They have arrived - Summer and Roots on the Rivers. Saturday June 3 will find the WMOT community chilling, mingling, eating, drinking and above all listening to a superb lineup of Nashville and national talent. Two stages, food trucks, local craft beer and cocktails, a picking circle and more await you. Here's a field guide to the day ahead, from parking to artist profiles.
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Nashville-raised and New York based since the 1980s, Laura Cantrell’s plaintive, sincere voice has been a vital part of Americana for more than two decades. In 2020, her plans for a collaborative album celebrating her 20th anniversary of recording were deferred but not defeated by the pandemic. Cantrell comes back to Music City to mark the imminent release of the luminous new album Like A Rose with a 1 pm set at Roots On The Rivers.
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It may seem mildly surprising that a guy who made famous punk/pop out of Minneapolis with The Replacements in the 1990s would, years later, be releasing a twangy album with a run of appearances in Music City including Saturday’s sundown 7:25 set for WMOT's Roots On The Rivers. But Stinson’s resume is aggressively diverse and adventuresome. He's been in Guns N' Roses, Soul Asylum and now leads a stripped down country rock outfit called Cowboys In The Campfire.
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Alison Brown found her life's work early when she started playing banjo as a pre-teen growing up in southern California. But it took some time and real life experience - a Harvard degree, an MBA and a couple of years in banking - before she finally gave herself permission to chase a music career. She toured with Alison Krauss in her early days and then formed her own bands, earning her rep as an innovative, jazz-oriented virtuoso player. She's released about a dozen albums of her own composing, including the latest On Banjo, featuring guests Stuart Duncan, Steve Martin and Anat Cohen. We sat down in the studio of Compass Records, which she co-founded with her husband more than 25 years ago, for a wide-ranging talk about her instrument, her destiny, and her latest music.
LINER NOTES
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The 35th edition of Merlefest wrapped up recently in western North Carolina with even more tributes for and songs connected to Doc Watson than usual, because the late great folk guitarist and songster was born in 1923, 100 years ago. We’ve already told you about the definitive Doc anthology released in 2021 by Craft Recordings with 101 tracks from across his profoundly influential career. Now there’s a new multi-artist tribute album out that’s more creative and provocative than it needed to be.
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Happy Birthday Willie Nelson! One Night In Texas: The Next Waltz’s Tribute To The Red Headed Stranger pairs a dozen stars of Americana and roots country music with a crack band under the direction of Bruce Robison, and while it may not be as much fun as being there under the stars at Nelson’s Luck Ranch, it’s a valuable memento of how much Texas loves its songwriting godfather.
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A Murfreesboro native, Trent Summar reflects on his roots in the video for "Country Every Day", the first song from a new Trent Summar and The New Row Mob ep. I Might Get Used to California is out today.
WMOT VIDEO: LIVE SESSIONS ON NPR MUSIC
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Last month, Devon Gilfillian performed an intimate set at The Vinyl Lounge in Nashville for WMOT's monthly Wired In concert series. Watch the full performance on WMOT's Livesessions page or check out the highlights in the playlist.
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Host Jessie Scott chats with Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist of Band of Heathens from The Purple Building in East Nashville about their latest record, Simple Things.
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Host Jessie Scott sits down with Josh Ritter at The Purple Room in East Nashville to discuss the introspective ideas behind his latest album, Spectral Lines, and the beauty of discovery and human connection.Ritter also performs solo versions of "Strong Swimmer", "For Your Soul", "Someday" and "Black Crown".
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Host Jessie Scott sits down with Parker Millsap at The Purple Room in East Nashville to discuss painting, performing live again and his new album 'Wilderness Within You'. Millsap also performs stripped down versions of the title track "Wilderness Within You", "What You've Shown Me" and "Running On Time".
NPR Top Stories
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U.S. District Judge Thomas Parker says the first-in-the-nation law designed to place strict limits on drag shows is unconstitutional.
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Hundreds of Indiana doctors across specialties say a decision by the state's Medical Licensing Board to reprimand Dr. Caitlin Bernard sets a dangerous precedent about what doctors can and can't say.
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A gunbattle along Israel's southern border with Egypt left three Israeli soldiers and an Egyptian officer dead Saturday, officials said. It was a rare instance of deadly violence along the frontier.
Rhiannon Giddens At The Ryman September 15th with special guest Adia Victoria
Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival with The Black Crowes, Zach Bryan The Lumineers & More!
The Milk Carton Kids At The Ryman
All good things don’t have to come to an end! Give your used vehicle new life when you donate it to WMOT. Donating is easy, the pick-up is free, and your gift is tax-deductible.
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