Entries are being accepted through Dec. 10 for The Great American Song Contest sponsored by the Portland, Oregon-based Songwriters Resource Network. Forty-five awards will be presented in nine different categories – including contemporary acoustic/folk, instrumental, special category music and lyrics only. [To read the short article in its entirety, click on the headline.]
John McEuen, founding member of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, instigator of Will the Circle Be Unbroken -- which Rolling Stone called “The most important record to come out of Nashville” -- and producer of Steve Martin’s 2010 Grammy Award-winning bluegrass album, The Crow, received a 2010 Best of the West award on Oct. 23, during the Folk Alliance Region-West (FAR-West) Conference in Santa Clara, California. Also honored with a Best of the West award was Cloud Moss, founder and director of both the Kate Wolf Memorial Music Festival and the Sebastopol Celtic World Music Festival held in Northern California, who also has produced more than 30 other festivals during his career. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]
Peter Cooper's The Lloyd Green Album, produced by Nashville-based singer-songwriter Peter Cooper and steel guitar player Lloyd Green, has jumped to the #1 spot on the Roots Music Report's Folk Radio Chart. Albums by Sahara Smith, Tim O'Brien, The John Hartford Stringband and Mumford & Sons follow. [To view the current Folk Top 50 album chart, click on the headline.]
There’s now one less online outlet for independent artists and for people to discover them. Whole Wheat Radio, which exposed lots of people to lots of fine independent music through its website and webcast for eight years, is history. Jim Kloss, its founder and director, called it quits on Oct. 20. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]
Tim O'Brien's Chicken & Egg reclaimed the #1 position on the Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart last week, followed by albums by Red Horse, The John Hartford String Band, Mumford & Sons, and Terence Martin. [To view the current Folk Top 50 albums chart, click on the headline.]
Amber Rubarth, a 28-year-old, Brooklyn NY-based singer-songwriter, is the grand-prize winner in the 2010 Mountain Stage NewSong Contest. The international finals for the noted performing songwriter contest -- presented by the live performance radio show and produced by the independent music organization NewSong Music -- took place on Friday afternoon, October 22, at the World Financial Center’s Winter Garden in New York City. John Platt, host of “Sunday Breakfast” on New York’s WFUV, served as emcee for the event. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]
The Foundation for Bluegrass Music has established a one-time general grant request deadline of Dec. 15, 2010, for projects planned for the calendar years of 2011 or 2012. Grant awards will be announced by March 15, 2011. The Foundation’s general grant budget for 2011 is $10,000, with the goal of funding four projects at an average of $2,500 each. In addition to the general grant category, a one-time exceptional grant request application with the same deadline has been announced for projects that will celebrate the Bill Monroe Centennial and focus on educational efforts that involve young people during the 2011 calendar year. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]
Mumford & Sons' Gentlemen of the Road tops this week's Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart, followed by albums by The John Hartford Stringband, Red Horse, Sahara Smith and The YaYas. [To view the current Folk Top 50 albums chart, click on the headline.]
Red Horse, the eponymous debut album by the trio of Red House recording artists Eliza Gilkyson, John Gorka and Lucy Kaplansky, returns to the top spot on the Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart this week. Rounding out the top 10 are albums by Mumford & Sons, The John Hartford Stringband, Sahara Smith, Joe Pug, Mollie O'Brien & Rich Moore, Angel Band, Tim O'Brien, The YaYas, and Peter Cooper. [To view the current Folk Top 50 albums chart, click on the headline.]
Dailey & Vincent were named Entertainer of the Year for the third consecutive time during the 21st Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards show on Thursday, Sept. 30, at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. The duo also was named Vocal Group of the Year for the third consecutive time and received a second Album of the Year award for Dailey & Vincent Sing the Statler Brothers, a bluegrass tribute to the legendary country music quartet. [To view the entire article and a list of other winners, click on the headline.]
Red Horse -- the eponymous debut album by the new trio comprised of Eliza Gilkyson, John Gorka and Lucy Kaplansky -- returned to the top spot on the Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart this week. [To view the Folk Top 50, based on spin totals reported to Roots Music Report, click on the headline.]
Tim O'Brien's Chicken & Egg continues to top the Roots Music Report's Folk Radio Chart this week, while Terence Martin's The Last Black and White TV jumps into the second position. Many of the albums on this week's Folk Top 50 are new to the chart. [To view the current Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart, click on the headline.]
