Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Tyler Grant ArtistWorks course Wayne C. Henderson Festival and Guitar Competition The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist Tim O’Brien website East Nash Grass website Natalie and Brittany Haas Bandcamp Happy picking. Matt Send a message...
May 29, 2023•9 min•Ep. 292
Hi. I've got a Food For Thought episode for you this week. It's been a while since we did one of these, but something that happened last weekend that made me think - so I thought I'd share it. Have a listen and see what my take is. Then head over to Bluegrass Jamalong's Instagram or Facebook and tell us what you think! Happy picking. Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to include your name so I know who you are!) Support the show === Thanks to Bryan Sutton for his wonderful them...
May 26, 2023•4 min•Ep. 291
This week we're jamming along to the classic tune The Old Spinning Wheel. This is a performance track, rather than a backing track. It's me playing both tune and backup so you've got a reference to listen to if you're new to the tune, or just want to be able to listen a few times to the whole thing. Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done and jam along! If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), head to bluegrassjamalong.com Send a mess...
May 23, 2023•4 min•Ep. 290
This week we're jamming along to The Old Spinning Wheel and I've got three brand new backing track episodes for you. This is the jam along track where I play backup, followed by the melody then we keep swapping. It's four times through in the key of D at 85 bpm. Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done. If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), just head to bluegrassjamalong.com Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to in...
May 23, 2023•8 min•Ep. 289
This week we're jamming along to The Old Spinning Wheel and I've got three brand new backing track episodes for you. This is the you play lead track where I play backup so you can work on the tune. It's four times through in the key of D at 85 bpm. Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done. If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), just head to bluegrassjamalong.com Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to include your nam...
May 23, 2023•5 min•Ep. 288
This week we're jamming along to The Old Spinning Wheel and I've got three brand new backing track episodes for you. This is the you play rhythm track where I play the melody so you can work on backup. It's four times through in the key of D at 85 bpm. Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done. If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), just head to bluegrassjamalong.com Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to include your...
May 23, 2023•5 min•Ep. 287
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Nashville Acoustic Camps DelFest Jerry Douglas online lessons The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist Scroll on Buddy Volunteer at Blue Highway Fest Happy picking. Matt Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to include yo...
May 22, 2023•8 min•Ep. 286
This interview is an extended version of the one that appeared in the first part of the Tony Rice Church Street Blues 40th anniversary celebration. I talked to Wyatt for almost an hour and we covered some areas that weren't directly related to the Church Street Blues episode, but are fascinating as an insight into where Tony was around the time the album was recorded. Wyatt also shared some of his favourite memories of hanging out with Tony and making music together in the early 1980s, so I want...
May 17, 2023•43 min•Ep. 285
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Bluegrass Jam Along YouTube channel Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Rhiannon Giddens video The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist Scroll on Buddy The 'Whiskey Before Breakfast' Cover D-18 : Bob Minner, Chris Eldridge, Bryan Sutton and Kenny Smith Happy picking. Matt...
May 15, 2023•9 min•Ep. 284
Welcome to part 2 of the celebration to mark 40 years of Tony Rice's classic album 'Church Street Blues'. This episode focusses on people who were inspired by Tony and his music. The full line up for this episode is: Bob Minner Jake Eddy Justin Moses Marcel Ardans Scott Nygaard Jason Keiser @tony_units If you missed part 1 (featuring Alison Krauss, Wyatt Rice, Mike Marshall and more) you'll find it here . Here's Marcel's excellent free book of Tony Rice transcriptions (do pay something if you ca...
May 10, 2023•1 hr 48 min•Ep. 283
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Tony Rice Church Street Blues 40th anniversary celebration part 1 Dan Tyminski interview Chris Eldridge interview Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Heart of the Ozarks Bluegrass Association My Name is Merle documentary Tony Rice Memorial Day Music Fest The Grass is New - new releases The Grass ...
May 08, 2023•10 min•Ep. 282
Welcome to the first of two very special episodes of Bluegrass Jam Along. Tony Rice's classic album 'Church Street Blues' is 40 years old this year. To celebrate, I've spent the last 3 months interviewing people about it and this is part one of the results. In this episode you'll hear from people who knew, played with, worked with and spent time with Tony, including an interview with Wyatt Rice, who was the only person other than Tony to play on 'Church Street Blues.' This is the first time Wyat...
May 02, 2023•2 hr 29 min•Ep. 281
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Rachel Baiman interview Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Matt Flinner mandolin courses The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist Scroll on Buddy Billy Strings and Willie Nelson - California Sober In my ears this week The Grass is New Spotify playlist Happy picking. Matt...
May 01, 2023•8 min•Ep. 280
My guest this week is singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Rachel Baiman. We chat about Rachel's new record Common Nation of Sorrow , how she made the transition from being an instrumentalist to being a songwriter, how she re-imagined a little known John Hartford song for the new record, why it can be good to include covers on your records as a songwriter and much, much more. This was such an interesting conversation. I hope you get as much out of it as I did! Matt More info on Rachel Rac...
Apr 24, 2023•51 min•Ep. 279
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Sign up for email alerts The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist Tony Rice live recordings Tony & Wyatt Rice - Together! The Tony Rice Unit - A Beautiful New Year’s Eve The Tony Rice Unit Live at the Birchmere Scroll on Buddy Yamaha FG9 Jake and Jordan - Roll on Buddy Tonesl...
Apr 24, 2023•8 min•Ep. 278
Hi everybody. I recently released two special episodes to celebrate Doc Watson's 100th birthday. I chatted to so many amazing people for them I ended up with almost 5 hours of content! I'm aware not everyone has the time to listen to that much content, so I've decided to pull out some of the key bits and release them as standalone episodes, for those of you who'd like to hear these interviews separately. This is the fascinating chat I had with Tim O'Brien. I hope you enjoy it! If you already hea...
Apr 19, 2023•27 min•Ep. 277
Hi everybody. I recently released two special episodes to celebrate Doc Watson's 100th birthday. I chatted to so many amazing people for them I ended up with almost 5 hours of content! I'm aware not everyone has the time to listen to that much content, so I've decided to pull out some of the key bits and release them as standalone episodes, for those of you who'd like to hear these interviews separately. Here's my chat with Doc's bass player T. Michael Coleman. I hope you enjoy it! If you alread...
Apr 19, 2023•33 min•Ep. 276
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Tyler Grant’s new ArtistWorks course Tyler's Facebook IBMA tickets Billy Strings tour Inside the Musician’s Brain podcast The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist In my ears this week The Grass is New Spotify playlist Happy picking. Mat...
Apr 17, 2023•10 min•Ep. 275
Hi everybody. Last month I released two special episodes to celebrate Doc Watson's 100th birthday. I chatted to so many amazing people for them I ended up with almost 5 hours of content! I'm aware not everyone has the time to listen to that much content, so I've decided to pull out some of the key bits and release them as standalone episodes, for those of you who'd like to hear these interviews separately. The first one is my chat with Doc's long serving musical partner Jack Lawrence. I hope you...
Apr 13, 2023•48 min•Ep. 274
This week we're playing another tune back to back at two different speeds - once at 75 bpm then again at 85. We're doing Saint Anne's Reel and we're in the key of D. We're using the jam along format - that means I'm kicking off playing backup and you're on the tune, then we swap and go round 4 times. Then, after a quick pause, we do the whole thing again at 85 bpm. Don't forget to grab a chord sheet if you need one from bluegrassjamalong.com Happy picking! Matt Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Al...
Apr 12, 2023•15 min•Ep. 273
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Rob Ickes' Reso Summit Slide Fest DelFest lineup The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist Scroll on Buddy Chris Pandolfi's Inside the Musician's Brain podcast In my ears this week The Grass is New Spotify playlist Happy picking. Matt Se...
Apr 09, 2023•8 min•Ep. 272
This week we're playing another tune back to back at two different speeds - once at 75 bpm then again at 85. We're doing Red Haired Boy and we're in the key of A. We're using the jam along format - that means I'm kicking off playing backup and you're on the tune, then we swap and go round 4 times. Then, after a quick pause, we do the whole thing again at 85 bpm. Don't forget to grab a chord sheet if you need one from bluegrassjamalong.com Happy picking! Matt Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along...
Apr 04, 2023•15 min•Ep. 271
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Bluegrass Jam Along is now sponsored by Collings Guitars and Mandolins Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Blue Highway Fest The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist Scroll on Buddy Chris Thile, Jacob Collier and Madison Cunningham Chris Eldridge - ‘Listening Past Perfect...
Apr 03, 2023•8 min•Ep. 270
My guest this week is Noam Pikelny. Noam is probably best known as a member of Punch Brothers, but he joins me this week to talk about his new project, Mighty Poplar. He’s joined in this band by fellow Punch Brother Chris Eldridge and former Punch Brother Greg Garrison, as well as Andrew Marlin of Watchhouse and Alex Hargraves, fiddle player with Billy Strings. We chat about how the band came together, the inspiration they took from the Bluegrass Album Band and where their name came from, plus m...
Mar 24, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 269
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news Sign up for email alerts Church Street News Fretboard Summit The Grass is New - new releases The Grass is New Spotify playlist Scroll on Buddy Alison Brown and Steve Martin In my ears this week The Grass is New Spotify playlist Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to include your name so ...
Mar 24, 2023•8 min•Ep. 268
This week we're jamming along to the classic tune Peartree. This is a performance track, rather than a backing track. It's me playing both tune and backup so you've got a reference to listen to if you're new to the tune, or just want to be able to listen a few times to the whole thing. Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done and jam along! If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), head to bluegrassjamalong.com Send a message to Bluegra...
Mar 21, 2023•4 min•Ep. 267
This week we're jamming along to Peartreeand I've got three brand new backing track episodes for you. This is the jam along track where I play backup, followed by the melody then we keep swapping. It's four times through in the key of G at 75 bpm. Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done. If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), just head to bluegrassjamalong.com Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to include your name...
Mar 21, 2023•8 min•Ep. 266
This week we're jamming along to Peartree and I've got three brand new backing track episodes for you. This is the you play lead track where I play backup so you can work on the tune. It's four times through in the key of G at 75 bpm. Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done. If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), just head to bluegrassjamalong.com Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to include your name so I know wh...
Mar 21, 2023•5 min•Ep. 265
This week we're jamming along to Peartree and I've got three brand new backing track episodes for you. This is the you play rhythm track where I play the melody so you can work on backup. It's four times through in the key of G at 75 bpm. Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done. If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), just head to bluegrassjamalong.com Send a message to Bluegrass Jam Along! (Don't forget to include your name so I kno...
Mar 21, 2023•5 min•Ep. 264
Welcome to this week’s Bluegrass Briefing, a weekly series of episodes taking a look at what’s going on in the world of bluegrass. Here are the links to stuff mentioned in this episode. Pod news John McEuen interview - Apple - Spotify - YouTube Church Street News Pat Morris, IBMA’s Executive Director, has announced his plans to resign Alan Bibey joins Balsam Range Bluegrass Situation piece on touring by Erin McAnally The Grass is New - new releases Infamous Stringdusters - Down the Road Ben Garn...
Mar 20, 2023•12 min•Ep. 263
