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Across the Blue Ridge #100 - Madison County, NC & Blue Ridge Music Trails

Lawrence Chrisman, courtesy Laura Boosinger
ATBR host Paul Brown with Laura Boosinger, Executive Director of the Madison County, NC Arts Council. On this episode, their conversation illuminates the music scene in the mountainous county – and we hear plenty of music to go with it.

This week's show features some strong old-time and bluegrass music right out of the gate, followed by in interview with Madison County, NC Arts Council director Laura Boosinger. Find out about public events featuring traditional music in this county famous for fiddlers including Arvill Freeman, Roger Howell and Bobby Hicks, and for ballad singers including Sheila Kay Adams and Joe Penland. The English folk song collector Cecil Sharp visited Madison County in 1916, 1917 and 1918, writing down many of the British Isles ballads still surviving there. The tradition continues today, and Madison County offers fascinating stops on North Carolina's Blue Ridge Music Trails.

Playlist

  1. Norman In The Woodland
    Jason Carter
    On The Move
     
  2. New River Train
    Buckstankle Boys
    Round Peak Home
     
  3. Living With Memories
    Sam Gleaves & Tyler Hughes
    Sam Gleaves & Tyler Hughes
     
  4. At The Purchaser's Option
    Rhiannon Giddens
    Freeedom Highway
     
  5. Meeting In The Air
    Highwoods Stringband
    Feed Your Babies Onions
     
  6. Tempy
    Fred Cockerham
    Sunny Home In Dixie
     
  7. Break 1 - Roberts Ride
    Brandon Lee Adams
    Hardest Kind Of Memories
     
  8. Dance Around Molly
    Arvil Freeman
    Saturday Night Fiddlin' 
     
  9. East Tennessee Blues
    Bobby Hicks
    Texas Crapshooter
     
  10. Little Margaret
    Joe Penland
    On Shakey Ground
     
  11. Zuma Swing
    Bobby Hicks
    Forever And A Day
     
  12. Break 2 - Stone's Rag
    Leftwich & Higginbotham
    The Lost Child
     
  13. Acorn Hill Breakdown
    Roger Howell & friends
    field recording
     
  14. Young Hunting
    Sheila Kay Adams
    field recording
     
  15. I'm A Free Little Bird
    Roscoe Holcomb
    The High Lonesome Sound
     
  16. Leaving This Town For The Last Time
    Blue Highway
    Original Traditional
     
  17. Ain't Broke So Don't Fix It
    Hank Bradley
    The Pescadero Blues
Former 88.5 WFDD News Director Paul Brown founded Across the Blue Ridge at WFDD in the late 1980s. It was an instant hit, and was broadcast on WFDD for more than a decade until Paul left to become an executive editor, producer, reporter, and world newscaster at NPR in Washington, DC. Now Paul is back in his beloved Blue Ridge region, his journalism and storytelling skills honed better than ever. He's ready to present more music, share discussion with more interesting characters, and be your friend and guide in discovery. Paul is actively involved in today's acoustic music scene, crisscrossing the region and the country as a teacher, performer, and interviewer.

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