Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart, 07-15-11

The Civil Wars' debut album, Barton Hollow, returns to the top of the Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart this week. Paul Simon's So Beautiful Or So What is now #3, while A Nod To Bob 2 - An Artists' Tribute To Bob Dylan On His 70th Birthday continues at #2. [To view the current Folk Top 50 Chart, click on the headline.] Editor's Note: Next week's chart will be posted a few days late since I will be attending the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival next weekend. I'll be hosting late-night song swaps under the Tribes Hill-AcousticMusicScene.com tent.

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Concerts Mark 30th Anniversary of Harry Chapin’s Death

Saturday, July 16 marks the 30th anniversary of the tragic death of singer-songwriter and social activist Harry Chapin, whose music and humanitarianism inspired many. Two concerts featuring his songs will take place on Long Island, where he resided with his family. An effort also is under way to encourage the U.S. Postal Service to issue a commemorative stamp in his honor. [To View the entire article, click the headline.]

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Bluegrass Fiddler Kenny Baker Dies at 85

Funeral services are being held today (July 12) in Letcher County, Kentucky for master fiddler Kenny Baker, who played with Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys for many years and was subsequently part of a fiddle-dobro duo with Josh Graves for more than 20 years (1984-2006). Baker died July 8 at 85, following a stroke. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart, 07-08-11

For the second week in a row, Paul Simon's So Beautiful Or So What tops the Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart. Following it are A Nod to Bob 2 - An Artists' Tribute to Bob Dylan on his 70th Birthday and albums by The Civil Wars, Eliza Gilkyson and The Waifs. [To view the current Folk Top 50 albums chart, click on the headline.]

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Festivals Set in the Northeast Over Independence Day Weekend

A couple of music festivals of note in the Northeast take place during the first weekend in July -- one along the cobblestoned streets of the old whaling port city of New Bedford, Massachusetts, the other at the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts in Katonah, New York. [To read the article, click on the headline.]

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24 Acts Selected for 2011 Falcon Ridge Emerging Artists Showcase

Twenty-four artists/bands have been selected from among hundreds of applicants to perform in the Falcon Ridge/Grassy Hill Emerging Artists Showcase during the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival on Friday afternoon, July 22, 2011, from noon to 4:30 p.m. They are Brooke Annibale, Blair Bodine, Brittany Ann, Ellen Bukstel, Lori Diamond and Fred Abatelli, Friction Farm, Bulat Gafarov, Sharon Goldman, Jason Myles Goss, ilyAIMY, Layah Jane, Devlin Miles, Louise Mosrie, My Brothers Banned, Occidental Gypsy, Karyn Oliver, Pesky J. Nixon, Grace Pettis, Paul Sachs, Putnam Smith, Split Tongue Crow, Suzie Vinnick, Gail Wade, and The Whispering Tree. [To view the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart, 06-10-11

Eliza Gilkyson's Roses At The End Of Time continues to top the Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart. Albums by The Waifs, The Civil Wars, Paul Simon and Carrie Elkin follow it. [To view the latest Folk Top 50 albums chart, whose posting was delayed to the RMR's website server crashing for several days, click on the headline.]

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Boston Irish Festival 2011 Set for June 17-19

Black 47, Enter the Haggis, Joshua tree, The Makem & Spain Brothers, The Prodigals, The Screaming Orphans and Derek Warfield and the Young Wolfe Tones are among the artists slated to grace the main stage during the 21st annual Boston Irish Festival. Set for Friday evening June 17 through Sunday evening, June 19, in Canton, Massachusetts, the festival also will feature Irish dancing, films, sports, art, food, an O’Connell Street Marketplace, book readings and sales, genealogy research, and children’s activities. A number of other local and touring artists also will perform during the event. [To view the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Six 2011 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Winners Named

Six songwriters have been named as winners in the 2011 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Competition for Emerging Songwriters. Mai Bloomfield (Venice, CA), Megan Burtt (Denver, CO), David Moss (Austin, TX), Cassie Peterson (Nashville, TN), Grace Pettis (Harrisonburg, VA) and AJ Roach (Brooklyn, NY) were selected by a panel of judges from among 32 finalists who performed two songs each during the New Folk Concerts on May 28 and 29 as part of the Kerrville Folk Festival. [To read the full article, click on the headline.]

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