There’s plenty of acoustic music on the radio and streaming online these days – if you know where to find it. This recurring column will help point you to it, while also noting upcoming in-studio guests and live or recorded concerts and performances.
Eliza Gilkyson was the most-played artist, while her album Home tied with The Scooches’ Lift You Up as the top album on folk radio during July 2023 and Bob and Sarah Amos’ “The Hills That I Call Home” was the month’s most-played song. 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.
[Click on the headline to view the top albums, songs and artists charts that are posted monthly with permission.]
Singer-Songwriter Eliza Gilkyson was the top artist and had the most-played album (Home) and three of the top 10 songs on folk radio during June 2023, while singer-songwriter Joe Crookston’s "Looking for Yes” was the month’s most-played song. 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.
[Click on the headline to view the top albums, songs and artists charts that are posted monthly with permission.]
Bob Sherman, host of the long-running and award-winning radio show “Woody’s Children” in New York City, passed away on June 27, 2023 at the age of 90.
Gordon Lightfoot, the iconic Canadian folksinger-songwriter who died on May 1, was the top artist and had four of the five most-played songs on folk radio during May 2023, while fellow Canadian Michael Jerome Browne, a noted acoustic blues and roots artist, had the month’s top album (Gettin’ Together). 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. [Click on the headline to view the top albums, songs and artist charts that are posted monthly with permission.]
Singer-Songwriter Greg Greenway had the top album (Between Hello and Goodbye) and was the most-played artist on folk radio during April 2023, edging out the bluegrass band Mighty Poplar, while singer-songwriter Tom Chapin’s “This Pretty Planet” (co-written with John Forster) was the month’s most-played song. 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.
[Click on the headline to view the top albums, songs and artists charts that are posted monthly with permission.]
Acclaimed Irish singer-songwriter Karan Casey had the top album (Nine Apples of Gold), was the most-played artist on folk radio, and had four of the top 10 songs during March 2023, while Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy’s “Woman of the House” was the month’s most-played song. 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.
[Click on the headline to continue reading this article and view the top albums, songs and artists charts that are posted monthly with permission.]
CornMaiz Stringband had the top album (Fresh-Picked Kentucky Music) and was the most-played artist on folk radio during February 2023, while “Bonnie Raitt’s “Just Like That” was the month’s most-played song. 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.
[Click on the headline to continue reading this article and to view the monthly top albums, songs and artists charts that are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com with permission.]
Upstate Crossroads by Ithaca, New York-based fiddler Tim Ball was the top album on folk radio during January 2023, while “Four Strong Winds” by the folk duo Ian and Sylvia was the month’s most-played song and the late Canadian troubadour Ian Tyson, who died in December, was the month’s most-played artist. 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.
[Click on the headline to continue reading this article and to view the monthly top albums, songs, and artists charts that are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com with permission.]
Pharis & Jason Romero, a British Columbia-based folk duo, had the top album (Tell ‘Em You Were Gold on Smithsonian Folkways) and most-played song (“Souvenir”) on folk radio during 2022, while John McCutcheon, a revered Georgia-based folksinger-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, was the year’s most-played artist. 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.
[Click on the headline to view the annual top albums, songs and artists charts that are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com with permission.]
A Lunch At Allen’s Christmas – Zuzu’s Petals by the Canadian band Lunch At Allen’s was the top album on folk radio during December 2022, while “Light the Lamp (A Song for Hanukkah)" by Alaska-based singer-songwriter Emily Kurn was the month’s most-played song. Revered folksinger-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist John McCutcheon was the most-played artist for a second consecutive 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.
[Click on the headline to view the monthly top albums, songs and artists charts that are posted with permission and to view a couple of videos.]
Ian Tyson, an influential Canadian troubadour best known for having penned the hit songs “Four Strong Winds” and “Someday Soon” as half of the internationally acclaimed folk duo Ian & Sylvia, died on December 29, 2022 at his ranch in southern Alberta at age 89. Folk DJ Charlie Backfish will pay tribute to him and his music during a special edition of his long-running weekly radio show Sunday Street that airs January 8 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET on WUSB 90.1 FM on Long Island, NY and online at wusb.fm or https://tunein.com/radio/WUSB-901-s2324/.
Sam Bush had the top album (Radio John: Songs of John Hartford) on folk radio during October 2022. The much-heralded mandolinist, multi-instrumenalist and progressive bluegrass pioneer’s rendition of his late close friend's “In Tall Buildings” tied with singer-songwriter Brian Blake’s “Rice Field in the Distance” for the month’s most-played song, while Bush and revered folksinger-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist John McCutcheon were November’s most-played artists. 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.
[Click on the headline to view the top albums, songs and artists charts that are posted monthly with permission.]
