Folk DJ Radio Airplay Charts – January 2020

Treat A Stranger Right by Frank & Allie Lee, a harmony-driven old time and folk music duo, was the top album and featured six of the 25 most-played songs on folk radio during January 2020. Topping the monthly songs chart was “Hello Stanger” by teenage bluegrass artist Eliza Meyer. The month’s most-played artist was David Olney, a revered folk and Americana singer-songwriter who died last month. So say charts compiled by Folk Alliance International based on radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in folk-based music on the radio.

Based in Bryson City, North Carolina, Frank and Allie Lee perform traditional and trad-style songs and tunes from the rural south — featuring banjos, guitars, fiddle and harmonica, along with their harmony vocals. An old time aesthetic permeates their music, while blues, bluegrass and spiritual songs also are part of their repertoire and recordings. The Lees also are part of the noted stringband The Freight Hoppers, host a bi-annual old time music retreat called Banjo-Fiddle Frolic in the Great Smoky Mountains near their home, and have led banjo workshops throughout the U.S. and abroad. Treat A Stranger Right, the duo’s new album, was officially released on Feb. 7.

Here’s a link to view an official video for Frank and Allie Lee’s rendition of “Lost John”: https://www.mountainwaterfilms.com/post/lost-john-music-video-by-frank-and-allie-lee

Although a high school student, Raleigh, NC native Eliza Meyer is an old soul who enjoys singing and playing bluegrass, traditional stringband, old time and classic country music. She cites the traditional ballads of Madison County and the round peak music of Surry County as influences. A multi-instrumentalist, she plays fiddle, banjo, guitar and autoharp. Meyer’s song “Hello Stranger” is the title track from her debut album that was released last month.

During a musical career that spanned more than four decades, David Olney, 71, recorded and released more than 20 albums and had his songs covered or co-written by such other notable artists as Steve Earle, Emmylou Harris, Laurie Lewis, Del McCoury, and Linda Ronstadt. Olney, whose last album, This Side or the Other, was released in 2018, was a prolific songwriter and a mainstay of the Nashville music community. The beloved singer-songwriter died Jan. 18 after suffering an apparent heart attack while performing onstage at the 30A Songwriters Festival in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida.

An article about him — featuring remembrances from other artists and links to a few videos (including one from the 30A Songwriters Festival) – was posted to AcousticMusicScene.com last month. Here’s a link: http://acousticmusicscene.com/2020/01/20/david-olney-beloved-singer-songwriter-1948-2020/

The January 2020 Top Albums, Songs and Artists charts are based on 14, 263 airplays reported on 557 playlists submitted by 127 different DJs. The number of reported spins is shown below in parentheses.

Folk Alliance International (www.folk.org) is 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 January 2020

1. Treat a Stranger Right by Frank and Allie Lee (101)
2. Recollections/Revolutions by Windborne (87)
3. Hello Stranger by Eliza Meyer (81)
4. Modern Old-Time Sounds for the Bluegrass and Folksong Jamboree by The Lonesome Ace Stringband (54)
5. Winter Stories by Judy Collins and Jonas Fjeld (52)
6. Love and Fire by Annette Wasilik (49)
7. Then and Now by Dan and Faith (45)
8. Good Good Man by Vance Gilbert (43)
9. Making Life Sweet by The Early Risers (40)
9. Heart Land Again by Tim Grimm (40)
11. Rearrange My Heart by Che Apalache (39)
11. All That’s Real by Gathering Sparks (39)
13. Lines and Spaces by Heather Pierson (37)
14. Songs of Our Native Daughters by Our Native Daughters (36)
15. Up Against the Sky” by Dave Gunning (34)
15. Honest by Ordinary Elephant (34)
17. Catching Rain by Peter Mayer (33)
18. Assiniboine and the Red by The Small Glories (32)
19. Circadian by Letitia Vansant (31)
20. Acorns by Ben Winship (30)
20. Come on Up to the House: Women Sing Waits by Various Artists (30)
20. The Storyteller’s Suitcase by Ellis Paul (30)
20. Tall Fiddler by Michael Cleveland (30)
24. Bones and Gravity by Lizanne Knott (29)
25. Wahoo! by Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer (27)
25. Best of the Rest by Si Kahn (27)
25. Even the Sparrow by Kelly Hunt (27)
28. Daytime Highs and Overnight Lows by Eric Brace and Last Train Home (26)
28. Old Ghosts and Lost Causes by Helene Cronin (26)
28. Coyote by Catherine Maclellan (26)
31. Fair Play to You All by Tommy Sands (25)
31. No Holds Barred by The Flyin’ A’s (25)
33. To Everyone in All the World: A Celebration of Pete Seeger by John
McCutcheon (24)
33. Heroes and Sparrows by Kevin Brown (24)
33. Going to the Well by Linda McRae (24)
33. Words of Love by Allison Lupton (24)
37. Due to the Darkness by The Gossamer Strings (23)
37. Old Tin” by Erynn Marshall and Carl Jones (23)
37. If You Fall by Jaime Michaels (23)
37. Straight to Marrow by Clint Alphin (23)
41. Wildwood by Katie Dahl (22)
41. String Tides by Mark Grobner (22)
41. Me and the Ghost of Charlemagne by Amy Speace (22)
44. Oklahoma by Keb’ Mo (21)
44. What Will We Do by Lula Wiles (21)
44. Free and Fine by Jordi Baizan (21)
47. Wonderful Fairytale by Bill Jones (20)
47. Leylines by Rising Appalachia (20)
47. Sketches by Natalie Macmaster (20)
47. Heather Down the Moor by Gatehouse (20)
51. Visions by Alice Howe (19)
51. When They Fall by Annie and Rod Capps (19)
51. Every Single Star by Dori Freeman (19)
51. Inner Journey by Darin and Brooke Aldridge (19)
51. Early Bright by Seamus Egan (19)
56. Medicine for Living by Alexa Rose (18)
56. The Point of Arrival by Carrie Newcomer (18)
58. Greening the Dark by Debra Cowan (17)
58. Lonesome Road by Alan Barnosky (17)
58. Allison De Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves by Allison De Groot and
Tatiana Hargreaves (17)
58. The Longest Night of the Year, Volume Two by Various Artists (17)
58. Lacher Prise by Michael Doucet (17)
58. The Great Irish Songbook by Dervish (17)
64. Pretty Little Mister by Tui (16)
64. Moth Nor Rust Ii by Jon Brooks (16)
64. Patty Griffin by Patty Griffin (16)
64. Home by Billy Strings (16)
68. Paws of a Bear by Sofia Talvik (15)
68. This Long Stretch of Gravel by John Lowell (15)
68. October in the Railroad Earth by Tom Russell (15)
68. All Mine by Sarah Morris (15)

Top Songs of January 2020

1. “Hello Stranger” by Eliza Meyer (24)
2. “Everybody Ought to Treat a Stranger Right” by Frank and Allie Lee (17)
3. “You Are My Flower” by Frank and Allie Lee (15)
4. “Another Great Day Above Ground” by Vance Gilbert (13)
5. “Lost John” by Frank and Allie Lee (11)
5. “Chincoteague” by Annette Wasilik (11)
5. “Come and Go With Me” by Frank and Allie Lee (11)
5. “Black Myself” by Our Native Daughters (11)
5. “Our Town” by Eliza Meyer (11)
10. “The World Is on Fire” by Annette Wasilik (10)
10. “When I Was a Cowboy” by Frank and Allie Lee (10)
10. “The Welcome Song” by Jan Aldridge Clark (10)
10. “The Dreamer” by Che Apalache (10)
14. “Footsteps” by Dan and Faith (9)
14. “Eighth of January” by Allison De Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves (9)
14. “The Midnight Special” by Lead Belly (9)
14. “Song on the Times” by Windborne (9)
14. “Bringing in the Light” by Gathering Sparks (9)
14. “Making Life Sweet” by The Early Risers (9)
14. “Katy Bar the Door” by Ben Winship (9)
14. “Get Up on That Horse Again” by Heather Pierson (9)
14. “Northwest Passage” by Judy Collins and Jonas Fjeld (9)
23. “Big Iron” by The Lonesome Ace Stringband (8)
23. “A Hazy Shade of Winter” by Crowes Pasture (8)
23. “You Can’t Put My Fire Out” by Letitia Vansant (8)
23. “Caney Fork” by Eric Brace and Last Train Home (8)
23. “Time” by Rosanne Cash (8)
23. “Sugar Babe” by Frank and Allie Lee (8)
23. “Jerusalem Tomorrow” by David Olney (8)

Top Artists of January 2020

1. David Olney (132)
2. Frank and Allie Lee (106)
3. Windborne (97)
4. Eliza Meyer (81)
5. The Lonesome Ace Stringband (55)
6. Judy Collins and Jonas Fjeld (53)
6. Tim Grimm (53)
8. Annette Wasilik (49)
9. Vance Gilbert (47)
10. Pete Seeger (46)
11. Dan and Faith (45)
11. Bob Dylan (45)
13. John McCutcheon (43)
13. Ellis Paul (43)
15. John Prine (42)
16. Heather Pierson (41)
17. Ben Winship (40)
17. The Early Risers (40)
19. Che Apalache (39)
19. Gathering Sparks (39)
21. Dave Gunning (36)
21. Si Kahn (36)
21. Our Native Daughters (36)
21. Joan Baez (36)
25. Peter Mayer (34)
25. Emmylou Harris (34)
25. Patty Griffin (34)
25. Ordinary Elephant (34)
29. The Small Glories (33)
29. Carrie Newcomer (33)
31. Lizanne Knott (32)
31. Letitia Vansant (32)
31. Michael Cleveland (32)
34. Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer (29)
35. Jaime Michaels (28)
35. Dolly Parton (28)
35. Eric Brace and Last Train Home (28)
35. Kelly Hunt (28)
39. Katie Dahl (27)
39. Helene Cronin (27)
39. Tommy Sands (27)