Big Daily Blend

Snow is already falling in places in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, the lights are going up in Visalia, and Exeter is getting ready for Santa. On this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "California’s Sequoia Country" Podcast with the Sequoia Tourism Council, producer Lisa D. Smith talks with Holly Streit of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, Suzanne Bianco of Visit Visalia, and Shannon Schroth of Experience Exeter. 

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Heading into the holidays with a bottle on your list and no idea what to buy? 

On this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "Wine Time with Peggy" Podcast, Peggy Fiandaca, co-owner of LDV Winery in Arizona, shares easy, thoughtful ways to gift wine, even if you don't drink it, and what to bring to Thanksgiving dinner. Plus: new 2019 Grenache and 2019 Signature Petite Sirah releases, why bottle glass color matters, wines for a vegan Thanksgiving, and Peggy's Sweet & Spicy Carrots.

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Asheville’s music scene is so much more than fiddles and bluegrass. On this shared episode of Big Blend Radio’s “Adventures in Asheville” Podcast, producer Lisa D. Smith joins cohosts Steve and Karen Wilson (“Mr. and Mrs. Wild”), owners of The Lion & The Rose Bed & Breakfast in Asheville’s Montford Historic District, for a lively tour of where to hear live music in the Blue Ridge Mountains and why plenty of people plan a whole music week around it.

Along the way they share:

🎸 Where to catch a show: The Grey Eagle, Asheville’s longest-running live music venue, where you can stand right up at the stage; The Orange Peel and its great acoustics; Asheville Music Hall and The One Stop; Thomas Wolfe Auditorium; and the underground rooms Third Room, Eulogy and Revival.

🍺 Breweries with music: Burial, Wicked Weed Funkatorium, One World West, Highland Brewing’s meadow stage, and shows at Sierra Nevada, in a city that’s earned the name Beer City USA.

🎤 Famous Asheville names: Roberta Flack, Jermaine Dupri, Luke Combs, Warren Haynes, David Holt, Marcus King, Balsam Range and Bob Moog, plus a look at the Moogseum.

🎄 Plan ahead: Warren Haynes’ Christmas Jam on December 12 with Greta Van Fleet, The War on Drugs, Gov’t Mule, JJ Grey & Mofro and more, Billy Strings’ five nights in February, and Christmas at the Biltmore.

🎨 The Orange Peel’s story: from roller rink to auto parts warehouse to famed music hall, and the Lionel Richie mural by Gus Cutty.

💿 Vinyl, listening rooms and street music: Records in the RAD, the Joyful Noise listening lounge, Montford Porchfest, Hillbilly Jam, busking and the Friday-night drum circle.

Whether you love blues, bluegrass, funk, jazz, hip hop or symphony, this episode is packed with ideas for planning your own Asheville music getaway.

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Join host Lisa D. Smith and co-host Johnny Schaefer, an award-winning singer-songwriter, who joins us every first Sunday of the month, for Songs for Positive Change on Big Blend Radio’s "American Jukebox," part of our America 250 celebration. Autumn is a season of change, and these songs remind us that change is inevitable, that ordinary people have real power, and that it all starts with love.

We spotlight Nina Simone, Tracy Chapman, Blind Melon, Patti Smith, Aloe Blacc, the late Joey Stuckey, and Johnny’s own “Love Shines On,” plus a special interview with Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Melissa Manchester about her song “‘Til We Remember Who We Are.”

🎵 Hear the episode with every song, and enjoy both playlists, and check out all the links mentioned: https://www.bigblendmediahouse.com/p/american-jukebox-songs-for-positive-change 

Have you ever scrolled past a gorgeous old stone house in Italy and thought, “I could live like that”? Our guest Debbie Levitt did more than dream. An American who now lives full-time on the island of Sardinia, Debbie is an Italian citizen who calls herself the Italian Inpat: an immigrant who came to Italy and found home, not an American who left.

In this candid conversation on Big Blend Radio, Debbie shares what it really takes to make the move. She talks about how two days added to a 2017 vacation turned into a self-employment visa, five suitcases and a new life, and why she kept her move easy to undo for the first two years.

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Today closes out Italian American Heritage Month, and we’re marking it with the real story of moving to Italy.

Debbie shares her personal experience and general information. This is not legal or immigration advice, so check current rules with an immigration attorney or official sources.

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October is Blindness Awareness Month and Emotional Wellness Month, and this conversation fits both. Director and filmmaker Gina LeVay Goldstein joins Big Blend Radio to talk about "Blind AF," the award-winning documentary following blind Paralympian, Army veteran and world-record holder Shawn Cheshire on a 60-day, 3,600-mile solo bike ride across America.

Shawn lost her sight to a brain injury in 2009 while working as a paramedic, and the film goes far beyond the miles. Gina explains how she met Shawn in 2015, how the story grew from an endurance ride into a film about trauma, healing and reclaiming your authentic self, and why trauma “tells no time.” She also talks about the filmmaking, the team behind it, and the moment on the road when a stranger reminded Shawn that blindness isn’t a disability, it’s a difference.

Among others, Gina thanks executive producer Jeff Zimbalist, editor Michael Culyba, and cinematographers Cristobal de Alba and Benjamin Soto of Zenith Adventure Media.

"Blind AF" premiered at the Bentonville Film Festival, won Best of Fest at the 2025 Sedona International Film Festival, and is now streaming on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Tubi and Documentary+.

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Pittsburgh has long carried a reputation as a gritty steel-mill town with not much to see or do. Travel writer Debbie Stone grew up in Chicago hearing exactly that, but she kept hearing whispers that the city had changed, so she went to see for herself. On this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "Global Adventures" Podcast, Debbie shares the museums, art and views that changed her mind.

Debbie takes us through the Heinz History Center, where six floors cover everything from Pittsburgh's inventions to the Mister Rogers' Neighborhood puppets, the story behind Heinz's 57 varieties and an eleven-foot ketchup bottle. Then it's the seven-story Andy Warhol Museum and his famous silver wig, the Mattress Factory's site-specific installations, and the colorful public art of Randyland. Debbie also explains why Pittsburgh is the city of bridges, shares tips for getting around, and visits the Fort Pitt Museum and Point State Park. She rides the historic Duquesne Incline up Mount Washington, cruises the three rivers with Gateway Clipper, and stays at the Drury Plaza Hotel, a historic Federal Reserve Bank building.

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New episodes of Big Blend Radio's Global Adventures Podcast with Debbie Stone air every 4th Tuesday at 7pm ET. 

In honor of Global Diversity Month, explorer and author James Michael Dorsey takes us to Papua New Guinea, the most linguistically diverse country on earth, with more than 800 indigenous languages and thousands of dialects. 

On this shared episode of Big Blend Radio’s "Before They Vanish" Podcast, James talks with producer Lisa D. Smith about attending the Sing Sing festival, where as many as 150,000 people from dozens of tribes gather in feathers, face paint and towering headdresses, and about the Asaro people, the famous Mudmen.

Many people picture the Mudmen as brutal savages in huge clay masks, but James calls them one of the most peaceful tribes in Papua, and shares the story behind the masks: a river, gray mud, and attackers who thought they were seeing spirits. Today the Mudmen are moving from ancient warriors to modern entrepreneurs, with a television commercial, perfume ads, music albums and a website for booking performances. 

James also covers Papua New Guinea’s headhunting history, the Papuan litter bearers who helped Australian troops in World War II, travel tips for Port Moresby and Goroka, village life with roast pig and cassowaries, and why traditional peoples are never “backward.” The episode ends with a preview of his upcoming trip to Mongolia.

🌍 James Michael Dorsey’s website: https://jamesmichaeldorseyauthor.com/ 

New episodes of Before They Vanish air every 4th Monday on Big Blend Radio. 

Joey Stuckey, Macon, Georgia’s Official Music Ambassador, passed away on October 17, 2026. This is one more conversation with him, recorded on October 10, just before the release of his new album, King of Strings, which he cut live in a single twelve-hour day on Les Paul’s own 1957 console at the Les Paul Recording Studio in Hollywood.

Joey was a blind guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer, a Professor of Music Technology at Mercer University, and a longtime friend of Big Blend Radio. In this Music Talks conversation with Lisa D. Smith, he’s funny, opinionated, and generous with his stories.

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October means one thing on English Connection: it’s time for ghost stories. On this shared episode of Big Blend Radio's "English Connection" Podcast, Glynn Burrows takes us on a tour of England’s spookiest corners, and England has no shortage of them.

Glynn takes us down into the dungeons of Norwich Castle, where prisoners were once held for years. He tells the story of a public hanging in 1849 that drew crowds from all over. He also explains how plaster casts were made of executed murderers’ heads so phrenologists could “read” their bumps, and why those casts are still on display.

From there it’s Norfolk’s legendary Black Shuck, the big black dog of East Anglian folklore. We wander through churchyards, battlefields and family vaults. We also get to the story Glynn loves to tell: Anne Boleyn arriving at Blickling Hall in a coach driven by a headless coachman and pulled by headless horses.

Along the way: Guernsey, the underground hospital below Dover Castle, and the question of why some old places feel so strange. It’s warm, a little eerie, and full of history.

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