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In February, Amy Alvey and I had the pleasure of introducing two of the greatest traditional fiddlers in America as they launched into performing duo style in the charming, resonating central hall of the Violin Shop on Eighth Ave. South in Nashville. That’s Darol Anger, the inventive jazz and bluegrass musician whose career really got going with the David Grisman Quintet in the late 1970s. And Bruce Molsky is among the honored elders of old time music, with a long track record of recordings and collaborations, and in recent years he’s taught the tradition at the Berklee College of Music. The two have worked together before, but now there’s the new duo recording Lockdown Breakdown to savor, and we’ve featured the tune “Ain’t That Trouble In Mind.” And that’s not the only old-time influence fiddle record of this week, as we debut The Snake from Brittany Haas and Lena Jonsson. On the guitar side of things, I was inspired and excited upon discovering the solo fingerstyle music of Kentucky’s Nathan Salsburg. I hope you are too.

We’ve been spinning singles in recent weeks from A.J. Lee & Blue Summit, the fast-rising Bay Area band fronted by the singer, songwriter and mandolin player who grew up as Molly Tuttle’s friend and bandmate. And this time, Molly joins her old amiga for a heart-stopping ballad called “I Can’t Find You At All.” It’s not that Lee and her band (which includes Molly’s brother Sullivan on impressive flatpick guitar) hasn’t released impressive albums before. But the upcoming City Of Glass, coming July 19, has the makings of a breakthrough. Also new this week is a lead-off single from powerhouse vocalist John Cowan. “Fiction” will be the title track of an album this Fall, which will pair with his new memoir about his life with New Grass Revival and other adventures. Del McCoury surprised us with the sprightly “She’s Heavenly,” again with Molly Tuttle lending support. Laurie Lewis leads an a cappella original. Nashville duo Paper Wings charms with the folk classic “Nine Hundred Miles.” And we call up the late and legendary James King showing how bluegrass is done.

Featuring India Ramey, Kanude & Mitch Grainger.

Featuring LadyCouch, Linda Dunnavant & Rebecca Frazier.

Featuring Golden Everything, Taylor McCall & Hannah Juanita

Stephanie Lambring’s new album - her second - is called Hypocrite, and it blew me away on first listen because of the way its sophisticated production supports some mind-jarring and elegantly sculpted lyrics. She’s a rural Indiana native whose writing talents in her early Nashville days led to a major publishing deal at 23. The Music Row machine didn’t work for her ultimately, and after a hiatus she leaned into telling her own story, leading to an acclaimed debut in 2020. Now on her latest, she deftly investigates women navigating a 21st century digital panopticon of social pressure, conformity, autonomy and fulfillment.

Featuring Julie Lavery, Daniel Nunnelee & The Highway Natives.

Due to my travels to FloydFest, Amy Alvey flew solo this week and stacked up a remarkable journey that leans on old-time from the traditional to the experimental. Mandolinist Jacob Jolliff gets a double shot with cuts from his 2024 album Instrumentals, Vol. 2: Mandolin Mysteries. Jolliff has been making mysterious magic on his mando since growing up in Oregon, studying at the Berklee College of Music and joining the innovative string band Joy Kills Sorrow in the early 2000s. He’s won the Winfield, KS national mandolin championship, toured with Yonder Mountain String Band, and made some brilliant albums as a leader or featured artist. I can’t recommend his 2022 duo album with guitarist Grant Gordy enough. Also in the hour, more from Jack McKeon’s new album, a lovely instrumental by NC’s Andrew Marlin, a quirky, fabulous song by the band called Dug, and regional goodness from Los Texmaniacs and Jordan Thibodeaux.

Aaron and Adam Bibelhauser are identical twin brothers from Kentucky who I hope we see touring and recording more widely in the years to come. They don’t sound like anyone else, and they have a knack for songs. Aaron is a respected bluegrass DJ and songwriter who’s got cuts with the Del McCoury Band, Dale Ann Bradley, and Michael Cleveland. Their new single, teasing an unnamed upcoming album, is by Nick Dittmeier however, and we kick off this week’s show with that. Also, a fresh new one from banjo player and singer-songwriter Gina Furtado and album drops from Norman Blake and Friends, the Honey Dewdrops, and Addie Levy, a Virginia native whom I just saw kill it at FloydFest. She’s living in Nashville now Amy Alvey informs me. Classic voices this hour include Maria Muldauer, Flatt & Scruggs, and Doc Watson.

The other musical Nashville is in Indiana, where for years a concert series called the Little Opry was a midwestern destination for fans and artists in country and bluegrass. Kim Robins was one of them. She grew up singing there and elsewhere, opening for major country stars and aiming for a music career. That paused for a time as she raised a daughter, but she’s back on the scene with a couple of IBMA Momentum Award nominations as encouragement. We play her new single, “Train Tracks and Trestles" from her upcoming project, Know Your Worth due out in early 2025. We’ve also got a new one from Nedski & Mojo as the guys tackle Buck Owens’s “Act Naturally” as well as a track from Rhonda Vincent’s new album. Amy Alvey sent in an audio postcard from Saskatchewan’s Northern Lights festival, with song choices inspired by same.