For record collectors

The Friends Of American Old Time Music And Dance (FOAOTMAD), Britain's national organisation for old-time music enthusiasts, announces on its news blog that 250 vinyl LPs from the collection of the late Paul Stephens will be among the items auctioned by Special Auction Services of Newbury, Berks., on 31 May as part of their Music & Entertainment Auction. FOAOTMAD report: 'Paul's music collection takes 17 lots of over 570 lots in the sale and most of his are lots of between 14 and 65 LPs with estimates between £40 and £100.'

© Richard Hawkins

National Banjo Day

The Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol, TN/VA, is celebrating National Banjo Day today with a brief outline of banjo history and a photo of the oldest surviving instrument that can be called a banjo, the 'Creole bania' obtained in the 1770s in Suriname, South America, by John Gabriel Stedman (1744-97). The photo is credited to Kristina R. Gaddy, who describes the instrument and Stedman's association with it in chapters of her book Well of souls: uncovering the banjo's hidden history. Another photo of the 'bania' is on the Banjo Roots Blog, at the head of Shlomo Pestcoe's 2011 article 'The Stedman "Creole bania": a look at the world’s oldest banjo'.

The venerable instrument is in the collection of the national museum of ethnology at Leiden (NL). Unfortunately, it is not currently on public display. Update: A photo can also be seen on the 'Banjo Roots: Banjo Beginnings' Facebook.

National Banjo Day is also being celebrated by the Compass Records Group with a Banjo Day Sale, offering 25% off select titles from their extensive catalogue of banjo-centric music. The Deering Banjo Company are (coincidentally?) introducing a new line of merchandise with the image of their newly designed character 'Banjohead'.

© Richard Hawkins

For St Patrick's day

The Gold Tone Music Group announce on their website and Facebook a special St Patrick's day deal (probably only applying to customers in the USA) of free shipping and a pack of strings on all their 4-string banjos (including the IT-17 and IT-19 models with 12" pots, and the CC-Plectrum). The deal also covers their other 'Irish' instruments - two bouzouki models, a mandola, and an octave mandolin. More details are on the Gold Tone e-newsletter.

As a further connection between the day and the American South, the Bitter Southerner online magazine publishes an article by Harrison Scott Key - 'the planet's least serious writer' - on how Savannah, GA, celebrates St Patrick's day.

© Richard Hawkins

Detached notes

Master fiddler Michael Cleveland (above; photo: Amy Richmond) is the Bluegrass Situation's Artist of the Month for March, and the BGS staff have marked this with an article that heralds his latest album Lovin' of the game (released last Friday), together with a video of the title track and a playlist of his recordings. There is also a link to a 2018 interview (well worth reading) in which he explains why Benny Martin is his favourite fiddler.

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For fans of Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley, the Fretboard Journal features them in a one-hour podcast in which they talk about many things, including their latest album Living in a song. The FJ includes a link to the YouTube video of them playing and singing 'Moonshine run'.

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The Compass Records Group - in addition to Compass itself, a major bluegrass label - has a world-class catalogue of recorded Irish and Celtic music, on which the Group is holding a St Patrick's day sale with 20% off selected titles. The scores of albums in the sale can be browsed and shopped here.

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The Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol, TN/VA, announces its new special exhibition, 'I’ve endured: women in old time music', which will begin on 23 March and continue till the end of 2023. More details are in John Lawless's feature on Bluegrass Today.

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Today's bluegrass world is fortunate to have a crop of astounding young musicians. In the 1970s a similar wave of outstanding young talent included Ricky Skaggs and Keith Whitley, Tim O'Brien, Carl Jackson, Jerry Douglas, and Mark O'Connor. Mark O'Connor, who won the Grand Masters fiddle championship at the age of 13, is now releasing two books on his life and a CD of his early recordings. John Lawless on Bluegrass Today gives an overview (with video and audio recordings) of 'his meteoric rise from a teenaged phenom to a bluegrass music powerhouse in little more than a decade'.

© Richard Hawkins

Compass Records holiday sale

The Compass Records Group, with their ample catalogues of Americana, bluegrass, Celtic music (including I Draw Slow), and beyond, have opened their Holiday Sale with 25% off 'sitewide', including hoodies, T-shirts, hats, bags, CDs, LPs, digital music, books, and more - the only items excluded from the sale are last month's releases and bundles. The sale can be browsed here. Compass Records was fouded and is run by Alison Brown, who has produced the recent recordings by the Special Consensus. Banjo-players interested in the gear she uses for performing and recording can see the details here.

© Richard Hawkins

Jake Blount on Deering Live TONIGHT

Tonight (Wednesday 30 Nov.) the Deering Banjo Company presents on Deering Live the award-winning musician and scholar Jake Blount, a specialist in the early folk music of black Americans (see the BIB for 29 Oct.). The interview can be watched live tonight on Deering Live from 11.00 p.m. Irish time, or on YouTube, where it will also be available later.

Goodtime openback and Goodtime Two (resonator) banjos will also be available - from dealers taking part in this sale - for $130 and $170 off the regular price, up to and including Sunday 4 December.

© Richard Hawkins

Black Friday offers from We Banjo 3

Following their announcement of earlier this week, Galway's We Banjo 3 open their Black Friday sale with 20% off all items in their store, up to and including 1 Jan. 2023.

Update 28 Nov.: We Banjo 3 underline the fact that their sale extends well beyond Cyber Monday.

We Banjo 3 will be touring in the USA early next year (at about the same time that the Special Consensus will be touring in Ireland), so their online schedule offers links for bookings. They add the warning:

Since we're taking some time off after this run, these performances are our last and only shows for the year [2023]. We'd love to see you out there! Maybe a short concert getaway for you and a friend or family member? Best gift ever!

© Richard Hawkins

We Banjo 3: a sale, a tour, and a break

After their tour in Ireland, the members of We Banjo 3 send good wishes to all for the holiday season, and report:

It’s been a relatively quiet fall season for the band, though each of us have certainly been enjoying our own adventures – Fergal travelling to exotic places, Martin weaving around the US with the production Come from away, David on his first solo tour opening for world music artist Ajeet, and Enda continuing to conquer the wormhole between the banjo and technology.

The band have seven dates in the USA around late January and early February 2023 (see poster image). and then...

After these shows, We Banjo 3 is taking a break. We are making space for individual creative projects. We look forward to what happens in this space, and we’ll keep you posted. We are proud of everything we’ve created together with you all.

Their Holiday Sale offers 20% off all merchandise in their store till 1 Jan. 2023.

© Richard Hawkins

Compass Records: 60% off in Fall Cleaning sale (updates)

Compass Records announce their Fall Cleaning sale, with 60% off selected records, including some of the leading artists in bluegrass and in Celtic musics. The records on offer can be seen here.

Update 18 Oct.: Titles in the Compass and Red House Records catalogues are still being added to the sale.

Update 25 Oct.: The sales from the Compass and Red House Records catalogues end tonight at midnight.

© Richard Hawkins

'Christmas time is here' from Michael J. Miles

In his latest e-newsletter, Michael J. Miles (USA) offers a Blue Light Special sale rate for his CDs: $10 each. The newsletter also links to YouTube for two pieces on acoustic guitar, 'Christmas time is here' and 'Don't you worry 'bout a thing'. The BIB has been referring to Michael for a long time as 'the man who showed that Bach could be beautifully played on the clawhammer banjo', and he proves it with the 'Gavotte en rondeau'.

Further information on Michael's one-off workshops for guitar and clawhammer banjo, as well as his four-week classes for both instruments and his concert dates, can be found here.

Instruction and other goodies from across the Atlantic

Ken Perlman (USA), master of 'melodic clawhammer' banjo (not to mention fingerstyle guitar) continues his programme of online live instructional banjo workshops on Zoom this month, with a workshop on playing jigs in 6/8 time on Sat. 21 Nov. at 1.00-2.30 p.m. EST, one on playing waltzes in 3/4 time on Mon. 7 Dec. at 7.30-9.00 p.m. EST, and one on drop-thumbing and double-thumbing on Mon. 21 Dec. at the same time. These are for players of intermediate level and upwards, and each costs $20.00 per computer.

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April Verch (CAN) and her band offer a Super Sale on their CDs from today (18 Nov.) to 2 Dec.: seven releases for just $5 each, or all seven for $30 while stocks last. This is a fundraiser to enable April to get a new computer for business purposes, so you can make a donation if you already have all the CDs. April and the band will also be playing a 'Tis the Season' holiday concert a month from now on YouTube - her e-newsletter gives the date as 15 Dec., but it appears as 16 Dec. on YouTube, so check as mid-December approaches.

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More news from Deering Banjos, who - like many manufacturers and suppliers with retail sales disrupted by pandemic restrictions - encourage customers to deal direct with them: they have issued information on shipping internationally, which may be useful if (for instance) you want to take advantage of their sale of banjo string sets on a 'buy-one-get-one-free' basis, which is on from now till Monday 23 Nov.

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Steve Kaufman (USA( is offering new classes in guitar and mandolin in early December - for details, see the poster image below (click to enlarge) and Steve's website. PS: Indie-pop-folk group Mipso have been digging into their North Carolina musical roots this year, and their fiddler Libby Rodenbough mentions the Quarantine Happy Hour, hosted by the Horsenecks (see the right-hand column of the BIB), during Mipso's interview by Dacey Orr Sivewright on the Bluegrass Situation.

Deering Tech Live, episode #12 TONIGHT

FOLLOWING on from previous BIB posts, Deering Banjos will bring out tonight (Thurs. 25 June) a further episode of 'Deering Tech Live'. The e-mail announcing it is headed 'Banjo relatives' (title of the episode in which Jamie Deering, the company's CEO, talked about several international relatives of the banjo), but as shown on Facebook, David Vega of Deering Customer Service will be answering viewers' questions.

As usual, the episode will air at 3.00 p.m. PST (California time), which should be 11.00 p.m. BST. Viewers can tune in via Facebook or Instagram and leave questions in the form of comments on Facebook. The episode in which Sam Miller, head of repairs at Deering, talked about the 6-string banjo (banjo-guitar), and about learning the 5-string as a guitar player, can be seen here.

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The Gold Tone Music Group announces major discounts on B-stock (with minor blemishes) and a draw for a PBR Paul Beard Signature Series round-neck resonator guitar. The BIB suspects, with regret, that Gold Tone's offer of free shipping on all instruments applies only to the USA. More details and links are in this e-newsletter.

Hot Rize (USA): Super Sale in aid of musicians

It's been far too long since Hot Rize (USA) last played in Ireland - have we ever even seen Hot Rize Mk II with Bryan Sutton on guitar? - so fans in Ireland who wish to renew acquaintance or fill the gaps in their collections of the work of Hot Rize and Red Knuckles & the Trailblazers should take advantage of the bands' new Super Sale.

This comprises albums on CD and vinyl, a DVD, and other historic items from their back catalogue, available in three packages - the most expensive of which is only $40.00 for seven items. All proceeds are shared with the IBMA Trust Fund, established in 1987 as a means to offer financial assistance to bluegrass music professionals in time of emergency need. More details are on the website of Hot Rize (also on Facebook).

Sale of No Depression back issues

No Depression, the seasonal journal of roots music, spent seven years online before returning to a print edition in 2015. Issues since then have consistently had striking cover art - the image on the left is from the first issue of the return to print, and that on the right is from the 'Bluegrass beyond' issue of winter 2016.

No Depression is now offering back issues at $9.00 (plus shipping) instead of the regular $17. Browse the issues on offer here; the sale lasts till the end of Monday 6 April.

Deering's President's Day sales

Deering Banjos announce their President's Day sale this weekend, with reductions of 25% on banjo accessories including strings, straps, gig bags, T-shirts, and much more. The company also offers considerable reductions on showroom banjos that have spent time on display and being tried out in stores - instruments at all levels from a Goodtime tenor to an Ivanhoe 5-string.

Smithsonian Folkways Black Friday offer

Smithsonian Folkways Recordings announce their Black Friday offer: 35% off all CDs, LPs, and box sets made between 2010 and 2019. This comprises close to a hundred individual albums, including commemorative anthologies of Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Lead Belly as well as new issues of modern artists. A sampler can be heard on Spotify.

Albums specially likely to interest BIB readers include those by Ola Belle Reed and the Seldom Scene, 'Classic banjo', 'Epilogue: a tribute to John Duffey', Mike Seeger's 'Just around the bend' documentary, and two albums by Stephen Wade: 'Across the Amerikee' and 'Banjo diary'. The offer is open till the end of Sunday 1 December.

More than music - and other news from the Mother Country

The International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) announces:

Bluegrass is more than music, it is emergency assistance, music education, and career development. It is real impact for real people made possible by your support. Please donate now to the combined giving campaign of the IBMA, IBMA Trust Fund, and IBMA Foundation.

In addition to your donation, we want to know what bluegrass is to you. Share your own story by posting a video, picture, or statement on social media using #morethanmusic.

A leading example of 'real impact for real people' is the IBMA Trust Fund's assistance to master dobroist 'Uncle' Phil Leadbetter (who played in Ireland twenty years ago with J.D. Crowe & the New South when John Nyhan brought them to Kilworth, Co. Cork). Phil, who has had successive bouts of cancer, says 'I just don't know what we would have done without the help of the IBMA.' More information, and links for online donation, are here.

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The Fretboard Journal, an ideal magazine for instrument enthusiasts, announces:

As a reader-supported magazine with barely any advertising, we can't offer too many Fretboard Journal discounts. But here goes our biggest for 2019...

Between now and 5 December, use the discount code FJ19 when you check out at fretboardjournal.com and save an additional 15% off your order. Use it for back issues, gift subscriptions, FJ merch or digital downloads. Or whatever you like. All new subscriptions will start with our latest, 45th issue, which is about to begin mailing to everyone.

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Those of us who were lucky enough to see Daniel and Carolyn Routh when they toured here in October with a trio configuration of their band Nu-Blu may not have known that they host the syndicated Bluegrass Ridge TV programme and the corresponding weekly radio show. The Bluegrass Standard online magazine announces that it is now in partnership with Bluegrass Ridge: the TV show can be seen on mobile devices, and the radio show accessed through the Bluegrass Standard website. More details are on the BS e-newsletter.

Deering banjos: 10% off till 2 Dec. 2019, and 'showroom' sale

Deering Banjos announce that from tomorrow (Wed. 27 Nov.) till midnight on Mon. 2 Dec. 2019, reductions of 10% will be available on their instruments from the following dealers, using the checkout code DEERINGTHANKS2019:

• Banjo Studio (gives prices in euros for shoppers from Ireland)
• Banjo.com
• Elderly Instruments
• The Music Farm
• Alto Music
• Stellberg String Instruments

Update 27 Nov.: Deering are also presenting their Holiday Season Sale over the same period, offering up to 25% reductions on select items; and a separate sale of banjos that have done time in dealers' showrooms, with substantial price reductions.

Gold Tone: big price reductions

Gold Tone Musical Instruments announce a sale with 30-40% reductions on the listed price of blemished and B-stock instruments: having only cosmetic blemishes. The full list can be seen here. The downside of the lower price is that the buyer pays shipping costs; so as the Gold Tone depot is in Florida, readers outside the USA may need a friend there who is willing to bring over an instrument. Full details are on the latest Gold Tone e-newsletter.

David Freeman at 80

Yesterday was the 80th birthday of David Freeman, founder of County Records and County Sales, and a major force in the spread of old-time music and bluegrass since the 1960s. It was marked by a major feature on Bluegrass Today by Richard Thompson, 'Happy 80th to Dave Freeman!', including tributes from many leading figures in the bluegrass world. The image (left) shows the plaque marking his induction into the Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor in 2002.

Ample details of his career are given in the feature and in his Hall of Fame memoir by Fred Bartenstein. The latter includes the following words on the start of County Sales: 'His first customers were in the British Isles, readers of the magazine Country News and Views.' As BIB readers may be aware, the two editors of the magazine were Charles Newman of Lowestoft, Suffolk, and Rodney McElrea of Omagh, Co. Tyrone - both now, regrettably, deceased.