Tag: Fred Cockerham

You Gotta Hear This: JP Harris, Laura Veirs, and More

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Every Friday, BGS shines a light on some of our favorite new tracks in bluegrass, folk, Americana and beyond. Then we ask the artist about the inspiration behind the music and pass their wise words along to you.

This week, enjoy new music from singer and banjo picker JP Harris, acoustic songwriting duo Justin Hiltner & Jon Weisberger, and the Celtic roots music of Kalos, as well as the eclectic jazz-inspired group Mr. Sun, the inventive Wyoming duo The Two Tracks, longtime indie folk favorite Laura Veirs, and finally, Austin’s own rockabilly stars, Monte Warden and the Wagoneers.

Believe us when we say…. You Gotta Hear This!

JP Harris, “Roustabout”

Artist: JP Harris
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: Roustabout
Album: Shaving a Dead Man
Album Release Date: October 30, 2026
Label: Bloodshot Records

In Their Words: “I remember hearing ‘Roustabout’ for the first time from a warbly dubbed tape passed along by a friend, and was immediately struck by Fred Cockerham’s playing; not long after, I heard Dirk Powell’s rendition, ironically just as I’d become obsessed with the fretless banjo, under the alternate name ‘Hop High My Lulu Gal.’ It is melodically peculiar, and though not technically in a minor or modal key, has all the eerie dissonant notes from ‘between the piano keys’ that drew me into old time music some twenty five years ago.

“I found myself somewhat retreating from a difficult stretch of life the winter I recorded this, high up in Monroe County, West Virginia, and the opening verse felt like a letter back down the mountains to a world wondering where I’d gone: roustabout, oh roustabout / honey, where you been so long? / I’ve been in the pen with the forty-dollar men / and honey, I’m going back before long…” — JP Harris

Video by Tessa McCoy. Recorded at Cook’s Old Mill, Greenville, Monroe County, West Virginia

Justin Hiltner & Jon Weisberger, “I Could Cry”

Artist: Justin Hiltner & Jon Weisberger
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee and Brevard, North Carolina
Song: “I Could Cry”
Album: Sycamore
Single Release Date: August 14, 2026
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

In Their Words: “‘I Could Cry’ was the second song that Justin and I wrote for this collection, just a few months after we wrote the first, ‘I Couldn’t Cry.’ I like to think this characterizes our emotional range as songwriters! As usual, we built off an idea Justin had, but I recall that we wound up going in a slightly more optimistic direction, lyrically, than where the song was headed at the start. It’s still pretty gloomy, but ‘maybe I’ll just stay’ at the end of each chorus offers a balancing touch of resignation that’s still well short of actual hope, but puts it right in the middle of bluegrass tradition – and so does the virtuosity of the band. We truly had a dream ensemble in the studio!” — Jon Weisberger

“I think my favorite thing about my songwriting partnership with Jon over the years is that he’s always willing to follow my ideas that are truly based in personal expression. This song began as an examination of my journey with treatment-resistant depression and, with Jon’s help, it became something so much more – and that doesn’t feel wallowing or trite. Plus, what a relief that we can write bluegrass songs that actually say something together!” — Justin Hiltner

Track Credits:
Justin Hiltner – Banjo, lead vocal
Jon Weisberger – Upright bass, harmony vocal
Seth Taylor – Acoustic guitar
Libby Weitnauer – Fiddle
Jenni Lyn Gardner – Mandolin
Wendy Hickman – Harmony vocal

Kalos, “Pretty Good Friday/Ladybug”

Artist: Kalos
Hometown: Tacoma, Washington; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Sharon, Vermont
Song: “Pretty Good Friday/Ladybug”
Album: Tamarack
Album Release Date: October 9, 2026

In Their Words: “Ryan composed the first tune on a Friday afternoon and later realized it was Good Friday. Jeremiah named the second ‘foot stomper’ for the Asian or Harlequin beetle, an invasive species of ladybug where he lives. What we love to do as a band is arrange together. We live in the weeds sifting through and spending the time needed to come up with what feels right collectively. Sometimes we get carried away. This was our attempt at putting that aside and creating a set of feel-good, straight-ahead, high-energy reels. We did our best.” — Eric McDonald, Kalos

Track Credits:
Ryan McKasson – Fiddle
Jeremiah McLane – Accordion
Eric McDonald – Guitar
Yann Falquet – Producer

Video by Dylan Ladds, Dooster

Mr. Sun, “The Invisible Present”

Artist: Mr. Sun
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “The Invisible Present”
Album: The Idea Guys
Album Release Date: September 4, 2026
Label: Adhyâropa Records

In Their Words: “A notable thing about the timing of this record: though in our fourteenth or fifteenth year as a band together with a few albums and many, many gigs behind us, “The Idea Guys” record came at a moment of particular significance. Aidan, always ahead of the curve, has been a family man since 2019 and Darol, while not being a parent in the traditional sense, has nurtured probably thousands of musical progeny either directly or from afar through his musical and pedagogical reputation. But at the time of making the record, Joe and I were both very new fathers: his daughter Hartley is just six months younger than my son Elias.

“Before Elias could talk or walk much, for a while he made a practice of sweetly handing my wife and me little “invisible presents” with his tiny fingers; my interpretation was that he was learning, in some nascent way, about generosity and how to think of and care for others, all while exerting some newfound fine motor control. “The Invisible Present” is an ode to the simple beauty of new life, and the poetic-sounding double meaning of the title made it that much more fitting.” — Grant Gordy, Mr. Sun

Track Credits:
Darol Anger – Fiddle
Joe K. Walsh – Mandolin
Grant Gordy – Guitar
Aidan O’Donnell – Bass

The Two Tracks, “Seasons Unknown”

Artist: The Two Tracks
Hometown: Sheridan, Wyoming
Song: “Seasons Unknown”
Album: Seasons Unknown
Release Date: August 14, 2026

In Their Words: “‘Seasons Unknown’ came from my time living in the Northern Plains of Wyoming after I moved there in my twenties. What I thought would be just another place to land ended up becoming home for more than two decades, where I still live and write today. You get hot summers, bitter cold winters, and the smell of sagebrush after it rains. You also might see a late spring snowstorm or an 80-degree day in November—you never really know what season you’re in! I took a job doing archaeological surveys, and hiked across red rock buttes to open rolling hills to deep, rocky arroyos. It all reminded me of the old Westerns I used to watch with my grandma when I was a kid. This song is my thank you to a place that welcomed me and also convinced me to stay.

“Making this film was a spontaneous decision one evening this past spring when we received several inches of snow in town. The moody light of the late afternoon, and the calm snowy scene around town was too pristine to miss, so we raced out to capture it before dark. By the middle of the next morning, all of the snow was gone.” — Dave Huebner

Track Credits:
Julie Huebner – Vocals, acoustic guitar
David Huebner – Electric guitar, harmony vocals
Taylor Phillips – Bass, harmonyvocals
Fernando Serna – Drums, harmony vocals
Will Kimbrough – Electric guitar, producer

Video by Dave Huebner/Back of Beyond Media

Laura Veirs, “Feeling Returns”

Artist: Laura Veirs
Hometown: Portland, Oregon
Song: “Feeling Returns”
Album: Temple Songs
Release Date: August 14, 2026
Label: Raven Marching Band Records

In Their Words: “This is a song about the dreaminess and also the fears that come with new love. There’s anger in this song but also transformation and a hope that newfound love becomes lasting love. I performed this song on stage in Minneapolis last October on the same day that I wrote it. That was a first. This song came out in one burst with no edits (they rarely come through like that and when they do it feels like a gift from another sphere). I like how the guitar parts interplay in a cool, polyrhythmic way. I also like the line about the Devil’s head. Saucy!” — Laura Veirs

Track Credits:
Written, produced, recorded, arranged and performed by Laura Veirs at the Temple of Bloom in Portland, Oregon, in the fall of 2025

Monte Warden and The Wagoneers, “Ballad of Paladin”

Artist: Monte Warden and the Wagoneers
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Song: “Ballad of Paladin”
Album: Doghouse Flowers EP
Release Date: August 10, 2026

In Their Words: “The reason for the whole-danged session right here. We were commissioned to give The Wags’ spin on this ol’ classic TV Western theme song. It’s crazy-fun, very us, and I will be FOREVER grateful for the way He presented this opportunity to us. There is a new book out called American Paladin by the bestselling author Larry Correia. His publishers are big Wags fans and they wanted us to cut the tune as part of the promo campaign for the book series. Fun fact: The coolest-thing-ever-six-string bass part Brent Wilson picks was on a Danelectro once owned by Harold Bradley – and, wait for it, also once played by Elvis at a June of ’58 session at RCA Studio B.” — Monte Warden

Track Credits:
Monte Warden – Lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Brent Wilson – Lead guitar, background vocals
Brad Fordham – Bass, background vocals
Mas Palermo – Drums, percussion, background vocals
Nick Litterski – Piano, Hammond B3
Brooks Warden – Background vocals
Brandi Warden – Background vocals

Photo Credits: Emilia Paré (JP Harris); Shelby Brakken (Laura Veirs)

LISTEN: Nora Brown, “Little Satchel”

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Artist: Nora Brown
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Song: “Little Satchel”
Album: Long Time to Be Gone
Release Date: August 26, 2022
Label: Jalopy Records

In Their Words: “This is a tune I learned from both Fred Cockerham off the album High Atmosphere and also from the playing of Riley Baugus. I first listened to High Atmosphere on a visit to the album’s creator, John Cohen, up in Putnam Valley, New York, but only got around to learning it more recently. I often break my first string when I tune to this one, so I’ve been a bit scared away from playing it live. Fred’s playing and singing on this song is just incredible, especially the little rhythmic pattern he plays continuously throughout the song.

“I recorded my last project in an underground tunnel, but this time we were working in a cavernous church, which allowed us to really experiment with all the sounds that different locations in the sanctuary and different mic configurations could produce. When you listen, you can hear the expanse of the space pretty clearly, which was really important to our approach on these recordings.” — Nora Brown

Photo Credit: Benton Brown

MIXTAPE: Vivian Leva & Riley Calcagno’s Old-Time Deep Cuts

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We were both old-time music festival kids, showing up at our parents’ jams with dirt-covered feet, stopping for a moment to listen to the tunes and songs that would undoubtedly carry on late into the night. When we met and first played music, it wasn’t to write or sing songs, but to stay up all night playing fiddle tunes, thrilled by the parallel experiences we shared that allowed playing together to feel effortless. Though the songs on our upcoming duo record aren’t traditional and draw a wide net of inspiration, we aimed to have the groove and groundedness of string band music woven into the feeling of the album.

This playlist includes some of our favorite (deep) cuts of old-time music, at least the ones that have been published for streaming and don’t linger on a cassette or family archive. We selected these to give you a sense of how each song or tune has spun a web of connection that somehow wound its way in our direction. We chose many songs that are somehow close to us and the people we know. We chose some that, by their very existence, make clear the injustice that this music and the people who make it are grappling with and/or trying to overcome.

Old-time music isn’t any one particular thing, but is instead filled with contradictions. Even its name feels odd to write and at odds with how we view it. Yet, it is the music that feels like home to us. Come and join our tragic and raging old-time party. – Vivian Leva and Riley Calcagno

Dirk Powell – “Three Forks of Cumberland”

This is one of our favorite recorded instances of old-time music and its unique, reckless drive. This twisty tune is a rare occurrence of a melody that came from sheet music, off the Hamblon family manuscripts. Dirk Powell is joined here by the original members of Foghorn Stringband, recorded live in Eugene, Oregon. You can hear us play this tune live during a jam at the Appalachian String Band Music Festival in Clifftop, West Virginia, on this Bandcamp release.

The Renegades – “Chilly Winds”

In the ‘90s, Vivian’s parents, Carol Elizabeth Jones and James Leva, played in The Renegades with Richie Stearns and June Drucker. Their combination of old-time string band music, harmony singing, and original songs are unique and well-crafted. Riley discovered this band in his dad’s iTunes library in high school before ever meeting Viv and was instantly hooked. Here, they play a song from the Round Peak region of North Carolina called “Chilly Winds.”

Lily May Ledford – “White Oak Mountain”

Lily May Ledford of Powell County, Kentucky sings this song of a woman who has been betrayed and seeks revenge. Ledford was the leader of the Coon Creek Girls, a widely recognized string band from the ‘30s to ‘50s. Viv’s mom Carol Elizabeth Jones sings this song (with the name “44 Gun”) on the recently re-released 1991 cassette, Rambling & Wandering, by the Wandering Ramblers.

Tara Nevins – “Rocky Island”

This record from Tara Nevins is one of our favorite traditional/original fusion projects. Check out that bouncy electric guitar… wowza. This one is sung by Jim Miller, now one of our label-mates with Western Centuries.

Hazel Dickens & Alice Gerrard – “Let Me Fall”

Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard sing this Round Peak classic on this practice tape, recorded live in Alice’s kitchen and released by Free Dirt Records.

Tommy Jarrell – “God Gave Noah the Rainbow Sign”

The musician who arguably had the most influence on today’s old-time music scene is Tommy Jarrell of Surry County, North Carolina. Tommy welcomed younger visitors in the 1970s and ‘80s (including Viv’s dad, James, on many occasions) to his house to learn tunes, swap stories, and pass on ideas about the music. Inspiration from Tommy’s playing, especially his bowing, has spread throughout the old-time scene. For more of Tommy, check out this video of Tommy and his frequent musical partner Fred Cockerham playing on a porch in 1971.

Paul Brown – “Red Clay Country”

Paul Brown beautifully picks the banjo and sings this old song on his record of the same name. He learned it from his mom, Louise Dichman Brown, who learned it in the 1920s from two brothers, John and Harry Calloway of Bedford County, Virginia. Paul told us that there are some early recordings of this song on so-called “race records,” the name given to records released featuring Black musicians in the highly segregated and exploitative record industry. This song in particular was a work song, sung by workers on the railroads. These laborers were often wrongly convicted Black people working dangerous and sometimes deadly jobs. Kevin Kehrberg and Jeffrey A. Keith write about this in their research on Swannanoa Tunnel (both the song and construction of the tunnel), a song that is similar to “Red Clay Country.”

Plank Road String Band – “Sail Away / George Booker”

This band came out of Vivian’s home county, Rockbridge County, Virginia, in the 1980s and features her dad James Leva. This track was featured on The Young Fogies, a compilation of the old-time music community during the ’80s revival era. The fabulously frenetic cello, played by Michael Kott, is unique for old-time music, as is the tenor banjo played by Al Tharp. The band had a few successful and influential tours in Scandinavia.

Bruce Molsky – “Last of Harris”

John Morgan Salyer of Magoffin County, Kentucky, was a fiddler who lived from 1882-1952. Though music was never his career, he played unique, often “crooked” (meaning an unexpected number of beats in each part) versions of fiddle tunes. His family recorded him at home in the 1940s, but these recordings weren’t made publicly available until nearly 50 years later thanks in large part to the work of Vivian’s grandfather, Loyal Jones. Here is one of our favorite Salyer tunes, played by one of our favorite fiddlers, Bruce Molsky (along with his partner, Audrey Molsky) on his 1993 Yodel-Ay-Hee cassette, Warring Cats.

Foghorn Stringband – “Best Timber”

Riley grew up around the band Foghorn Stringband and absorbed their uniquely driving sound at Stickerville in Weiser, Idaho, at the Portland Old-Time Music Gathering, and in lively kitchen parties around the Pacific Northwest. They learned this tune from the great Midwestern fiddler, Garry Harrison.

Gribble, Lusk, and York – “Rolling River: Country Dance”

Murphy Gribble, John Lusk, and Albert York of Warren County, Tennessee, were one of the best string bands of the 20th century. Even so, they were never commercially recorded because they were a Black string band at a time when record companies wouldn’t record such a band. (Black musicians were essentially barred from recording string band music and their recordings were segregated into “race records” which we mention above.) Murphy Gribble’s banjo playing in this recording is especially notable as creative and exceptional three-finger picking. More resources on Black string band music is on our friend, spectacular musician, and labelmate Jake Blount’s website. More writing on Gribble, Lusk, and York in an article by Linda L. Henry here.

Roscoe Holcomb – “Hills of Mexico”

Speaking of divine picked banjo, Roscoe Holcomb of the town of Daisy in Perry County, Kentucky, sings this story, “Hills of Mexico.” Mike Seeger, at a performance at Holcomb’s nursing home in Hazard, Kentucky, said that what set him apart is “that he had that real drive, like he really meant it… he had real conviction to his playing, and of course he sing with that high voice, and he’d take a lot of those old mountain songs and make them real special.” Viv’s mom, Carol Elizabeth Jones, also sings this song on a recording with The Renegades.

Bigfoot – “The Dying Cowboy”

Susie Goehring of Northeastern Ohio sings this heartbreaker on the great album by elusive string band Bigfoot. Rhys Jones plays some appropriately mournful fiddle lines under the vocal on the recording. We aren’t entirely sure where Susie learned it but Vivian sings a version from Sloan Matthews, recorded in Pecos, Texas, in 1942.

The Onlies – “Look Up, Look Down”

We also play in an old-time string band called The Onlies that Riley started with his friends Sami Braman and Leo Shannon when they were seven years old. Viv joined in 2017 after a chance meeting during the days between Centrum’s Voice Works and Fiddle Tunes workshops in Port Townsend, Washington. This track is sung by Leo on The Onlies newest record. We learned this version from the great Gaither Carlton.

The Humdingers – “Cumberland Gap”

There is something difficult about capturing the distinct energy of a string band on a recording. Often the best music happens late at night, far off in a field, and certainly never gets uploaded to Spotify. Here is a recorded instance of a band finding the center of the groove on one of the best fiddle tunes there is, “Cumberland Gap.” This recording is of the band The Humdingers with Brad Leftwich on the fiddle, Linda Higginbotham on the banjo uke, Bob Herring on guitar, Ray Alden on banjo, and Dirk Powell on bass.

Photo credit: Brendon Burton