Mountain Blog

We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of one of our unanimous favorites and true icon and luminary of American music, Odetta. Her voice graced the Mountain Stage seven times since 1988, the most recent of which was filmed for High Definition Television. We were humbled to work with her and honored by her radiant presence each and every time. Though she was scheduled to sing at the upcoming inauguration ceremony, we are consoled in knowing that she lived to see a tremendous historical breakthrough in the 2008 Presidential election.

Read more about her illustrious career in the New York Times. To echo the sentiments of Doug Yeager, Odetta's longtime manager and friend;

May Odetta's luminous spirit and volcanic voice from the heavens live on for the ages.  Her illustrious seven decade career has come to end, but her voice will never die.   She will always be with us, and we will always miss her.

The passing of former West Virginia Governor Cecil Underwood reminds us how several state officials have helped obtain and retain important funding for Mountain Stage, from its infancy until today.

Governor Underwood was a friend of Mountain Stage who, by the stroke of his pen, helped the show get a line item in the state budget while working with the State Legislature in 1999. The likes of which has acted as a financial insurance policy for our show. 

Our condolences to the family of Governor Underwood. Read more about his two history-making terms here. 

Cecil H. Underwood 1922-2008

We are officially sold out for this Sunday's Mountain Stage in Charleston. If you're feeling lucky, you might be able to show up at the Cultural Center on Sunday and put your name in for any tickets that might become available. Box office will open at 5:30pm.

There will be a delay in the broadcast of this particular show as we'll be in re-broadcast phase through February. Check out the BROADCAST SCHEDULE for upcoming shows on the radio. You can find a station in your area HERE or catch up via our new home for online content, NPR.org/mountainstage. You can get a taste of Joan Osborne right HERE courtesy of Paste Magazine.

We've also been recognized by The Current, Public Broadcasting's number one trade journal.

Here are a few more pictures from our archives as we continue our trip down memory lane.

The Goodle Days- August 6, 1989. Here's one that would bring a smile to anyone's face, even Ramblin' Jack Elliott (Right), who seems to be contently sleeping through it. Legendary fiddler, dancer and historian John Hartford (Left) with Tony Rice and Hartford's son Jamie. Hartford logged nine appearances on the show (enough for a Mountain Stage BEST OF CD) and Jamie has performed three times since 1997. Ramblin' Jack has nine appearances himself.

Mr. Hartford got to be very close with the cast & crew of Mountain Stage. He's all smiles here with Associate Producer Linda McSparin. They even appear to share a hairstyle.

Beginning of a Beautiful Thang- Dec. 13, 1987 The two folks who have garnered the most Mountain Stage appearances meet here, we believe, for the first time. West Virginia natives Kathy Mattea of Cross Lanes and Tim O'Brien, of Wheeling. Tim wrote one of Kathy's first hits, "Walk The Way the Wind Blows," also a hit for Hot Rize.

Hugh Masekela-September 3, 1989 Legendary South African musician Hugh Masekela performs for the Regatta Crowd gathered for Mountain Stage in 1989. Masekela performed his song "Bring Him Back Home," an anthem of the movement to free Nelson Mandela. When Masekela returned to play Mountain Stage on May 8, 1994, the song was a triumphant hymn, retitled "Mandela." Two days after appearing on Mountain Stage, Masekela played the song at Mandela's inauguration as the President of South America.