Craig Havighurst

Episode 275 of The String begins with an ode to the studio and stage musicians who come up with parts and make the singers and stars sound great, while being relegated to the sexist, ungenerous title of “sidemen.” I’ve always had my eyes and ears on them as a music fan, and as a journalist, I know they are often untapped wells of stories and insights. Recently, I got to thinking about a musician - a bass player - who’s been on more big sessions and done time with more impactful artists than most in roots/Americana music over the past 35 years. So I invited Byron House on to the program.

It’s a week of album premieres, one long awaited and one kind of a surprise. The latter comes from Brit Taylor, the wonderful and versatile singer from Kentucky who reminds us of a modern day Patty Loveless. She’s so versatile that she took her Kentucky Blue album of 2023 and rearranged some of its songs – and added some new ones – to give us Kentucky Bluegrassed, a magical acoustic collection, and we’ve got the title track. But I buried the lead. Ten-time IBMA Bass Player of the Year and beloved industry veteran Missy Raines has released Highlander, her first traditional, banjo-driven album as a band leader. Her band Allegheny, which has been touring since last year, includes Ben Garnett on guitar, Eli Gilbert on banjo, Ellie Hakanson on fiddle, and Tristan Scroggins on mandolin. It’s a treat to play the opening cut “Listen To The Lonesome Wind.” Also this week, new stuff from Larry Stephenson and the Skaggs and Rice kind of duo Shawn Lane and Richard Bennett. Historic tracks come from Peter Rowan and Red Smiley.

Beyond his skills as a guitarist and singer, Clay Ross is what I like to call a Musical Instigator. Since heading to his current base in New York 20 years ago from his home town of Charleston, SC, he’s conceived and organized three brilliant groups that bring a new global consciousness to American roots music. First it was Matuto with its infusion of Brazilian melodies and rhythms. Then with old college-era friends from South Carolina he launched Ranky Tanky, a Grammy-winning outfit that reimagines African-American Gullah music for a world stage. His latest project is the American Patchwork Quartet, with members from three continents and a completely original way of updating classic folk songs. We go deep on his background and his approach to making creative space for diverse people to truly collaborate.

Bluegrass fans who love to stay home in the winter aren’t left out in the cold, because of a bumper crop of excellent new albums. Mostly by women and younger artists, they tell a gratifying story about where today’s music is going, and we’ve been reveling in these neo-traditional sounds over on The Old Fashioned (Saturdays 9 am / Tuesdays 8 pm).

The bluegrass community does a great job encouraging youngsters to take up instruments and elevating those who show talent, but it’s been a while since a virtuoso stirred people up quite like Wyatt Ellis. He grew up in East Tennessee and latched on to mandolin inspired by Bobby Osborne playing “Rocky Top.” He hit the woodshed hard during the pandemic and took on a Tennessee Folklife Apprenticeship with Sierra Hull. Now he’s playing with his heroes and releasing his first album. We celebrate that with the title cut “Happy Valley.” Also this week, new tunes from Liam Purcell, Willi Carlisle, and another prodigy, 17-year-old Muiranne Bradley, a fingerstyle guitarist from Ireland.

Thirty years ago, legendary R&B singer Delbert McClinton proved he was ahead of his time by launching his Sandy Beaches Cruise, a January festival at sea that featured his friends and associated artists from the bluesy side of Americana. Since then, the music cruise business has flourished across many genres. A company called Star Vista Live bought Sandy Beaches from Delbert a few years ago and now does the management while Delbert himself acts as host. I got a fortunate invitation to act as artist interviewer on this year’s cruise, and they let me report my own account of this luxurious but accessible experience. In this hour you’ll hear from Delbert himself, Mavericks lead singer Raul Malo, cruise lifer Marcia Ball, emerging artist Yates McKendree, singer Etta Britt, gospel great Anne McCrary, and more.

Lola Kirke got on America’s cultural radar as an actress - starring in the Amazon series Mozart in the Jungle, along with roles in Gone Girl and Mistress America alongside Greta Gerwig. But during those years, she was also quietly nurturing her passion for songwriting and music - specifically country music. The pandemic brought her to Nashville where her album Lady for Sale was released by Third Man Records to great acclaim. Now she’s about to release the new EP Country Curious and make her debut on the Grand Ole Opry. She’s a bold, dynamic personality and this was a really fun conversation that bridges New York, Nashville and Hollywood.

When bluegrass icon Doyle Lawson retired from the road at the end of 2021, his band Quicksilver regrouped as Authentic Unlimited. So when the band won New Artist of the Year at the 2023 IBMA Awards, it was a little bit ironic because these fellows are well known and appreciated on the scene. Other honors followed though, including an AU debut on the Grand Ole Opry and some very recent SPBGMA Awards for Gospel Group and Vocal Group Of The Year. This week, I spun their new fast-rolling single Big Wheels, a tale of a fellow trying to outrun his heartbreak by hitching a ride on an 18-wheeler, written by bass player Jerry Cole. Their album So Much For Forever is set for release on March 29. Also new, the swift and fluid “Will You Ever Be Mine” by Bronwyn Keith-Hynes and “Weary Town” from NC’s Unspoken Tradition. Inspired by recently writing a feature about Jerry Garcia for Bluegrass Unlimited, which comes out in advance of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame’s special exhibit, I have a block of Jerry-grass, including Old And In The Way and classics from his collaborations with David Grisman.

On a Grammy Awards when some popular genres of music represented themselves with swords and blood, the smashing of folding chairs, and a literal on-stage dumpster fire (and when classical and jazz seemed to not exist), country and roots music offered the world some moving examples of obligation, homage and collaboration. Between Joni Mitchell’s triumphant, first-ever Grammy performance and a Luke Combs/Tracy Chapman duet that stirred hearts on social media, this year’s ceremony, from a Los Angeles arena named for imaginary money, made the simplest songs look like the source of lasting value.

It’s been a long wait since the award-winning band Sister Sadie negotiated big lineup changes and worked up their newest album No Fear. But never fear. It’s here, as of January 26, and we jumped on it by opening TOF #92 with the single “Cannonball,” a song that its lead vocalist and cowriter Dani Flowers says is about “falling in love and being hopeful that person you’re falling for will be careful with your heart.” Dani and bass player Maddie Dalton are newest to the project. Jaelee Roberts who we’ve played here a lot thanks to her fine solo album, has been on board for some time. Fiddler Deanie Richardson and banjo player Gina Britt are co-founders. We won’t be surprised if this new quintet wins more IBMA prizes. Otherwise, we’ve got new music from Armchair Boogie, The Price Sisters, Thomas Cassell, and Missy Raines. The Lilly Brothers and Flatt & Scruggs bring the vintage wine.