Tag: Holiday

BGS Wraps: The Rootsiest Time of the Year

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

In our eyes and to our ears, there’s no better family of musical genres to usher in the holiday season than roots music. Bluegrass, Americana, old-time, country, blues, and beyond – they’re all perfectly suited for the coziest time of year, for togetherness, for parties and gift-giving and cookie icing. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or Winter Solstice – or even if you feel like opting out of the ruckus altogether – there is roots music for you.

Each year, we like to share our picks for the rootsiest time of the year in BGS Wraps, a weekly collection of songs, videos, albums, shows, tours, and events that celebrate the season. We share a few of our favorites, mostly brand new but often classics and timeless selections, too. Plus, we collect all that we can into a running playlist so you’re ready when the family or party hands you the aux cable.

We hope you enjoy BGS Wraps and tune in the next week as we continue our series celebrating the holiday season. (Catch up on week one here. And check out week two here.)

Merry Happy Whatever, The Doohickeys

Country duo the Doohickeys go fully original with their brand new Christmas EP, Merry Happy Whatever. Their trademark wit and humor are evident across the project’s five songs – including gut-busters like “Santa Needs A Beer” and “Santa Is A Stoner.” (Does Santa need a breathalyzer, as well?) On the EP’s title track, the delightfully crowd-pleasing and all-encompassing “Merry Happy Whatever,” Haley Spence Brown and Jack Hackett are joined by the Wolves of Glendale, with rich background vocals and holiday winds and brass to accomplish that full-tilt holiday sound. And a merry happy whatever to you, too!

A Cherry Valley Holiday, Carter Faith

A favorite of ours from the mainstream country space, Carter Faith released an excellent A-side/B-side holiday single this season, pairing “Nothin’ For Christmas” (featuring William Beckmann) with “Please Come Home For Christmas.” Packaged as a two-song collection titled A Cherry Valley Holiday, both tracks are perfectly suited for your countriest Christmas playlists. Faith’s duet with Beckmann showcases how both artists keep tradition alive while still looking to the future. You may be reminded of iconic duets like Lee Ann Womack with George Strait or Dolly Parton with Kenny Rogers. The holiday cheer doesn’t stop there, either, Faith recently joined Jimmy Fallon himself on “Ugly Sweater,” a funny seasonal track produced by Dave Cobb that the pair unveiled together on The Tonight Show. Between the Christmas singles and “Ugly Sweater,” there’s a country holiday flavor for everyone. Carter Faith does it all.

“Christmas in Yuma,” Cameron Knowler

One of our favorite albums of the year was released by guitarist, archivist, writer, and composer Cameron Knowler (who sometimes writes for BGS, too). CRK was released in April and, being set in the desert in and around Yuma, Arizona, the project feels properly warm and sunny, painting sonic pictures of red rocks and cactuses and blacktop baking in the sun. If that doesn’t sound properly Christmas-y to you, take a moment to inhabit the album’s lead track, “Christmas in Yuma.” A gorgeous prose poem set to sparse, textural guitar, the text was written by Knowler but is read by his friend and fellow Southwesterner, Jack Kilmer. It’s a truly stunning beginning to the project and we’ve been holding onto it all year for just this occasion. It may not be the most sing-along ready track of the holiday season, but its transportive feelings of nostalgia, grief, longing, and pain at seismic transformations – or at cloying, gluey stagnation, or both – are altogether more than perfect for the holidays.

“Christmas Love Song,” Willie Nelson

If the only present any of us received this year was a “Christmas Love Song” from Willie Nelson, well, that would feel like a pretty complete holiday season, wouldn’t it? With just one simple offering, every “need” could be checked off our wish lists. Written by fellow legend Bill Anderson (with help from Bobby Tomberlin and Marv Green) and produced by fellow legend Buddy Cannon, “Christmas Love Song” includes plenty of Nelson’s signature charm, whether in his languid phrasing or his tasteful nylon-string licks on his trusty guitar, Trigger. In the lyric itself Nelson is remarkably humble about his holiday offering: “It ain’t a lot, but every word of it’s true/ It don’t sparkle or shine/ But it’s one of a kind…” For all of us who’ve received this holiday gift from the legendary Willie Nelson, it feels like more than enough. And we will certainly cherish it.

“Oh, It’s Christmas,” Sage Palser and Prairie Wildfire featuring Danny Paisley

New bluegrass holiday hits are all too rare, so we relish them when we find them. This release from 2024 is a great example, cheery sleigh bells giving way to burning bluegrass that will warm the winter right out of your heart. Sage Palser joined Danny Paisley and the Southern Grass on a recent single that ended up on Paisley’s most recent album, Bluegrass State of Mind, and their knack for collaboration is showcased on “Oh, It’s Christmas,” as well. Paisley and Palser sing in duet while backed up by Palser’s band, Prairie Wildfire. This one has got us in the mood for Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Christmas. It’s the perfect bluegrass track for some cinnamon bread and roller coasters.

“Office Christmas Party,” Brittany Ann Tranbaugh feat. Carsie Blanton

Ah, at long last, a tribute to everyone’s favorite events of the holiday season – the dreaded office Christmas party. From Brittany Ann Tranbaugh and Carsie Blanton, “Office Christmas Party” is silly and light-hearted, but with a message direct from Ebenezer Scrooge’s counting house employees: Sure, gifts of appreciation from our employer at this time of year are appreciated, but we’d much prefer workers’ rights, collective bargaining, and a living wage. Enjoy the free beer, cookies, and pizza at your corporate party, of course – and commiserating with our coworkers is solidarity, whether they know it or not – but focus on what will really bring the reason for the season into focus. A union! Tranbaugh and Blanton continue to showcase their penchant for making mission-focused music that’s also fun, engaging, and joyous.

“Where My Heart Is,” Randy Travis

Thanks to technology, AI, and contributions from vocalist James DuPré, Randy Travis “got his voice back” last year and began releasing brand new music featuring the low, smoky, dulcet tones for which he was adored. It’s one of the more interesting use-cases of AI in music, leveraged to give an artist their agency back instead of stealing it away forever. Travis’ pair of singles with his new AI-enabled voice are well-executed for what they are, but a newly released from-the-vault track like “Where My Heart Is” still reaffirms the ineffable in his hitmaking voice that we won’t ever get back. Even the best AI just cannot compare. “Where My Heart Is” was recorded prior to Travis’ fateful 2013 stroke that would render him unable to sing. It’s a lovely, heartfelt track that falls in perfect step with his beloved holiday albums An Old Time Christmas and Songs of the Season. We’ll take any/all Randy Travis songs we can get, but this one feels extra special.

Christmas with el Twanguero, Twanguero

Spanish guitarist Diego Garcia is Twanguero, maker of one of the finest holiday collections to be released this year, Christmas with el Twanguero. Recorded entirely to analog tape, the album of instrumental renditions of holiday favorites is tasteful, warm, and cozy. It would fit just perfectly bookended by Vince Guaraldi Trio and Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings. It’s understated in its execution, relying on retro vibes and sounds to do the heavy lifting holiday pomp and bling would normally bring on such a project. For an album centered on the guitar, it never feels like it has to rely on showboating or hot licks, instead leaning into familiarity to bring us something that feels refreshing and new. It’s cinematic and lush, but down to earth and intimate, too. Plus, the album supports El Patojismo, a school of arts and social transformation based in Jocotenango, Guatemala, fostering education and creativity within its community. All around, it’s a lovely holiday discovery.

Peace, Love, and Cowboys (Holiday Edition), Lainey Wilson

Not sure if or when we’ve ever enjoyed such a holiday treat as this! Lainey Wilson returns to “Peace, Love, and Cowboys” from the deluxe release of her 2024 hit album, Whirlwind, to offer us a lovely holiday rewrite of the track. Retooled for the season, the message of the song resonates all the same – we need more hippie cowboys, cowgirls, and cowbabes, this time of year and beyond. The Christmas EP also includes a duet with Bing Crosby himself on “Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!” – Wilson can get anyone on a feature! Plus, she revisits a prior holiday single, “Christmas Cookies;” she also includes instrumental versions of each number, if you happen to have a word-free playlist that needs new transfusions of seasonal songs. We love the way Wilson approaches country music, and this little collection shows the creativity and outside-the-box-thinking she brings to the table.

Lead Image: Randy Travis by Marisa Taylor; Carter Faith by Bree Marie Fish; The Doohickeys by Jesse DeFlorio.

Our Readers’ Writings on Food, Music, and Nostalgia

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

The winter season reverberates with deep nostalgia, often based around sensory memories of music and food. Songs and recipes are passed down from generation to generation, allowing people to live in the same sounds and smells as their parents and grandparents. Bluegrass has always had a deep appreciation for a great meal, from “Hot Corn, Cold Corn,” to “Keep My Skillet Good and Greasy.” It’s such an established relationship, we even put together a BGS roundup of “Songs to Whet Your Appetite” a few years ago. For further listening, check out this Apple Music Playlist, Bluegrass Feast: Songs About Food, and our archive BGS Podcast about chefs and their kitchen playlists, The Shift List.

This season, we asked our readers to submit creative writing about the marriage of music and food, to make our ears ring and our mouths water. In this collection, Miriam Story and Shatazha Mattingly remember their grandparents’ singing while cooking up biscuits and empanadas. Stay tuned for fake teeth and flying ladles.

“Six Biscuits, Every Time”

by Miriam Story

It’d be the weekend and we’d have to be up by 7 o’clock for the adults’ errands. Poppy had silver partials on his uppers and lowers, and he’d soak them in Efferdent overnight in a tiny tupperware dish perched on the edge of the sink. They’d stay there until he’d eaten his breakfast, brushed his real teeth, and gelled his wiry hair to this side and that. But in the couple of hours he was partially toothless, he clowned out and sang off-key, delighted and encouraged by groans and grimaces. As Nana’s back curved over the stove, cast iron skillets on every burner and one in the oven, he would bound down the hall like a horse, clapping his hands and hooting. My cousin andI, tucked into bed– this is before they differentiated us: boy and girl– curled away from the white sunshine. And we’d know he was coming. There was no missing it: he would bust open the door doing his vocal warmups for what he called “The Bikit Song.” Gums hidden by his sunken leather cheeks, he’d nuzzle his face into the back of our hair and sing between kisses, how many bikits can you eat in the mornin? how many bikits in a day? And this would go on with no particular melody and no more than those two lines until we sat up, bleary and laughing politely.

Miriam Story originates from Russell Springs, Kentucky. While she enjoys writing about her Appalachian roots, she thinks her favorite subjects are gray beaches, a good pot roast, and Jimmy Carter. Follow Miriam Story on Instagram at @mermstory.

“When Things Were Different”

by Shatazha Mattingly

I watch her start with a twirl around the kitchen, which turns into angelic dance moves. I’m never in the kitchen for the preparation part. That’s okay, because what I love is the creation and the foolishness in between. The kitchen looks the same as always with three potted plants in the windowsill right above the sink – that she always forgets to water – and her fascinating wine red and cheetah print decorations scattered here and there. My only regret is that I’m never allowed to stay more than one to two nights.

The smell of melted butter wafts through the kitchen, her signal to begin sautéing the chopped peppers – for that kick she likes – and the chopped onions ’til softened. She has this specific way that she sprinkles in sofrito and garlic, and she uses the same pose to add in white wine, followed by a can of tomato sauce. She never uses measurements. She always says, “The eyes measure the pit of the stomach.” I don’t even think she knows what that means.

As she works, I pull out my crayons and colorbooks that she hides in the little compartment drawer in the table doors – I think it’s laughable that the table was originally an office desk. But she has a knack for maximizing space with having as few objects as possible.

I sniff the air – the kitchen has become fragrant. She is now fully in her element, and my stomach is grumbling in anticipation. She hits high notes effortlessly, while swaying her hips in tandem with the beat – she’s magical. Later, I will discover that the song she sings with such passion is about a woman who loves a cheating man. I don’t understand why she plays that song first to get her in her zone.

Nevertheless, she has made the kitchen her stage, a performance only I can see. “Sing and dance with me my love,” she says, in that accent that felt like home.

The look I give her in response earns me sympathetic eyes.

She knows the words, without me ever allowing them to flow past my lips. She takes a second, and then giggles while pausing in her dancing to add in the ground beef and an array of seasoning. Still no measurements, and I bet the empanadillas will be just as perfect as always.

She stays focused for a while, cooking the ground beef. After the beef is nice and brown she’ll stir in a smidge of vinegar – dip her finger to taste – and then adjust seasonings by adding salt and pepper if needed. Perfection.

Then, our comfortable bubble goes from her and me, to three.

I hear him before I see him. She is singing – yet another heartbreaking song – while assembling the dough into discs. In all his glory, Abuelito sways his way into the kitchen. He bee-lines straight for her – his air, as he calls her. He dances with her, not skipping a beat, with one hand on her hip and the other in the air. One of his old tricks. As she becomes engrossed in the music, he steals a scoop of the picadillo filling and then steals a kiss as a distraction. I see her watching him out of the corner of her eye, a small smile playing on her lips. But she never allows him to get away with anything. As he tiptoes towards the door, a ladle flies across the kitchen aimed at the back of his head. It misses, but Abuelito pretends to be hurt anyway.

My picture is almost complete; I just need to add clouds and a sun to the sky.

Abuelito can’t stay away too long and eventually sits down with a book at the refurbished table with me. The tobacco and woodsy smell from his aftershave float in the distance between us, while her singing and the music play in the background. She’s standing at the counter, placing calculated scoops of filling to the middle of the dough. My favorite part is when she folds them into what she calls “little half moons” and presses in the edges to seal them. When she dips them into the bubbling oil, she begins dancing again.

Without turning around she says, “You don’t have to understand to feel, love. It’s okay to let the music guide you. Music connects us all in one way or another, just like food can.” Her English comes out crystal clear over the thrums of the music.

I don’t look up, because I can feel his eyes on me, he thinks the same too. He’s different from her though, his words aren’t words at all. It’s silence filled with love and encouragement, and with that – I get up and dance. With her everything feels otherworldly.

An entire song later, she lifts the empanadillas out of the oil and places them on a paper towel that covers a plate. When we sit at the table – originally meant for four – we talk, laugh, sing a little, and eat while basking in the aroma that only this kitchen can provide. I may never understand the words or perfect the dialect, but I’ll always remember how the music feels.

Abuelito is the first to go, and now, I hold her close to my chest. A stylish urn – wine red – her new stage.

Shatazha Mattingly is a first-year MFA student at Western Kentucky University originally from Nashville, Tennessee. She currently writes reviews for advance reader copies by indie authors and has her own book-related column, “The Literary Radar,” with The College Heights Herald. Follow Shatazha Mattingly on Instagram at @shatazha.

Stay tuned for more opportunities to share your own writing or art on BGS in a future collection!

Collection edited by Rachel Baiman and BGS staff.

BGS Wraps: Seasonal Musical Favorites

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

In our eyes and to our ears, there’s no better family of musical genres to usher in the holiday season than roots music. Bluegrass, Americana, old-time, country, blues, and beyond – they’re all perfectly suited for the coziest time of year, for togetherness, for parties and gift-giving and cookie icing. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or Winter Solstice – or even if you feel like opting out of the ruckus altogether – there is roots music for you.

Each year, we like to share our picks for the rootsiest time of the year in BGS Wraps, a weekly collection of songs, videos, albums, shows, tours, and events that celebrate the season. We share a few of our favorites, mostly brand new but often classics and timeless selections, too. Plus, we collect all that we can into a running playlist so you’re ready when the family or party hands you the aux cable.

We hope you enjoy BGS Wraps and tune in the next week as we continue our series celebrating the holiday season. (Catch up on week one here.)

Christmas at the Ryman, Amy Grant & Vince Gill

“When I Think of Christmas” I think of Amy Grant and Vince Gill holding down the holiday fort with their iconic annual Christmas at the Ryman series. This year, they’ll offer 12 performances over eight days at the lauded venue known as the most famous former home of the Grand Ole Opry and the birthplace of bluegrass. Grant and Gill epitomize Music City and how tightly knit this town and its music creators are. There are sure to be plenty of memorable and one-of-a-kind moments across their holiday residency. Limited tickets are still available, so secure yours today. The series begins today, Wednesday, December 10 and concludes on December 20.

“Joy,” Kirby Lyle

Nashville-based songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Kirby Lyle is joined by Maya de Vitry on a brand new seasonal track, “Joy.” Featuring trickling banjos, fiddles, cellos, and guitars in a cozy and grooving 6/8 time, “Joy” feels like a folk holiday mantra, with Lyle and de Vitry singing in a call-and-response style perfect for the often ecclesiastical vibes of this time of year. “Joy” centers the feelings of working class and downtrodden folks in the holiday season, finding radical hope not through toxic positivity but through intention and community. It’s both a sonic and rhetorical antidote for those weary of capitalism and consumerism masquerading as togetherness and holiday cheer.

“Merry Christmas, Baby,” Miko Marks

Does Christmas give you the blues? Well, the blues can cure your holiday blues, too – as evidenced by Oakland-based artist and singer-songwriter Miko Marks’ brand new rendition of “Merry Christmas, Baby.” With twangy resonator guitar and whining harmonica, Marks’ ensemble stomps their way through the deep-pocketed number. The classic form and chord progression are as comforting as Christmas cookies and a mug of hot cocoa, and Marks’ soaring and soulful voice is more than angelic enough for the season.

“Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” Parker McCollum on CMA Country Christmas

Young country superstar Parker McCollum performed a quintessential classic, “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” on this year’s primetime broadcast of CMA Country Christmas. Flanked by thousands of twinkle lights and backed by brass, strings, and background vocalists, McCollum wore a crisp white “Fresh Western” trucker cap as he brought his trademark country energy to the beloved carol at Belmont University’s Fisher Center for the Performing Arts. If you missed the original broadcast of CMA Country Christmas on December 2 and the encore broadcast on December 9, don’t worry – you can stream CMA Country Christmas via Hulu or Disney+. The single version of the track is also available exclusively via Apple Music.

“Every Season,” MORGXN

On the opposite end of the mainstream country continuum from bro country and country trap you have artists like MORGXN innovating on the genre in similar sonic ways, but without the genre cognitive dissonance, toxic masculinity, or petty litmus testing of the other end of the spectrum. See how much fun, engaging, and innovative country can be with pop and electronic influences from other territories than what we most commonly find on the country airwaves? “Every Season” is the first holiday release from MORGXN, an original song that draws as much upon rootsy textures and tones as crisp and modern software sounds.

We always love when we find new seasonal music that’s inclusive of everyone’s faiths and traditions, too, so we’re especially excited to add “Every Season” to our holiday playlists this year.

Opry Country Christmas

Are you also devastated our Opry 100 Artist of the Month series concluded already? Here’s your solution, as mere days after the Grand Ole Opry’s special 100th Anniversary shows on November 28, Opry Country Christmas began in earnest at the Grand Ole Opry House on November 30. The festive, star-stacked shows will continue through December 23, each performance featuring Opry members the Gatlin Brothers, Riders In The Sky, Mandy Barnett, and Charlie McCoy plus varying special guests each night like Connie Smith, Marty Stuart, Maddie & Tae, the Isaacs, Ricky Skaggs, Marcus King, and many more.

If you’re nearby or traveling to Nashville this December, get your tickets and more info here. Not able to make it in person? Stream Opry Country Christmas on WSM Online and the Opry’s digital platforms, or listen like we do most often, over the good ol’ fashioned airwaves at 650 AM. When you hear Country Music Hall of Famer Charlie McCoy wail through a medley of Christmas carols on his harmonica, you’ll be glad you did.

Snow Globe Town, Brad Paisley

Brad Paisley’s brand new country Christmas album, Snow Globe Town, was inspired by him being asked by Hallmark Channel to write and record music for their brand new A Grand Ole Opry Christmas movie. Paisley has already taken his festive songs to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and NBC’s “Christmas in Rockefeller Center” – and the album rose rapidly to the very top of the Billboard Current Country Album chart, scoring a No. 1 while it landed on their Top Country Albums and Holiday/Seasonal Albums charts, too. With his signature croon and hearth-hot telecaster licks, Paisley offers brand new numbers and favorite classics. Snow Globe Town has been called “unmistakably Brad” and we certainly agree.

Wrapped in Paper, Sofia Talvik

We’ve enjoyed featuring Swedish singer-songwriter Sofia Talvik’s holiday songs in BGS Wraps over the years. Now, she’s collected all of her Christmas singles and tracks since 2018 into a new holiday album, Wrapped in Paper. The project also includes three brand new tracks, two originals – “Merry Christmas, Adios, So Long” and “Let Peace be the Song” – as well as her version of “Silent Night.” “Let Peace be the Song” is more than apt for the uncertain and extreme times we find ourselves living in. Seemingly a response to the attention economy of social media and the sensationalism of the news cycle, Talvik calls for peace – the true meaning of this season, regardless of faiths or traditions – while wars, conflicts, and political frays are fought all around us. If only peace could be the gift we all give each other this year.

Heart of the Holidays, Tenille Townes

A new three-song EP from singer-songwriter Tenille Townes, Heart of the Holidays, is inviting, cozy, and classic. The collection’s title track is warm and jazzy, with round hollow-body electric guitar tone that feels like a comforting hug. The drum kit shuffles along as Townes gives us an excellent track for all kinds of wintry holiday celebrations. “I love writing and singin Christmas songs,” Townes said on social media, “because it brings out all the jazzy, cozy melodies.” The project continues with “Auld Lang Syne” – preemptively add that to your New Year’s playlist now! – and a lovely three-part harmony rich version of “Go Tell It On The Mountain” featuring Caylee Hammack and Fancy Hagood rounding out the vocal trio. It’s a perfect fit for BGS Wraps!

Lead Image: Miko Marks by Karen Santos; Amy Grant & Vince Gill by Robby Klein; Tenille Townes by Robert Chavers.

The Festival-Lover’s Ultimate Holiday Shopping Guide

Posted on by Shelby Williamson

2025 has flown by and as we enter December we once again find ourselves preparing for the holiday season. We think it’s important to focus on slowing down, being together, and being more intentional in our gift-giving. Which is why we’re thrilled to bring you the second year of the BGS holiday gift guide.

This installment of our guide, featured below, is specifically tailored to the avid outdoor festival-goer. Maybe they’re already planning out their next festival season a year in advance. Or maybe they’re the type who always has a bag ready, so they can pack up and pitch a tent when the music calls. Whatever their style, these gift recommendations from our friends, partners, and staff will be well-loved by those who like to take their musical experiences outside.

 

BGS Bluegrass Metal and Banjo Beanies

Warm noggins are all the rage this winter, and you can keep yours cozy with our two new original beanie designs. Freshly added to the BGS Mercantile, choose between two styles that are both sure to turn heads and start great conversations wherever you wear them.

Purchase Metal Beanie | Purchase Banjo Beanie

Green Goo Ultimate First Aid Care Bundle

Festivals can be unpredictable. This is why we love them, of course, but it’s also why we always arrive prepared. Green Goo’s Ultimate First Aid Care Bundle is the perfect prep kit for festival season, with four handmade herbal salves meant to soothe bug bites, bruises, scrapes, sore muscles, dry skin, and much more. Best of all, BGS readers can get 25% off their order with code HOLIDAY25.

Purchase

 

Guest Gifter: Chris Pandolfi
(GRAMMY-Winning Musician with The Infamous Stringdusters & Avid Fly Fisherman)

“If you know someone who travels to fish, they need the Orvis Carry-It-All Bag! It’s ideal for carrying a bunch of gear without all the rod tubes/bulk and you can carry it on to any plane, so you’ll never be without your essentials. I used to make the rounds just stuffing everything into my suitcase, but this Orvis gear bag is a total game changer and I never leave home without it if I’m heading out to explore.

The Flylow Micah Fleece is a really quality, stylish midlayer from one of my favorite apparel brands out there, Flylow. They make gear that lasts but also looks great, from the mountain to the stream to the stage. You can never have too many midlayers!” – Chris Pandolfi

Purchase Orvis Carry-It-All Bag | Purchase Flylow Micah Fleece

Chris Pandolfi is a founding member of The Infamous Stringdusters. He is also the host of the Inside the Musician’s Brain podcast and an avid fly fisherman and guide.

 

Eagle Nest Outfitters Lounger DL Chair

Please, for the love of god, replace your rickety old camping chair. At every festival campsite, the good chair is always obvious… and that one you “borrowed” from your parents’ garage ten years ago might just collapse at any moment. Upgrade your festival seating experience with Eagle Nest Outfitters’ Lounger DL Chair. This lightweight, portable hammock chair sets up quickly, is fully adjustable, and has a cushioned pillow and armrests — just trust us, it’s the good chair.

Purchase

Natural Life Cozies

After a long day at an outdoor music festival, there’s nothing like getting cozy back at your campsite. Natural Life has you covered on cozy essentials, with warm socks, sherpa-lined slippers, the super soft (and versatile) boho bandeau, and your new favorite mug for hot toddy night caps or coffee on a chilly morning. And the best part about gifting these around the holidays? Break them out early and stay warm all winter long.

Purchase

Guest Gifter: Amy Reitnouer Jacobs
(BGS Co-Founder & Executive Director)

“I spend enough time at music festivals to know that these days a sturdy clear bag is an absolute essential. But finding something that is efficient and cute is easier said than done. That’s why the Away Stadium Bag is on my wish list this year. It’s a hard shell clear bag that’s big enough to hold your phone, keys, glasses, lip balm, Loop earplugs, etc., getting you through security without skipping a beat. Added bonus: you can even get it monogrammed!” – Amy Reitnouer Jacobs

Purchase

Amy Reitnouer Jacobs is the co-founder of BGS and Good Country, as well as producer for concerts, stages, and experiential events throughout the country. She also collects and sells vintage homewares with her company Fernweh Flea.

 

WinterWonderGrass Tickets

One of the most unique and anticipated festivals of the year is always WinterWonderGrass. This year’s lineup is one of their most fun yet with The Infamous Stringdusters, Leftover Salmon, The Devil Makes Three, Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country, and so many other BGS faves jamming out over three days alongside the perfect powder of Steamboat Resort in Colorado. Tickets, packages, and more info here.

Purchase

 

Zeal Optics

The right eyewear is essential for a good festival weekend, and from the desert landscapes of Stagecoach to the mountains of Telluride Bluegrass, Zeal Optics has your eyes covered. Their polarized Rangely sunglasses will keep you glare-free at Bourbon & Beyond, while their Meridian Goggles are perfect when you hit the slopes between sets at WinterWondergrass.

Purchase

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This content brought to you in partnership with Green Goo and WinterWonderGrass.

BGS Wraps: Roots Music for the Season

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

In our eyes and to our ears, there’s no better family of musical genres to usher in the holiday season than roots music. Bluegrass, Americana, old-time, country, blues, and beyond – they’re all perfectly suited for the coziest time of year, for togetherness, for parties and gift giving and cookie icing. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or Winter Solstice – or even if you feel like opting out of the ruckus altogether – there is roots music for you.

Each year, we like to share our picks for the rootsiest time of the year in BGS Wraps, a weekly collection of songs, videos, albums, shows, tours, and events that celebrate the season. We share a few of our favorites, mostly brand new but often classics and timeless selections, too. Plus, we collect all that we can into a running playlist so you’re ready when the family or party hands you the aux cable.

To kick off the season this year, we’ve got a BGS Wraps full of Good Country, jingle bells, Texas snow, holiday generosity, and plenty of glittering lights and joyous cheer. We hope you enjoy BGS Wraps and tune in the next two weeks as we continue our series celebrating the holiday season.

A Very Carper Christmas, Melissa Carper

One of our favorite purveyors of Good Country in the most legit old-school, Texas, Western swing, and outlaw styles, Melissa Carper has just launched her own album of holiday music, A Very Carper Christmas. It boasts quite a few originals and co-writes and a couple covers of classics, too. The collection is silky smooth and timeless, a perfect accompaniment to holiday cooking, decorating, gallivanting from store to store, or cozying up by the fire with your loved one of choice.

Starting December 4, Carper will join JD McPherson’s “Socks: A Rock & Roll Christmas” tour around the Southeast, East Coast, and Midwest. So don’t miss your chance to catch these Good Country seasonal songs live in person. Melissa Carper tour details here.

“When It Snows in Texas,” Chaparelle & Sierra Ferrell

Let’s keep it going with more Austin-based Good Country! Last month, alt-country supergroup Chaparelle announced a brand new co-write and collaboration with everyone’s current favorite old-time Americana goddess, Sierra Ferrell. “When It Snows in Texas” is the perfect seasonal holiday number, apt for each and every rootsy holiday playlist and certainly suited to occasions beyond just Christmas. With a languid, loping groove, it’s all wrapped up in alt sounds that remind of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and a casual sing-along sidled up to a shiny wooden bar all at the same time. This is the country & western (heavy on the ampersand western) vibe we all crave – this time of year or anytime.

Feels Like Christmas, Mickey Guyton

Singer-songwriter and country star Mickey Guyton is no stranger to festive song releases, but Feels Like Christmas is officially her first full-length holiday album. From the adorable “Sugar Cookie” to the classic pop trappings of the title track to her “Christmas Isn’t Christmas” duet with the Michael Bolton, Feels Like Christmas feels… well, grown up. Fully realized. Ready for your moody, ambient Christmas cocktail hour or a laughter-rich, full kitchen, too. Guyton makes some of the best crisp, modern, radio-ready country around today, and this holiday collection – like most if not all of her discography – feels made to last the ages, too.

Further leaning into the festivities of the season, Guyton will also appear in a brand new Hallmark movie, A Grand Ole Opry Christmas, which is premiering this year during Hallmark Channel’s 16th annual Countdown to Christmas programming event. Guyton certainly has our number, and we’ll be camped out in front of the TV with our hot ciders and sugar cookies ready and waiting for this incredible Opry, country music, and Hallmark crossover.

I’ll Be Home for Christmas, Drew & Ellie Holcomb

Drew & Ellie Holcomb have added to their deep-and-wide catalog of holiday and seasonal music with a brand new EP entitled I’ll Be Home For Christmas. The project adds three lovely covers of Christmas favorites to the stacked roster of selections the couple and their Neighbors trot out each winter for the season. This year, they’ll perform two “Neighborly Christmas Special” shows in Tennessee – in Memphis on December 5 and in Nashville on December 12 – before heading out on their next headline tour in February. Find ticket info here, then put on I’ll Be Home For Christmas while you make your holiday lists and check them twice.

The Greatest Christmas On Earth, Robert Earl Keen

Now this right here sounds like our kind of Americana Christmas circus! Robert Earl Keen kicks off his “The Greatest Christmas On Earth” tour this week, crisscrossing the South and Southeast through the month of December spreading cheer, joy, silliness, and light – and keeping the party going down the road forever, as he does.

The tour will kick off on December 4 in REK’s hometown of Kerrville, Texas, and you can be sure each night will feature his paean to the beauty and dysfunction of families at the holidays, “Merry Christmas From The Family.” Put all your own rowdy relatives in the van and don’t miss these shows. Ticket info here.

“Dream a Dream of Christmas,” Lydia Luce

Lydia Luce just released her excellent brand new album, Mammoth, in late October, but even before the project’s release she was looking ahead to the winter and holiday seasons with a A-side / B-side single release, “Dream a Dream of Christmas.” Like her songs in general, the A-side selection is contemplative, emotional, and rich with text painting and lush piano and vocals. Resonant strings play along with the contours of her vocal, punctuated by Christmas-y percussion and scoring, like Hollywood holiday offerings of the ’50s and ’60s. The track’s B-side is a delightful rendition of the beloved carol “Silent Night” that’s dramatic and rich – and features guest vocals by Caroline Spence. Both songs would be excellent additions to your themed playlists for the season.

OCMS XMAS, Old Crow Medicine Show

It’s hard to believe one of bluegrass and old-time’s longest running party string bands, Old Crow Medicine Show, have just released their first holiday album this year – but it’s true! OCMS XMAS is zany, rollicking, and unhinged. (As it should be.) It’s a collection of stories, songs, and tableaus that are just as fantastic and engaging as any of their rip-roaring live shows or any of their adored albums from their stacked discography. It’s a Christmas album as only Old Crow could make, and frontman Ketch Secor’s fingerprints are all over the track listing. From “Corn Whiskey Christmas” to “Breakin’ Up Xmas” to “Krampus Night” and beyond, this set of material will certainly be a Holiday Hootenanny on stage. Catch their Holiday Hootenanny on tour through December 20, before the band returns yet again to the Ryman Auditorium for their iconic annual New Year’s celebration performances to close out the year.

Sweet Relief’s Annual Holiday Auction

Sweet Relief is a non-profit organization with a mission that we all – in the music industry and outside of it – can get behind. For more than 30 years Sweet Relief has worked to provide financial assistance to musicians and music industry workers who are facing illness, disability, or age-related challenges. Just last week, they launched their annual holiday auction yet again, offering signed memorabilia and in-person experiences with a variety of artists in roots music and beyond, all of which benefit their important mission and vital work supporting music professionals’ mental and physical health.

Folks can bid on offerings from artists and musicians like Billy Strings, Hozier, Pearl Jam, Walker Hayes, The Decemberists, the Black Keys, Amanda Shires, Gregory Alan Isakov, and many, many more. If you’re planning your Giving Tuesday donations and also wondering what to get the music lover in your life who already has everything, perhaps you can check two things off your list in one go by supporting Sweet Relief. Learn more and view the auction items here.

Jingle All The Way Tour, Béla Fleck & the Flecktones

No holiday season would be complete without regularly returning to one of the best roots holiday albums ever made, Béla Fleck & the Flecktones’ Jingle All The Way. Released in 2008, the GRAMMY Award-winning album is beloved in and outside of roots music spheres – it even landed a mention in Oprah’s O Magazine back in ’08! Now, Fleck and the band – including Victor Wooten, Roy “Future Man” Wooten, Howard Levy, and special guests Jeff Coffin, Alash, and Sierra Hull (on select dates) – are taking their virtuosic cheer back on the road with a full slate of Jingle All The Way Tour shows. The tour kicked off in Nashville and will continue through December 20 hitting performing arts centers and theaters in the Midwest and across the Eastern U.S. To mark the occasion, Fleck & the Flecktones released their first holiday music since Jingle All The Way, a single medley of “The First Noel/Joy To The World.” If you can’t make the shows, put the original album and new single on the stereo – but we really recommend snagging tickets and seeing them live, with this superlative lineup, if you can.

Lead Image: Mickey Guyton, Feels Like Christmas; Melissa Carper by Lyza Renee; Old Crow Medicine Show courtesy of the artist.

The Musician’s Holiday Gift Guide

Posted on by Shelby Williamson

2025 has flown by and as we enter December we once again find ourselves preparing for the holiday season. We think it’s important to focus on slowing down, being together, and being more intentional in our gift giving. Which is why we’re thrilled to bring you the second year of the BGS holiday gift guide.

Below is the first of our guides – this one specifically geared towards avid musicians, be they recreational or professional players. Check out personal product selections from our friends, partners, and staff.

 

D’Addario Humidipak

Most beginner or hobby-level acoustic players don’t consider the proper storage environment for their instrument, but did you know that maintaining humidity and temperature can be just as important as buying a sturdy case? D’Addario’s Humidipak is a two-way humidification system automatically maintaining the ideal humidity level to preserve tone and protect damage. They even have three different variants to accommodate your specific humidification needs.

Purchase

Guest Gifter: Hannah Connolly
(Singer-Songwriter & BGS Social Media Director)

“Traveling as a guitarist you can never have too many capos. This Shubb C1 capo is my usual go-to, but I have friends who swear by the F1. It’s on my wishlist because although it’s a little more of an investment, it can be stored on the guitar itself (behind the nut of the headstock) when it’s not in use… making it nearly impossible to misplace on tour!” – Hannah Connolly

Purchase Hannah’s Pick | Purchase Budget Option

Hannah Connolly is a singer-songwriter based between Nashville and Los Angeles. Her latest release is Shadowboxing, and her third album is set for release in 2026. When she’s not writing or performing, Hannah also serves as the Social Media Director for BGS and Good Country.

 

nugs Annual Subscription

If you’re a regular reader of BGS, chances are you know that one person in your life who worships bootleg Grateful Dead recordings or would drive thirteen hours just to catch one more Billy Strings show. (If you don’t know that person, perhaps it’s you…?) Why not gift them All Access to a one-stop destination for concert livestreams, on-demand videos, and high-quality audio recordings with a nugs annual subscription? nugs partners with legendary artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Dead & Company, Pearl Jam, Goose, Greensky Bluegrass, Johnny Blue Skies – and of course Billy Strings – to ensure you always have a concert on the calendar.

For a limited time, BGS readers can get a nugs 1-year All Access subscription for 50% off the regular price using the link below. Offer valid through January 5, 2026.

Purchase

 

Preston Thompson Guitars – DMC Model

At a studio deep in the heart of Oregon, Preston Thompson Guitars has long been making some of our favorite high-end custom instruments. Their new model, DMC, is a smaller, deep bodied guitar which is fashioned after Willie Nelson’s famous “Trigger,” a N-20 Hybrid Classical. Between now and January 31, you can get one of these Spruce-top beauties for 15% off. After all, we could all stand to be a little more like Willie.

Direct orders only. Contact [email protected] for more info.

Qobuz or TIDAL Streaming Subscription

Suffice to say, we really hate that streaming services are paying out less than ever to musicians and songwriters in royalties (and don’t get us started on the lack of regulation over AI-generated music). But with that said, it’s more important than ever to make purchasing decisions that actually make an impact and help support your favorite artists. Consider gifting a subscription to an alternative streaming service like Qobuz or TIDAL — both platforms pay some of the highest streaming royalties to artists, and streaming at a higher audio quality audio than their major competitors. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.

Qobuz | TIDAL

And on a similar note, we all know a live music lover that has been shut out of a recent ticket on-sale that may be feeling frustrated about inflated prices on the secondary ticket market. A CashorTrade Gold Membership is a great way to support the face value ticketing movement. All transactions are insured so you can feel confident you’re not getting scammed.

Guest Gifter: Sierra Hull
(GRAMMY-Winning Musician)

“I’ve had my eye on getting one of these Crossrock double mandolin cases so I can more easily bring along both of my new signature model Gibson mandolins (both the master model and the F5G) on tour! The last few months I’ve been carrying around three different mandolin cases, so I think it would be awesome to consolidate a couple of them into a single case. I currently have one of the smaller fitted Crossrock cases and they are really solid [and] such affordable little cases!” – Sierra Hull

Purchase

Sierra Hull’s latest record, A Tip Toe High Wire, recently garnered four GRAMMY nominations. Discover more and find out how to catch her on tour with the Milk Carton Kids in 2026 at SierraHull.com.

 

Yamaha Acoustic Guitars – FG/FS9 Series

For over fifty years, Yamaha has been handcrafting their acoustic artistry, incorporating traditional Japanese woodworking with innovative Japanese technology. Their flagship model, the FG/FS9 steel-string acoustic guitar, is ideal for singer-songwriters.

Check out bluegrass guitarist Jake Eddy playing his FG9 RX below.

Purchase

This content brought to you in partnership with D’Addario, nugs, Preston Thompson Guitars, and Yamaha Guitars.

Celebrating Women’s History Month: Crystal Gayle, Rose Maddox, and More

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Our partnership with our friends at Real Roots Radio in Southwestern Ohio continues as we move from Black History Month to Women’s History Month! This time, we’ll bring you weekly collections of a variety of powerful women in bluegrass, country, Americana, folk, and elsewhere who have been featured on Real Roots Radio’s airwaves each weekday in March, highlighting the outsized impact women have on American roots music. You can listen to Real Roots Radio online 24/7 or via their FREE app for smartphones or tablets. If you’re based in Ohio, tune in via 100.3 (Xenia, Dayton, Springfield), 106.7 (Wilmington), or 105.5 (Eaton).

American roots music, historically and currently, has often been regarded as a male-dominated space. It’s certainly true of the music industry in general and these more down-home musics are no exception. Thankfully, American roots music and its many offshoots, branches, and associated folkways include hundreds and thousands of women who have greatly impacted these art forms, altering the courses of roots music history. Some are relatively unknown – or under-appreciated or undersung – and others are global phenomena or household names.

Over the next couple weeks, we and RRR will do our best to bring you more examples of women in roots music from all levels of notoriety and stature. Radio host Daniel Mullins, who together with BGS and Good Country staff has curated the series, kicked us off last week with Dottie West, Gail Davies, and more. This week, we’re shining a spotlight on Kristin Scott Benson, Crystal Gayle, Big Mama Thornton, Reba McEntire, and Rose Maddox. We’ll return next week and each Friday through the end of the month with even more examples of women who blazed a trail in roots music.

Plus, you can find two playlists below – one centered on bluegrass, the other on country – with dozens of songs from countless women artists, performers, songwriters, and instrumentalists who effortlessly demonstrate how none of these roots genres would exist without women.

Crystal Gayle (b. 1951)

She’s a country music icon with signature floor-length hair and a voice as smooth as silk – Crystal Gayle!

Born Brenda Gail Webb in Paintsville, Kentucky, Crystal Gayle stepped out of the shadow of her legendary sister, Loretta Lynn, to carve her own path in country and pop music. She scored her first Top Ten hit in 1975 with “Wrong Road Again.” However, her major breakthrough came in 1977 with the GRAMMY Award-winning “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue,” a crossover hit that topped the country charts and even made waves on the pop scene. It peaked at Number Two on the overall Hot 100, setting Gayle up to be one of the premiere crossover artists of the era.

With 18 Number One hits, Crystal Gayle has the fourth most chart-topping songs for a female in country music history, even more than her older sister. She became a defining voice of the late ’70s and ’80s, blending country with soft pop for her signature sound. Who could forget those long, flowing locks – almost as famous as her music! A member of the Grand Ole Opry and the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame, she even has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in addition to scores of other awards, honors, and accolades. Crystal Gayle is still shining today, proving that true talent – and great hair – never go out of style!

Suggested Listening:
“Wrong Road Again”
“The Sound of Goodbye”

Big Mama Thornton (1926 – 1984)

Before Elvis shook his hips and Janis wailed the blues, there was Big Mama Thornton. Born Willie Mae Thornton in 1926, this powerhouse of a woman changed music forever.

Thornton’s deep, growling voice and raw emotion made her a legend in blues and rock and roll. She recorded “Hound Dog,” which was written specifically for her, in 1952 – years before Elvis made it even more famous. It sold over half a million copies and reached the Top Ten on the Billboard R&B charts. Her recording of “Hound Dog” is regarded as a pivotal recording in the birth of rock and roll, and truthfully, her female perspective makes the song make a lot more sense.

Like many Black artists of her time, she never saw the wealth or credit she deserved. Big Mama wasn’t just a singer – she played drums, harmonica, and wrote music, influencing generations of artists. Janis Joplin’s hit “Ball and Chain” was written by Big Mama.

As a blues icon, she toured the United States and Europe, worked at many prestigious folk, blues, and jazz festivals, and even recorded an album with Muddy Waters. Sadly, her life was cut short after years of alcohol abuse, passing away at the age of 57 in an LA boarding house; Big Mama was buried in a potter’s field.

Big Mama Thornton paved the way for rock and roll, blues, and soul, and was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2024.

Suggested Listening:
“Ball and Chain”
“Wade in the Water”

Kristin Scott Benson (b. 1976)

A South Carolina native, Kristin Scott Benson is a six-time IBMA Banjo Player of the Year and an absolute force on the five-string. She was a mandolin player as a youngster, but caught the banjo bug at nine years old when she saw Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver in the 1980s with their exciting brand of bluegrass – and a young Scott Vestal on banjo. She joined the all-female bluegrass band Petticoat Junction when she was just a senior in high school, moving to Nashville in 1994 to attend Belmont University.

Unknowingly, she made history during her sophomore year in college when she was hired by The Larry Stephenson Band. She is viewed by many as having “broke the glass ceiling” in bluegrass, by playing in a male-dominated professional bluegrass band, without being married to, dating, or being related to any of the other members – she was simply a powerful picker. Kristin worked two different stints with The Larry Stephenson Band, in addition to working with Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time. She joined The Grascals in 2008, where she has remained for over fifteen years.

Pointing to Sonny Osborne as her banjo mentor, she has fit The Grascals’ sound like a glove with their heavy Osborne Brothers influence. (It was actually Sonny who recommended her to The Grascals for their banjo job.) In addition to kicking tail on stage and in the studio with The Grascals, in recent years Kristin has formed a recording duo with her husband, mandolin master Wayne Benson of Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out. Together they are simply known as Benson.

Kristin Scott Benson received the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo & Bluegrass in 2018, and was inducted into the American Banjo Hall of Fame in 2024.

Suggested Listening:
“Up This Hill and Down” – The Grascals
“Conway” – Benson

Rose Maddox (1925 – 1998)

She was bold, she was brash, and she helped shape country as we know it! Rose Maddox wasn’t just another singer, she was a trailblazer.

Born in Alabama and raised in Modesto, California, Rose and her brothers – The Maddox Brothers and Rose – became pioneers of the “hillbilly boogie” sound. Performing on radio as teenagers, their career really took off when Rose’s brothers returned from World War II, anchored by her powerhouse vocals. One of the first hillbilly bands to come from California, The Maddox Brothers & Rose cut a wide swathe, touring across the country, performing on the Louisiana Hayride, and making smash records.

With wild outfits, high energy, and Rose’s infectious laugh, they were country music’s first real rock stars, known as America’s most colorful hillbilly band. In the 1950s, The Maddox Brothers & Rose parted ways and Rose pursued a solo career. She broke barriers as a female country star, scoring over a dozen Top 30 hits like “Sing a Little Song of Heartache” and inspiring legends like Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris. She also recorded several popular country duets with another legend with ties to southern California – Buck Owens. In 1962, she released the first bluegrass album by a female artist, Rose Maddox Sings Bluegrass, joined by Bill Monroe, Don Reno, Red Smiley, Donna Stoneman, and more.

She would continue to tour and record, even recording an album with Merle Haggard & The Strangers as her backing band. The Hag always pointed to The Maddox Brothers & Rose as one of his influences. Maddox also performed on stage and in studio with California bluegrasser Vern Williams, and even received a bluegrass GRAMMY nomination for her Byron Berline-produced album $35 & A Dream, shortly before her passing in 1998 at the age of 72.

Honky-tonk, bluegrass, rockabilly – Rose did it all and she did it first! So next time you hear a fiery female country singer, tip your hat to Rose Maddox, the original queen of country sass.

Suggested Listening:
“Honky Tonkin’” – The Maddox Brothers & Rose
“Sing A Little Song of Heartache”

Reba McEntire (b. 1955)

From the heart of Oklahoma, one voice has echoed through the decades, captivating fans with her powerhouse vocals and undeniable charm. Reba McEntire, one of the true Queens of Country Music, has been breaking barriers since she first stepped onto the scene in the 1970s.

Her big break came in 1974 when country & western singer Red Steagall saw Reba perform the National Anthem at a rodeo event in Oklahoma. He then helped her land her first record deal. But she was hardly an immediate success, working to find her footing in the music industry and after four years, she scored her first Top Ten hit, “(You Lift Me) Up To Heaven.” After that, she hasn’t looked back!

Reba topped the Billboard country singles chart for the first time in 1983 with “Can’t Even Get The Blues,” the first of her many Number One hits. With over 40 chart toppers and a career spanning more than four decades, she’s done it all. From mega hits to her legendary TV show, Reba, she’s not just a country icon, she’s a cultural force. However, Reba’s most iconic hit only reached #8, from her classic 1990 album, Rumor Has It. A song she learned from Bobbie Gentry, that has been a signature song of Reba’s ever since, it has been certified double-platinum, selling over 2 million copies: everyone loves “Fancy.”

Known for her fierce spirit and down-to-earth personality, Reba’s music continues to inspire generations of fans. Whether she’s singing about love, heartbreak, or resilience, one thing’s for sure – Reba’s voice is timeless. Reba McEntire, a true legend and a voice like no other.

Suggested Listening:
“Fancy”
“Swing All Night Long With You”

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Listen to Real Roots Radio online 24/7 or via their FREE app for smartphones or tablets.

Photo Credit: Rose Maddox courtesy of Discogs.com; Crystal Gayle courtesy of the artist; Big Mama Thornton from Ball N’ Chain.

BGS Wraps: Our Wintry, Holiday Collection

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Each year, the BGS Team likes to “wrap up” the year in music by featuring holiday, seasonal, and festive tunes and songs throughout the month of December. It’s a perfect way to generate holiday cheer while shining a light on some of the high quality new – and timeless! – seasonal music we’ve got playing on repeat each winter. And, it gives us the chance to infuse our veteran/stalwart holiday playlists with some new life, too.

This year, we’ll be sharing songs, albums, shows, and events each day for the first three weeks of December, a musical bridge to bring us to the peak holiday season, the end of one year, and the beginning of another. Check back each day as we add more selections to these weekly posts, highlighting roots music that will soundtrack our solstice, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and New Year.

What are you listening to this time of year? Let us know on social media! You can scroll to find our complete BGS Wraps playlist for 2024 below. Check out Week 1 of BGS Wraps here and Week 2 of BGS Wraps here.

Tim O’Brien and Ben Winship, “Santa Ate a Gummy”

Artist: Tim O’Brien & Ben Winship
Song: “Santa Ate a Gummy”
Release Date: November 22, 2024

In Their Words: “Hope you enjoy this video for my new single with Tim O’Brien, ‘Santa Ate a Gummy’ animated by Peter Wallis.” – Ben Winship, via social media

“Share away! It is sure to put a much needed smile on your faces. Thank you Ben for taking me on this trip with you.” – Tim O’Brien, via social media

From The Editor: “Let’s follow in Santa’s footsteps on this one, for a perfect way to close BGS Wraps for 2024 and really enter the holidays, full plunge. Multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter Ben Winship joins forces with bluegrass legend Tim O’Brien on a hilarious and charming new holiday single they co-wrote, ‘Santa Ate a Gummy,’ about an extra exciting and dreamy Christmas Eve journey for the ol’ Kris Kringle. Sugar plum fairies may be dancing in his head, but that toy-making-season backache must surely be on retreat. As we move into the holiday break, take a page out of St. Nick’s playbook – got a headache? Need a moment of chill? Consumerism wearing you out? Wrapping paper cuts riddling your fingers? Pop your favorite THC or CBD treat, sit back, relax, and put on ‘Santa Ate a Gummy’ on our BGS Wraps playlist. And we’ll see you in January. Happy Holidays!”

Zach Top, “Hard Candy Christmas”

 

@zachtop Tis officially the season! Go stream the Christmas hits! #classiccountry #countrymusic #christmasmusic ♬ Hard Candy Christmas – Zach Top

Artist: Zach Top
Song: “Hard Candy Christmas”
Release Date: November 17, 2023

In Their Words: “Tis officially the season! Go stream the Christmas hits!” – Zach Top, via social media

From The Editor: “One of our favorite Good Country artists of 2024, Zach Top often delights his fans and followers with incredible covers of country standards and hits on his social media feeds. This short cover of ‘Hard Candy Christmas’ has more than 2.1 million views since it was posted at the beginning of this month. We can see why! Just over a minute of the iconic holiday country number – popularized by Dolly Parton – has us immediately returning to his 2023 single release of the song. (We wouldn’t have survived without a full rendition!) The picker-singer-songwriter and ’90s country time capsule has certainly been one of the major music stories of the year, with a grassroots, ground-up following hellbent on loving the honesty and ease of his trad sounds. Check out our GC interview with Top from earlier this year as we crank the classic country Christmas vibes on the stereo. We’ll be fine and dandy…”

Authentic Unlimited, “Christmas Time Is Here”

Artist: Authentic Unlimited
Song: “Christmas Time Is Here”
Album: Christmas Time Is Here
Release Date: November 15, 2024

In Their Words: “A Christmas song is like wrapping up a warm memory, ready to be shared with the world. In true Authentic Unlimited fashion, we unwrap our musical gift to listeners, hoping it brings joy and a touch of holiday spirit to every heart.” – Jerry Cole, bass, via press release

From The Editor: “Reigning IBMA Vocal Group of the Year Authentic Unlimited released their first full-length Christmas album in November. Christmas Time Is Here features an array of covers, from veteran classics to modern hits, rendered in the group’s clean, crisp, signature sound with those striking (award-winning!) vocals. The title track is beautifully done, with mandolin trills to emulate Vince Guaraldi’s twinkling piano keys and acrobatic, jazz fiddle licks inserted tastefully just like the iconic original recording from A Charlie Brown Christmas. Sure, this doesn’t listen like Authentic Unlimited’s standard, largely traditional bluegrass fare – for one, there’s piano, and the track does sounds perfectly suited for wafting through a JCPenney – but the album’s polish and shine certainly serves the season. And there’s still plenty of ‘grassy grit to go around.”

The Wildwoods, “Somewhere in the Snow”

Artist: The Wildwoods
Song: “Somewhere in the Snow”
Album: Christmas Through the Years (EP)
Release Date: November 19, 2023 (single); November 29, 2024 (EP)

In Their Words: “Ladies and gentlemen! Our Christmas EP, Christmas Through the Years, is now available on all streaming platforms. … Celebrating the holiday season with an original Christmas song captured on our favorite AEA mic.” – The Wildwoods, via social media

From The Editor: “Diehard fans of Nebraska-based Americana trio The Wildwoods will remember this strikingly lovely song, ‘Somewhere in the Snow,’ from 2023, when it was first released as a single and animated video. This year, they’ve released the track on an equally lovely EP, Christmas Through the Years, accompanied by a few tasteful and unique covers of holiday classics, too.

“The group’s brand new live performance of ‘Somewhere in the Snow’ shines bright through the winter cold, lush and warm, shot in a beautifully reverby church sanctuary decorated with twinkle lights and a festive wreath. Their tight vocal harmonies and lonesome (or perhaps winsome) chord changes bring that slight existential tinge we know and love in stalwart Christmas songs and traditional carols. It’s a fresh take on the idea of snow and winter as purifying, cleansing, and a transformative time of year – especially as we all look ahead to 2025 and what the new year might bring. Let’s bury our troubles somewhere in the snow? Sounds like a great idea to us.”

Shane Pendergast, “Winter Grace”

Artist: Shane Pendergast
Song: “Winter Grace”
Album: Winter Grace
Release Date: November 22, 2024 (single); January 2025 (album)

In Their Words: “It was such a liberating and joyous feeling, as if we were skating on the world’s biggest rink. Wintertime on [Prince Edward] Island can be so stifling, so it was a gift to be able to get outside for a skate.” – Shane Pendergast, via press release

From The Editor: “Each winter, it’s a bit of a brain teaser or a musical sudoku puzzle trying to find festive, wintry, holiday-themed songs that aren’t just about Christmas. We want holiday music for everyone, after all! We especially crave music for those of us reaching, ever-so-longingly, for solstice and the eventual lengthening of the days.

“We were very excited, then, to discover Shane Pendergast’s ‘Winter Grace,’ released late last month. The title track for his upcoming album, dropping in January 2025, ‘Winter Grace’ is cozy, warm, and enveloping. It’s a tender paean to Prince Edward Island that has a timeless production style, as if plucked from late ’60s or early ’70s folk songs of the Atlantic seaboard. A perfect soundtrack for your ice skating date – whether on a plastic public square rink, slipping and sliding on dull skates at a shopping mall, or speeding off on wild Canadian ice.”

BGS Wraps: It’s the Rootsiest Time of the Year

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

Each year, the BGS Team likes to “wrap up” the year in music by featuring holiday, seasonal, and festive tunes and songs throughout the month of December. It’s a perfect way to generate holiday cheer while shining a light on some of the high quality new – and timeless! – seasonal music we’ve got playing on repeat each winter. And, it gives us the chance to infuse our veteran/stalwart holiday playlists with some new life, too.

This year, we’ll be sharing songs, albums, shows, and events each day for the first three weeks of December, a musical bridge to bring us to the peak holiday season, the end of one year, and the beginning of another. Check back each day as we add more selections to these weekly posts, highlighting roots music that will soundtrack our solstice, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and New Year.

What are you listening to this time of year? Let us know on social media! You can scroll to find our complete BGS Wraps playlist for 2024 below. Check out Week 1 of BGS Wraps here and Week 3 of BGS Wraps here.

Megan Moroney, “All I Want For Christmas Is a Cowboy”

Artist: Megan Moroney
Song: “All I Want for Christmas is a Cowboy”
Album: Blue Christmas …duh (EP)
Release Date: November 1, 2024

In Their Words: “Well since it comes out tonight, I guess now would be a good time to let y’all know I recorded a lil 3 song holiday EP that features 2 original songs & a cover of a classic. It’s called Blue Christmas …duh.

sleigh, I guess.” – Megan Moroney, via social media

From The Editor: “Megan Moroney was everywhere in 2024 – and we certainly didn’t mind! Three CMA Awards nominations, her sophomore album, Am I Okay?, reached No. 9 on Billboard‘s Hot 200 chart, she’s MusicRow‘s Breakout Artist of the Year, and so much more. Plus, she released this excellent holiday EP, Blue Christmas …duh, in November featuring two new originals and her rendition of the classic made popular by Elvis. We adore Moroney’s brand of high-end, sequin-studded, mainstream country. Catch her and her music on the Am I Okay? Tour in 2025!”

Spencer Hatcher & Aubrie Sellers, “Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus”

Artist: Spencer Hatcher & Aubrie Sellers
Song: “Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus”
Release Date: November 1, 2024

In Their Words: “‘Oh, yeah, you bet. Uh… ho ho ho and stuff’ 🎄 ‘Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus’ is out now!!” – Spencer Hatcher & Aubrie Sellers, via social media

From The Editor: “Decked out in their holiday best and performing in front of a classic Airstream trailer, bluegrass influencer Spencer Hatcher and garage country artist Aubrie Sellers play the mother and father of Christmas for their new single, ‘Mr. and Mrs. Claus.’ Throwing it back to the ’70s in more ways than one, their rendition pays tribute to George and Tammy’s cut of the song released in 1973. It combines so many things we love about bluegrass, country, and roots music – from the steel guitar and tasty harmonies to the retro trimmings and honky-tonkin’ tempo. We’re even here for the iconic knotty pine wood paneling! Perfect for BGS Wraps.”

Sierra Hull, “The First Snowfall”

Artist: Sierra Hull
Song: “The First Snowfall”
Release Date: November 8, 2024

In Their Words: “‘The First Snowfall’ is the B side from my upcoming limited edition 7” vinyl release, Holiday Favorites V1  … Can anyone guess which classic artist I discovered this song from?” – Sierra Hull, via social media

From The Editor: “Every seasonal playlist deserves a selection of songs about the season, as well as the festive holidays we celebrate during it. So we were especially excited to hear impeccable mandolinist Sierra Hull’s rendition of this Bing Crosby classic, ‘The First Snowfall,’ when it dropped last month. With a newgrass groove that skips and hops along, Hull and her crack band bring a modern glitz to the number. Don’t miss the A side of her special holiday single release, too – it’s ‘Country Christmas’ pulled from the catalog of one of Hull’s heroes, Loretta Lynn. Bluegrass winter leads to bluegrass Christmas, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Blind Boys of Alabama & Jay Buchanan, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”

Artist: Blind Boys of Alabama & Jay Buchanan
Song: “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”
Release Date: November 29, 2024

In Their Words: “Get in the holiday & shopping spirit with ‘I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.’ Produced and arranged by Hall & Oates Music Director Shane Theriot, we sing it alongside rocker Jay Buchanan of Rival Sons.” – Blind Boys of Alabama, via social media

From The Editor: “Every holiday needs soul. Who better to provide a bit of a Christmas slow burn – besides a yule log – than the Blind Boys of Alabama with Rival Sons’ Jay Buchanan? ‘I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day’ has limitless pocket and a funky, slow dance groove. A brand new addition to our Non-Crappy Christmas Songs playlist? Most certainly! This rockin’, soulful, Americana-steeped rendition of a holiday classic is just too good.”

William Prince, “The Sound of Christmas”

Artist: William Prince
Album: The Sound of Christmas (EP)
Release Date: October 18, 2024

In Their Words: “Produced by the wonderful Boy Golden, featuring the talents of Alyshia Grace, FONTINE, Cody Iwasiuk, John Baron, Stephen Arundell, Keiran Placatka, Matt Kelly, Kris Ulrich, Austin Parachoniak, Kaitlyn Raitz, Ben Plotnick, and with beautiful artwork from Roberta Landreth, these songs were a treat to put together for you and I hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed making them. … Happy early holidays, folks.” – William Prince, via social media

From The Editor: “Christmas arrived right on time – in mid-October – via this delicious three-song EP from First Nations country singer-songwriter William Prince. We’ve covered Prince quite a bit over the years, relishing the plains patina and down-to-earth quality of his albums and songs. The Sound of Christmas is a bit more polished, shiny, and draped in tinsel (especially the primed-for-Times-Square title track), but the other tracks on the project, ‘Silver Bells’ and ‘Don’t Go Leaving Me (It’s Christmas Eve),’ still display plenty of that signature grit and duality. Here’s a sound direct from (what we now call) rural Canada that’s also very much ready for the mainstream.

“Something else we love about The Sound of Christmas: Prince is selling 1000-piece jigsaw puzzles of the festive, holiday village cover artwork for the EP. Adding it to our holiday gift list now!”

2024 BGS Holiday Guide

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! As we count down the days to holiday and family gatherings, our to-do lists stack up, getting longer and longer.

Not sure what to get the musicians, roots artists, and music lovers in your life this year? Never fear! Together with our BGS team, our partners, and our friends and neighbors, we’ve compiled a holiday gift guide that will hopefully put a sizable dent in your shopping list.

Below, check out essential festivals, tried-and-tested gear, superlative instruments, exciting and engaging books and albums, and perfectly on-theme trinkets for all the music obsessed giftees in your life! Maybe your loved one needs a music museum membership? Or perhaps they’re starting up a brand new musical hobby. Know someone who can’t get enough of music and the outdoors? We’ve got ideas for them, too.

The holiday season is the perfect time of year for the love and joy of roots music and we hope, with our 2024 Holiday Guide, you’ll be able to have a cheerful and dreamy December and a delightful new year – with a bumpin’ bluegrass, country, and Americana soundtrack.

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For Getting Into the Holiday Spirit

Dust the Halls: An Acoustic Christmas Holiday (Signed, only 25 available) – $35.99

 
The Infamous Stringdusters have announced a new color variant for Dust the Halls: An Acoustic Christmas Holiday, releasing on vinyl via Americana Vibes. This is the eighth studio album from the GRAMMY-winning band, who put their signature acoustic bluegrass twist on timeless holiday classics. Recorded remotely during the 2020 pandemic, the record showcases the Stringdusters’ unmatched ability to collaborate from afar, weaving together intricate arrangements and harmonies that make each track sparkle with warmth and cheer.

Purchase | Stream

Musical Instrument Museum Holiday Ornaments – $12 & up

 
Our friends at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, Arizona, have the most adorable and festive collection of instrument and music-themed holiday ornaments available at their museum gift shop and online. Choose from treble clefs, banjos, violins, bongos, bagpipes, acoustic guitars – with and without cutaways! – and so much more. Maybe throw in a MIM membership as well, to receive 20% off most purchases. Anddd because this is a museum with a mission worth supporting, as they highlight all musical genres and traditions, from classical to bluegrass, folk, Americana, and beyond.

Purchase

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For Starting Up a Brand New Hobby

Deering Goodtime Deco Banjo – $579 & up

 
Unwrap the gift of music this holiday season: Save 10% on Deering Goodtime Deco Banjos! Looking for the perfect present for the aspiring musician on your list? Look no further than Deering Goodtime Deco Banjos. Our Goodtime banjos are the #1 choice of banjo teachers for beginners! Use this special BGS discount code below to save 10%.

More than just a beginner’s instrument, the Goodtime banjo is crafted with high-quality materials and American-made construction, ensuring it will last for years to come. Plus, its light weight makes it ideal for travel, jam sessions, and impromptu gatherings – perfect for creating lasting musical memories together.

Use code BGS24HOLIDAYBANJO10  to save 10% on Goodtime Deco banjos! (Offer valid 11/29/24 to 12/31/24)

Purchase

Peghead Nation Lessons

 
Peghead Nation is celebrating its 10th Anniversary of teaching the world to play bluegrass, old-time, swing, Irish music, and other roots music styles – and we’re just getting started! With 75 streaming video courses and live workshops taught by the best instructors and players in the acoustic music community, you can learn guitar, mandolin, banjo, fiddle, Dobro, ukulele, bass, and voice, no matter where you are in your musical journey.

Join us in any course now and get your first month free with the promo code BGS10. Or, save on gift subscriptions for your musical friends and family members. We can’t wait to hear the music you’ll make!

Purchase

On Banjo: Recollections, Licks, and Solos
by Ben Eldridge with Randy Barrett – $39.95

 
Just getting started on banjo? You picked the correct new hobby. Now you can select the perfect instruction book to get you up to speed. The late Ben Eldridge, a legendary five-string banjo innovator, combines memoir, instruction, tablature, and more in his excellent book, On Banjo – written with Randy Barnett and featuring a forward by Béla Fleck. It’s a perfect compendium for beginners and veterans alike, filled with stories, memories, and plenty of Eldridge’s idiosyncratic and mind-bending licks and solos. Build your banjo picking on a solid foundation with this book!

Purchase

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For Professional Touring Musicians

D’Addario Cradle Capo – $72.99

 
With its stainless steel, self-centering design, D’Addario’s Cradle Capo ensures even tension across the fretboard. Its adjustable micrometer lets you dial in the perfect pressure, while allowing the freedom for quick transitions and the ability to stay on the guitar, even when not in use.

Order one for yourself or surprise a friend this holiday season with the perfect gift for every bluegrass guitarist!

Purchase

Preston Thompson Guitars Brazilian Dreadnought

 
Noted for their power and immediate, responsive voice, Preston Thompson Guitars pay tribute to the best American-made instruments from the 1930s. Master guitar luthier Preston Thompson started with a small team of highly skilled craftsman to produce custom acoustic guitars that have the look, playing feel, and above all, the sound of the best instruments from that original golden era of guitar making.

Thompson Guitars are built strong and light with time-tested designs and construction methods, providing a lifetime of enjoyment. Our instruments are handmade every step of the way, from the finest woods available.

Check on their website for possible ready to ship models available – a rarity for this custom shop! BGS readers can receive an exclusive 10% discount on all custom orders placed before January 31, 2025 using the code THOMPSON10.

Purchase

Audigo Wireless Mic – $219 & up

 
Audigo’s wireless, social media- and content capture-ready mics are seemingly everywhere these days. And for good reason! With their easy-to-use app, you can record multi-track audio and video at the highest qualities, recording from multiple Audigo mics simultaneously to one iPhone.

Audigo makes the kind of rapid content creation necessary for all levels of artists and bands at this point in time infinitely easier and strikingly seamless. Ready to make the plunge into vertical video content? Ready to shoot your own music videos? With Audigo, you can. And you won’t have to sacrifice quality.

Purchase

Loop Earplugs – $19.96 & up

 
Acoustic and roots musicians know that your hearing is worth protecting! Keep your own ears – or those of your professional touring loved one – cared for over the long haul with a pair of Loop Earplugs. Stylish and functional with a futuristic look, Loop Earplugs have received glowing reviews from consumer outlets like NYT‘s Wirecutter and offer a range of options, features, and styles. Whether you’re a casual concert goer or you spend each night on stage camped out in front of a drum kit, Loop has earplugs for you.

Take care of your ears now, so you never miss a single pluck or twang of your jam sessions down the line.

Purchase

Yamaha Guitars FS9 M – $3,999.99

 
Handcrafted in Japan, the FS9 M concert-style acoustic guitar offers extraordinary projection and produces an open, clean sound with mid-focused warm tones at any volume — ideal for singer-songwriters who play subtle arpeggios or fingerstyle.

The FS9 M features an Adirondack spruce top, “modified V” bolt-on neck, scalloped Adirondack X bracing pattern, 25-inch scale, African mahogany back/sides, and a beautiful, gloss nitrocellulose finish. Traditional Japanese details include a washi paper label, rope purfling and inlay on the rosette, and Kumiki woodworking-inspired fret markers.

Purchase

Calton Cases

 
Calton Cases set the standard for professional, flight-ready, peace-of-mind instrument cases – for all kinds of players, genres, and styles. We love the wide range of colors – especially the glitter options! – and options, and that you can secure your precious axes no matter what you play or travel with. From gear and electric guitars to mandocellos and bouzoukis, professional touring musicians can rest easy whether there’s space in the overhead bins or not.

If you have a professional touring musician in your life, ease their travel anxiety this holiday season with a superlative Calton Case.

Purchase

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For the Music Lover Who Has Everything

Oxford Pennant

 
Officially licensed handmade flags by Oxford Pennant in Buffalo, New York! John Prine, Willie Nelson, Jason Isbell, Turnpike Troubadours and many more artist collaborations available here.

We’ve loved every time we’ve gotten to collaborate with Oxford Pennant over the years and we can’t recommend their fine work highly enough. From the stages of Newport Folk Festival to our own closets, mantelpieces, and walls, Oxford Pennant fits just about everywhere – especially wrapped up with ribbons and bows for the music lover in your life who already has everything!

Purchase

Earl Scruggs Music Festival – $150 & up

 
We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: No one is producing bluegrass festivals like the Earl Scruggs Music Festival in Mill Spring, North Carolina. We’ve partnered with the event each year since its debut in 2022 and they continue to raise the bar for roots music festivals year over year. Held at the luxurious grounds of the Tryon International Equestrian Center in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, ESMF is just minutes away from where Scruggs himself grew up and established his unique playing style. Scruggs’ surviving family members play a big role in the festival, too, which is a partnership between the Earl Scruggs Center in Shelby, NC, the Equestrian Center, and WNCW.

We can’t wait to return to ESMF in 2025 for another weekend of bluegrass, country, Americana, and more – with amazing food, beautiful views, and gorgeous, well-maintained grounds. From tent camping to tiny-cabin glamping, from food truck barbeque to gourmet, wood-fired Italian food, from Twisted Pine to Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives, Earl Scruggs Music Festival has something for everyone.

Purchase tickets

Taylor Rushing x BGS Mercantile Graphic Tee Collab – $32

 
We are so excited to launch a brand new merch collab on the BGS Mercantile featuring art and design by the one and only Taylor Rushing of NOT BAD Illustration. We’ve gotta say, these designs are not bad!

Our two brand new, exclusive additions to the BGS Mercantile feature bespoke designs by Rushing that celebrate the launch of our new vertical and email newsletter, Good Country. Wear your love for good country music of all varieties on your sleeve– er, or on your chest. We love these timeless, simple illustrations printed on cozy, comfortable tees. Pre-order now for holiday delivery and be one of the very first BGS fans to own the new, limited edition designs. All while testifying your commitment to Good Country and NOT BAD country.

Purchase

Music Museum Memberships – $60 & up

 
Okay, so you have a music lover in your life that already has everything? Why not gift them a membership to two first-class music museums in Nashville, Tennessee? The next time they visit Music City, they’ll have the inside access of a true local.

We can’t recommend the National Museum of African American Music ($60 for an annual individual membership) and the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum ($65 for an annual individual membership) highly enough! These two incredible institutions – who often collaborate and co-produce programming and events – tell detailed, thoughtful, and nuanced stories central to Nashville, and to country, pop, and African American musics. Between the two, you can gain an incredibly holistic viewpoint of American popular music and the many threads woven throughout its traditions.

With a gift of a museum membership, you’re giving something that will keep on giving. Knowledge, expertise, insight, culture, community, and so much more come hand-in-hand with a membership to each of these fine institutions.

Plus, the Country Music Hall of Fame is currently running a special membership discount! Between November 4 and January 2, the museum is offering new members will get $5 off Troubadour Individual and individual-level memberships and $10 off Troubadour Dual and family-level memberships! Now’s your chance to save a bit of money and support the museum’s mission, too.

Purchase NMAAM Membership | Purchase CMHOF Membership

White Limozeen by Steacy Easton – $10.46

 
New this year from BGS contributor, freelance writer, and author Steacy Easton, White Limozeen is part of the essential and exhaustive 33 1/3 series from Bloomsbury. Easton is the perfect thinker to take on Dolly Parton’s White Limozeen, an album that joined her catalog at a critical juncture in her career. The book is certainly well-timed, releasing at a time when Parton’s current career continues to raise the ceiling time and time again for her own success, while reaching points of ubiquity and mainstream recognition she may have never considered possible – certainly not at the time of White Limozeen‘s making.

The book is an easy (while dense and informed) read that examines canon, mythos, the construction of image and self, and so much more. Pick it up now for a perfect holiday gift for the Parton acolyte or new initiate on your list.

Purchase

Keep your eye out for our full 2024 music books guide coming to BGS soon, too!

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For the Outdoor Festival Enthusiast

WinterWonderGrass – $249 & up

 
WinterWonderGrass enters its 12th year in Colorado, remaining true to the deep community it has built while celebrating the music and connections that bring us all together. In a world where many small, independent festivals have disappeared, this festival is committed to honoring bluegrass legends while embracing fresh new talent and filling their community’s cup.

WinterWonderGrass is part music festival, part beer festival, and part family reunion. The event boasts four stages, three of which are under huge heated tents, a robust kid’s zone, local food trucks, a VIP area, and a coffee bar. Plus, two hours of free beer, wine, spirits, and non-alcoholic tastings from 2:00 – 4:00 pm daily.

Join the festival in Steamboat Springs from February 28 to March 2, 2025! This year’s lineup features an incredible array of artists, including Trampled by Turtles, The California Honeydrops, Kitchen Dwellers, Leftover Salmon, Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country, Sam Bush Band, Yonder Mountain String Band, The Brothers Comatose, Lindsay Lou, Mountain Grass Unit, and more

Enter the WinterWonderGrass holiday giveaway for a chance to win WWG VIP tickets, ski passes, Mountain Top Dinner passes, tickets to all late nights, and more! Enter to win here.

Purchase tickets

Camp Snap Screen-Free Digital Camera – $59.99 & up

 
An essential accessory we bring along to nearly every music festival, conference, and event we attend, Camp Snap’s screen-free film-style digital cameras bring back joy and mystique to point-and-shooting. Don’t take our word for it, either, you can check out our Camp Snap shots from our cruise with Cayamo earlier this year.

If you’re stumped brainstorming gift ideas for the music lover who already has each and every thing you can imagine, why not get them a Camp Snap? The photos are charming, high quality, with plenty of personality. And they bring back some intention and deliberation to the usual social media grind. It’s like a disposable camera, but not! Like shooting Polaroids, but with an exciting period of suspense and anticipation. With sync capabilities via USB-C or SD card, it’s a breeze to use. Bring Camp Snap to your next festival or show!

Purchase

Kelty Packs – $19.95 & up

 
When you go to as many festivals, concerts, and music events as we do – or as the average outdoor festival enthusiast – you daydream a lot about the perfect pack. We happen to love Kelty, and their fabulous array of fanny packs, belt bags, backpacks, and beyond. From arduous and involved backpacking trips to quick jaunts to the farmers’ market, Kelty has something for every application.

We know our Kelty Packs would be right at home at WinterWonderGrass or Earl Scruggs Music Festival, both. They’re perfect for a carry-on bag, too! Plus, don’t miss their selection of tents, sleeping bags, camp chairs, and more to finish outfitting your festival campsite.

Purchase

This content brought to you in partnership with BGS sponsors Americana Vibes, Yamaha Guitars, Deering Banjos, Thompson Guitars, D’Addario, WinterWonderGrass, Earl Scruggs Music Festival, Peghead Nation, and Oxford Pennant.