Singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Tim O’Brien has been making waves in bluegrass, country, folk and roots music circles for some time. His latest release, Chicken & Egg, is currently the #1 album on the Roots Music Report Folk Radio Chart (which is posted in the Acoustic Radio Waves section on AcousticMusicScene.com). And O’Brien is among the nominees for International Bluegrass Music Association‘s Male Vocalist of the Year, one of the awards and honors to be presented by the IBMA on Sept. 30 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN. A two-time past recipient of that honor, O’Brien also has previously been recognized by the IBMA for Album of the Year and Song of the Year and received a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album (Fiddler’s Green) in 2005.
The 56-year-old West Virginia native, a co-founder and lead vocalist for Hot Rize and Red Knuckles and the Trailblazers, has released 13 solo albums and also has collaborated with his sister, Mollie. Notable artists such as Dierks Bentley, Garth Brooks, Dixie Chicks, Kathy Mattea, New Grass Revival and the Seldom Scene also have recorded his songs.
Kathy Sands-Boehmer posed a few questions to O’Brien recently.
[To read Kathy's Quick Q & A with Tim O'Brien, click on the headline.]
John Gorka is widely considered one of the top male singer-songwriters on the contemporary folk scene. Since being named a Kerrville New Folk Winner in 1984, he has become a popular fixture on the coffeehouse and festival circuit, and a number of other notable artists have recorded and/or performed his songs. He is part of a new folk trio called Red Horse with Eliza Gilkyson and Lucy Kaplansky, whose Red House Records debut will be released on July 13.
With his rich, soulful baritone, Gorka delivers his own well-crafted songs in a way that prompted Rolling Stone to call him “the preeminent male singer-songwriter of the new folk movement.” Ever self-effacing, Gorka has professed to “consider myself to be an aspiring folk singer, not an accomplished one.” His legion of fans – including Kathy Sands-Boehmer, who posed a few questions to him recently – would disagree.
[To read Kathy's Quick Q & A with John Gorka, click on the headline.]
In a popular music landscape where today’s talented singer-songwriters are often ignored, it’s a little miracle to listen to radio stations — usually small, publicly-run or independent — that promote songwriters who might fall between the cracks. Among the many wonderful DJs out there supporting independent singer-songwriters in markets across the U.S., one of the most well-known and well-listened to is John Platt, host of “Sunday Breakfast” on New York’s WFUV. Sharon Goldman recently elicited his thoughts about the singer-songwriter scene for her blog, Songwriting Scene. Her Q & A interview with him is reprinted here with permission.
[To read the Q &A with John Platt, click on the headline.].
In less than two years’ time, Kelleigh McKenzie has made quite a mark in acoustic music circles. A talented singer-songwriter who alternately accompanies herself on banjo, guitar and amplified stompbox, McKenzie has appeared on “Mountain Stage” and the “WoodSongs Old-Time Radio Hour,” was a co-winner in the 2008 Mountain Stage NewSong Contest, secured a coveted formal showcase slot at the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) Conference, and was selected to participate in emerging artists showcases at both the Falcon Ridge and Grey Fox festivals. Her debut album, Chances, was on the Americana Music Chart for six months, while “Gin,” one of the tracks on it, won an Independent Music Award for Best Americana Song. Kathy Sands-Boehmer recently posed a few questions to Kelleigh.
[To read Kathy's Q & A with Kelleigh McKenzie, click on the headline.]