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Basic Folk — Music
Basic Folk

Basic Folk features honest conversations with folk musicians hosted by Cindy Howes and Lizzie No. We approach interviews with warmth, humor and insightful questions. Since 2018, this podcast has dignified under the radar roots musicians by providing a platform that they might not otherwise have. You’ll hear interviews from Three-time Grammy-winning guitar gods like Molly Tuttle, Haitian American folk legends like Leyla McCalla and deep feelers like songwriter John Hiatt.

Basic Folk is dedicated to showcasing the best in folk, bluegrass, acoustic and americana including Black, Brown and Queer folx who have been excluded, or felt like they did not belong, in the folk world. Cindy & Lizzie each bring a unique perspective to these honest conversations with folk musicians. We are equally dedicated to repainting the broad landscape of folk music as we are to tearing down the ivory towers of the music industry. What would Bruce Springsteen do if he ever got the keys to that mansion on the hill? Let's find out together on Basic Folk.

Basic is an official production of The Bluegrass Situation. Thanks for listening.

Welcome to Basic Folk.

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Latest Episodes:

Steve Forbert, ep. 164 May 12, 2022

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Steve Forbert is not a dramatic person. His stories are fairly straight forward even though he's lived a pretty incredible life, which began in Meridian, MS as a young musician. In the hometown of Jimmie Rodgers, Steve found a great guitar teacher in Virginia Shine Harvey, who claimed she was a relation to the famous singing brakeman (Jimmie Rodgers). Ms Harvey taught Steve music through performance and connected him to other young musicians in the area, who then went on to form a couple of bands. He left his town for New York City in his early 20's where he pounded the pavement as a singer/songwriter for a couple years before catching a break. During his climb upwards, Forbert found acceptance in New York's punk scene, especially at the historic CBGB's where club owner Hilly Kristal gave him a chance and introduced him to his manager. From there, Steve went on to start recording records. His second album, Jackrabbit Slim, gave him his hit song, "Romeo's Tune," which he credits giving him his career and "a ticket in to the show." He's releasing his latest, "Moving Through America," with more character studies and focuses on life's oddities.

It's not easy to get Steve to talk about himself and his reflections, but he's up for giving it a shot. He wrote a memoir in 2018, Big City Cat: My Life in Folk-Rock, which sounds like it was a challenge for him to revisit and write about his past, not because it seems like it was filled with mistakes and scandal, but because it was sooooo much about himself. He seems grateful for the opportunity to still have a career and does not take it for granted. He also makes some very hip and hot music references in our conversation: like bringing up rappers Megan Thee Stallion and Jack Harlow. Color me impressed, Steve Forbert is watching the Billboard Hot 100.

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Lily Henley, ep. 163 May 05, 2022

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Fiddler and singer/songwriter Lily Henley's latest album, Oras Dezaoradas, is a full-on celebration of her Sephardic Jewish Heritage. The lineage of Sephardic people can be traced back to the Iberian Jews expelled from Spain and Portugal in 1492. For Jewish people, there are many diasporas and lots of different ethnic heritages and practices that have been adopted and blended from many other groups along the way. Lily's heritage is different from the Ashkenazi Jewish people, which is the most represented Jewish sect in The United States, who can be traced back to Eastern Europeans. Lily graciously gives a very brief overview of the diaspora (which is pretty amazing to take in) and the geographical and cultural differences.

Lily grew up moving around a lot and talks about how that act of moving from place to place impacted her as a young person and how it still affects her. She found a sense of belonging and home at the fiddle camps she attended alongside other musicians her own age. At camp, she learned to play Celtic, Old-time and Cape Breton style tunes. While at home, she played traditional Sephardic tunes, sung in the Ladino language, also called Judeo-Spanish, a combination of Spanish with Hebrew, Arabic, and Turkish elements and is spoken by less than 100,000 people. As an adult, she was inspired by living in Tel-Aviv for three years and immersed in Sephardic culture. She was awarded a Fulbright research grant and is currently an artist residency at the Cite Internationale des Arts in Paris. She recorded her latest album in Paris: on a label run by a Sephardic community leader while being embraced by and collaborating with the Sephardic community there. OH!: Lily has another new non-Ladino album on the way: Imperfect By Design coming January 2023. It's an Indie-Folk anthology about love, belonging, independence, and change. Look out for that and enjoy this deeply educational conversation!

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Grace Givertz, ep. 162 Apr 28, 2022

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Grace Givertz, born and raised in South Florida, began writing and performing at age eleven when she got a guitar and learned to play off YouTube videos. Grace is a survivor in many ways: she manages and confronts several chronic illnesses, she survived having her Berklee scholarship rescinded due to a systematic error and lived through being struck by a city bus in 2015. The accident left her unable to play her instruments for several months. During that idle time, she reflected on how being a musician defines she who is. Her writing changed and became more open and honest about chronic illnesses. In her most recent single, "Papa," she writes about the traumatic murder of her grandfather and how he lives on in Grace.

I first came across Grace working at Club Passim in the Boston area, where she currently lives. Grace's visual appearance, sense of humor and sparkling personality are undeniable. In addition to music, she's super crafty and her reputation for cute outfits, cute earrings (which she sells on Etsy) and her cute apartment (which I've seen a lot of thanks to Zoom concerts and social media) proceeds her. She surrounds herself with her adorable pets that pop up frequently on her social media. One time, my mom (unprovoked - she doesn't know Grace!) sent me a video of Grace's bearded dragon, Baby Pancake, being cuddled by her peachy cat Persimmon. Yes, I know most of her pets' names and have a Grace Givertz t-shirt with a sweet Baby Pancake design on it. I am a fan all around.

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Amy Correia, ep. 161 Apr 21, 2022

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LA-based singer/songwriter Amy Correia will tell you that she is not a prolific writer, which… okay maybe she doesn’t write a million songs in one year, but holy crap, those songs and that voice will wallop you. Originally from Lakeville, Massachusetts, Amy’s musical roots lay in New York City’s lower east side in a scene that produced Jeff Buckley, Richard Julian and Jesse Harris. She discovered her musical voice while recovering from a back injury her junior year of college. She was actually a big fan of laying in bed and doing nothing but writing songs and playing around on her guitar. After college, she was playing around and got offered a major label deal, recorded an album with seven different producers and countless musicians, left her label and signed another deal, which would eventually become the place where she released her debut, Carnival Love in the year 2000. Another album followed in 2004 (fan funded) and another in 2010 (also fan funded). She opened for big acts like Chrissie Hynde, John Hiatt, Richard Thompson and Marc Cohn. She started living in Boston, fully embraced by “a collective of musicians who uplifted her with their creative camaraderie,” which included Kimon Kirk who turned out to be one of her most important friends and collaborators.

Kimon encouraged Amy to record this new batch of songs on her latest release, the EP As We Are, which just came out in March 2022. During our conversation, Amy revealed that the recording session took place in 2015, but she wasn’t ready to release the music until now. Kimon had persuaded her to revisit the songs during the pandemic and the plan was set in motion for the EP. We also discussed Amy’s connection to spirituality, her affinity and experience in the theater world and letting go of control. She also opens up about her relationship to her singing voice, which is so special and always digs deep in me every time I hear it. I hope you enjoy this wonderful and vulnerable conversation with Amy Correia!

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BF Presents: Why We Write Apr 17, 2022

Show notes

Editor’s note: Basic Folk is pleased to introduce our listeners to one of our favorite podcasts by sharing an episode in our feed! Why We Write features conversations between folk music reporter Kim Ruehl and a hand-picked array of great songwriters, presented by Folk Alley.

So much goes into a song—the songwriter’s intimate life, their upbringing, their worldview, what they see going on in the world. What moves them to put pen to paper? How do they do it? When, where, and why? Ruehl explores all of this with some of the finest songwriters working these days—old favorites, up-and-comers, and everything in between.

Kim is one of my favorite music writers and (frankly) one of my favorite people. Her laid back demeanor is easy to vibe with and does well for her scholarly approach. Kim is basically a folk-brainiac and cannot be stopped. I first met her while she was the editor in chief at No Depression. She's since gone on to publish her first book A Singing Army: Zilphia Horton and the Highlander Folk School. A former singer/songwriter herself, Kim not only brings her big writer's brain and cool attitude into these conversations, but she has a unique musician's perspective that her guests can feel and relate to.

Basic Folk is pleased to share Kim's interview with Rosanne Cash (This episode was originally published on June 9, 2021). There is much that could be said about Rosanne Cash’s number-one hits and Grammy awards, her family legacy and her celebrity. But whether she’s writing songs, articles, essays, or books, Cash is always a writer’s writer.

She has a knack for catchy, chorus-worthy turn of phrase, sure, but she also has a generally superb literary sensibility. Thus, the opportunity to discuss writing with her for this episode of Why We Write was a bit of a no-brainer.

One of the things that strikes me most about Cash’s songwriting is the way she sets her songs and stories very strongly in a specific place. So, we began our conversation with the relationship between story and place. Press play and come along for the ride.

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Backstage Preview: Amy Helm on Field Music Apr 16, 2022

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This preview of Backstage (Basic Folk's bonus episodes) features Amy Helm (who was on BF episode 138, Oct. 2021), the daughter of Levon Helm, legendary drummer and vocalist for The Band. Amy talks about her affinity for hymns: their impact and where they still show up for her today. Check out the full episode by contributing to Basic Folk. Links below!

Hear the entire Backstage with Amy Helm: http://basicfolk.com/Backstage

Contribute and gain Backstage access: http://basicfolk.com/donate

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Mason Jennings, ep. 160 Apr 14, 2022

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Mason Jennings has the most interesting songwriting process I've come across. Since he was around 13 years old, the Minneapolis songwriter has had songs just come to him while randomly playing guitar and singing. He gets in touch with his subconscious and discovers his songs there very naturally. He also never writes the songs down. That's right, he commits each song to memory and only writes them down for liner notes. Born in Honolulu and raised in Pittsburgh, he chose Minneapolis to settle into his music career. There, he found lots of success and managed to avoid the ever-tempting major label record contracts, which were being offered as high as $1 million. Wanting to remain in control of his creativity, he opted to stay independent until he signed with Glacial Pace, a subsidiary of Sony's Epic Records headed by Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse. He released Boneclouds in 2006 and gained much acclaim. An album with Jack Johnson's label and an appearance on the soundtrack to Todd Haynes Bob Dylan film I'm Not There, solidified his presence in the folk mainstream.

Fast forward to his latest album (his 14th studio record), Real Heart, co-produced by Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard, is an ode to the acoustic guitar and a love letter to songwriting. Lately, Mason's been working on himself through therapy and self-reflection. In the last few years, he's been working on conquering and controlling depression, agoraphobia and living a sober life. He's also gotten married again to Josie Jennings and the couple just recently welcomed their son Western in March 2022. A lot of these themes appear on Real Heart. We dig into those as well as his painting, the lake he lives on and Painted Shield, his synth-based rock and roll band with Stone Gossard and Matt Matt Chamberlain. Mason's a very special person and I'm grateful for this conversation!

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Tatiana Hargreaves, ep. 159 Apr 07, 2022

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When Tatiana Hargreaves was younger, she was a shit-hot fiddle player; recording her debut album at age 14, a first prize winner at the Clifftop Appalachian Stringband Festival Fiddle Contest that same year and gaining all sorts of accolades before even graduating high school. After some thought, she went after a degree in ethnomusicology and performance at Hampshire College in Amherst, MA, where she continued to play fiddle like a maniac. Her time in college allowed her to reconnect with her friend, the equally impressive banjo player, Allison de Groot. She reflects on one summer where she and Allison kept finding each other and jamming at various events and festivals. They decided to record their debut album and tour. The duo are back again with the new record Hurricane Clarice, using traditional stringband music as a way to interpret our uncertain times.

Our conversation leads into topics like the negative impact of music as competition. Tati has spoken before of her experience competing on the Texas Fiddle circuit that’s pretty popular on the West Coast. Also, after college, she moved to Durham to be closer and work with old-time legend Alice Gerrard. Since 2017, she’s been soaking up Alice’s influence and knowledge through being her fiddle player and digitizing her old photos. This has led to a vast amount of inspiration, from recording songs on the new record that Alice had introduced to her to going back to school to study archival science. I am fascinated by this person and her work. Tatiana keeps it close to the chest, but I’m grateful for what she shared in conversation.

Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves’ new album, Hurricane Clarice

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No No Boy, ep. 158 Mar 30, 2022

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Julian Saporiti is the brilliant mind behind No No Boy, a recording project that tells the incredible stories of historical triumphs of Asian Americans making their way in the United States. Julian, an Italian American and Vietnamese American, has always been drawn to history and music and has used his two passions to elevate these stories. He was truly inspired by his doctoral research at Brown University on “Asian American and transpacific history focusing on sound, music, immigration, refugees and everyday life.” Julian began to explore his family’s history, pore over archival material, and conduct interviews; and found untold musical stories of Asian American artists like himself.

Julian got the No-No Boy name from Japanese Americans who were forced to live in internment camps during World War II, soon after the Pearl Harbor attack in 1942. They were asked to serve in combat and swear allegiance to the United States. Those who answered “no” to those two demands on the government’s “Loyalty Questionnaire” became “No-No Boys.” and Those who refused were sent to concentration camps. It’s also a novel by Asian American author John Okada (also a song by The Spiders). Our conversation covers his own family history, in which he also unabashedly shares his perspective on the concept of “generational trauma” (he’s not super into it). He expands on the influence of Asian musicians who have learned and perfected the music of the oppressor, like the George Igawa Orchestra, which was a jazz band held at an internment camp led by the Los Angeles musician George Igawa. When he was forced to relocate to the camp, he could only bring what he could carry, which, to him, meant his instruments. He formed a group in the camp where they would play parties and even outside beyond the confines of the camp’s barbed wire.

Julian’s identity and the identity of No No Boy is solidly rooted in his Asian American experience, but I decided to start our interview with questions about his dad’s work in the music industry. Julian’s father was a major player in Nashville’s country music industry and he would often take Julian with him to work. This left huge impressions on young Julian, so of course, I had to dig into that first thing!

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Brent Cobb, ep. 157 Mar 24, 2022

Show notes

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Editor’s note: Lizzie No interviews Brent Cobb on Basic Folk! Be sure to go back and listen to Lizzie’s previous guest host spots on the pod and subscribe, so you never miss Lizzie!

Georgia-born Brent Cobb is a true blue southern Gospel country artist. His music career kicked off when he shared a demo tape with Dave Cobb, one of Nashville’s finest producers and Brent’s cousin. The two have collaborated on numerous albums since Brent’s debut and I had a lot of questions about that creative relationship during our interview.

Cobb’s 2016 album, ‘Shine On Rainy Day,’ earned him a Grammy nomination and saw him tour with country stars Chris Stapleton and Zac Brown. He has also written songs for stars like Luke Bryan and Miranda Lambert. Brent has fascinating insights about touring, collaboration, and his role as an interpreter of Southern culture in an interconnected world.

In July of 2020, Brent was driving with his one-year-old son when their truck was t-boned. He got up off the pavement and found his son unharmed in his car seat. This brush with death inspired him to create a Gospel album, drawing on the musical tradition in which he was raised. ‘And Now, Let’s Turn to Page…’ reimagines time-honored hymns and features one original song co-written by Brent and his wife, Layne. Life, death, love, community, and Willie Nelson-style gentle vocal performances, this album has it all.

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