All posts tagged: Acoustic Music

In praise of Gallagher Guitars

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Gallagher Guitars have been in my consciousness – if not my life – since first putting the landmark Will the Circle Be Unbroken album on the turntable in 1972 and hearing the most famous words ever uttered about a Gallagher: Merle Travis:  That guitar, by the way, rings like a bell. Doc Watson:  It’s a pretty good little box — a Mr. Gallagher down in Wartrace, Tennessee made it. So I was thrilled to open the most recent issue of The Fretboard Journal and see a story and photo essay on Gallagher Guitars.  Regular readers know that I eagerly await the sight of The Fretboard Journal in my mailbox. The Circle album gave me the flat-picking/bluegrass bug, and I began thinking about a new guitar.  The first Gallagher I played for any length of time belonged to my long-time friend and clawhammer banjo player John Balch, who still plays his 1975 G-50 on a regular basis.  It was a beautiful sounding guitar which whetted my appetite for one of my own.  The first picture below …

Claire Lynch: A wonderful songbird keeps singing

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At one point in Monday night’s thoroughly satisfying concert by The Claire Lynch Band at the Institute of Musical Traditions, the band leader mentioned that she started in the music business 33 years ago.  It doesn’t seem that long ago when I heard her play at the Shenandoah Valley’s Oak Grove Music Festival, but in fact it may have been two decades since I saw her with the Front Porch String Band. Thirty-three years is a long time to be on the road, but Lynch and her band of hot young phenoms supported by veteran bass man Mark Schatz, had the energy and sound to more than satisfy the sold-out IMT crowd. Lynch has been an impressive band leader, prolific songwriter (truth-in-advertising: some co-penned in the past with my musical cousin, Hershey Reeves), and all-around pioneer in the acoustic music world…but she’s still most impressive as a singer. She showed us all time and again on Monday evening why she won the 2010 IBMA Female Singer of the Year award. Standouts from a wealth of …

Fiddle Heroes

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I’ve always enjoyed Mark O’Connor’s 1992 album Heroes – a series of fiddle duets that O’Connor plays with his musical idols and mentors.  There’s great music on the album – from jazz to bluegrass, western swing to world music – and listeners can easily see the range of O’Connor’s interest and his amazing ability to play comfortably in any idiom. The players are – to put it simply – amazing.  Ponty, Grappelli, Clements, Zukerman, Gimble and more. So I was thrilled to stumble across this clip on YouTube of behind the scenes footage of the recording of this album. Take ten minutes, sit back, and soak up the amazing musicianship of a dozen top fiddlers of their day.  Then if you don’t know the album, find it on iTunes and download it.  You won’t be disappointed. More to come… DJB

The (Musical) Circle Never Ends

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This is a post about music.  But it begins with swimming. Earlier this summer, I wrote that I was going to savor the last swim team season.  And I did just that, up to and including adding an extra meet onto the calendar to watch Andrew and his relay mates set a new team record in the All-Star meet.  We were thrilled he got to compete in that best-of-the-best meet in a hotbed of swimming! But this past Saturday got off to a great start, helped by the fact that I didn’t have to be at the pool at 7 a.m. for the first time this summer! So here are a few remembrances from a nice summer weekend that kept bringing thoughts (and connections) back to music. Candice and I were at the local farmer’s market on Saturday, looking to get some great Evensong Farm eggs from our friend Julie.  (Quick aside:  I didn’t realize how tasteless store-bought eggs are until we missed our Evensong eggs for six straight weeks!)  Julie’s father is bluegrass bass …

Got Plans for the Summer?

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My colleague Sarah has a great blog that – like More to Come… – covers her range of interests outside of work.  So I was thrilled when I saw her recent post on top ten things to do this summer at the top of the “best blogs” on Word Press earlier today. Sarah took the idea from The Daily Post.  Her plans looked like such fun that I decided to try my hand at making a list that had an equal smile-inducing factor.  You can be the judge in determining if the DJB list for the summer of 2011 passes the test. 1.  Play more music with friends.  I’ve found a group of guys that I enjoy playing roots music with, but we tend to let it slide over the summer.  I get such joy out of playing with them that I’m going to work on getting everyone together between songwriting and guitar camps.  (Yes, these guys are good!) 2.  Summer in New England.  I’m cheating on this on as I was just in Portland, …

Good Friday 2011

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It is no surprise to regular readers that one of my favorite services of the year is the Good Friday meditation at the Washington National Cathedral.  I wrote about it in 2009 and again in 2010. Candice, Claire, and I were back this year with two friends joining us for the service.  My blog must be reaching huge numbers as the St. Joseph’s chapel was packed! The music was as contemplative and haunting as ever.  Cathedral Music Director Mike McCarthy was the soloist on his arrangement of the Troparian.  Andrew’s voice teacher, Soprano Diane Atherton, sang the lovely solos that soared above the Taize chants in the vault-like setting of the chapel. We missed having Andrew with us this year, as he’d already attended two Good Friday services and we gave him the night off.  At his school’s chapel he sang a solo on the opening verse of that wonderful spiritual Were You There, and then he was off to his singing gig with St. John’s Lafayette Square for their noon day service. I don’t …

Live at BWI

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Every now and then there are advantages to getting on a plane once a week.  Tonight I experienced one of them. I am a fan of guitarist Muriel Anderson.  You’ve got to love a classical guitarist whose first influence was Doc Watson!  She can play anything…from classical to jazz to bluegrass. So I was pleased and surprised when I saw on her Facebook page earlier this week that she would be playing something called BWI Live. At BWI Airport.   In Baltimore.  Among the baggage carousels and Hudson Books.  On April 7th.  The night I was returning from a day trip to Cleveland.  Through BWI! So in the midst of a very busy day, week, month, season – you name it – I had a sublime evening sitting in the aforementioned baggage claim area listening to beautiful music with ten or fifteen other guitar aficionados.  Muriel Anderson shut out the noise of passing travelers, the cleaning staff, and God knows what else to showcase music from her most recent CD New World Flamenco and other …

Play Ball!

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My iPod is a genius.  It always knows my moods. Today, as I was unlocking my office door and finishing up the commute to work, what do you think came on the iPod (in shuffle mode, of course)?  Why, none other than Wayne Henderson playing Take Me Out to the Ballgame. Opening Day!  What could be more perfect!! Wayne is a die-hard Red Sox fan, and I’ve included a photo I took of him at Merlefest a couple of years ago to prove it.  If you don’t know about Wayne, check out the book Clapton’s Guitar. I’ve also attached the video of Wayne playing Take Me Out to the Ballgame for all those fans supporting teams today where hope springs eternal.  Go Nats! Enjoy. More to come… DJB

Nashville Skyline Rag

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The third installment of my “Music Fit to a T” series of songs honoring Tennessee doesn’t technically have the state’s name in its title. But it is my series, so who’s quibbling. Since my daughter Claire and I are heading to Nashville this week, I thought I’d include Nashville Skyline Rag as the third song in my tribute. The original came from Bob Dylan’s Nashville Skyline, but I primarily remember the song as the opening tune to every Earl Scruggs Revue show I saw in the 1970s (and I saw several).  I liked it so much that my high school and college bluegrass band also played a version of Nashville Skyline Rag. Given that this has become known as a banjo tune, it is fitting that I’m featuring a video with banjo pioneer Tony Trischka and the Czech bluegrass band (yes, you read that right) Druhá Tráva. So here’s a little Nashville Skyline Rag to celebrate Tennessee.  Enjoy. More to come… DJB

The Brand New Tennessee Waltz

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Jesse Winchester wrote The Brand New Tennessee Waltz for his first album, released in 1970 while still living in exile in Canada where he had moved to avoid the draft.  He wasn’t able to tour in the US until much later in the decade and isn’t as well-known as some other singer-songwriters. The Brand New Tennessee Waltz — the next edition of my “Music fit to a T” series — is a sad yet lovely song. Oh my, but you have a pretty faceYou favor I girl that I knewI imagine that she’s back in Tennessee And by God, I should be there tooI’ve a sadness too sad to be true But I left Tennessee in a hurry dearIn same way that I’m leaving you Because love is mainly just memoriesAnd everyone’s got him a fewSo when I’m gone I’ll be glad to love you Chorus: At the Brand New Tennessee WaltzYou’re literally waltzing on airAt the Brand New Tennessee WaltzThere’s no telling who will be there When I leave it will be like I …