Stay Connected“Bluegrass Jam Along is a great, great podcast” – Chris Eldridge
The IBMA Award winning podcast for anyone and everyone who loves bluegrass.
Every week we feature interviews with musicians, writers, instrument makers and other key figures from the bluegrass and string band world, plus regular news and new releases.
Guests include Alison Krauss, Sierra Hull, Tim O’Brien, Wyatt Rice, Jerry Douglas, Sarah Jarosz, Jarrod Walker and David Grisman.
For more info visit https://bluegrassjamalong.com
Copyright: © 2024 Bluegrass Jam Along
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass.
Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode.
Podcast news
Releases (The Grass is New)
Scroll on Buddy
Other bits
Happy picking.
Matt
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
January 6th 2024 would have been Earl Scruggs' 100th birthday.
I'm putting together a very special set of episodes to celebrate. As part of them I spoke to Jerry Douglas, who's organising a spectacular night of music at The Ryman on Earl's birthday to mark the occasion.
This is a taster taken from a much longer chat I had with Jerry. We talked about putting the show together and why he wants to celebrate Earl. The full interview will be released in a couple of weeks, alongside lots of other guests sharing their memories of Earl and his music.
Tickets for the Ryman show are on the Ryman's website
To live stream the entire show, sign up at Veeps.com
Happy picking!
Matt
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
It’s almost the end of 2023. Where did the year go?!
I’m already working on some exciting stuff for 2024 but, before we head into the holidays, I wanted to have a look back at 2023 on Bluegrass Jam Along as it’s been an extraordinary year.
I’ve had the opportunity to speak to some truly amazing guests. You’ll hear excerpts from a few of them in this episode, along with a recap of all the interviews on the podcast this year.
You’ll hear from:
If you missed any of these episodes (or just want to listen again) you’ll find the full list on the Bluegrass Jam Along website
We also added lots more fiddle tune backing tracks to the podcast too.
Oh, and I won an IBMA award!
I feel so lucky to get to have these conversations. Thanks for listening - happy holidays and happy picking!
Matt
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass.
Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode.
News and announcements (Church Street News)
Releases (The Grass is New)
Scroll on Buddy
In My Ears
Other bits
Happy picking.
Matt
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
My guest this week is Ted Olson.
Ted is Professor of Appalachian Studies at East Tennessee State University. He's also written liner notes and essays for some wonderful projects, including “Doc Watson – Life's Work: A Retrospective,” and the fantastic “Nothing But Green Willow: The Songs Of Jane Gentry and Mary Sands” by Martin Simpson & Thomm Jutz.
Ted joins me to talk about three wonderful projects he worked on for Bear Family Records, celebrating three key recording sessions that took place in East Tennessee in the 1920s and '30s - The Bristol Sessions, The Johnson City Sessions and The Knoxville Sessions.
Bear Family put out a multi-CD box set for each of these, which Ted did extensive research and provided some wonderful essays and liner notes for. Each set is also distilled into a single CD release.
We talk about why The 1927 Bristol Sessions, which brought The Carter Family and Jimmie Rogers to the attention of the world, came to be known as the 'big bang' of Country music, why that label doesn't sit quite right with Ted, how the sessions came about, what was happening in the world of commercial recording at the time and why the legacy of those recordings is so important, plus much, much more.
It was a fascinating conversation and put those recordings in a whole new context for me, both helping me understand their importance, but also (thanks in part to the wonderful transfers and re-mastering, as well as the incredible liner notes) helping me realise there's just some great music in there too!
You'll find the single CDs here:
Bear Family CDs
and the box sets here:
Bear Family box sets
Happy picking!
Matt
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass.
Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode.
News and announcements (Church Street News)
Releases (The Grass is New)
Scroll on Buddy
In My Ears
Other bits
Happy picking.
Matt
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
This week we've got something I haven't done in a while - a mini jam episode. That means we're playing 3 tunes back to back instead of focussing on just one. The idea is it feels a bit more like playing at a jam session. I know some of you use these tracks to work up to attending a jam so hopefully this will help with that!
I've gone for 3 tunes with a more open feel, they're not quite as busy as tunes like Blackberry Blosson. They are:
We're doing all three at 85bpm and each tune follows our regular 'jam along' format. That means I play backup and you play lead, then we swap, then we repeat the whole thing another 3 times. The whole jam lasts around 20 minutes.
If you want chord charts for these tunes, head to bluegrassjamalong.com, where you'll also find details of how to get in touch. I'd love to hear any feedback on these mini jams so do let me know what you think.
Thanks,
Matt
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass.
Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode.
News and announcements (Church Street News)
Releases (The Grass is New)
Scroll on Buddy
In My Ears
Other bits
Happy picking.
Matt
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
This week we're jamming along to the classic tune Big Sandy River. This is a performance track, rather than a backing track. It's me playing both tune and backup so you've got a reference to listen to if you're new to the tune, or just want to be able to listen a few times to the whole thing.
Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done and jam along!
If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), head to bluegrassjamalong.com
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
This week we're jamming along to Big Sandy River and I've got three brand new backing track episodes for you. This is the jam along track where I play backup, followed by the melody then we keep swapping. It's four times through in the key of A at 75 bpm.
Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done.
If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), just head to bluegrassjamalong.com
===
Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful theme tune to Bluegrass Jam Along (and to Justin Moses for playing the fiddle!)
Bluegrass Jam Along is proud to be sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins and Token premium guitar picks
- Sign up to get updates on new episodes
- Free fiddle tune chord sheets
- Here's a list of all the Bluegrass Jam Along interviews
- Follow Bluegrass Jam Along for regular updates:
- Review us on Apple Podcasts
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