Bluegrass kick-starts the Belfast Nashville Festival, 2 Mar. 2016

A reminder that on Wednesday 2 March the 12th United Airlines Belfast Nashville Festival and Convention will begin with a 'Bluegrass Songwriters' concert at the Olympic Concert Room, Clayton Hotel, Ormeau Avenue, Belfast.

The concert lineup consists of GorseFire from the Belfast area and Cup O' Joe from Co. Armagh — to put it another way, some of Ulster's most experienced bluegrass musicians, and some of the most talented representatives of a younger generation. Doors open at 9.00 p.m., and the show runs from 9.30 to 11.30. Tickets (£5) can be bought online.

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Bluegrass songwriting as a theme? On 12 Feb. Bluegrass Today published a feature on Kim Williams of east Tennessee, who died the previous day, having written many hit songs in both country and bluegrass music. His friend Tim Stafford, guitarist and singer for Blue Highway, is quoted:

... in his later years, Kim decided he wanted to write more bluegrass because he considered it one of the last places you could get ‘real’ songs recorded. By that I mean songs about topics like death, life, religion, murder, abuse, inspiration — topics that sometimes (usually?) are too scary or controversial for mainstream music. I wish he was here to tell you — he was very passionate about it.