Mountain Blog

Mountain Stage is pleased to announce that we will partner with our friends at the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance to record an episode in Bristol, TN/VA on Sunday, March 13 at the Paramount Center for the Arts, 518 State Street.

This will be our seventh recording in Bristol to correspond with the release of a special re-issue box set featuring the historic recordings that gave the border-city it's name: Bristol Sessions - The Big Bang of Country Music.The BCMA has been given exclusive rights to sell the first 250 copies of the box set, which includes the complete recordings of the 1927 and, for the first time ever, the complete 1928 Bristol Sessions. This 5-disc set also includes a 120 page book detailing the sessions, artist, and a brief history of country music.Click here for more info and how to order.

Our guests will be The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, the Carolina Chocolate Drops and Dale Jett & Hello Stranger. Tickets are on sale NOW by phone at 423-274-8920, at the Paramount Box Office or ONLINE. All tickets are $30. Visit our Live Show Schedule for more information.

Mountain Stage is saddened to learn that Doc Williams, legendary guitarist, singer and radio entertainer, has passed away at age 96. Williams and his wife "Chickie" (1919-2007) were inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame in 2009.

Doc & Chickie made two appearances on Mountain Stage, but were widely known as the "Royal Couple" of Country Music as stars on the legendary radio show WWVA Jamboree, which Doc joined in 1937. For more on Doc & Chickie's storied career, visit their official site, read this 2008 feature from the WV State Journal, and visit the 2009 Virtual West Virginia Music Hall of Fame.

Our thoughts are with their family.

This week’s Radio Broadcast is a who’s who of the Americana scene, with four of its finest singer/songwriters and a hot new group, recorded live. Find a radio station in your area to find out when to tune in.

Long-heralded songwriter Robert Earl Keen performs songs from his latest CD “Rose Hotel” in his 9^th appearance on the show since 1989. Keen pays tribute to one of Texas’ all-time greats, Townes Van Zandt, in our Song of the Week, Van Zandt’s “Flyin’ Shoes.” Feel free to share this free preview with your friends.

Read on to watch as Robert sits down with host Larry Groce “Backstage at Mountain Stage.”

Always entertaining is Texas outlaw performer, and former classmate of Larry Groce, Ray Wylie Hubbard, who does songs from his highly acclaimed CD “A) Enlightenment B) Endarkenment Hint: There is no C” as well as the crowd favorite, “Snake Farm," joined by his son Lucas Hubbard on guitar. 

In his fourth appearance on Mountain Stage, Darrell Scott and the Mountain Stage Band perform songs from his latest, “A Crooked Road,” plus Paul Simon's "American Tune" from a covers release, "Modern Hymns."  Since this appearance on Mountain Stage, Scott has been touring as a member of Robert Plant’s Band of Joy. Listen to him talk about starting out as a sideman before becoming a full-fledged songwriter and producer, "Backstage at Mountain Stage."

The show kicks off with a banjo and beats combo by folk-tronics mastermind Danny Barnes, whose latest “Pizza Box” is out now. An innovator for sure, Barnes has plenty of folks to sing his praises, so you don’t have to take our word for it.

The Sweetback Sisters, also on this week’s show, have recently signed to Signature Sounds and have release a new single, “Be Back Home,” on vinyl and digital. Their full-length “Chicken Ain’t Chicken,” is highly recommended for classic country and swing enthusiasts. The group’s fiddler, Jesse Milnes, hails from right here in West Virginia.

Find a Radio Station in your area to find out when you can tune in, and be sure to check out our Song of the Week, watch our interviews Backstage at Mountain Stage, and check out our ARCHIVES section to subscribe to the free podcast. We're 8,000 strong on Facebook as well.

As we showed you in yesterday’s post, The Civil Wars- who record with us Feb. 13 here in Charleston - were recently guest artists on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Some of our other guests are making the TV rounds before they join us to be featured on the radio. Here are some highlights.

Also scheduled to appear on Mountain Stage February 13 is Canadian songwriter Ron Sexsmith, whose latest CD “Long Player Late Bloomer” is available for pre-ordrer now. It’s out March 1.

Here’s the lyric video for the Bob Rock-produced first single, “Love Shines.”

Get your Tickets to Feb. 13 online, by phone at 800.594.TIXX or locally at Taylor Books on Capitol St.

Joining Sexsmith and The Civil Wars are Mark Olson, Sonya Kitchell feat. Brooklyn Strings and The Steel Wheels. Showtime is 7pm. Visit the Live Show Schedule for more.

After their highly acclaimed album “Oh My God Charlie Darwin” brought The Low Anthem near-unanimous praise, the Rhode Island quartet is back with a new CD, "Smart Flesh"-due February 22, and stopped by David Letterman’s studios to render a performance of “Ghost Woman Blues” which you can watch below.

Click HERE to order “Smart Flesh” on Amazon, also available in expanded 2-CD Deluxe version.

The Low Anthem join us Feb. 27 at the Charleston Civic Center Little Theater along with Lucinda Williams (acoustic), Red Horse, Ivan & Alyosha, and Sarah Lee Guthrie & Johnny Irion. Click here for Tickets or call 800.745.3000. You can also stop by the Civic Center Box office Monday-Friday during normal business hours.

Amos Lee will be performing on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno tonight, Jan. 26, and for those daytime viewers, you’ll be able to see him perform on the Ellen DeGeneres show Friday, Jan. 28. Her site calls him “One of Ellen’s favorite musicians.”

Lee joins us for the third time on April 24 here in Charleston, along with the Wailin’ Jennys and Nellie McKay. His latest CD “The Mission Bell” was released Tuesday, and can be ordered HERE on Amazon for only $6.99!

Get your Tickets to April 24 online, by phone at 800.594.TIXX or locally at Taylor Books on Capitol St.

Since she joins us April 24 with Amos Lee, here is Nellie McKay performing “Caribbean Time” from her latest, “Home Sweet Mobile Home” on Craig Ferguson.

Get your Tickets to April 24 online, by phone at 800.594.TIXX or locally at Taylor Books on Capitol St. and visit the Live Show Schedule for more information. Be sure to connect with us at facebook.com/mountainstage and suggest us to some friends.

We are looking forward to seeing you in the audience. 

After our thrilling trip to Glasgow, Scotland as part of the Celtic Connections festival, we're getting geared up to return to our home venue.(More on that show as the Broadcast comes closer).

We’ve added another exciting artist to our line-up for Sunday, February 13 here in Charleston at the Culture Center Theater. The Steel Wheels from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia will be joining us, along with the Jayhawk’s Mark Olson, Canadian songwriter Ron Sexsmith (whose latest "Long Player Late Bloomer" was produced by Bob Rock), The Civil Wars and Sonya Kitchell featuring Brooklyn Strings.

The Steel Wheels are no stranger to those following the Americana music scene. They’ve performed at Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion, Appalachian Uprising, Floyd Fest and also at the famed Northern West Virginia venue The Purple Fiddle. They’re latest release, Red Wing, can be heard and ordered on Amazon.

Tickets can be found online, by phone at 800.594.TIXX or locally at Taylor Books in Charleston.

The Civil Wars, a.k.a Joy Williams and John Paul White, appeared on the Tonight Show last week to promote the February 1 release of their debut, “Barton Hollow,” which you can pre-order on Amazon and a portion of your purchase goes to Mountain Stage at no extra cost. Watch the performance below. 

Tickets for all of our Live Shows are on sale now. Be sure to check out our facebook events and keep up with the latest by “liking” us at facebook.com/mountainstage.

Highly-acclaimed singer, songwriter and instrumentalist Susan Werner will return to Mountain Stage for her SEVENTH appearance on the show since 1993. Always evolving, Werner last joined us with songs from her wonderful album of re-interpreted hits "Classics." Click here to listen on NPR Music.

We can't wait to hear what she's got in store for us on "Kickin' the Beehive," her new album due for release March 1.

She joins us March 20 along with a solo appearance by JJ Grey and newcomers Elizabeth & the Catapult, and African star Khaira Arby(see below). Tickets are on sale now Online, by phone at 800.594.TIXX, or locally at Taylor Books in downtown Charleston.

 Werner is certainly no stranger to our show or the city of Charleston. She's performed on Bob Thompson's Holiday Special Joy to the World and in February she'll make her second appearance as part of the Woody Hawley Concert Series at The Clay Center, a series directed by Mountain Stage band leader Ron Sowell.

We're also happy to be a part of the upcoming US tour for Malian singer Khaira Arby and her band. She's toured with Ali Farka Toure (appearing together on the 1995 Grammy Awards) and in August, 2010 released her fourth album, Timbuktu Tarab (click to order on Amazon mp3).She'll join us at the Culture Center March 20. 

Stay tuned to the Mountain Stage Blog for more updates, visit the Live Show Schedule for all of our upcoming recordings, and be sure to check out our EVENTS page on Facebook.

We have a special edition of Mountain Stage on this week's broadcast, recorded with the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance in Bristol, TN/VA. The small border town of Bristol is full of historical significance when it comes to Country Music. It was there, in 1927, recording engineer Ralph Peer captured early recordings of Jimmie Rodgers, The Stoneman Family and the first-family of Country Music, The Carter Family. (Read more about the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance.)

A direct descendant of that rich family tree is singer/songwriter Carlene Carter, the granddaughter of Mother Maybelle Carter and the daughter of June Carter Cash and Carl Smith. Carlene performs on this week's episode, which was recorded to commemorate the 80th anniversary of those historic recording sessions. We chose a touching song by Carlene, "Me & the Wildwood Rose" as our Song of the Week, which spins an autobiographical tale of young Carlene traveling alongside her family and their band.

Carlene also performs songs from her first new album in 12 years, Stronger. (Click to purchase on Amazon.)

Also on board to help honor the history of country are The Del McCoury Band, a 50 year veteran himself, country music sensation Eric Church in a special acoustic performance, Gospel-soul music from Mike Farris & the McCrary Sisters and Eastern Tenn's own Ed Snodderly of The Brother Boys.

Find a radio station in your area to find out when you can tune in, take a look at the playlist, and be sure to tell some friends on Facebook. Thank you for tuning in, and we welcome your feedback.

February 13 - We're happy to announce that Sonya Kitchell will make her third appearance on Mountain Stage Sunday, February 13, accompanied by Brooklyn Strings. The line-up also includes Canadian song-smith Ron Sexsmith, Jayhawks songwriter Mark Olson and emerging duo The Civil Wars. Tickets are on sale now ONLINE, by phone at 800.594.TIXX, or locally at Taylor Books in Charleston. 

You can hear Sonya's last appearance, accompanied by rock trio The Slip, over at NPR Music. Her latest release is an EP, Convict of Conviction, available now.

March 6 - We've rounded out the line up for upcoming Morgantown, WV show at the WVU Creative Arts Center. With the help of our friends at WVU Arts & Entertainment, we're welcoming folk singer Todd Snider for the 11th time. Todd is preparing to release a definitive (for now) live statement in the double-disc set "Live: The Storyteller,"on February 1. Read further for Ticket info, or click here.

We're also looking forward to meeting Albany, NY's Sean Rowe, who has a deep, powerful voice that brings instant comparisons to Greg Brown. Rowe's ANTI Records debut "Magic" is due February 22.  

Also added to the bill is Athens, GA based entertainer Corey Smith (below), who has built a strong following through relentless touring and an innovative business plan. He was just named "One To Watch" by Country Weekly and his latest, "Keeping Up with the Joneses," is available on his website. He has a new album, "The Broken Record," due in April.

Tickets for Sunday, March 6 can be found at TicketMaster.com, charge by phone at 304.293.SHOW or visit the Creative Arts Center Box Office. The line-up includes Great American Taxi and Railroad Earth.

March 27- We've added exciting new group The David Wax Museum to the bill for our March 27 show in at the Culture Center in Charleston, WV. They've become popular in our area, even played at Taylor Books, and they've continued to build buzz with a breakout performance at the Newport Folk Festival. Their latest video for "Born With a Broken Heart" was recently premiered on NPR Music.

Their CD Carpenter Bird is available now, and a new CD, "Everything Is Saved," is due February 8. 

Tickets are going quickly for this show, which also features Bela Fleck & Edgar Meyer w/ Zakir Hussain and Dar Williams. Get yours ONLINE, by phone at 800.594.TIXX, or locally at Taylor Books.

April 24 - We're looking forward to welcoming the Wailin' Jennys to Mountain Stage for the first time on April 24 at the Culture Center, along with Amos Lee and Nellie McKay. Tickets are on sale now, Online, by phone at 800.594.TIXX, or at Taylor Books.

The Jennys also have a new album coming out February 8, titled "Bright Morning Stars," (Click to pre-order) to follow up their 2009 album "Live at the Mauch Chunk Opera House."

Check out our Live Show Schedule for more information, and be sure to let us know you're attending our Events on Facebook.

This week’s episode of Mountain Stage is a brand new one, recorded in November featuring Daniel Lanois’ Black Dub, Anais Mitchell, Horse Feathers, Danielle At the Sandwich and Delta Spirit.

Find a radio station in your area to find out when and where to tune in. We’ve posted a preview of the show in our Song of the Week, a performance of the expansive tune “Ring the Alarm” from Black Dub’s self titled debut CD (click to purchase on Amazon).

We can also recommend Lanois memoirs, Soul Mining: A Musical Life or his recent, Grammy nominated production work with Neil Young, “Le Noise.”

This was Lanois’ third appearance on Mountain Stage since 1989, when he also had the amazing Brian Blade playing drums. He sat down with Larry Groce for an interview “Backstage at Mountain Stage,” which we’ve posted below. We also have backstage chats with Anais Mitchell, Justin Ringle of Horse Feathers, and a crossover appearance on our channel by YouTube star Danielle Anderson, a.k.a. Danielle Ate the Sandwich.

*Click here to shop Black Dub on Amazon.
*Click here to shop Delta Sprit on Amazon.
*Click here to shop Anais Mitchell on Amazon.
*Click here to shop Danielle Ate the Sandwich on Amazon.
*Click here to shop Horse Feathers on Amazon.

If you follow these links and make a purchase, a portion will be donated to Mountain Stage at no extra cost. Learn More.

We’d also like to welcome a new radio station to our family. Folks in Council Bluffs, Iowa can now hear Mountain Stage Sunday at noon on The River 89.7fm, KIWR out of Iowa Western Community College. Be sure to tell your music-loving friends in the region that they can now hear Mountain Stage every week, and ask them to connect with us at Facebook for the latest broadcast info.