
39. Weavers (33)
40. Caroline Spence (32)
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