Down and Outs at the Red Room, 9 Nov. 2012

Thanks to Sharon Loughrin in Cookstown, Co. Tyrone, for

... news already of another upcoming Red Room house concert! Hot on the heels of a very busy few nights with Random Canyon Growlers, we're now looking forward to hosting some of the best local bluegrass talent. The Down and Out Bluegrass Band [shown above at the Cornish Bluegrass Festival in Sept. 2012] play here this coming Friday (9 Nov.), and anyone who has heard them play around the festivals in Ireland and Scotland this year will know that it'll be a great night. Start time is 8.30, as usual, newcomers are very welcome; just get in touch by e-mail/phone/Facebook page for further details.

Also of possible interest is the release of a new CD by Iris DeMent, her first in sixteen years, called Sing the Delta. If I remember right, my first ever contact with the BIB was to post news of an Iris DeMent concert in the Spring and Airbrake in Belfast several years ago. On that night she sang a beautiful song called 'The night I learned how not to pray'. I couldn't find this recorded anywhere and I'm happy to see it on this new recording. There's a good Guardian review of the CD.

The review, by Robin Denselow, appeared in the Guardian on 1 Nov. and can be read online.