Randall Franks performs in honor of Fiddlin’ John Carson

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Georgia’s Fiddlin’ John Carson contribution to country music as first recording star continues to be honored.

From left Randy Smith, Dan Daniel, Yvonne Smith, Pete Hatfield and Rick Smith perform in honor of Fiddlin’ John Carson.

Randall Franks joined Georgia artists at Sylvester Cemetery in Atlanta, Ga. recognizing the 149th Birthday of Country Music’s first recording star Fiddlin’ John Carson by playing his first hit “Little Ole Log Cabin in the Lane.”  The performance organized by the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame reunited Franks with musician Randy Smith who joined Franks as he produced a recording featuring TV icon Carroll O’Connor in 1990. Ken Starr was presented the Fiddlin’ John Carson Award at the event.

Randall Franks, Yvonne and Randy Smith pause in front of the Carson family monument in Atlanta’s Sylvester Cemetery.

Come as you are

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If there is a place where folks come as they are these days, it’s on social media and often it does not reflect our best. Have you ever wondered what happened to dressin’ up when you go to town or when placing yourself in an environment to be seen such as online? When I was growing up in Chamblee, Ga. we would often make the trek to town.

In our case, town would either be downtown Atlanta or Decatur. Whether we were out for a day of lookin’ and feelin’ at Rich’s department store or a trip to Starne’s Barber Shop for a shave and a haircut on the square in Decatur, when we walked out our front door, we looked our very best.

Notice how I said “lookin’ and feelin’” rather than shopping. That is what women folks would do with youngsters in tow. They would look and feel, only occasionally would the trip bear fruit with something being bought. In those days, many folks, like us, didn’t have air conditioning at home. A trip to the store on a hot summer day was a welcome relief.

I never did get a shave at Starne’s but I sure did lose a lot of hair. Mr. Starnes gave me my first haircut as my cousin Arthur, who was in barber training, watched. I would soon be turned over to Arthur for several of my early haircuts. In looking at early pictures, I can only say they were fond of flattops.

Course as a child, being dressed up often would include a little bit of dirt within just a few minutes of putting on those clothes. I can still hear my mom saying “What am I going to do with you, you get dirtier than an east Tennessee coal miner.” But what is a young boy to do when there is a perfectly good mud puddle just waiting there to be jumped in?

I can still see my mom in a pretty dress gray gabardine outfit with matching black hat, gloves, handbag and high heel shoes.

Maybe the concept of being dressed up has changed. Maybe folks look at designer jeans and a T-shirt or sweats as the fashion of the day. All of them are ridiculously expensive. They are a lot easier to upkeep than walking out in a crisply starched shirt, tie and slacks each and every day.

I just don’t understand what happened to the custom of looking your best. I remember even when we would spend time on my grandparents’ mountain farm, folks worked hard and wore clothes that would carry that load. But when it came time to go to town for something, I remember grandma Kitty going to her cedar wardrobe and pulling out her blue Sunday dress to put on.

Even if folks were dirt poor, they made sure that when they went to town or school or wherever they looked the best they could afford.

Folks generally still dress up to go to church. However, in some churches they don’t even do that anymore. They just say ‘come as you are.’ Now, there is nothing wrong with this. Cause I know God welcomes anyone no matter if they are in overalls or hole-y jeans. But there is just something to be said to giving God your very best effort.

In the past, folks took pride in the way they looked, their dress, their grooming. My dad would never leave the house with a hair out of place. Was that vanity, possibly. But that is one impression of him that people who knew him still remember today.

Now I am not saying that I have never left the house without being perfectly dressed and groomed. I do occasionally run out to the grocery or the gas station in a less than dressed-up fashion.

While I never owned a pair of blue jeans until I was in my teens, I do wear them to town with a nice shirt and even on stage when appropriate.

My parents use to say “We’ve worked hard to get off the farm and out of overalls, there is no reason for you to wear them.”

That was no slight on farming or farmers on their part. When they were coming up, farmers like other country folk were looked down upon by city people and I am sure they endured their share of negative comments from those well-meaning city folks while trying to make a place for themselves in the city. While nostalgic to us today, their roots of walking barefoot behind the mule as the fresh-turned earth came up between their toes was something many folks worked to get away from, especially during the depths of the depression.

With some pairs of jeans these days costing more than a pair of slacks, in a way, I guess they are dressy in their own right. If you really want to get fancy you can buy them with holes already worn in them. I heard of folks in east Georgia making a fortune by firing buckshot at jeans for some company. They can be pre-washed and I imagine somewhere you can buy them pre-worn and be charged extra for somebody else breaking them in. No matter what, they are here to stay.

I guess the days of everyone wearing their best when they go to town is a thing of the past. It is amazing what new coat of paint and little fixing up can do to a house. It only makes since that we do the same for ourselves or we can just “come as we are,” no matter where we go. It could be a little embarrassing for some folks though, depending on what they were doing when they get the invite.

Country music’s Merle Kilgore focus of new book

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When my country music career was in full swing in the 1990s, I loved spending a little time in the office of a country luminary who built credentials as a performer and behind the scenes in the business – Merle Kilgore. I was honored to know and work with him and included him in my Encouragers book series.

Known widely as the manager for Hank Williams, Jr., his career intertwined with some of country’s greatest names and those branches of his experience are explored in a new book “These Are My People” (WriteLife Publishing) available for purchase now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and local bookstores across the country.

Merle Kilgore co-wrote “Ring of Fire,” carried Hank Williams Sr.’s guitar, managed Hank Jr. for more than two decades, and was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.  Now, his grandson, Mark Rickert, gives readers an insider’s look at Merle’s larger-than-life world.

 

“We had a very close relationship,” Rickert recalls.  “I listened to his stories for hours on end, summer after summer.  He was a character and his friends were superstars.  His was a story I always believed should be told.”

 

Mark Rickert grew up in a Country music household, just a few miles from the Opryland USATheme Park and the Grand Ole Opry, and only a block from the home of Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley’s manager.  Mark’s father even worked as a Nashville tour guide. But it was his grandfather, Merle Kilgore, who showed him the backstage side of the business.  Before publishing his first novel, Mark served eight years a photo-journalist for the U.S. Army Reserve, spending a year of that service in Baghdad, Iraq, writing for military publications.  In 2008, he earned a Master’s in English Literature from Middle Tennessee State University.  Today, he works as chief of public affairs for an Army recruiting battalion.

Mark has told it well; imbuing each chapter with details that only Merle or those closest to him would know. Kilgore died in 2005 and his funeral service was held at the Mother Church of Country Music: The Ryman Auditorium.

 

For Rickert, Johnny and June Carter Cash, Johnny Horton, Faron Young, Elvis, and other legends were the people who ruled the radio airwaves and populated “Daddy Merle’s” tales.  From wrecking hotel rooms with Cash to explorations into the “other side” with Horton and the often-hilarious anecdotes of his life as a disc jockey and as a performer on the Louisiana Hayride and the Grand Ole Opry, Merle lived life to the fullest.  Blazing new career paths into the industry itself, Kilgore was undeniably a critical strand in the fabric of the Country music storyline.

 

“These Are My People” offers chapter after chapter of insights into the private lives of Merle and his friends, and includes a selection of more than 20 unique black and white photos.  It is an engaging read ably presented in a unique format. Published by WriteLife, “These Are My People” is in bookstores now. It is Rickert’s second book and follows the horror novel, “The Tone Poet.” 

 

As someone who knew and respected Merle and who had the opportunity to work side by side with him, I can attest, he was larger-than-life and this book provides a unique look into his life. You will enjoy it even if you didn’t know him or his contributions.

Faces from the past and present

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Have you ever sat down and looked through your photo albums or boxes of photos and not known whose face you were looking upon?

Just the other day I was looking at images from my kindergarten.

You would think I would be able to name every one of those kids; I mean it was just yesterday that we were sliding down the stair banisters at the Presbyterian Church, fighting in the church playground and arguing over who got to sit with Julie Badger, my kindergarten sweetheart.

Other than Julie, the rest of those kids’ names have just faded away. As I looked at photos of birthday party after birthday party, I saw so many classmates I could not even begin to remember.

You would think I could easily remember when, while blindfolded, I accidentally pinned the tale on the wrong donkey.

I never liked Jamie much anyway. He was only invited because of diplomacy. If I left him out, then I wouldn’t get invited to his house. There would have been a crushing domino effect which could have set my second grade social life on its ear.

I often sit and peruse photo albums that feature faces of people who I do not know. The photo had or has some significance to my mother, late father, or late grandparents or another relative, so it found its way into the family collection.

In my room hangs the portrait of a great, great, great grandfather that meant much to my grandmother.

I will say it was not a favorite of my mother’s, as she saw this stern man whose eyes almost follow you as you enter the room. It reminded her of the haunted house paintings that scared Don Knotts and Jim Nabors to death on “The Andy Griffith Show.”

It took me years of coaxing to finally get grandma to part with it and let me be its caretaker. The same is true of so many other images I have gathered through the years.

I recently forwarded a photo from the collection of my grandmother Allie Bunch Franks to a distant cousin via e-mail.

I was hoping it may be one of her ancestors. All the information I had was that it was my grandmother’s cousin Dave Bunch, who had an affinity for building different creations inside bottles. Three were featured in the postcard. Grandma even had one that sat upon the mantle.

I always remember marveling at how he could have gotten his creation inside that bottle when I peered in it as a child. I thought he must have had very small fingers to reach up in there and do that.

Beside him in the photo were two girls, one younger than the other, and unfortunately paint had covered the older girl’s face years ago.

From my cousin’s review, she made the educated guess that due to clothing styles, it was likely her great uncle rather than her great grandfather who shares the same name.

It is amazing how we can easily forget the names of those kids who were at our birthday parties or the cousin we seldom see. It is so important to take the time to mark your photos in pencil not pen as to the details of who, what, when, and where.

Through the 60s and 70s, many film developers were kind enough to put the date of development on the photo, which helps. I think many of those new developing machines may include that info in the code it leaves on the back of the image.

As I look at the fading images, it is amazing to me how older images from the 30s, 40s and 50s endure literally unchanged while those of the 60s, 70s, 80s and even 90s are already fading into obscurity.

It is hard to imagine birthdays and Christmases simply gone because of poor film or film development, but that is much like our memories, they will likely fade with time as well.

I encourage those of you who have moved into the computer era, to scan your photos from every era into a computer database and then have several backups. Generally, you can include information about the photo right in the file in many programs. Make several CDs of the completed photo files and disperse them to your children, grandchildren. Put a copy in your safety deposit box.

Many even take the time to create little photo documentaries of the family history and their lives. Sit down and share these with your young grandchildren at the computer.

The main reason is to disperse the copies to make sure that many people have them in their collections in case of a natural disaster or fire. Then you might have a better chance of rebuilding your family photos.

When you consider all the time and money we spend on photos, you would think we would take the time to document the events that surround them.

Whenever I go into Cracker Barrel, I look up at the large portraits hanging on the walls and wonder if only someone had taken the time to write down a little about that person and put it with the portrait if they would now be staring out at thousands of Cracker Barrel customers or on the wall of a relative who knew they had an important life.

Like a newspaper documents the story of a community through its coverage, a well-kept photo collection documents the story of your family’s life. Will your teenage children or grandchildren care you took the time to do this? Probably not until they have children of their own, but who knows, the effort may prove beneficial to each of us as we look back later and get the benefit of knowing who is staring back at us.

I am still wondering who that blonde kid with the flattop, big ears, with my birthday cake on his nose is, oh wait, that’s me.

Randall Franks appears with Stella Parton

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Randall Franks made a special musical appearance with friend, country music star and former film co-star Stella Parton at her appearance for the Catoosa County Chamber of Commerce in Ringgold, Ga. in February 2017.

(Photos by Mike Key)

 

Is 24-hour news and information good for the American experiment?

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As a former newspaper journalist, who covered government, I am perplexed and baffled by the last few weeks as we have watched the American media and the American president debate the place of the press in our joint endeavor of our American experience.

For those who take the time to study history, the relationship between our press and the elected leaders have always been that of a give and take, back and forth, love and hate. Presidents from the earliest days of our nation have expressed their concerns about media coverage they have felt to be detrimental to the relationship and the experiment.

That is in essence what it was, up until current day, a relationship between the doers and those who were tasked with watching the doers to make sure they were on the straight and narrow path.

Now, that relationship is not as necessary, the media gatekeepers have been usurped by the advent of the internet and social media, allowing leaders to carry their unedited message straight to the people. At a time when the normal news delivery platforms are struggling, this adds even more tension for media to fight to stay relevant.

I think the constitutional charge for the press by the founders is to seek out and expose excesses which break the laws of our great nation, our states, our communities.

That was why our founders gave us freedom of the press, so that leaders may be held accountable to the people. I think that is the badge of honor that anyone who has carried a press card in their pocket wears.

Unfortunately, in this world of 24-hour news brought on by cable and now the internet, sometimes, it looks like the need to feed the beast in that open drain, outweighs good journalism. Also, there are many now credited with being journalists, who are not.

Probably, my standards are different than some of my former colleagues but I have never believed in use of anonymous sources. If they won’t go on the record and stand behind what they are saying under the light of day, then I question their ultimate motives. Also, every effort must be made to have both sides revealed in the story before it is taken to the people, so that the news recipient can decide the truth for themselves. There is nothing I hated more than writing the words: “After repeated attempts, …. was unavailable for comment” or something similar. Sometimes though that is what you had to go with when someone simply did not want to provide a “No comment.”

Today, often “expert” opinions are provided as facts for a story. Cable news brings on a panel of paid or unpaid talking heads, generally with a majority on one side of the issue and one on the other to provide an entertaining forum on whatever story premise they are putting forward. It doesn’t matter whether the story has any legs to stand on, just whether it will make a good debate for a television segment. I may be mistaken, but that is why I think there is such a bad taste in the mouths of the American people in relation to their respect of what journalists do. I think news for entertainment brought on by the need to fill endless broadcast hours started putting the nails in the news media coffin years ago.

Do I consider journalists the enemy of the American people? No, but sometimes I consider us our own worst enemies. I have lived through the media coverage of more presidents than I care to count, I have never seen the level of media animosity and focus on negative stories tied to a president expressed in the first 30 days of a presidency. I have seen headlines and reports that have no relevance to anything President Donald Trump has said or done while in office but yet the president has been connected in some way. That is simply stretching it a bit folks. I don’t blame him for his response, in his shoes, I might have considered doing something similar. I am reminded of the story of the boy that cried “wolf,” when something comes up and we really need the American people to listen, will they? At this point, I doubt it. They are tuning out by the millions.

In answer to my opening question, is 24-hour news good for the American experiment. In my humble opinion, no, it is not. Providing the news that keeps our democracy strong takes time and often feeding the media beast results in sloppy reporting to meet a deadline. Will our experiment continue? Yes. Will the role of the press continue to lessen? I hope not, but the current course doesn’t look good.

50 years of Dolly

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Dolly Parton released her first full-length album, “Hello, I’m Dolly” on Feb. 12, 1967. The album, which debuted on Monument Records, contained Parton’s hits “Dumb Blonde” (written by Curly Putman) and “Something Fishy” (written by Parton). Both singles reached the top twenty on the country singles charts, and the album itself reached #11 on the country albums chart.

“I can’t believe it’s been 50 years since I did my first album,” Parton said. “What a wonderful 50 years it has been. Thanks to my Uncle Bill Owens and Fred Foster for believing in me early on. And thanks to all the fans out there…I hope to have at least another 50 years!”

Produced by Fred Foster, “Hello, I’m Dolly” caught the attention of Porter Wagoner, who ultimately invited Parton to become a member of his band and appear on his popular weekly television show. These appearances led to Parton’s rise to superstardom and she became a bonafide household name.

The album contained Parton’s versions of three songs she wrote that had already been hits for other artists: “Put it Off Until Tomorrow” (Bill Phillips), “Fuel to the Flame” (Skeeter Davis), and “I’m in No Condition” which charted by Hank Williams Jr.

Now, in 2017, her collaboration with Pentatonix on “Jolene,” was awarded a Grammy in the Country Duo/Group Performance category, marking her eighth win. The Recording Academy inducted Parton’s self-penned hit JOLENE into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

“Oh my Lord I am so excited to have won the Grammy with Pentatonix on my old song Jolene,” she said. “I am so happy and am so very proud of Pentatonix. The song is one of my favorites. Thanks to the Grammys, but most importantly thanks to all the fans. I love you all.”

The award-winning collaboration between Pentatonix and Parton happened through a partnership with Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, which has enjoyed success with both acts in the past with exclusive editions of albums from each. In Parton’s case, the partnership stretches back to her 2009 “Backwoods Barbie Collector’s Edition” project, which was followed by the release of “An Evening With…Dolly” and became the first Gold album-ever certified by the RIAA for Cracker Barrel Music. That relationship has continued with her latest Dolly Records / RCA Records release Pure & Simple. Released in the summer of 2016, the album – which netted Dolly her first chart-topping album since 1991 – was released in a deluxe Cracker Barrel-exclusive edition that featured live performances of her classic hits “9 To 5” and “Jolene” from the Glastonbury Festival, along with a 48-page ZinePak magazine filled with photos and interviews highlighting memorable stories from Parton. The collaboration is not part of any of the packages.

“Cracker Barrel is thrilled to have brought these two extraordinary talents together, Dolly Parton and Pentatonix, as part of our Spotlight Music Program for the exclusive collaboration of “Jolene.” We share in the celebration of their GRAMMY Award win as they are both a special part of the Cracker Barrel family,” said Don Hoffman, VP of Marketing at Cracker Barrel.

CTK Management CEO Danny Nozell said, “The collaborative video produced by Cracker Barrel between Pentatonix and Dolly has been viewed over 22 million times and has now won a Grammy. Dolly proves, once again, that she is making music that the fans will respond to.”

Parton’s 2016’s Pure & Simple North American Tour was the highest grossing tour of her career, performing over 60 shows.

To learn more about this American icon, visit www.DollyParton.com. To purchase a download of Jolene, visit Amazon at smarturl.it/PTXJoleneAmz.

New music from Dailey & Vincent and Kiefer Sutherland takes to the road

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Actor/entertainer Kiefer Sutherland, star of TV’s “Designated Survivor” is getting back on the road this year to play in more than 20 cities.

Momentum continues for Kiefer Sutherland’s music career and debut album, DOWN IN A HOLE, which includes 11 co-written tracks by Sutherland and producer Jude Cole.

Recently, Sutherland performed “Can’t Stay Away” on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and “Calling Out Your Name” on “The View.”

Sutherland, known for his starring role in and Fox series “24,” also starred in movies like “Stand By Me,” “The Lost Boys,” “Young Guns,” “Flatliners,” “A Few Good Men,” “A Time to Kill,” “Dark City” “Melancholia” and most recently, a western called “Forsaken.”

Keep up with Sutherland on the road by visiting kiefersutherlandmusic.com.

Upcoming Grand Ole Opry stars Dailey & Vincent will release their eighth album, Patriots & Poets on March 31. The project features collaborations with bluegrass music’s top musicians including Steve Martin, Doyle Lawson, Bela Fleck, and David Rawlings.

The project features 16 all-new tracks that were all written or co-written by Jamie Dailey and Darrin Vincent, with a collection of energizing upbeat songs, along with slow sing-along anthems. Standout tracks on the project include the feel-good track “California” which features a very special verse by comedic and bluegrass enthusiast Steve Martin. Other highlights on the project include thought-provoking songs like, “Beautiful Scars” and “American We Love You,” all highlighting harmonies by 6-time “Male Vocalist of the Year” winner Jamie Dailey and 5-time Grammy® winner Darrin Vincent. Another feel-good moment on Patriots & Poets includes the track “Bill and Ole Elijah.”

Also, their hit RFD-TV program, “The Dailey & Vincent Show” is back with season one and season two of the popular variety series, now airing on Friday nights at 7:30pm ET, throughout all of 2017.
The IBMA award-winners were recently honored by the International Bluegrass Hall of Fame and Museum with the brand new exhibit, “A Decade of Dailey & Vincent: An American Music Journey,” which features artifacts and memorabilia from their decorated career as a duo and beyond. Fans can also catch the hit makers appearing at venues and festivals nationwide, including their annual music festival Dailey & Vincent LandFest in the Mountains, presented by Springer Mountain Farms.

For more information, visit DaileyandVincent.com.

Mac Wiseman is the focus of new star-studded music release

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One of my favorite people and performers is the talented song stylist a Country Music Hall of Famer Mac Wiseman. I admire his influence on my life so much, I included him in my “Encourager II: Walking with the Masters” book.

He is the focus of a new recording project from Mountain Fever Records featuring a star-studded concept album celebrating his life and spirit.

“I Sang The Song (Life Of The Voice With A Heart)” is now available and it’s first single, “Going Back to Bristol,” featuring the International Bluegrass Music Association’s 2015 Male Vocalist of the Year Shawn Camp, reached #1 back in December.

Bluegrass Hall of Famer Mac Wiseman met with Peter Cooper and Thomm Jutz, sharing intimate details of his 91 years, and of his journey from Virginia boy to American roots music icon. That journey is the subject of I Sang The Song, the joyful and poignant album that springs from Mac’s storytelling sessions.

In liner notes, Cooper writes, “The stories would have been remarkable coming from anyone. But coming from Mac Wiseman, an acknowledged master of American roots music who earned the nickname ‘The Voice with a Heart,’ the stories began to sound like songs. Thomm Jutz and I sat in small chairs that faced the easy chair, situated beneath a photograph of Pleasant Hill Church of the Brethren, Mac’s childhood place of worship. We wrote down the stories, and found them rich with melody and rhyme.”

To begin the recording process, producers Cooper and Jutz assembled an all-star band of musicians including mandolinist Sierra Hull and multi-instrumentalist Justin Moses —both also lent vocal talents—and bassist Mark Fain. Further, featured performers were carefully chosen based not only on artistic mastery, but also reverence for the album’s subject, Mac Wiseman. The result is a collection of perfect performances by John Prine, Jim Lauderdale, Shawn Camp, Junior Sisk, Alison Krauss, Andrea Zonn, Ronnie Bowman, Sonya Isaacs Yeary, Becky Isaacs Bowman, Buddy Melton, and Milan Miller, with special vocal appearances by Mac Wiseman.

“Everyone who sings on this album understands the greatness of Mac Wiseman and the responsibility inherent in voicing Mac’s story and interpreting Mac’s words,” Cooper says. “These artists approached the songs with joyful reverence that is palpable to anyone who listens.”

For more information, visit, www.mountainfever.com.

If you would like to enjoy learning more about Mac Wiseman close up and personal, you can also order his beautifully written book “Mac Wiseman: All My Memories Fit For Print” as told to Walt Trott. The memories reflect nearly a century of the American experience that could only be told through the eyes of someone whose voice found success in so many genres of music.
​Check it out and get your copy on most internet booksellers’ websites. If you are Facebook, like Mac’s Bluegrass ERA, a page on which Mac share video performances and photo memories.

Jeannie Seely writes the songs and Infamous Stringdusters test Gravity in new CDs

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GRAMMY® award-winning country music legend Jeannie Seely’s long-awaited new album Written in Song is now in select stores and available through digital retailers.
“Written in Song is such an exciting project for me for many reasons,” Seely said. “It consists of 14 songs that I have written over the years, most of them recorded by my peers and my heroes. It’s also very rewarding to know that these songs have stood the test of time and are just as viable today. I am extremely grateful to the musicians and singers who made them sound brand new.”
The Grand Ole Opry songstress, known as “Miss Country Soul,” continues a whirlwind media schedule to promote the 14-track album full of original songs recorded by Merle Haggard (“Life of a Rodeo Cowboy), Dottie West (“He’s All I Need”), Ernest Tubb (“Sometimes I Do”), Willie Nelson (“Senses”) and more.
Seely brings back the traditional country sound that fans have been longing for on Written in Song. Standout tracks include “Leavin’ & Sayin’ Goodbye” featuring special guests Kenny and Tess Sears, “Senses” with guest Connie Smith and Marty Stuart and “We’re Still Hangin’ In There Ain’t We Jessi” with Jan Howard and Jessi Colter. Written in Song is distributed by Smith Music Group.
Like Jeannie Seely on Facebook or visit jeannieseely.com.
Bluegrass virtuosos The Infamous Stringdusters released Laws of Gravity, debuting at #3 on iTunes Country Chart and #1 on the Amazon Bluegrass Chart. The new album marks a return for the Grammy-nominated acoustic five-piece.
The Infamous Stringdusters — Andy Hall (dobro), Andy Falco (guitar), Chris Pandolfi (banjo), Jeremy Garrett (fiddle), and Travis Book (upright bass) recorded the album in Nashville and co-produced it with Billy Hume (Ludacris, Ying Yang Twins).
“This is the record I’ve been looking forward to making since the band started,” Hall said. “As pure of a Stringdusters sound as there is. All original, all us, recorded live for you. From bluegrass to jams, to songs relevant to the times, the music here is a true representation of what makes us tick.”
The band will take this album on the road for an extensive tour that has already begun.
“We are a band,” Pandolfi said. “We play live together, and more than any one song or achievement, this is what we do. Now we have an album that captures that.”
Learn more at www.thestringdusters.com.