So another GRAMMY awards ceremony has passed, with a list so long that it should rightly go on for 3 days. And in our cosy little niche genre, Keb Mo fought off challenges from fellow category nominees Calexico And Iron & Wine (‘Years To Burn’), Madison Cunningham (‘Who Are You Now’), J.S. Ondara (‘Tales of America’) and our dear own Yola (‘Walk Through Fire’). “This is amazing, I don’t know what to say,” he said in his acceptance speech when thanking his collaborators on Oklahoma, which includes collaborations with his wife and artists Rosanne Cash and Taj Mahal. “Thank you, thank you, thank you, wow.” The four-time winner last won a GRAMMY for his 2017 album ‘TajMo’ which took home the golden gramophone for Best Contemporary Blues Album, a category he’s won a total of four times.
Best American roots song went to ‘Call My Name’ by I’m With Her, awarded to songwriters Sarah Jarosz, Aoife O’donovan & Sara Watkins, while best American roots performance went to Sara Bareilles for her song ‘Saint Honesty’ (again beating our beloved Yola). Patty Griffin won best folk album for her self-titled latest release, beating Che Apalache who walked down the red carpet with the DACA recipient who was the inspiration behind their song ‘The Dreamer’.
