Category: Americana

Americana

Andrew Collins Trio – A musical fusion of classical…

I have first discovered Andrew Collins on the coolmandolin website where he had allowed his music to be played for the visitors. He belongs to the most interesting mandolin players that I know.

Andrew Collins founded his Andrew Collins Trio some years ago. Each of the three musicians plays several instruments. Andrew Collins plays mandolin, fiddle, guitar, mandola and mandocello, Mike Mezzatesta plays guitar, mandolin, fiddle and mandola and James McEleney plays bass and mandocello.

When they are on tour they take with them up to 13 instruments. The style of the trio is difficult to describe, its a musical fusion of classical to bluegrass, folk with jazz, swing with Celtic. Andrew Collins says that the trio gives him much freedom when playing and a lot of space to be filled.

The Andrew Collins Trio has just published a new double-CD tounge groove. CD 1 named Tounge contains 11 songs, while CD 2 named Groove contains eight instrumentals.

The previous CD And It Was Good was based on the biblical story Genesys about the creation of the World in seven days. For this CD the trio was joyned by a string quartet.

This trio can sound like a Bluegrass band, like a Jazz trio, but also like a classical plucked strings ensemble.

Promotional Video about the Andrew Collins Trio

I have found many great videos with the Andrew Collins Trio at youtube, and I have compiled this playlist – enjoy!

Playliste The Andrew Collins Trio

A complete concert is available at youtube as well: Read more “Andrew Collins Trio – A musical fusion of classical to bluegrass, folk with jazz, swing with Celtic” →

Americana

Fleet Foxes – Radio Session at KCRW – Newport…

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Yesterday I have found a picture with a mandolin at tumblr, the tags said that it was a picture of Skyler Skjelset from the band Fleet Foxes. I tried to find music by this band and found the following concert at NPR, a radio session at KCRW hat has been filmed and is availble on the NPR site:

This is the first radio session the members of Fleet Foxes performed in support of their sophomore album, Helplessness Blues, and I think we know why: Frankly, they’re not morning people. The band let us know this by jokingly calling our show, Morning Becomes When It’s Difficult To Sing Well. (Or something along those lines.)

Still, these guys turned out a gorgeous set of music, with their harmonies fully intact. The songs sounded even better live than on the album — especially “Grown Ocean,” “Battery Kinzie” and our old favorite, “Mykonos.”

You can hear and see the session at KCRW here:

http://www.npr.org/2011/09/20/140646342/kcrw-presents-fleet-foxes

I have listened to this concert and I liked it very much. A great band with a fantastic sound!

Several videos from this session are also available at youtube:

Playlist Fleet Foxes

Another concert with Fleet Foxes is also available at NPR:

Fleet Foxes: Newport Folk Festival 2009

Fleet Foxes’ self-titled debut was one of 2008’s most critically adored records. The Seattle band pairs layers of harmonized vocals — the sort of sound that could have emerged from the 1920s or the 1970s — with shuffling drums and finger-picked guitars. In keeping with the band’s name, the record’s song titles (“Meadowlarks,” “Blue Ridge Mountains,” “Ragged Wood”) suggest a bucolic vision of nature, though lead singer Robin Pecknold’s lyrics occasionally hint at violence (“And Michael you would fall / and turn the white snow red / as strawberries in summertime,” from “White Winter Hymnal”).

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=111379436

Additional information

Website Fleet Foxes: http://fleetfoxes.com/

The latest CD by Fleet Foxes (Amazon partnerlink)

Crack-Up

Americana

Old Crow Medicine Show – Old-time, Bluegrass, Folk, and…

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I have listened to the Old Crow Medicine Show several times already, and I do really like their sound.

Now the band has just recorded a new CD and I listened to the last interview at NPR and some other concerts and videos.

Wikipedia:

Old Crow Medicine Show is an Americana string band based in Nashville, Tennessee. Their music has been called old-time, bluegrass, folk, and alt-country. Along with original songs, the band performs many pre-World War II blues and folk songs. They have been recording since 1998.

Here are the best resources with the Old Crow Mdicine Show that I have found.

Waggon Wheel

The biggest success of the Old Crow Medicine Show was the song Waggon Wheel, a song that I can listen to again and again:

Live Version

NPR 2012 – CD Something Borrowed

You can listen to the new songs Levi and Ways of Man

http://www.npr.org/2012/07/08/156390392/old-crow-medicine-show-something-borrowed

NPR World Cafe – 2008 – Return to the Roots

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=96581453

  • “Fire on the Mountain”
  • “Alabama High-Test”
  • “Next Go ‘Round”
  • “Mary’s Kitchen”
  • “Caroline”

NPR 2006 – CD Big Iron World

With My Good Gal, James River Blues and God’s Got It

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5752794

NPR 2006 – Old Crow Medicine Show: Punk Americana

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6382248

  • “Cocaine Habit”
  • “God’s Got It”
  • “James River Blues”
  • “Wagon Wheel”
  • “Tell It To Me Interlude”

A Christmas Concert from ‘World Cafe’

With Old Crow Medicine Show

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5044299

Website: http://www.crowmedicine.com/

Videos at Wolfgangsvault.com: http://www.wolfgangsvault.com/old-crow-medicine-show/video/

Playlist Old Crow Medicine Show

 

Americana

The Louvin Brothers – Charlie and Ira Louvin –…

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This morning I have listened to a radio show with a Charlie Louvin interview at NPR – World Cafe Looks Back: Country And Bluegrass. The Louvin Brothers were very popular between 1955 and 1963, Ira Louvin played mandolin and Charlie played the guitar. The harmony singing of this duo was great.

The interview was recorded in 2007 when Charlie Louvin had published a new CD with songs in the classical Louvin Brothers style. One of the most popular song of the Louvin Brothers is Knoxville Girls that can be heard in the NPR broadcast with Charlie Louvin.

http://www.npr.org/2011/10/11/141233587/world-cafe-looks-back-country-and-bluegrass

I have selected three great early videos with the Louvin Brothers from youtube. Ira Louvin did obviously prefer the Gibson A model mandolins with an oval soundhole as can be seen in those videos and on the picture on the NPR site.

Louvin Brothers – I Don’t Believe You’ve Met My Baby (1956)

Louvin Brothers I Can’t Keep You in Love with Me

The Louvin Brothers Love Thy Neighbor

Read more “The Louvin Brothers – Charlie and Ira Louvin – Singing Brothers with Mandolin & Guitar” →