Ramblers’ Retreat Upcoming Shows
Here’s what coming up over the next few weeks on my radio show, Ramblers’ Retreat:
- February 22nd: Music from Scotland, because I missed doing a Burns Night show
- February 29th: The 140th anniversary of Yellowstone National Park
- March 7th: Bob Wills‘s birthday
- March 14th: Route 66
The show airs Wednesday mornings from 6:00 to 8:00 am Mountain on KRBX Radio Boise, 89.9 FM and online on http://radioboise.org.
January 2012
January 2012
Every month I put together a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for January 2012. I’ve played multiple songs from each of these CDs on my radio show, Ramblers’ Retreat.
- Blink: Blink (Norway / Denmark / Sweden / Finland)
Blink put out their debut album last year, and it’s a world-class collection of traditional and original Nordic tunes with some stellar arrangements. This album was on last month’s list. - Downtown Ramblers: On The Other Side Of The City (Sweden)
Downtown Ramblers is an impressive bluegrass band from Sweden, and they’ve put together a very nice collection of original compositions. - Wylie & The Wild West: Rocketbuster (Montana)
I’ve mentioned Wylie & The Wild West often on this blog; Rocketbuster is the first 2012 release to make the list. - Hal Cannon: Hal Cannon (Utah)
Hal Cannon was also on last month’s list; I wrote a review of this CD for RootsWorld magazine. - Jen Hajj: Orn-I-Tho-Lo-Gie (Utah)
Jen Hajj’s new collection of songs about birds runs a big emotional gamut, much bigger than one might expect from a collection of songs about birds.
Downtown Ramblers: “I’ll Go”
December 2011
December 2011
It’s been a few months since I put together a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most over the past few weeks. I’m ready to re-establish the habit. Here’s my list for December 2011. I’ve played multiple songs from each of these artists on my radio show, Ramblers’ Retreat.
- Hal Cannon: Hal Cannon (Utah)
- Utah Slim: Introducing Utah Slim (Utah)
- Spring Creek: Hold On Me (Colorado)
- Mia Edsall: Good Horses And Other Matters (Idaho)
- Blink: Blink (Norway)
Here’s a video of Hal Cannon performing “Alone Town.”
Looking Back: 2007
Looking Back: 2007
Another in a not-so-regular series of posts where I look back and reflect on my favorite music from a particular year. These are my favorites today, and this list includes some fairly new discoveries from artists I didn’t know about back in 2007.
Panhandle Polecats: Skunked Again. A family bluegrass band based in Rathdrum, Idaho with three sisters and two brothers. They play a good mix of bluegrass classics, original songs, and a novelty here and there. Their stage presence is outstanding. I’m a fan of “Sheep Shearing Blues” (an original song by Molly the mandolin player) and I really like their instrumental cover of “Shenandoah”.
Mike Marshall & Darol Anger with Väsen: Mike Marshall & Darol Anger with Väsen. I first heard mandolinist Mike Marshall and fiddler Darol Anger playing together in the early mid-1980s. This is a great collaboration between them and the Swedish trio Väsen who I’ve written about often both on this blog and for RootsWorld. This record has a great mix of originals (like Mike Marshall’s “Egypt” that I first heard when he recorded with the Montreaux band years ago), American folk tunes (“Yew Piney Mountain”), and reworked Swedish folk tunes (“Penknife Killer”). These musicians also put on great live shows.
Adrian: Highway 80. Adrian was a teenager when she recorded her first CD of original songs inspired by own life on a working ranch near the the Nevada-California line. “Old Time Vaquero” and “Will James Days” have quickly become favorites among those of us who love the music of the American West.
Quebe Sisters: Timeless. A fiddling, singing trio of sisters from Texas who focus on Western Swing and do it very well. I especially like their versions of “So Long To The Red River Valley” and “Tumbling Tumbleweeds.”
Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie: Le Cowboy Creole. Geno Delafose is the son of zydeco musician John Delafose. Geno draws from both zydeco and Cajun music as well as his own experience running a horse ranch in Louisiana. He’s put out a number of records, each of them solid and worth hearing. On Le Cowboy Creole I’ve been drawn to “Chickens On The Run.”
Looking Back: 2008
Looking Back: 2008
A long time ago I started this Looking Back series, but for whatever reason I didn’t keep it going. To call it a series right now is a bit of misnomer. But I’m ready to get started again, and I’ll kick off the new effort by looking back at a few of my favorite recordings that came out in 2008.
Rosalie Sorrels: Strangers In Another Country. Subtitled “The Songs of Bruce ‘Utah’ Phillips,” this is a beautiful tribute to The Golden Voice Of The Great Southwest. It contains many of my favorite Utah Phillips songs including “Scofield Mine Disaster,” “Jesse’s Corrido,” and “Ashes On The Sea.” Sorrels has put out many great records, but this one for her long-time friend is hard to top.
Annbjørg Lien: Waltz With Me. This is music written for a string quartet with a definite Nordic spin. Lien herself plays violin and hardingfele. Bruce Molsky is the second fiddler often switching to guitar. Mikael Marin of Väsen plays viola, and Christine Hanson is the cellist. Molsky does some singing too, usually as a duet with Kirsten Bråten Berg. Over the years, Lien’s records have covered traditional Norwegian music and veered from there into more ambient and electronic sounds. This CD is quite different from anything else she’s done, and it’s my favorite of everything I’ve heard her do so far. I wrote a larger review and interview with Annbjørg Lien for RootsWorld magazine last year.
Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson: Rattlin’ Bones. This duo from Australia put together my favorite Americana record of that year. Go figure. I especially like their song about Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Beyond that one, “Sweetest Waste Of Time” is a beautiful love song, and sometimes days go by when I can’t get “Monkey On A Wire” out of my head, which is not necessarily a bad thing.
Trygve Seim & Frode Haltli: Yeraz. This saxophone and accordion duet from Norway played one of the best concerts I have ever attended – truly one of the great musical moments of my life. This record is very good, and includes a wonderful cover of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song.” I wrote a review of their performance at the Portland Jazz Festival for RootsWorld.
Fleet Foxes: Fleet Foxes. This band from Seattle is probably best classified as an indie rock band, but their harmonies and their mostly acoustic string playing allow them to fall easily into the folk camp too. I’ve played their songs on Ramblers’ Retreat and they fit right into my broad swath of folk music. I about fell out of my chair the first time I heard “White Winter Hymnal” and I go back to this record often for the pure enjoyment of it.
July 2011
July 2011
Every month I make a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most often over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for July 2011. I’ve played songs from each of these artists on my radio show, Ramblers’ Retreat.
- Jensen & Bugge: Hav Og Land (2011)
- Sväng: Schladtzshe! (2010)
- Steve Riley & The Mamou Playboys: Grand Isle (2010)
- Shaney McCoy: Bridges I Can’t Burn (2010)
June 2011
June 2011
Every month I make a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most often over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for June 2011. I’ve played songs from each of these bands on my radio show, Ramblers’ Retreat.
- Fiolministeriet: Fiolministeriet (2011)
- Finnders & Youngberg: FY5 (2011)
- High Desert Band: Creature Comforts (2010)
- Ruthie Dornfeld: Duets Abroad (2010)
- De Temps Antan: Les Habits De Papier (2010)
May 2011
May 2011
Every month I make a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most often over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for May 2011. (And yes, I recognize that May is almost over.)
- Abigail Washburn: City of Refuge (2011)
- Jesse Lége, Joel Savoy, & The Cajun Country Revival: The Right Combination (2011)
- Abbie Gardner: Hope (2011)
- Steve Martin & The Steep Canyon Rangers: Rare Bird Alert (2011)
- The Waifs: Temptation (2011)
- Wylie & The Wild West: Raven On The Wind (2011)
- Gibson Brothers: Help My Brother (2011)
April 2011
April 2011
Every month I make a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most often over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for April 2011.
Sergey Starostin: Zhyli-Byli (2011) – This singer and reed player builds on Russian folk music to produce some beautiful, haunting sounds. Try this video of Starostin playing two flutes at once for an introduction to this fascinating musical world.
Karuna: Hyvää Matkaa (2010) – The Finnish trio Karuna takes the listener on an enjoyable trip through new compositions anchored in traditional folk dance music. My full review and some audio samples are available on RootsWorld.
Geoff Berner: Victory Party (2011) - Klezmer and Eastern European folk music interpreted through a punk lens by the Canadian accordionist provides an album filled with great lyrics, wonderful arrangements, and most of all some mind-bending juxtapositions. Here’s the video for the title track from Berner’s previous release, Whiskey Rabbi.
March 2011
March 2011
Every month I make a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most often over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for March 2011.
Khaira Arby: Timbuktu Tarab (2010) – The desert blues music coming out of Mali these days is incredibly good, and Khaira Arby is at the forefront. Her singing, her energy, her backing band – everything works together perfectly. Watch this video of “Sourgou” and you’ll see what I mean.
Natacha Atlas: Mounqaliba (2010) – Natural sounds, electronics, jazz, and Arabic classical forms are all used to convey her message. This is a dark yet beautiful record. Here’s a video Natacha Atlas created of her music mixed with images of the recent uprising in Egypt.
Väsen: Väsen Street (2009) – This Swedish folk trio will be on tour in the US shortly, and they will be in my town at the Boise Contemporary Theater on March 10th. All you Boiseans had best be there. Here’s a video of the title track from their most recent recording.
Marcus Shelby Orchestra: Soul of the Movement (2011) – Anthems from the Civil Rights Movement and inspiring originals from this San Francisco big band. Great arrangements and great musicians all around. Here’s a label-produced video featuring clips from many of the songs on the record. It’s heavy on the gospel numbers, but also features some stellar instrumental solos.
Yorgis Goiricelaya: Elegance (2010) – Latin jazz from a number of angles with different ensembles all anchored by Goiricelaya’s bass with some very nice textural surprises. Here’s a video of the band performing the tune “El Manicero” at an outdoor festival.
Maria Kalaniemi: Vilda Rosor (2010) – The accordionist from Finland brings along a good-sized band that includes banjo, fiddle, double bass, and electric guitar for an wild spin through traditional Finnish tunes and a few originals.
Stravinsky Conducts Stravinsky: The Firebird (1961) – I haven’t written much about classical music on this blog, but I do listen to quite a bit, and lately I’ve been listening to this recording of Igor Stravinsky’s ballet The Firebird with the composer himself conducting the Columbia Symphony Orchestra. It’s part of the Stravinsky Conducts Stravinsky series that Columbia Records put out in the 1960s. Here’s a video of Stravinsky conducting The Firebird with the New Philharmonia Orchestra.
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