Congratulations to the recipients of the 2024 IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards and the 2024 inductees to the International Bluegrass Music Association Hall of Fame
By Steven Brodsky
… The names of the recipients and inductees appear in this International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) press release:
Raleigh, North Carolina (September 26, 2024) — Del McCoury received the coveted “Entertainer of the Year” Award at the 35th Annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards. The Awards show, hosted by artists John Cowan and Missy Raines, was held September 26 at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts.
Previously announced inductees into the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame – Katy Daley, Jerry Douglas, and Alan Munde were also honored during the show with heartfelt acknowledgement.
The recipients of the 2024 IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards:
ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
Del McCoury Band
VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
Authentic Unlimited
INSTRUMENTAL GROUP OF THE YEAR
The Travelin’ McCourys
SONG OF THE YEAR
“Fall in Tennessee”
Recorded by Authentic Unlimited
Written by John Meador & Bob Minner
Produced by Authentic Unlimited
Billy Blue Records
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
City of Gold
Recorded by Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway
Produced by Jerry Douglas & Molly Tuttle
Nonesuch Records
GOSPEL RECORDING OF THE YEAR
“God Already Has”
Recorded by Dale Ann Bradley
Written by Mark “Brink” Brinkman & David Stewart
Produced by Dale Ann Bradley
Pinecastle Records
INSTRUMENTAL RECORDING OF THE YEAR
“Knee Deep in Bluegrass”
Recorded by Ashby Frank
Written by Terry Baucom
Produced by Ashby Frank
Mountain Home Music Company
NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
East Nash Grass
COLLABORATIVE RECORDING OF THE YEAR
“Brown’s Ferry Blues”
Recorded by Tony Trischka with Billy Strings
Written by Alton & Rabon Delmore
Produced by Béla Fleck
Down the Road Records
MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Danny Paisley
FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR
Jaelee Roberts
BANJO PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Rob McCoury
BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Vickie Vaughn
FIDDLE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Deanie Richardson
RESOPHONIC GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Gaven Largent
GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Cody Kilby
MANDOLIN PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jesse Brock
MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR (TIE)
“Fall in Tennessee”
Authentic Unlimited
“Alberta Bound”
Special Consensus with Ray Legere, John Reischman, Patrick Sauber, Trisha Gagnon, Pharis & Jason Romero, and Claire Lynch
2024 Inductees to International Bluegrass Music Association Hall of Fame:
Alan Munde has been at the forefront of bluegrass music as a banjo player, bandleader, and educator for over five decades. Hailing from Norman, Oklahoma, he played in his first band, The Stone Mountain Boys, in 1965. A subsequent jam session with Byron Berline, Sam Bush, and Wayne Stewart led to the recording of the highly acclaimed instrumental album Poor Richard’s Almanac. Starting in 1970, Munde began a two-year hitch with the King of Bluegrass, Jimmy Martin. From there, it was off to California and the country-rock group, the Flying Burrito Brothers. Munde scored a 20-year run with the progressive West Coast group Country Gazette. One of the Gazette’s seminal early releases was A Traitor in Our Midst. Other career highlights include Munde’s teaching bluegrass at South Plains College in Texas, serving as a columnist for Banjo Newsletter, and sitting as member of the IBMA board of directors. He was a 2008 recipient of an IBMA Distinguished Achievement award.
Jerry Douglas has reigned as bluegrass music’s preeminent Dobro player ever since the middle 1970s when he started with the Country Gentlemen. His fascination with the instrument began at age six when he saw Dobro legend Josh Graves perform on a Flatt & Scruggs show. Throughout the 1970s and ‘80s, Douglas rotated through a series of bands including J. D. Crowe’s New South, Boone Creek, and The Whites. This same period found Douglas becoming an in-demand session player, for both bluegrass and country music albums. In time, he amassed credits on literally thousands of recording sessions. In 1998, he was asked to join Alison Krauss’s Union Station and in 2014 he launched the award-winning Flatt & Scruggs tribute band, the Earls of Leister. Douglas has earned numerous IBMA Awards, including ten for Dobro Player of the Year. He also won fourteen Grammy Awards, and was selected the CMA’s Musician of the Year in 2002, 2005, and 2007. He is also a former vice president of IBMA’s board of directors.
Katy Daley (Patricia Cole Meloon Brown) made her mark as a bluegrass broadcaster in the Washington, D.C., metro area, starting in the early 1970s. Her entry to bluegrass radio came in a circuitous way. She jokingly told WAMU-FM broadcaster Gary Henderson that listening to his program was part of her work assignment at the CIA! A short time later, she signed on at WAMU, preparing and announcing a weekly “Who’s Playing Where” segment. This was followed by a weeknight disc jockey spot from 10:00 to midnight. In November 1978, Daley collaborated on a 13- part series which traced the development of the music: Bluegrass Anthology. In 1980, Daley joined WMZQ, a 24-hour country station in Washington, where her broadcast work included hosting a bluegrass program for three years. Eventually, Daley returned to WAMU’s offshoot, bluegrasscountry.org, and served as a morning air personality. She received two IBMA awards for Bluegrass Broadcaster of the Year and one for Distinguished Achievement. As part of her giving back to the community, she established the Katy Daley Broadcast Media/Sound Engineering Scholarship which is presented each year by the IBMA Foundation.
Awards were voted on by the professional membership of the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA). The show was aired on SiriusXM’s Bluegrass Junction channel and was livestreamed on IBMA’s Facebook Live.
Awards sponsors include: Virginia Tourism Corporation, Yamaha Guitar Group, BMI, Boston Bluegrass Union, Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum, Compass Records, Deering Banjos, Mountain Fever Records, Sound Biscuit Productions, and Turnberry Records,.
Posted 9-28-24
Revisiting With Carl Goldstein, Director of the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival and Treasured Pillar of Bluegrass
By Steven Brodsky
Few have done nearly as much for the bluegrass genre and its fans as has Carl. He co-founded the Brandywine Friends of Old Time Music in 1971 and has served in a leadership role ever since. Carl has been the director of the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival throughout its history, including when it was known as the Delaware Bluegrass Festival. He is chair of the Brandywine Friends. The Brandywine Friends produces the Festival and a concert series. Carl is an inductee into the WVUD Radio Hall of Fame; he has hosted WVUD’s Fire on the Mountain show since it went on the air in 1977. Carl has also significantly contributed to the history, present-day vibrancy, and future of bluegrass music in other ways.
We’re coming upon the 47th Annual Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival, Labor Day weekend. This Festival is one of the nation’s best (and was recognized as the 2016 IBMA Event of the Year). Carl, when did you have confidence that this Festival was going to have longevity and would reach and maintain the highest level of stature?
We had no idea how successful we would be for the first several years, even though we had the greatest possible lineup of bluegrass talent headed by Bill Monroe and Ralph Stanley. The uniqueness of the concept in the Northeast and weather problems made the first several years tough, but after about year 3 or 4 we started to increase attendance. Of course national attention took a few more years to attain but our progress was steady.
The website of the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival contains a list of performers who have appeared at the Festival: http://delawarevalleybluegrass.org/legacy-of-performers/. Many of the greatest names in the history of bluegrass and country music have been on the Festival’s main stage. Which of the artists might you rank among your personal favorites and what songs of theirs do you most enjoy?
Of course Monroe and Stanley were pioneers of this music. We were incredibly fortunate to have them as our founders and to this day they rank among my favorites. Others would include the Osborne Brothers, Jim & Jesse, Lester Flatt, the Country Gentlemen, Doc Watson, and our local heroes Ted Lundy and Bob Paisley. In recent years, the Seldom Scene, Alison Krauss, Del McCoury, Sister Sadie, and Patty Loveless would be among my favorites, but let me add, this is a very difficult question to answer. There would be many more if space allowed. To pick specific songs would require even more time and space—so let’s just say a huge number of songs from each of their repertoires remain my favorites.
Let’s talk about the upcoming Festival. Artists and festival attendees appreciate the capabilities of the Festival’s stage management. Who is involved and for how many years have they stage managed the Festival? What does the role of stage manager at the Festival entail?
In the early days a very few of us did everything, including MC, stage management, ticket sales and more. More recently Archie Warnock and Howard Parker have adroitly handled stage management. They coordinate all backstage activity, monitor the artists’ performance times and generally get things to run smoothly and on time. Their roles are vital.
Tell us about the stage announcers.
We are very fortunate to have two very fine MCs for our festival. Katy Daley is a legend among bluegrass DJs and personalities. She hosted a longtime radio program on WAMU Bluegrass Country and has written widely on the music. She and her co-host Bill Foster, also of WAMU fame, have a deep knowledge of the artists and present and provide a context to the audience to enhance their enjoyment.
Please touch upon the music and performance lineup of the 47th Annual Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival.
We have always tried to provide variety, with a view to emphasizing traditional bluegrass and showcasing its roots in old-time and related fields like western swing, traditional country, Cajun, etc. This year we feature two of the hottest acts in bluegrass, Hot Rize with Tim O’Brien, and Jerry Douglas’ Earls of Leicester, who recreate the classic sounds of Flatt and Scruggs. We also feature four of the six IBMA nominees for Emerging Artist of the Year: Mile Twelve, Po’ Ramblin’ Boys, Sister Sadie, and High Fidelity. For variety we have western swing artists the Quebe Sisters, Dom Flemons (formerly of the Carolina Chocolate Drops), Mick Kinney (old-time/ragtime from Georgia), and early 20th century Tin Pan Alley style performers Bill and the Belles. There are a host of other great acts and I encourage your readers to check out our web site where there are not only bios but music clips to enjoy as well.
What do you most enjoy about Festival weekend, given that you attend to your responsibilities as festival director?
In addition to hearing as much great music as time allows my greatest satisfaction is watching our audience appreciate and enjoy our offerings, especially those new and unexpected acts we slip in, including folks who rarely and in most cases have never appeared at a bluegrass festival like last year’s Tuba Skinny—Dixieland from New Orleans, or Asleep at the Wheel, or Patty Loveless.
What are some of your fondest all-time Festival memories?
There are numerous outstanding memories but I think a couple of them would be the Bill Monroe and Doc Watson duet at our first year at the Salem County Fairgrounds, and the infamous year that Hurricane Edouard hit us head-on and yet, pros that they were, bands like Riders in the Sky played on (with comments like, “Hey those lawn chairs blowing past us look just like tumbleweeds!”). It was a financial challenge but a victory of heart and soul for performers and audience alike.
The website address of the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival is: http://delawarevalleybluegrass.org/.
The Fire on the Mountain radio show is on WVUD: http://www.wvud.org/.
Posted 8/1/2018, Updated 6-13-20
A Conversation With Carl Goldstein, Champion of Bluegrass Music
By Steven Brodsky
Among those who’ve done the most to preserve bluegrass music and further its appreciation is Carl Goldstein. Consistent with the informal yet respectful norm of the bluegrass community, I’m not using the title “The Honorable” before his name; he was a judge in Delaware for 40 years before retiring in 2013. With two others, Carl founded the Brandywine Friends of Old Time Music in 1971. He’s provided leadership for the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival since its start in 1972. (The Festival was called the Delaware Bluegrass Festival until it moved to New Jersey in 1990.) Since 1977, Carl has hosted the Fire on the Mountain radio show on WVUD FM. In 2011, he was inducted into the WVUD Hall of Fame.
Carl, what are your official roles at the Brandywine Friends of Old Time Music and the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival?
I’m Chair of the BFOTM and Director of the Festival.
How long have you served in these capacities?
Since the organization and Festival’s inception.
How did you get introduced to bluegrass music?
I became interested in folk music during the “folk music scare” of the ’60s although I had listened to country music and blues even before that time. I found the more earthy and honest music of early Appalachian music to be even more to my liking.
When you first got involved in bluegrass music, where did you travel to hear the music and to learn more about it?
I travelled with companions to southwest Virginia, western North Carolina and Tennessee to fiddlers’ conventions and the earliest bluegrass festivals.
What drew you to the music and how did it engage you?
The soulful, powerful and yet down to earth nature of the music drew me in. I started collecting the music and eventually learned to play guitar.
In your early years as a fan of bluegrass music, who were some of your favorite musicians?
The Stanley Brothers/Ralph Stanley, Bill Monroe, Doc Watson, Mississippi John Hurt, and the Country Gentlemen were among some early favorites.
What were some of your favorite songs?
Too many to single out I’m afraid.
What memories do you have of Sunset Park (the iconic country music venue that was located in Chester County, Pennsylvania)?
I lived only a half hour or so from Sunset Park. I went there many Sundays during the summer months and was lucky enough to hear many of the greats of bluegrass and country music. In addition, each week musicians would jam out in the field.
What caused the Delaware Valley to become a hotbed of bluegrass music?
During the tough economic years of the ’30s many families from the mid south relocated to the area (NE Maryland, Southeastern PA and Delaware) in search of work bringing with them their culture and music. Among these families were the Paisleys, the Lundys, and the Campbells (Ola Belle Reed) and many others.
How were Ralph Stanley and Bill Monroe responsible for the first annual Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival?
Ralph Stanley, whom I had known from years of following his music, came to us on behalf of himself and Bill Monroe in 1971 asking whether our organization would host a festival – the first in the northeast. They were to supply the talent (although we did have some limited input) and we were to supply the venue and publicity. We were delighted to agree. The Festival was set for Labor Day weekend 1972. That first year it was in a KOA campground but moved to a newly constructed music park – Gloryland Park – the second year.
After the third year Bill and Ralph decided to start their own festivals that weekend in their respective home places. From that point on we produced the Festival ourselves and after their festivals ended in a few years we had each of them back nearly every other year.
Did you believe that the first Festival was going to become an annual event?
We had high hopes but that first year was a muddy mess. They (Bill and Ralph) and we persevered.
Please tell us about a few of your most valued memories associated with the Festival.
It was Lester Flatt who stepped up that 4th year at a fee we could afford so we were able to present a fine lineup our first year on our own.
Doc Watson and Bill Monroe did a rare and historic set together in 1990, our first year in New Jersey.
We had some legendary folks perform for us over the years. In addition to nearly all of the great bluegrass musicians, we have presented Merle Travis, Hank Thompson, and a number of special tribute sets and reunions that were very memorable like, for example, Ricky Skaggs and Ralph Stanley.
I should mention that the Brandywine Friends and hence the Bluegrass Festival is run by a Board of Directors of 16 members. They are all interesting, smart and funny human beings. I mention it here because part of the joy of the Festival is doing it with these exceptional folks.
Congratulations on the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival winning the award for 2016 IBMA Event of the Year. What components make the Festival a favorite of musicians and attendees year after year?
I think that because we are nonprofit and all volunteer we have the luxury of presenting a top-notch lineup of talent – top to bottom each year. While our main focus is bluegrass, we have always presented some variety with comparable genres like old-time music, traditional country music, Cajun and French Canadian.
We also include features like a Children’s Stage and a Kids’ Academy where youngsters can gain instruction in every bluegrass instrument during the course of the weekend. We are also known as a great jam festival. Our campground is filled with folks playing day and night.
Please speak about the lineup for the 46th Annual Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival taking place on Labor Day weekend.
Once again we have a great lineup featuring some of the best acts in traditional music – Del McCoury, the Gibson Brothers, and a host of others. We have the perennial favorites: The Grascals, Blue Highway, and IBMA 2016 Male Vocalist of the Year Danny Paisley. All that in addition to relative newcomers like Becky Buller and Flatt Lonesome and powerful old-time music from the Foghorn Stringband and April Verch – not to mention Asleep at the Wheel who I will in a moment.
Are there performers that you are especially looking forward to seeing this year? If so, why?
It’s always a treat for us to surprise our audience with an act that may be unexpected but is fully within our view of traditional music. This year it is Asleep at the Wheel – the legendary Texas Western Swing band. That’s gonna be fun.
What do you most enjoy about hosting the Fire on the Mountain radio show?
I think it’s the audience. Each week I get calls from interesting and informed people. They have been very loyal over these 40 years and each year those folks lead all programs on the station for our fundraising efforts. They’re just great. Besides, if I weren’t playing that music on the air, I’d be home doing the same thing.
What does the future look like for bluegrass music and the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival?
If you’d asked me that question 15 or so years ago I might not have been as optimistic as I am now. There are a great number of younger folks playing bluegrass and old-time music these days. That in turn bodes well for the festivals.
Information is available at: www.delawarevalleybluegrass.org.
Information about the Brandywine Friends of Old Time Music is at: www.brandywinefriends.org.
Posted 5/27/17