This week we feature mandolin player Jacob Jolliff and talk to him about his early years in Oregon, his attending the Berklee College of Music, the various bands he has performed with, including Joy Kills Sorrow and Yonder Mountain String Band, and then we talk about him starting his own band.  We’ll also talk about his band’s last two solo albums and his upcoming album with Michael Daves.

This week we feature fiddler Maddie Denton.  Maddie performs with both East Nash Grass and the Dan Tyminski Band and she will be the fiddle instructor at our Bluegrass Unlimited Workshop Weekend during the weekend of February 7th to the 9th, 2025 in Owensboro, Kentucky.  We’ll talk with Maddie growing up as a contest fiddler, her work with her current bands and her approach to teaching the fiddle.

This week we feature fiddler with Johnny Warren.  As most listeners will know, Johnny is the son of bluegrass fiddle legend Paul Warren who spent years performing with Flatt & Scruggs and then toured with Lester Flatt and the Nashville Grass after Flatt and Scruggs parted ways.  Johnny is the fiddle player for the Earls of Leicester.  We talk with Johnny about his father and about playing his father’s role as the fiddler in the Earls of Leicester.

This week we feature fiddler Fred Carpenter.  Fred has had a long career in bluegrass music and with selling and repairing fiddles at his shop in Nashville.  He also has a new album out titled One More Thing that includes an impressive group of special guests.  We’ll talk with Fred about his years of playing fiddle in bluegrass and country music, his fiddle shop and the new recording.

This week we feature songwriter, singer, record producer, fiddler, and guitar player Shawn Camp.  Lester Flatt is on the cover of our December 2024 issue and Shawn plays Lester Flatt’s role in the Earls of Leicester.  We’ll talk with Shawn about working with the Earls of Leicester and his career as a songwriter and performer.

This week we feature mandolin player Andy Statman.  Andy has been involved in bluegrass music and mandolin playing that extends to jazz and klezmer music since the 1960s.  We’ll talk with Andy about his long career and then discuss his newest recording, titled Bluegrass Tracks.  You will also hear a couple of cuts from the new recording.

This week we feature singer, songwriter, fiddler and band leader Becky Buller.  We talk with Becky about her career in bluegrass leading up to starting her own band, her decade of working as a bandleader, her songwriting and the story behind her latest recording project, titled Jubilee.  You’ll also hear the title song from Jubilee as well as a song from Becky's Christmas album.

This week we feature guitar player Mark Cosgrove.  Mark is a national flatpicking guitar champion who has toured with musicians like Jerry Douglas and Liz Meyer and, most recently, he spent 12 years on the road with David Bromberg and has performed and recorded with many others, including his own band called Good Medicine.  Mark has also produced a number of solo albums over the years and is recognized as one of the heroes of flatpicking guitar.

This week we fearure singer Jen Larson and talk with her work as the manager of the archives at the Grand Ole Opry and her approach to teaching vocal lessons.  She will be one of the vocal instructors at Bluegrass Unlimited’s workshop weekend in February 2025, which will be hosted by the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

This week we feature multi-instrumentalist Tim May.  Tim spent fifteen years performing with the band Crucial Smith and has also toured with Patty Loveless, John Cowan, Eddie Rabbit, Rodney Dillard, Kathy Mattea and many others.  Tim is also a popular instructor at music workshops and camps and has produced a number of instructional books and videos.