Tag: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Preview: The BGS Scoop on AmericanaFest, September 19-23 in Nashville, TN

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

AmericanaFest is HERE! The annual festival, business conference and roots-music extravaganza will once again take over Nashville beginning today, September 19, through Saturday, September 23. While of course we’re most looking forward to our event presented with Queerfest, the Good Ol’ Queer Country Jamboree, on Saturday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., the entire week is filled to the brim with must-see, must-hear, must-do events, panels, showcases, parties and hangs.

As we do most years, below we lay out a variety of items starred by BGS staff on our AmericanaFest apps – which, BTW, is a festival and conference essential. You can add performances, panels, and keynotes to your own personalized scheduled complete with lineups, panel rosters, details and more. Plus, you’ll be able to easily see which events require special tickets or advance RSVP directly in the app and which are accessible with your conference badge or festival wristband. Download the official app on the app store here. Download via Google Play here. See the full AmericanaFest daily schedule in your browser here.

We want to hear from you, too! Which AmericanaFest events and shows are you most excited for? Which of the more than 200 showcasing bands and artists are at the top of your lists?

Panels, Parties, & Events

Check-in and pass pick-up begin today, Tuesday, September 19, at 12 noon at the Westin Nashville in the Gulch, but most panels and conference programming gets rolling tomorrow, on Wednesday. If you thought ahead, you already RSVP-ed to the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum’s conversation and performance by two of our faves, Rosanne Cash and John Leventhal, this afternoon at 3 p.m. They’ll chat about their careers plus the 30th Anniversary re-issue of The Wheel – hear a track from that project on BGS here.

There are quite a few more conversations, panels and events we’re eyeing this week around Nashville:

Roots & Branches – Kentucky Music – WED. SEPT. 20 10:00 AM @ The Westin Vanderbilt III

Kentucky poet laureate Silas House – who recently wrote the story behind Tyler Childers’ sensational new music video – will chat with fellow Kentuckians and musicians S.G. Goodman, Kelsey Waldon and Nat Myers about “the history, legacy and current state of Kentucky’s music and the way it has helped to shape American music…” The bluegrass state means more to American roots music than just bluegrass and these folks know it. An enlightening conversation is sure to be had.

Where the Action Is: Americana Artists and Activism – WED. SEPT. 20 11:00 AM @ the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum Ford Theater *RSVP REQUIRED*

Moderated by veteran BGS contributor Jewly Hight and hosted by the Country Music Hall of Fame, this conversation will feature performances by Adeem the Artist, Mya Byrne, Autumn Nicholas and Allison Russell, all artists who leverage their music making in Americana spaces to advance activist causes, social justice and representation and inclusion. The event promises to connect the present and each of these artists to this vibrant tradition in roots music and folk.

Hillbillies and Hot Dogs – WED. SEPT. 20 11:30 AM to 2:00 PM @ Compass Records *RSVP REQUIRED*

Our friends at Compass Records and No Depression host one of the best hoedowns every year at AmericanaFest, replete with hot dogs and the recording studio that birthed the Outlaw movement. Hear music by Robbie Fulks, Kelly Hunt, Mattie Schell and the business queen of banjo herself, Alison Brown.

NMAAM Songwriters Rounds – WED., THURS., FRI. SEPT 20, 21, 22 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM @ National Museum of African American Music

A music conference and festival in Nashville is the perfect time to visit the National Museum of African American Music, which opened during the pandemic and has slowly but surely built momentum and an audience for the history, culture, and tastemaking of African American music. And situated right in the heart of Nashville’s lower Broadway neighborhood, it’s the perfect venue to make such points. NMAAM’s daily writers rounds will feature artists and songwriters like AHI, guitar phenoms Joy Clark and Yasmin Williams, BGS One to Watch Julie Williams and more.

An Intimate Conversation with Nickel Creek & Sarah Silverman – WED. SEPT 20 1:00 PM @ RCA Studio A *RSVP Required*

You read that right! Nickel Creek and Sarah Silverman in conversation at RCA Studio A moderated by Jewly Hight!? Pinch us! Clearly one event not to miss this week. RSVP is required, hope yours has been submitted long ago!

Indigenous Americana – WED. SEPT 20 4:oo PM @ the Westin SoBro I & II

You are still on stolen land. While you occupy the historic lands of the Cherokee, Shawnee and Yuchi this week, set aside time to appreciate, ingest and center Indigenous music makers, their songs and their stories. This panel conversation on the future of the thriving Indigenous music community will feature Amanda Rheaume, Crystal Shawanda, Nicole Auger of the Indigenous Music Summit and Trenton Wheeler. More events for/about Indigenous music below.

Kentucky Bluegrass, Past and Future – THURS. SEPT. 21 2:30 PM @ the Westin Gulch I & II

From our friends at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum in Owensboro, a conversation about the arc of bluegrass in the bluegrass state featuring BGS contributor Craig Havighurst, Bluegrass Hall director Chris Joslin, fiddler Jason Carter, the legendary Sam Bush, educator and picker Scott Napier, and Jessica Blankenship of the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame.

Who Are the Gatekeepers of Americana Anyway? – THURS. SEPT. 21 4:00 PM @ the Westin Gulch I & II

If your immediate reaction to this panel title is skepticism, this is definitely for you! The roster of Omar Ruiz-Lopez (of Violet Bell), Rissi Palmer and Yasmin Williams immediately indicate this conversation will critically unpack and explore the construction of Americana as a format, just how multi-cultural the music really is, and why that strength is worth spotlighting while we dismantle systems of gatekeeping and exclusion.

Transgender Artists Arriving and Breaking Through in Americana – FRI. SEPT. 22 1:00 PM @ the Westin Gulch I & II

Just a few short years ago there were almost no LGBTQ+ spaces at AmericanaFest, so we’re ecstatic to see a trans-specific space like this opened up at the conference. Hear from Ally Free, Cidny Bullens, Mya Byrne, Paisley Fields and moderator Marcus K. Dowling on historic and current challenges and opportunities for trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming Americana musicians.

From ‘Queer Jolene’ to ‘Pay Gap’: Teaching Social Issues Through Americana in the Classroom – FRI. SEPT. 22 3:30 PM the Westin Gulch III

Using two songs as a springboard, scholar-musician Nadine Hubbs and showcasing artist Beth Bombara will be joined by Aimee Zoeller, Ethan Anderson, and renowned writer/thinker Tressie McMillan Cottom to discuss the use of Americana music and texts to teach and highlight current issues of race, class, gender, sexuality and identity in university and college classrooms and academic spaces.

Americana Honors & Awards

 

Keb’ Mo’ attends the 20th Annual Americana Honors & Awards in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Erika Goldring/Getty Images for Americana Music Association)

The marquee event of the week, the 22nd Annual Americana Honors & Awards will take place on Wednesday evening beginning at 6:30 p.m. See the full list of honorees and nominees here. The awards show promises appearances and performances by so many Americana friends and neighbors: Adeem the Artist, Allison Russell, Brandy Clark, Jessi Colter, Marty Stuart, Nickel Creek, William Prince, Sunny War and many, many more. Recipients of this year’s Lifetime, Trailblazer and Legacy Awards include The Avett Brothers, George Fontaine Sr., Bettye LaVette, Patty Griffin and Nickel Creek.

Not able to be in the sacred pews of the Ryman Auditorium for the show? You can watch online via Circle All Access’s YouTube Channel or the Americana Music Association’s Facebook page.

Good Ol’ Queer Country Jamboree at Soho House Nashville

A rare opportunity to utilize the gorgeous facilities of Soho House Nashville at this members-only and conference passholders-only event! Plus, enjoy the absolute best in queer country being made today as we celebrate the announcement of BGS’s new outlet, Good Country, coming in 2024! Space is limited, so make sure your RSVP is in for the Good Ol’ Queer Country Jamboree featuring music by Adeem the Artist, Jett Holden, Amanda Fields & Megan McCormick, Chris Housman and special guests.

You can get more information and RSVP here.

The Good Ol’ Queer Country Jamboree
Featuring Adeem the Artist, Amanda Fields & Megan McCormick, Jett Holden, Chris Housman, and more.
Saturday, September 23, 3 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Soho House Nashville

Showcases, Artists & Bands

Here are just a handful of the showcases, lineups, artists and bands we’ve got our eye on this week:

Americana Proud: A Voice for All – TUE. SEPT. 19 8:00 PM & 9:30 PM @ the City Winery

Hosted by singer-songwriter Autumn Nicholas and Nashville-based drag queen Vidalia Anne Gentry, Americana Proud will bring two showtimes of their highly-anticipated showcase to the City Winery on Tuesday evening, the first at 8 p.m. and another immediately following at 9:30 p.m. Hear from artists and musicians such as ISMAY, Jobi Riccio, Kentucky Gentlemen, Palmyra and many more.

Bourbon & Bluegrass – FRI. SEPT. 22 4:oo PM to 6:30 PM @ the Vinyl Lounge

Join us and our friends from Visit Owensboro and LogStill Distillery for one of our most favorite pairings, bourbon and bluegrass presented by BGS! Fresh off of our rollicking time in Kentucky at Bourbon & Beyond, we’ve still got a hankering for whiskey and tunes – this time from Mama Said String Band and the Owensboro Bluegrass Band. Join us Friday afternoon at the Vinyl Lounge in Wedgewood Houston!

Willi Carlisle

We can’t get enough of this lonesome troubadour’s poetic, old-timey country. He’s in and out of Nashville quick this week, so catch Willi Carlisle’s official showcase at the Vinyl Lounge on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 8:00 p.m. (Read our most recent feature on Carlisle here.) Now THAT’S good country!

Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper

Fiddler Michael Cleveland burnt down our BGS Stage at Bourbon & Beyond last weekend when he brought on his friend and ours, Billy Strings, as a surprise guest. Later that evening during Strings’ main stage set, he brought Michael out in front of 40,000 roaring fans. We LOVED that moment – don’t miss his official showcase with his band, Flamekeeper, at Analog at the Hutton Hotel on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 9 p.m.

Jessi Colter

This legend of country has a new, Margo Price-produced album, Edge of Forever, out on October 27, so it’s the perfect week to check her off your live performance bucket list. Colter will have an official showcase at 3rd & Lindsley on Wednesday, Sept. 20 at 10 p.m., plus she appears as part of Mojo’s Music City Mayhem on Thursday, Sept. 21 between 3 and 6 p.m. Also some good country.

Della Mae

We’ve been keeping up with Della Mae lately – from Earl Scruggs Music Festival to Bourbon & Beyond to AmericanaFest! – and we’ve loved every second. If you haven’t heard their new four-person lineup, it’s worth checking out this week. If you’re not in Nashville at the conference, stream their newly released Neil Young cover instead. (Below!)

Liv Greene

AmericanaFest is all about discovery and if you haven’t discovered this singer-songwriter yet, this week is your chance. Hear Greene’s award winning songwriting – which is equally winsome and pining while gritty and bluegrassy – on three different occasions throughout the week: Tuesday, Sept. 19, 8 p.m. at Americana Proud at City Winery; their official showcase on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 10 p.m. at the City Winery Lounge; and during the Tribute to the Songs of 1973 Part 3 on Friday, Sept. 22 at 10 p.m.

Jaimee Harris

You know what Jaimee Harris’s music is? Good country! It’s all over this AmericanaFest lineup, for sure. Harris will have your heart firmly in hand with her grounded, earnest and effacing nostalgia. It feels so country and effortlessly Americana, but with endless queer, subversive wrinkles. Get acquainted with Harris and her latest album, Boomerang Town, at several different performances during the week: Tuesday, Sept. 19, 8 p.m. at Americana Proud at City Winery; Thursday, Sept. 21, 4:30 p.m. at the Lone Star Shindig at the Bobby Hotel; Friday, Sept. 22, 1:20 p.m. at Bowery Vault for SHC East Coast Social Club; her official showcase on Friday, Sept. 22, 8 p.m. at the City Winery Lounge; Friday Sept. 22, 11 p.m. at the Basement East for A Tribute to the Songs of 1973; and Saturday, Sept. 23 at Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge at 1 p.m.

Lola Kirke

All of Lola Kirke’s exes live in LA, so luckily she’s in Nashville this week! Kirke was a highlight of our BGS Stage last week at Bourbon & Beyond in Louisville before heading to AmericanaFest, where you can see her at SiriusXM Outlaw’s Americana Most Wanted guitar pull on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 12 p.m.; also see her official showcase at the Blue Room on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 10 p.m.; and at Imogene + Willie’s Round Up – a free, unofficial, buzzworthy event certainly worth a drop-by at least – on Friday, Sept. 22 at 7:15 p.m.

Native Guitars Tour – Voices of Native Americana – THURS. SEPT. 21 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM @ The Blue Room

Native leaders in music, art and fashion will bring authentic songs and stories to the Blue Room at Third Man Records on Thursday afternoon. Hear from Dach Martin, Jir Anderson, Levi Platero Band, Mike Bruno & the Myriad Mountains, Mozart Gabriel, Olivia Komahcheet, Rico Del Oro, Sage Bond and Scotti Clifford. From Native blues to crooning country and everything in between.

Emily Nenni

Get your boot scootin’ in while you’re in Nashville with honky-tonker Emily Nenni, whose country & western picked up a few tricks and twists in California’s Bay Area before landing in Music City. Nenni will jam a handful of Nashville shows into a packed tour week that takes her away from and back to AmericanaFest in the blink of an eye. Hear her at Honky Tonk Tuesday at the American Legion in East Nashville on Tuesday, Sept. 19; plus an appearance at Musician’s Corner at Centennial Park on Friday, Sept. 22 at 4:35 p.m.; and her official showcase at Eastside Bowl on Saturday, Sept. 23 at 10:30 p.m.

Autumn Nicholas

Nicholas has already appeared on this preview in a few places, and rightly so, as the North Carolinian Black Opry alumnus continues to build momentum behind their stratospheric voice and introspective, emotive songs. Hear the voice Nashville has been buzzing about for months – and that will open for Jason Isbell at the Ryman this fall – throughout the week: Tuesday, Sept. 19 at Americana Proud at City Winery, 8 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. shows; “Where the Action Is” panel at the Country Music Hall of Fame on Wednesday, Sept. 20 at 11 a.m.; and their official showcase at the Basement on Friday, Sept. 22 at 8 p.m.

Queer Cowpoke Roundup – SAT. SEPT. 23 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM @ the Groove

On your way to/from the Good Ol’ Queer Country Jamboree at Soho House on Saturday, stop by the Groove record shop in East Nashville for another LGBTQ+ centered event, the Queer Cowpoke Roundup! With music by Austin Lucas, Julian Talamantez Brolaski, Julie Nolen, Melody Walker, Mercy Bell, Secret Emchy Society, Shawna Virago and Wiley Gaby plus a special tribute to the legacy of Lavender Country and Patrick Haggerty to kick it all off.

Jobi Riccio

We are sweet on Jobi Riccio’s new album, Whiplash, a showcase of powerful, talented songwriting done up in checkered gingham and starchy denim and the perfume of broken in leather. We’ve had our eye on Riccio for a few years now, so it feels gratifying to watch the music industry discover and get behind the Berklee graduate. Hear Riccio perform during the Americana Honors & Awards on Wednesday night, but also elsewhere during AmericanaFest: Tuesday, Sept. 19 at Americana Proud at City Winery at 9:30 p.m.; Thursday, Sept. 21 at WMOT Day Stage at Eastside Bowl at 4 p.m.; and her official showcase will be at Exit/In on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 8 p.m. (Plus, Riccio’s social media tease a “to be announced” appearance on Friday, September 22, so keep your eyes peeled.)

The Shindellas

Americana is all about making music outside the lines, about exploring the rootsy fringes of these genres we all hold dear. The Shindellas are one of the most exciting groups to come out of Nashville in recent memory, but because of their glitz, polish and crisp production values they’re rarely categorized as Americana – which they certainly can lay claim to, through blues, R&B, soul and so much more. Their new Louis York-produced album, Shindo, drops in October, so make sure you catch them this week on Saturday. You’ll be glad you did! See the Shindellas at the 11th Annual Thirty Tigers Gospel Brunch at the City Winery, Saturday, Sept. 23 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.; and their official showcase at the Basement East on Saturday, Sept. 23 at 7 p.m..

Dan Tyminski

The man, the legend, he needs no introduction to the BGS reader (except, perhaps, when introduced as his mononym, Tyminski). Hear Dan fresh off his Bourbon & Beyond appearance on the BGS Stage with his new bluegrass band lineup, who are certainly worth a listen, at their official showcase on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 10 p.m. at the Analog at the Hutton Hotel. This new lineup of pickers backing up the famed voice of George Clooney on O Brother, Where Art Thou? are one of the most exciting things to come from Tyminski, musically, in the last handful of decades.

Yasmin Williams

If you’ve never seen Yasmin Williams play guitar, prepare to have your mind blown. Her approach to the instrument doesn’t just wow her audiences, it wows her fellow guitarists as well, from Bryan Sutton to Tommy Emmanuel. We’ve been fans of Williams for more than a few years, since before her Shout & Shine appearance even, and we’re glad to catch her again this week at AmericanaFest: “Wide Open Spaces – The Rise of Ambient Americana” Panel, Thursday, Sept. 21, 1 p.m. at the Westin Gulch I & II; “Who are the Gatekeepers of Americana Anyway” Panel, Thursday, Sept. 21, at 4 p.m., the Westin Gulch I & II; NMAAM Songwriters Round Friday, Sept. 22 at 12 p.m.; and her official showcase Thursday, Sept. 21 at the Blue Room at 9 p.m.

Poster graphic and photo of Keb’ Mo’ courtesy of the Americana Music Association.

Lead images: Yasmin Williams by Kim Atkins Photography; Amanda Fields & Megan McCormick by Lindsey Patkos; Adeem the Artist by Shawn Poynter; Michael Cleveland by Amy Richmond.

The Station Inn Earns an Exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Posted on by Editor

The humble appearance of the Station Inn could never give away the enormity of its legacy and importance to bluegrass music. Nestled between skyscrapers in an ever-growing city, a single story cinder-block building with its windows painted shut sticks out as a relic from the past — when the Urban Outfitters across the street used to be an empty field of waist-high grass.

For nearly 50 years “the World Famous” Station Inn has played a pivotal role in bluegrass as both a venue and community hub, drawing people to Nashville and making connections that had a major impact on the music. Through the rest of 2021, The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum will honor and present the history and legacy of the venue in their exhibit The Station Inn: Bluegrass Beacon.

“The main reason that we wanted to do this exhibit is because the Station is such a vital and important part of not just Nashville music history, but of American music history,” says Peter Cooper, one of the curators of the new exhibit. The Station Inn has a larger-than-life reputation in the bluegrass community, but this new exhibit endeavors to highlight both the importance of the venue’s history and its welcoming atmosphere.

During the mid-1980s, adventurous singer-songwriter and musician Peter Rowan assembled all-star groups he dubbed “Crucial Country” for a series of shows that created a buzz amongst progressive roots music fans and players. In this photo, Rowan (right) is joined by Mark O’Connor on guitar and Sam Bush on mandolin. Photo: Charmaine Latham

It was founded in 1974 by a group of bluegrass musicians and singers — Bob and Ingrid Fowler, Marty and Charmaine Lanham, Jim Bornstein, and Red and Bird Lee Smith — who wanted to provide their fellow musicians and fans with a venue where they could play and hear bluegrass music. At that time the Station was more of a clubhouse where the owners functioned as the house band and guests would come up to jam. They moved to the current location in 1978; three years later, the club was bought by J.T. Gray, who at the time was driving Jimmy Martin’s tour bus.

Gray, who would go on to be inducted into the Bluegrass Hall of Fame in 2020 and was given a lifetime achievement award by the Southeast Regional Folk Alliance, began booking national touring acts to perform. It would be easy and accurate to show why the Inn is significant by pointing to the artists who have played there, including Bill Monroe, the Stanley Brothers, Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, and essentially any other important name in bluegrass. But the clubhouse atmosphere always remained. Countless (as in absolutely too many to count) threads of bluegrass history, both well-known and overlooked, can all be traced back to chance meetings at the Station Inn. J.T. Gray fostered a welcoming atmosphere that led to many locals and visitors from out of town to meet there, including mandolinist Mike Compton.

The venue’s sound-mixing console described by Gray as “the first piece of modern sound equipment we ever bought”

“I rode up [to Nashville] with Raymond Huffmaster, a bluegrass guy from Meridian, Mississippi, where I’m from, because I’d been hanging around him trying to learn how to play,” Compton says. They visited the bluegrass spots in town including the Station Inn, and Compton recalls after heading home, “Pat Enright got in touch with me and said they were starting a band and asked if I wanted to join. So I moved [to Nashville] in 1977 and moved in with J.T. Gray.”

Mike and Pat would continue playing together and later go on to form the legendary Nashville Bluegrass Band, which became a staple act at the Station Inn. A predecessor to that award-winning band was performing at the Station the first time future bluegrass star, Kathy Chiavola, came to town in 1979.

“When that door opened, the room was packed and I saw a vision of heaven,” she says, recalling that first night. “I heard these two voices, Alan [O’Bryant] and Pat [Enright], in their prime. And I lost it. I said, ‘OK. I’m moving here.’ There was a notice on the Station Inn bulletin board that a band of women playing bluegrass were looking for a roommate.” That band turned out to be the Bushwhackers, which featured bluegrass pioneers Susie Monick and Ginger Boatwright. Chiavola eventually joined the Bushwhackers playing bass and singing lead and harmony until Doug Dillard moved to Nashville. As the banjo player from the Dillards (who were famous for playing the Darlings on The Andy Griffith Show), Dillard put a band together and asked Ginger Boatwright to join, and about a year later asked Chiavola, too. Both the Bushwhackers and the Doug Dillard Band would frequently perform at the Station.

Vocalist, bones player, and madcap entertainer Ed Dye (far right) was a colorful presence at the Station Inn during the 1980s and early 90s. He assembled the Nashville Jug Band with a cast of stellar Nashville musicians from rock, jazz, and bluegrass backgrounds, and hosted wildly unpredictable shows. In this photo, he takes the stage with (from left): Sam Bush, Mark Schatz, Tim O’Brien, Alan O’Bryant, David Grier, and Jerry Douglas. Photo: Charmaine Lanham

Chiavola eventually moved into a duplex next to bluegrass bassist Mark Schatz. Together, they would often play the Station Inn with Charlie Cushman, Stuart Duncan, and Bobby Clark as part of a band called The Satellites. Other times, Chiavola would perform at the Inn with an ensemble called the Lucky Dogs which featured Jerry Douglas, Béla Fleck, Edgar Meyer (who had just moved to town), and sometimes Sam Bush or Mark O’Connor.

“It was beyond belief,” she says. “Sometimes I remember being on stage at the Station and listening to those guys play. I thought it was the most heavenly sound — I can’t even describe it to you. It was perfect music with so much feeling. You could hear a pin drop. It was so beautiful.”

Schatz, on the other hand, often performed at the Station with Mike Compton as part of John Hartford’s band. Hartford had moved back to Nashville to form a string band after a successful songwriting career in L.A. That California connection later landed him the contract to help with the music for the Coen Brothers’ massively successful O Brother, Where Art Thou? Compton’s 1927 Gibson A-Jr. model mandolin, which he played with the Nashville Bluegrass Band, in John Hartford’s string band, and on the O Brother soundtrack, is included in the new exhibit.

A cigar box used for many years to collect admission fees at the club entrance

Also on display is a small wooden box that was used to collect admission for years, along with some history about former Station Inn employee and local folk icon, Ann Soyars. “Ann embodied what the Station is about,” Cooper says. Soyars worked the door and was “small but fierce.” She was known to throw out rowdy college football players for being too loud, but also welcome regulars and newcomers alike. “Ann’s inclusion in the exhibit is indicative of what we’re trying to do, which is to help people understand not just the facts of the matter, but the spirit of the matter. The Station Inn is an example of musical community building in the most positive way. It’s like Cheers for ‘grassers.”

In addition, the exhibit features other artifacts from both the building and the musicians who have performed there including a fiddle played extensively by Tammy Rogers with the SteelDrivers, Mike Bub’s Kay M-1 double bass, which he played with many groups at The Station Inn — including Weary Hearts (Chris Jones, Butch Baldassari, Ron Block), the Del McCoury Band, and the Sidemen (Terry Eldridge, Jimmy Campbell, Ronnie McCoury, Gene Wooten, Ed Dye, Kristin Scott Benson, and Larry Perkins). Seats from a tour bus used by Lester Flatt, which serve as seating in the venue, are on view as well.

The Station Inn’s cash register

Generations of performers’ children have grown up in the Station’s green room and backstage and have gone on to perform on stage as adults. Newspaper has been put down on the bar to admire someone’s new puppies. Great care has been taken to lovingly craft the perfectly reheated pizza. Beers are shared by locals and honored guests after the doors are closed to the public. (And I have hidden fancy decaf coffee and a pour-over in the back that I take out when I visit.) To this day the Station Inn is a community gathering place where friendships, bands, and lifelong loves of bluegrass are formed. It embodies not only the authenticity of the music but of the community. And often, everyone knows your name.

Editor’s Notes: The Station Inn has endeavored to safely present live music throughout the pandemic. They have reopened to live audiences at a limited capacity and live stream performances through their web portal stationinntv.com.

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum will present The Station Inn: Bluegrass Beacon until January 2, 2022. The museum is currently open to the public at a limited capacity.

Photo of Station Inn and artifacts: Emma Delevante for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Other photos: Charmaine Lanham

Ricky Skaggs Reunites With Bill Monroe’s Mandolin for ‘BIG NIGHT’ Event

Posted on by Editor

On Wednesday, October 28, music fans had the chance to see and hear some of the most historic instruments in bluegrass played once again during an all-star fundraiser, BIG NIGHT (At the Museum). The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum presented performances captured in the museum’s galleries and performance venues while the museum was closed, with select artists paired with instruments from the institution’s collection. The event debuted on the museum’s YouTube channel.

One such performance includes Alison Brown playing Earl Scruggs’s 1930 Gibson RB-Granada banjo, Ricky Skaggs playing Bill Monroe’s 1923 Gibson F-5 mandolin, and Marty Stuart playing Lester Flatt’s 1950 Martin D-28 guitar. Skaggs was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2018.

“I think it’s important to do anything we can to support the museum not as just members of the Hall of Fame, but as lovers of country music history,” Skaggs tells BGS. “I think it’s kind of our job to do that and it’s a privilege to know that my grandkids will be able to go there to see that history that we celebrated — and some of it I even got to be a part of. I’m thankful to be a part of it. It’s a wonderful thing.”

BIG NIGHT (At the Museum) generated support for the museum’s exhibitions, collections preservation, and educational programming. A closure of nearly six months due to COVID-19 caused significant loss of revenue for the museum, which was forced to cancel in-person educational events. During the BIG NIGHT program, viewers were encouraged to donate to the museum.

BGS spoke with Hall of Fame member Ricky Skaggs and museum CEO Kyle Young about the event.

BGS: Kyle, how have things been at the museum since the shutdown?

Young: We’re hanging in. We were closed for about six months. We opened back up September 10 under very limited capacity. As I look at the year, I think we will end up looking at lost revenue approaching thirty five million dollars, so it’s a matter of trying to navigate through and I’m hoping that we can stay open, even though it’s very limited.

Ricky, it’d be hard to imagine such an event without you there considering that you have such a deep connection to this music. What does it mean for you to get to play Mr. Monroe’s mandolin?

Skaggs: I can’t believe I’m getting to play it one more time. Every time I play it I’m sure it’s the last time, but then they’ll drag it out again and I’m always like, “Oh, God, thank you.” The first time I played it, I was 6 years old. So I didn’t really know that much about how priceless it was even then. And he wouldn’t just take it off and give it to you to play. He wasn’t that way, you know? Sometimes we’d shared a dressing room together. And he’d have the lid open in the case, but it would be pushed down in the case. I would always ask his permission if I could play it and he’d let me.

But, I didn’t play it that much when he was alive. I’ve played it so much more since he passed. There was a time before it went into the museum that the Opry House had it in a vault. There was a guy there that would let me play it, and two or three times a year, I’d go out and make sure that the bridge was OK and maybe I’d put new strings on it and stuff like that. But I played it quite a bit back then. When it went into the museum, I thought, “This is it.” You walk by and see it in the case and think, “Well, that ain’t ever coming out.” But I’ve been able to play it a few times and I’m always thankful.

It’s an amazing sounding instrument. And I made sure to mention, when I was inducted into the Hall of Fame, that Mr. Monroe did not create this music by himself. That instrument was his partner. That was his number one instrument from the time that he got it. He and that instrument created the sound of bluegrass. I mean, he was so creative after he got that instrument. If you think about the instrumentals that he wrote before when he had that F-9 with that short scale you can tell he was very limited. But when he got that 14 fret neck — goodness gracious! It gave him the room and the tone and the whole Loar experience to work with. It was meant to be. It was a heavenly meeting of two instruments: Monroe being one instrument and the mandolin being the other.

Listen to Ricky Skaggs on Toy Heart with Tom Power: APPLE MUSIC • STITCHER • SPOTIFY • MP3

That’s a beautiful sentiment and a good point about how inspiring that instrument was for him. That connection between instrument and musician existed with all of these instruments, so it’s going to be special to watch all of these performances. Were you all excited to get to perform a bit?

Skaggs: We were. None of us three — me, Marty or Alison — have had COVID, and we’ve certainly been pent up and cooped up. I recently did a video for Camping World with Steven Curtis Chapman, and after one of the faster instrumentals we played, I remember thinking, “Man, I have got COVID fingers,” you know? Kentucky Thunder hasn’t played a show since March 11 and that’s just crazy. So, it was a lot of fun to play with Marty and Alison. I think it’s going to be a really, really great show, and I hope it raises a lot of money for the Hall of Fame, because even though they’ve had to shut down, the building must be paid for every month like nothing happened. But, something has happened and that’s another example of how hard this virus has been on America in general, and which has been really, really unfortunate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1j5JYpSfTc

I know that those instruments almost never leave their display cases so what were the circumstances that allowed the instruments to get played for this event?

Young: We knew that there were a lot of things we couldn’t do while we were closed, but we tried to focus on what we might be able to do under these circumstances and what opportunities there might be. I don’t know if you remember this or not, but very early on in the shutdown, the Shedd Aquarium let a couple of penguins out and let them walk around the aquarium and posted videos of them looking at the other exhibits. That got us to thinking about what we could do. We are a very active museum with lots of programming, but we realized with an empty museum, we can carefully take these instruments out of their cases.

So, the penguins were the germ of it, to tell you the truth. We wanted to do something that looked like us and felt like us. The backbone of the museum, as you know, is the collection — and the collection is unbelievable. The curatorial staff enjoyed carefully choosing which instrument they wanted to take out and allow to be played. From that point, we decided which artists made sense.

That’s so special because I know it’s such a rare thing. The only time I can remember something like it was when Ricky played Bill Monroe’s mandolin at the Medallion Ceremony back in 2018.

Young: That was very, very unusual. And after a lot of discussion, we thought that’d be a great thing to do with Ricky that afternoon. And likewise, this is something we never do. It is only because we were closed and able to really control the circumstances by which we were moving these instruments and carefully handling them and letting the artists play them. They’re behind glass for a reason. That’s the best way to protect them. And they are in an environment that is intensely controlled from temperature to humidity to light exposure and so on. But we did feel like under these circumstances, and only these circumstances, could we see our way clear to take them out for a little while and let them be played.

Photos courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum

This article was updated on November 12, 2020

BGS Long Reads of the Week // May 15

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Welcome to another week of long reads! The BGS archives are simply chocked full of golden content from across the years. So each week we’re sharing our favorite longer, more in-depth articles, stories, and features to help you pass the time. If you haven’t already, follow us on social media [on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram] for our #longreadoftheday picks — and as always, we’ll put them all together right here at the end of each week.

Our long reads this week are bluegrass two by two by two, they’re historic, they’re virtuosic, and they remain unbroken, too. Read more:

22 Top Bluegrass Duos

Ever since the earliest days of bluegrass and old-time all anyone has ever needed to start a “band” is just two folks, pickin’, singin’, and otherwise. This long read, a delightful collection of twenty-two of the greatest pairs to ever render a number together and call it bluegrass, could easily kill and an entire afternoon or evening — it’s a rabbit hole you’ll want to follow to its end. From Charlie and Bill to Skaggs and Rice and so much more, too. [Check out the full story]

Brandi Carlile: An Interview from Doc Watson’s Dressing Room

Just about a year ago now, in the afterglow of MerleFest 2019, we published this conversation with Brandi Carlile that we had in Doc Watson’s dressing room backstage at the festival grounds in Wilkesboro, NC. Carlile was about to headline the iconic bluegrass, Americana, and roots festival for the very first time — a somewhat historic occurrence that was not lost on those gathered in the storied main stage green rooms of the thirty-plus-year event. [Read the conversation]

Sierra Hull Seizes the Moment in 25 Trips

 

In our interview with singer/songwriter, mandolinist, and multi-instrumentalist Sierra Hull, we dig into the fresh sonic territory she explores on her most recent album, 25 Trips. For the first time, Hull worked with producer Shani Gandhi, who helped shape the album’s diverse production styles — from stripped down tracks with just guitar and vocals, to familiar bluegrass arrangements, to songs with fuller production than those found on Hull’s first four albums. [Read more]

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s Jeff Hanna Reflects on Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Volume 2

In September of last year, to mark the 30th anniversary of the “Circle 2” album, we had a conversation with Jeff Hanna about how the group was able to issue a follow-up to the first iconic Will the Circle be Unbroken record that somehow recaptured that magic while covering plenty of new ground. We coupled our interview with a special screening of archival footage from the documentary film about the making of Circle 2 at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. [Read the interview on BGS]

 

BGS Presents 30 Years of ‘Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Volume Two’ at Americanafest

Posted on by Editor

What started as a music video concept for the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band evolved into a 1989 full-length film documenting the all-star recording sessions for Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Volume Two. Nitty Gritty Dirt Band co-founder Jeff Hanna will present a rare screening of clips from The Making of Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Volume Two at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum on September 11 at 11 a.m., during AmericanaFest.

Hanna will be joined by bluegrass virtuoso Sam Bush, who appears in the film and on the album with New Grass Revival. Craig Shelburne, managing editor of the Bluegrass Situation, will moderate.

Produced by Joanne Gardner Lowell and Rosanne Cash, the film captures the band in the studio recording their groundbreaking project. Select clips will show performances by Johnny and June Carter Cash; Jerry Douglas; Emmylou Harris; Bruce Hornsby; Jimmy Martin; New Grass Revival; John Prine; Earl Scruggs; Randy Scruggs; Ricky Skaggs; and others. Will the Circle be Unbroken, Volume Two won three Grammy Awards as well as the 1989 CMA award for the Album of the Year.

Three decades after its release, Joanne Gardner Lowell offered some keen perspective on the film through an email interview with the Bluegrass Situation.

BGS: What was it about the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and this project that made it a compelling film subject for you?

JGL: ACME Pictures was contracted to make a video for the title track. This is pretty common. We signed the contract and when I asked what day during the multi-week schedule this song would be done, Jeff said, “All of them.” When I realized we would need to go to the studio every day for weeks to get this song, it seemed obvious we should shoot the whole experience — so we did.

How would you describe the mood, or the vibe, in the room during these sessions?

It was joyful in the studio. Each day the musicians came so ready to create and collaborate. We were honored to be in the room with it all. Being live made everyone really stay on top of their game. It felt like a family reunion on many days, and there was always a lot of humor and laughter. Our primary director, Bill Pope, captured so much of the mood with his amazing camera work.

It was also shot during the holiday season, so people were in a happy mood. Emmylou brought a handmade Christmas ornament you can see hanging in some of the shots. And my partner Rosanne Cash came into the studio with her newborn Carrie. I don’t think she was even two weeks old. Rose handed her to me and I held her tight while running sound for the track Rose and John Hiatt did together. Carrie never made a peep!

It was crucial to capture the acoustic nature of these sessions. What was your audio setup like?

I had a simple Nagra tape recorder just to have an edit track to work from and to record interviews. I had a single mic that I would place in the room to catch all the conversation, as some of that was obviously not recorded for the album and we wanted it for the film. Although, during our interview with Emmylou Harris, the band loved what she said so much that those comments ended up on the album.

Do you remember any particularly fun encounters with the legendary musicians in the film?

We caught some great moments and they’re in the film. The ending of a fast-paced “Valley Road” with Bruce Hornsby was a favorite. The band all stops for a second to look at each other — then they realize they got it and they all start shouting and cheering.

After Jimmy Martin’s session one day, he went out for some cocktails and came back into the studio while Ricky Skaggs was working. We captured Jimmy (feeling no pain and wearing a coonskin cap) as he and Ricky ripped into a spontaneous version of “The Old Crossroads.”

This film was Mr. Acuff’s last filmed appearance and that was special. I have to say — each time the song “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” was performed, it was magic. Every single time.

The Dirt Band did a masterful job of keeping things upbeat and fun for everyone. Every one of them was so engaged in each song — and brought individual songs or artists to the project. They were like marathon runners, giving their all each day and then coming back the next day to do it again.

What were some of the hurdles you faced in the film’s creation and release?

The very existence of this film was due to a California record company exec telling me that we would be in breach of contract if we didn’t deliver this video for the agreed-upon budget. When I explained this “song” was going to require us to shoot for several weeks, this delightful woman didn’t seem to care. I think it was meant to be — we HAD to make it work.

Bill couldn’t figure out how to light the dimly lit studio without a pile of light stands in every shot — and in everyone’s way. So, he created a giant light box and hung it from the ceiling. You don’t see a single light stand.

We didn’t have any money to sync up the video with electronic slates or fancy editing gear. I moved a cuts only 3/4″ video editing system into my office and had to sync the shots up by eye more than once… if we didn’t have an audio track running. Watching Mark O’Connor’s fingers or Earl Scruggs’ fingers to make sure you lock each note made for some very long nights. Those fingers were flying!

Rosanne and I sold 50 percent of the film rights to a company who released it on home video. Unbeknownst to us, the entire archive of that company was acquired by another company that isn’t interested in letting us buy the remaining rights, so we remain in limbo.

What do you hope a modern viewer will experience when watching these clips 30 years later?

This is a piece of living history. The first Circle album influenced every single musician I know. Watching the creation of the second — especially thirty years on — reminds you what kind of power music has.

It makes me sad to count off how many artists from this project are gone now: Johnny Cash, all of the Carter Sisters, Earl and Randy Scruggs, Vassar Clements, Chet Atkins, Levon Helm, John Denver, Roy Acuff, and dear Roy Huskey, Jr. In this world of instant technology, I think this 30-year-old film puts the viewer right into the studio for a front row seat at this amazing recording. I’m very proud of it.

Ralph Stanley Exhibit Opens at Country Music Hall of Fame

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum is shining a light on a bluegrass legend in the new exhibit, Ralph Stanley: Voice from on High. Presented with the participation of the Stanley family, the exhibit will remain open through January 9, 2019.

For generations, Ralph Stanley found a home in bluegrass music, starting with the influential recordings made with his brother Carter as The Stanley Brothers. Following Carter’s death in 1966, Ralph’s own journey led him to the Grand Ole Opry and the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame, with national recognition ranging from the Library of Congress to the Grammy Awards.

“I just want to say that I’m so glad to see this happen for Dad,” said Ralph Stanley II at the exhibit’s opening party. In his remarks, he remembered receiving a banjo from his father as a boy, although ultimately Ralph II ended up gravitating toward the guitar. Ralph II reminisced about falling asleep to the Clinch Mountain Gospel album while growing up – a ritual that led to dreams of sharing the stage with his father.

“Thanks to the good Lord, I got to do that,” he stated. “There’s been a lot of great banjo players and a lot of great singers. But nobody could play it with the emotion and feel that Dad had. That’s for sure.”

Photos by Jason Davis/Getty Images

Capturing the Outlaws: Country Music Hall of Fame Salutes the 1970s

Posted on by Editor

Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson are familiar to every country fan – and more than a few would consider them the original Outlaws. In a brand new exhibit, Outlaws & Armadillos: Country’s Roaring ’70s, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville strives to explain how that name stuck. More importantly, it traces the connection between Nashville and Austin to show how these cities shaped country music in the 1970s, considered one of the genre’s most incredible periods of creativity and individuality.

The emergence of Willie Nelson as an iconic Texas musician is central to the exhibit. His blue sneakers and other parts of his casual wardrobe are emblematic of how he stood apart from country entertainers in that era.

Waylon Jennings and his wife, Jessi Colter (shown above), appeared on the first-ever platinum country album, Wanted! The Outlaws (1976). Guitars, a Grammy Award, and posters from Jennings’ performances in Nashville and Austin are on display.

A poster of the film Heartworn Highways is displayed next to a poncho embroidered with “… and Lefty,” which belonged to Townes Van Zandt. Items from Guy Clark, coach Darrell Royal, Alvin Crow, and Uncle Walt’s Band are also featured.

The comprehensive exhibit explains the contributions of Jerry Jeff Walker, Asleep at the Wheel, Michael Murphey, Doug Sahm and Freda & the Firedogs, through rarely-seen memorabilia provided by the artists.

Joe Ely poses next to the uniform he wore while working for the circus. Ely became a force in Texas music as a member of The Flatlanders and through a number of acclaimed solo projects. He also performed on opening night.

Texas natives Tanya Tucker and Billy Joe Shaver catch up at the opening night party. Jennings’ 1973 album, Honky Tonk Heroes, is composed almost entirely of Shaver’s songs. Tucker broke through in 1972 with “Delta Dawn.”

Text by Craig Shelburne

Country Music Hall of Fame’s Words & Music Inspires Kids and Artists Alike

Posted on by Editor

When Wild Ponies first decided to volunteer with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum's Words & Music program, they had no idea how much that decision would come to influence the direction of their music. The Nashville-based duo of Telisha and Doug Williams fell into the program somewhat by accident, stepping in at the last minute to help out a friend.

"Shortly after we moved [to Nashville], they needed a substitute to come in," Telisha explains. "Normally, you have two weeks with the lyrics, but we only had two days, the first time we did it."

After that one visit, however, the band was hooked. "We did it that one time and absolutely loved it," she adds. "We've been able to do it a couple times each year since we've lived in Nashville."

Words & Music is an educational program at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum available for free (or at a low cost) for kids grade three through 12. The program marries songwriting with language arts for a 10-lesson unit that can take place either in local schools or at the Hall of Fame's Taylor Swift Education Center. Relying heavily on the help of local artist "teachers," the program culminates with student lyrics getting the full Music Row treatment from volunteer songwriters, being workshopped, and eventually performed as full songs. Since its inception in 1979, the program has helped over 100,000 students improve their language arts skills and express themselves through the power of music. 

"A couple weeks before doing the Words & Music program, [the CMHOF] passes along 50 to 75 lyrics," Telisha says. "The kids have been given a six-week course in songwriting where they learn what choruses do or what the verse of a song accomplishes, and a little bit about rhyming scheme and meter, and that's through the school system. Then the kids submit the lyrics of songs after that curriculum, on any number of topics. We get a lot of songs about tacos and Minecraft and unicorns — all kinds of things." She laughs, then adds, "Then, on the day that we go over, the kids are touring the Country Music Hall of Fame and, after they're done with their tour, they come into the Taylor Swift Education Center and we're there and talk a little bit more about songwriting and what it's like to be a songwriter and tour for a living, and we present about an hour workshop. We've taken six or seven of the sets of lyrics that we have gotten and turned them into songs."

Wild Ponies loved one of their finished songs so much that it became the title track for their just-announced album, Radiant, which comes out May 13. The band co-wrote the song with a 12-year-old Shelbyville, Tennessee, student and aspiring musician, Mariah Moore, who will receive co-writing credit in the album's liner notes, as well as royalties from any track sales or licensing thanks to getting set up with BMI. 

"We get a lot of material that we would never necessarily sing at our own shows," Telisha says. "But this one girl, she was in a sixth grade program, and the imagery that she presented in the song was just stunning. When we were sitting down to put it to music, this really, slightly different style of melody and playing came out. We were really excited about this song when we got to the Country Music Hall of Fame that day. We saved it until the end and we announced, 'Is Mariah here today?' and she wasn't even there that day. We were devastated. We just couldn't let it go and, when we got home, we decided that we would keep working on that song." 

In addition to featuring the Words & Music collaboration, Radiant is an especially important release for Wild Ponies because, while being a step forward musically for the band as a whole, it's been an important step in Telisha's own personal healing through music.

"On our last record, I exposed and opened up a lot about my experience as a surivor of sexual abuse," she says. "This record, I feel like it's not a continuation of that. What it feels like, to me, is a person who has healed from that experience. I feel confident and comfortable in myself as an artist and in us as the kind of music we play. It feels more stable and secure as a record. We're exploring a little bit deeper and there are some more universal themes. We're really excited about it."

Learn more about Words and Music here. Pre-order Wild Ponies' Radiant here.

Photo credit: Stacie Huckeba

Rosanne Cash Begins Residency at the Country Music Hall of Fame

Posted on by Editor

Since the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum began its annual artist-in-residence program back in 2003, only two women have graced its stage — Connie Smith, in 2012, and Rosanne Cash, this year. Last night marked Cash's first-of-three performances at the Hall with a nearly three-hour concert, during which she and her band played her much-lauded The River & the Thread in its entirety, along with a smattering of back-catalog tunes.

As the musicians laid down the now-signature groove of “A Feather's Not a Bird,” Cash swaggered out to center stage and had at it. Classy and confident, she seemed right at home in the 800-seat CMA Theater. And why shouldn't she? Cash noted that a good part of her family's history resides in that building. (In fact, a Johnny Cash window display greeted guests as they walked down the corridor toward the theater's lobby.)

Another part of Cash's family history resides in the stories of the South that fill The River & the Thread and, between the songs, she fleshed those stories out a bit more. To hear an artist's seminal work, as originally visioned and personally narrated, is a powerful experience that takes the listener deeper into the craftsmanship than they can possibly go on their own. And, because the record came out 18 months ago, Cash and company were thoroughly at ease in its presentation.

In addition to producer/guitarist/co-writer/husband John Leventhal, Cash's phenomenally talented band included Kevin Barry on guitar and lap steel, Glenn Patscha on keyboards, Zev Katz on bass, and Dan Rieser on drums. Throughout the set, each player got a chance to shine from the “gospel song that even agnostics might love” that is “Tell Heaven” to the “Stephen Foster-ish, Johnny Mercer-ish, and Kurt Vile-ish” melody of “Night School.” But “Money Road” — which winds its way past Robert Johnson's grave at Mount Zion Church, Emmett Till's undoing at Bryant's Grocery, the Tallahatchie Bridge, William Faulkner's once-home, and more — was where Leventhal and Barry really got to go for it.

Deep into the album, Cash introduced Cory Chisel to guest on “50,000 Watts,” explaining that because Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, and others listened to the “race music” being played on WDIA in Memphis, that station “changed the course of modern country music through those young men.” Likewise, she heard Chisel on the radio in Europe and tracked him down to sing with her, feeling like he had the power to do the same. That's quite a statement to make, and the honey-voiced Chisel showed why he deserved it.

For the second half of the show, Cash offered up all sorts of great cuts, from the shuffling groove of “Radio Operator” from 2006's Black Cadillac to the country chug of “I'm Movin' On” off 2009's The List. In between her tunes, she invited Lucinda Williams and Tony Joe White out to take turns in the spotlight.

The showstopper, quite literally, was a blazing rendition of the classic “Tennessee Flat Top Box” which found Leventhal and Walsh handing unfathomable runs off to each other. For the encore, Cash followed “Seven Year Ache” with a rousing group rendition of “500 Miles” which found Cash, Chisel, and Williams each taking a verse, with White chiming in on harmonica.

Over the course of those three hours, it became quite clear that Rosanne Cash's voice sounds and feels like that of an old friend, and her songs are not just the stories of her life … they are the stories of all our lives.

Photos courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum