Southern Songs and Stories

Half a century ago, one of the first all-female bluegrass bands gave us the genre’s first album played exclusively by women; their banjo player’s mother was embarrassed about her daughter’s choice of profession. It was only fifty years or so after the passage of the 19th Amendment, after all. Today, there are more all-female bluegrass and roots music bands, but they remain an exception. Join us as...

It would be very easy to think that rap and hip hop have little if anything in common with music like bluegrass and old time. After all, we have been led to believe that these styles of music come from cultures on opposite sides of the musical spectrum. How could the two have any common ground? Actually, they have many more connections than you might imagine. This connection is embodied in groups...

The Po' Ramblin' Boys are a bluegrass band who are often unflinching in nature with their subject matter, a band that is “progressively traditional”; we talk about this and their love of George Jones songs, how C.J Lewandowski.’s home state of Missouri factors into their music, and how C.J. came to own Jimmy Martin’s pickup truck and more, with new music from the quintet

Sierra Hull won her fourth award for Mandolin Player Of The Year at the IBMA conference in fall of 2022, a feat that would not have been within her grasp in the not-too-distant past. Now, women like Sierra Hull, Natalya Weinstein of Zoe & Cloyd and the group Della Mae can and do receive the recognition that women before them, like Becky Buller and Claire Lynch, worked so hard to put within the...

For his 99th birth anniversary, WNCW honored the late great Earl Scruggs by sharing portions of interviews with artists who knew him, broadcasting stories ranging from brief encounters in young adulthood, like Sierra Hull’s memories of Earl, on to years of friendship and collaboration with guests like John McEuen and Pete Wernick (note: Sierra Hull will also be our featured guest in her upcoming e...

2022 was a very good year for Charley Crockett. It was another prolific period for the Texan artist, who is mostly known as a country musician, although the breadth and depth of his music cannot be grasped with just that one handle. His first collection of 2022, Lil' G.L. Presents: Jukebox Charley found Crockett in his covers mode, which he has employed often since he burst on the scene in 2018 wi...

2022 has been a year of firsts at Southern Songs and Stories . Beginning with our first guest host, WNCW’s Corrie Askew took stock of her favorite episodes of this series in the previous year. We went even further back in time to revisit Green Acres Music Hall with an episode summing up the first three podcasts on the beloved music venue, and focusing on previously unheard conversations with Green...

Conversation with multiple Grammy and IBMA award winning instrumentalist along with commentary and musical excerpts from My Bluegrass Heart.

Barrett Davis talks about his debut album The Ballad Of Aesop Fin, how he brought Woody Platt of Steep Canyon Rangers' fame into the project, his faith and more. Including music excerpts from Davis' debut and commentary from host Joe Kendrick

Conversations touching on artists from North Carolina like Aaron Burdett, River Whyless, and Scruggs Fest featured artists Fireside Collective and Chatham Rabbits, plus up and comer Cristina Vane, who calls Nashville home. You will get to hear music excerpts of all of those artists in this episode. Of course, we also talk about the festival’s namesake, Earl Scruggs, who grew up in nearby Cleveland...

As a lifelong Southerner, and a mostly small-town Southerner all these years, I can understand when people want to get out of their small, Southern town in favor of a city with more people of like minds. And as that mostly happy small-town Southerner, I can understand why people want to get out of the city and put themselves in that countryside. Both scenarios play out on the regular here in red d...

For a place as remote as Ashe County, NC, you could be forgiven for overlooking it as a wellspring for musical talent. But music seems to flow naturally out of the Appalachian mountains in and around towns like Sparta, NC, where artists like Brian Swenk grew up. Our recent episode on banjo player Tray Wellington gives another example of how the region punches above its weight with its long track r...

Interview with award winning banjo player, songwriter and all around nice guy Tray Wellington, featuring excerpts of his original compositions as well as some covers. Includes commentary from host and producer Joe Kendrick, as well as banjo players Jesse Langlais and Brian Swenk.

Music artists Bela Fleck, Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Darin Aldridge, and Acoustic Syndicate speak at length about their memories of and love for the little venue that could, Green Acres Music Hall. Also featured is the one person who is most responsible for putting Green Acres on the map, the Little King himself, Steve Metcalf. Plus, comments from a whole host of others who were there back in the da...

One of the finest songwriters of his generation talks about his love of electric guitar, life on his 500+ acre farm, his many collaborations, his favorite cover version of one of his signature songs and much more, including music from his most recent albums and live excerpts of songs from his extensive catalog.

Joe Kendrick details what his first, most recent, and favorite live music experiences have been, while asking the audience to join in the conversation with their replies.

Colin Hay talks about his long career, the music and music scenes of his native Scotland and his successive home countries Australia and the US, his admiration for artists like Kasey Musgraves, Sturgill Simpson and Chris Stapleton, about finding his way out of having been, as he puts it, too alternative for commercial labels and too commercial for alternative labels, and a lot more, including exce...

A conversation with Dori Freeman as well as songs from her performance the Albino Skunk Music Festival in May of 2022. Sloane Spencer joins in this conversation that touches on Dori’s deep Appalachian roots, recording her family album in Nick’s newly constructed studio in their backyard, how she draws inspiration and ideas from listening to rap artists, and even her love of Topo Chico brand seltze...

Ketch talks about the current lineup of Old Crow Medicine Show, his time living off the land in Avery County, North Carolina when the band first formed, his recent fascination with music from Equatorial Africa and Texas border country, how he always wants to be, as he puts it, a mockingbird, and much more, including music from their new album Paint This Town.

Host Joe Kendrick interviews Justin Golden, including commentary and music excerpts from his debut album Hard Times and a Woman

Jonathan Chance and Zach Chance talk with host Joe Kendrick about approaching middle age, how they approach the business of making music and more. Also including commentary and music excerpts from their album Young Man.

Conversation with Sarah Shook about the evolution of sound with the Disarmers' third album Nightroamer, their road to sobriety, learning from Southerners about how to make a point in a gentle and indirect way, and more, including excerpts of their new songs produced by Pete Anderson.

Dallas, Texas singer songwriter Joshua Ray Walker is finally able to tour again and bring songs from the third album of his trilogy to live settings. He plays live selections from the new collection titled See You Next Time and talks about the importance of family, the rich music scene in his home town, his approach to writing lyrics and much more.

From Mother Maybelle Carter and Charlie Poole to modern day country and bluegrass artists Tammy Rogers and Thomm Jutz, the circle has been made complete with their collaboration Surely Will Be Singing. Host Joe Kendrick talks with them in a wide ranging conversation that includes live music they performed on public radio WNCW.