It seems that everything Sam Lee attempts turns out to be just a little bit magical, and both his reinvention of Folk Song and his rededication to the craft of capturing songs from their Traditional singers has worked to prove the truth of that statement. There are only a few musicians in any generation that really bring both a new musical ear and also a deep appreciation of the source material to bear on English folk, and Sam Lee is one of those few musicians. Continue reading “Sam Lee Announces new album and new tour – All is new”
Seminal Americana band, the Buffalo Springfield cum Byrds of the Eighties, and very much The Long Ryders of the 21st Century, have announced their imminent European tour – which includes a good handful of UK dates. 
There are few better mediums than a book for opening our eyes to new information, for helping us to become a little more knowledgeable about the world around us. I have to put my hand up and say I had never heard of Leftover Salmon before reading this book and I only had sketchy knowledge of the progressive Bluegrass scene, so this book “Leftover Salmon: Thirty Years of Festival!” has been a real revelation; a window into a different and quite fascinating world. 
Canadian Bluegrass band The Slocan Ramblers are on a bit of a roll – having picked up a Juno Award nomination for their latest album ‘Queen City Jubilee‘ and another nomination for a coveted Momentum Award for Band of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA). How have they achieved this? Well -by playing Bluegrass the way it should be played – fast, thrilling, and precise. Whether that’s Frank Evans’ banjo, Adrian Gross’ mandolin, Daryl Poulsen’s guitar or Alastair Whitehead’s bass it’s all fast and furious and – above all – precise. Really important that.