I had played the five-string banjo in just about every spare moment of my pre-medical education at U.C. Berkeley. Pete Seeger's records were my main teacher. Deciphering the techniques in his How to Play the Five-String Banjo would always lead me to his home address inside the back cover. After many years of waffling, I wrote to him in 1994. My letter described the friends I had made playing the banjo. I included the cassettes I had recorded of mostly knock-offs of his songs with a few of my own, and I described playing and singing with Read more...

Sincerest apologies for apparently ignoring folks who posted gigs or otherwise tried to contact me! My contact forms were broken, but have now been repaired. So have at it! Got a gig or music-related service? Post 'em. Want to just chat? I'm here.
—Jim Read more...

Eric and Leigh Gibson have opened up their hearts wide with They Called It Music (Compass Records, 2013), an exquisite album of aching songs recorded at the end of 2012, less than a year after the death of their father. The charging intuitive ensemble rings with lump-in-your-throat truths and Gibson trademark harmonies. The recording and mixing of the album make me Read more...

Father Asbury used to play his guitar on Fridays during Religious Studies when I was in fourth grade. He'd strum with his fingers until they bled, while he led us singing "John Henry," "The Battle of New Orleans," and "This Little Light of Mine." Church Bazaars in October always had Armenian folk music with driving Turkish and Arabic rhythms on oud, kanoun, doumbek, clarinet and guitar. Line dancing late into the night preceded the Sunday liturgy Read more...

There was nothing half-pint, half-assed or half-fast coming out of Texas on the Upper West side last night. If you saw Fort Worth natives, the Quebe Sisters at the Triad NYC, you'd know what I'm talking about. They shine like the sun. Pound like the rain. And let the yellow rose rest easy in retirement. Sometimes awesome talent and beauty can be intimidating. Their performance was relief and inspiration. Grace, Sophia and Hulda Quebe Read more...

Leigh Gibson is a modern day bluegrass soul. A keeper of stories sung and spoken, Leigh can turn summer roasted festival grounds into your grandparent's cool screened backporch with avuncular qualities of a past age. The Gibson Brothers robust but nuanced sound is accompanied Read more...

I first heard Joe Walsh at Caffè Lena in 2008. I loved his crisp-as-a-fall-apple sound. Sweet but with a kick. I start this post by focusing on the mandolin Joe acquired in late 2010 and his performance at Merlefest's Mando Mania this year. His mandolin is a Gilchrist Model 3 built in 1 Read more...

Last Friday when the Gibson Brothers performed at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts, Leigh Gibson mentioned a band member's birthday. Bassist Mike Barber was turning 42. The audience spontaneously broke into "Happy Birthday" for the most youthful and senior citizen of the group. I had a big grin on my face when I heard that story. Mike is not only "off the grid" as an expert angler in the North Country, he Read more...