BGS Long Reads of the Week // March 27

If you’ve got the time, we’ve got the reading material! Our brand new #longreadoftheday series looks back into the BGS archives for some of our favorite reporting, videos, interviews, and more — featured every day throughout the week. You can follow along on social media [on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram] and right here, where we’ll wrap up each week’s stories in one place.

Check out our long reads of the week:

Avett Brothers Film Captures the Power of Character

A long read pick that can also be your TV choice pick! Available for streaming on YouTube and Amazon Prime Video, May It Last: A Portrait of the Avett Brothers is an intimate documentary made by Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio that tells the story of the famed North Carolina string band. In 2017 we spoke to Scott, Seth, and Bonfiglio about the making of the film and its premiere at SXSW and on HBO. [Read our feature in preparation for your movie night!]

Alice Gerrard: Unearthed Tapes and Unintentional Activists

None of us at BGS require any sort of excuse to return to one of our favorite duos of all time, Hazel Dickens & Alice Gerrard, but mining for long reads is definitely pretense enough! For this pick, we bring back an impeccable interview with the Bluegrass Hall of Famer herself, Alice Gerrard. She speaks about almost literally tripping over the forgotten practice tapes that became the 2018 Free Dirt Records release, Hazel Dickens & Alice Gerrard Sing Me Back Home: The DC Tapes, 1965-1969. Another great choice for a Women’s History Month wrap up, as well. [Read our conversation with Alice Gerrard]

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band: An Unbroken Circle

One of our most popular features in BGS history, this long read pick dives into the cross-generational impact of this iconic string band — a group that embraced “Americana” before that genre even had a name. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band remains relevant to this day, not only in Nashville but around the world; their Will the Circle records will remain in the indispensable American roots canon forever. [Read our 2016 feature]

Gaby Moreno and Van Dyke Parks Take a Vibrant Trip Across the Americas

Plenty of albums have been released since… let’s say 2016… that attempt to reckon with the tumultuous times we’re in politically and otherwise. Not many do so in a way that acknowledges these problems are not new, and have been festering and stewing for ages. Van Dyke Parks and Gaby Moreno’s ¡Spangled! does just that. It’s a welcome perspective, and directly tied to the combination of the duo’s disparate experiences — and the commonalities that tie them together. [Read this edition of Small World]

Junior Sisk Hitches His Wagon to the Stars of Traditional Bluegrass

To wrap up the week, how about a heavy dose of dyed-in-the-wool, traditional, straight up and down bluegrass!? Junior Sisk is carrying the banner for keeping the history of this music alive and well — and with one of the best voices in the biz, too. In our interview, Sisk relates how he regards himself as being in the direct line of artistic descendants from Bill Monroe, the Stanley Brothers, and Flatt & Scruggs. Even the most casual fans of his music will know that it’s true. [Read more about Junior Sisk]