SWBMAI member band (This is the) Squirrel Hunters played their debut show this past Sunday at the Roxbury Tavern in Roxbury, WI and will play this weekend at the Brooklyn Bluegrass Festival. This self described “traditional Bluegrass co-op” is based around Madison and includes members from other area Bluegrass bands: Bob Batyko and Lorie Docken, from the Sparetime Bluegrass Band; brothers Brian and Sean Ray, from the Brothers Ray; and Mr. Paul Kienitz, from the Nob Hill Boys.

From the band’s bio: “We make regular musical forays outside the protective walls of Bill Monroe, The Stanley Brothers and Flatt & Scruggs, but always with caution, and never without a long rifle.”

The band’s debut was capped by Tom, owner and proprieter at the Roxbury Tavern, cooking up a delicious squirrel stew for the boys (and Lorie). There are some pictures from the show including stew shots! There is also video of the event available on the band’s website and on YouTube… case in point:

Danny Paisley and The Southern Grass will be releasing a new CD called “The Room Over Mine” on June 24th. This new album is the first release from the band on Rounder Records and features classic country tunes such as Marty Robbins’ “End of a Long Lonely Day,”� Porter Wagoner’s “I Thought I Heard You Call My Name,”� Little Jimmy Dickens’ “Another Bridge,”� and Gene Watson’s “Raisin’ Cane”�. There are also Southern Grass and Southern Mountain Boys standards newly recorded here, such as “The Room Over Mine”� and “Mountain Sally Ann.”� The album’s opener, “Don’t Throw Mama’s Flowers Away,”� is a great Chris Stuart song that, although recently written, could be decades old.

Track Listing:

1. Don’t Throw Mama’s Flowers Away
2. The Convict and the Rose
3. I’m Leaving Detroit
4. I Thought I Heard You Calling My Name
5. A Memory of You
6. Sweet Potato Rag
7. I’m Coming Back but I Don’t Know When
8. Another Bridge to Burn
9. Raising Cane in Texas
10. Room Over Mine
11. Backstep Sally Ann
12. At the End of a Long Lonely Day
13. Drowning Sailor

With today’s copyright craziness, it’s often hard for a site–even a non-profit devoted to promoting music–to simply post a few tunes for it’s visitors. This can be made much easier when the performer is also the author and/or plays tunes from the public domain. Case in point, John Fabke and the Lonesome Aces recorded their show last Friday night at Mother Fool’s Coffeehouse… which produced the following mp3s for your listening pleasure:

Angeline The Baker
Home Sweet Home
Ida Red
Just Me and the Blues
New Cypress Grove Blues
Rovin On Winters Nite

Click the individual links above or listen in iTunes!

John Fabke & Lonesome Aces are:
John Fabke - guitar, CH banjo, vox
Dan O’Brien - bass, vox
Jon Peik - banjo,vox
Jon Vriesacker - fiddle, vox

This past Saturday, over 300 folks gathered together in Brooklyn, WI for a potluck dinner and old-time barn dance. Held in the O’Brien family’s refurbished barn, the event was the brainchild of Connie O’Brien and Paul Kienitz. The barn has been used mostly for private functions and weddings but this event was open to the public. Folks and families, near and far showed up to have a bite and scoot a boot!

Click image to play a high quality QuickTime video from the dance! Or see it on YouTube if that’s your thing…

Music was provided by the Ambrosia Dance Band, featuring Paul Kienitz, Chuck Hornemann, Peter Gorman, Dave Batson and caller Mike Mossman. A full night of square and contra dancing from just after 7pm to 11pm. Refreshment was provided by attendees and a feast it was! Two areas in the huge loft space it helped to expedite dishing up the delicious foods. Financial donations helped to defray the expenses for the event.

The property itself was beautifully decorated, parking was ample, a huge bonfire in the back of the barn and straw-bale seating everywhere. Upstairs and down, it was just like you dream about when you think of a barn dance. All ages were well represented. Children of all ages, adults, grandparents and great-grandparents. I overheard many folks talking about how they hoped this would become an annual event!

If you are interested in seeing this wonderful site, it is located at 552 Glenway Rd. in Brooklyn, WI. If you would like to find out more, call Connie O’Brien at 608-455-1860.

Ed: The Ambrosia Dance Band and caller Mike Mossman will be at the SWBMAI Holiday Party on Dec. 8.

SWBMAI band member Round the Bend celebrates the release of their first CD Sunday, September 30, at the High Noon Saloon. Admission is free and the party kicks off at 4:30 (be there or… well… you know the rest). The self-titled CD includes 17 Bluegrass and Old-Time tunes and features musicians Sherry Crownhart, Mike Cunningham, Don Engelhart, Carolyn Hegeler and Fred Newmann.

Known for a diverse mix of Bluegrass, Old-Timey and Western Swing, and down-home humor, the band has entertained at festivals, concerts, weddings, community events, and parties in Madison and beyond since 2000. From the CD’s liner notes: “The diversity of styles is one of the most appealing aspects of the music heard here…original pieces, old-time hoedowns, bluegrass standards, vintage blues and jazz….You’re going to love what you hear.” —Bill Malone, Country Music Historian

For more information, contact Fred Newmann 608-238-6863.

The Bluegrass Blog is running a story about two Rebel Records having reissued two classic out-of-print Bluegrass records on downloads. This is excellent news for the Bands and fans of Bluegrass. The albums are (click album link to view/listen to record in iTunes):

• Saturday Night, Sunday Morning by the Lonesome River Band
• Makin’ Tracks by The McPreake Brothers

Few Bluegrass fans likely morned the death of the brick-and-mortar record store. With their anemic (at best) Bluegrass sections, these stores were basically useless to the typical ‘Grass fan. The web proved to be a better way to buy and sell music, and as luck would have it, the web rewards niche markets like Bluegrass. Even the most dyed-in-the-wool luddite can see the value in out-of-print records being re-released… even if it is only in digital form. Now all we need is for them to continue to shed the monumentally annoying DRM…

Also available from Rebel Records via download are:

• Del McCoury & the Dixie Pals Take Me To The Mountains
• Charlie Moore The Original Rebel Soldier
• Norman Blake & Red Rector (highly recommended)
• Buck White & the Down Home Folks

The Krause Family will be celebrating the release of their new CD, On This Bright Sunny Day, June 1st at the Wild Hog in the Woods in Madison at 7PM.

The Krause Family is comprised of sisters Ruthie and Katie, along with dad Rick. The band’s sound is lead by their fabulous, family harmonies, and accompanied by fiddle and guitar. The album features mostly original songs penned by Rick and one by Ruthie, and fine picking by various guest musicians (aka Grandad’s Favorites). Have a listen to a few cuts from the new CD below…

Krause Family & Grandad’s Favorite
On This Bright, Sunny Day

1. I Will See
2. Cannan’s Land (Where the Soul Never Dies)
3. Bright Sunny Day
4. Prairie Life
5. To Higher Ground
6. Beyond the Veil
7. Father, Son and Holy Spirit
8. Duet SOng
9. Train Comin’ Sown
10. Spring Will Come
11. Will Meet you in the Morning

Being relatively new to the area, I am continually discovering new (to me anyway) Bluegrass resources. the Northland Jamboree is another fine example. The show is no longer being recorded but is available online to download or as a podcast (see below). It features many local Wisconsin artists and… well… is just plain good! Give it a listen!

The Northland Jamboree was recorded live from the stage of the Northland Ballroom, in the heart of Wisconsin’s dairyland. Each week the program’s host, Art and Stephanie Stevenson, welcomed a special guest for a jam-packed quarter-hour of music. This live radio show was recorded and is offered as a podcast and features some of the best bluegrass and acoustic music in the Northland.

You can find a listing of shows that are available to download and listen to by searching kyouradio.com. You can also subscribe to the Northland Jamboree podcast via iTunes or get the RSS feed