{"id":10263,"date":"2018-11-16T20:17:34","date_gmt":"2018-11-17T02:17:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/garyhayescountry.com\/?p=10263"},"modified":"2023-09-03T20:20:11","modified_gmt":"2023-09-03T20:20:11","slug":"2019-festival-news-series-merlefest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/garyhayescountry.com\/?p=10263","title":{"rendered":"2019 Festival News Series: Merlefest."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

DelFest<\/a>
\n<\/a>Old Settler\u2019s Music Festival<\/a>
\n<\/a>The John Hartford Music Festival<\/a>
\n<\/a>Merlefest<\/a>
\n<\/a>High Water festival<\/a>
\n<\/a>Mardi Gras Texas Style<\/a>
\n<\/a>Winter Wonder Grass Series<\/a>
\n<\/a>Moonrunners Music Festival<\/a>
\n<\/a>The Nashville Boogie<\/a>
\n<\/a>Master Musician’s Festival<\/a><\/p>\n

Merlefest is one of my favorite festivals to provide information for, although I have never
\ncovered this festival in person. However THIS YEAR I plan to fix that statement as I HAVE applied for a press pass to bring this action to your home!<\/p>\n

In my usual true journalistic style I SHALL ATTEMPT to bring all the action to your doorstep here from North Carolina this spring.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n
MerleFest, presented by Window World, is proud to announce the initial lineup for MerleFest 2019, which will be held\u00a0April 25-28.\u00a0The annual homecoming of musicians and music fans returns to the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The complete lineup for MerleFest 2019 will be announced over the next few months.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Today\u2019s lineup announcement includes\u00a0Wynonna & The Big Noise<\/a>,\u00a0Keb\u2019 Mo\u2019<\/a>,\u00a0The Earls of Leicester<\/a>,\u00a0Sam Bush,<\/a>\u00a0Tyler Childers<\/a>,\u00a0Peter Rowan and The Free Mexican Air Force<\/a>, and many more.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The\u00a02019 Late Night Jam on Saturday, April 27th\u00a0will start at 10:30 p.m. and run well past midnight, with host\u00a0Chatham County Line<\/a>. This very popular after-hours hootenanny in the Walker Center gathers many performers from the festival for impromptu artistic collaborations and one-of-a-kind superstar jams that have become legendary in the festival\u2019s history.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Ticket sales for both the festival and Late Night Jam are on sale now.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/td>\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
Wynonna & The Big Noise: Respected by the millions of fans who are drawn to her music and undeniable talent, Wynonna\u2019s rich and commanding voice has sold over 30-million albums worldwide spanning her remarkable 35-year career. As one-half of the legendary mother\/daughter duo “The Judds,” Wynonna was once dubbed by Rolling Stone as \u201cthe greatest female country singer since Patsy Cline.” This iconic performer has received over 60 industry awards, with countless charting singles, including 20 No.1 hits such as \u201cMama He\u2019s Crazy,\u201d \u201cWhy Not me,\u201d and \u201cGrandpa, (Tell Me \u2018Bout The Good Ole Days).\u201d<\/div>\n
\"\"<\/td>\n\"\"<\/td>\n\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
Keb\u2019 Mo\u2019: Over the past two decades, award-winning singer, songwriter, guitarist and contemporary blues artist, Keb\u2019 Mo\u2019, has cultivated a reputation as a modern master of American roots music through the understated excellence of his live and studio performances. His most recent studio project TajMo, a collaboration with the legendary Taj Mahal, won the 2018 GRAMMY for \u201cBest Contemporary Blues Album.\u201d Additionally, at the 39th Annual Blues Music Awards, TajMo earned Album of the Year and Contemporary Blues Album of the Year, and Keb\u2019 Mo\u2019 also took home the title of Contemporary Blues Male Artist of The Year.<\/div>\n
\"\"<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
The Earls of Leicester:\u00a0When The Earls of Leicester formed in 2013, their mission was ambitious but exact: to preserve and promote the legacy of bluegrass legends Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, in hopes of reviving the duo\u2019s music for long time admirers and introducing a new generation to their genre-defining sound. Within a year of releasing their self-titled debut, the Nashville-based six-piece far surpassed their own expectations, winning a Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album and earning six awards from the International Bluegrass Music Association. Now, with their first live album, The Earls of Leicester offer up a selection of songs that fully capture the pure joy and supreme musicianship that propel their every performance.<\/div>\n
\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
Sam Bush:\u00a0From teen fiddle champion to groundbreaking mandolinist, there is only one Sam Bush. The son of Kentucky reared on Bill Monroe\u2019s bluegrass came of age in the counterculture cyclone of the late \u201860s. In the genre\u2019s outsiders like the Osborne Brothers and The Dillards, Bush heard the future, and by the dawn of the 1970s was leading his own New Grass Revival, driven by the power of rock-and-roll and the freedom of improvisational jazz. Bush and his hippie co-conspirators changed the bluegrass landscape, touring with Leon Russell, winning fans at festivals across the country, and recording Grammy-winning songs. At the group\u2019s peak, after taking aim at the top of the Country charts, Bush walked away.<\/div>\n
Read More…<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/td>\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
Tyler Childers:\u00a0Like many great Southern storytellers, singer-songwriter Tyler Childers has fallen in love with a place. The people, landmarks and legendary moments from his childhood home of Lawrence County, Kentucky, populate the 10 songs in his formidable debut,Purgatory, an album that\u2019s simultaneously modern and as ancient as the Appalachian Mountains in which events unfold. The album, co-produced by Grammy Award winners Sturgill Simpson and David Ferguson, is a semi-autobiographical sketch of Childers\u2019 growth from wayward youth to happily married man, told in the tradition of a Southern gothic novel with a classic noir anti-hero who may just be irredeemable.<\/div>\n
\"\"<\/td>\n\"\"<\/td>\n\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
Peter Rowan and The Free Mexican Air Force: Grammy-award winner Peter Rowan is a singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades. From his early years playing under the tutelage of Bluegrass veteran Bill Monroe, to his time in Old & In the Way and his breakout as a solo musician and bandleader, Rowan has built a devoted, international fan base through a solid stream of recordings, collaborative projects, and constant touring. The late \u201860s and early 70\u2019s saw Rowan involved in a number of rock, folk and bluegrass projects, including Earth Opera, Sea Train, Muleskinner, and the Rowans, where he played alongside brothers Chris and Lorin Rowan.<\/div>\n
\"\"<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
“MerleFest is proud to announce more than 75 artists who are part of the festival\u2019s 2019 lineup, commemorating the 32nd year of the festival. MerleFest continues its tradition of honoring the tried and true performers that our MerleFest fans have come to know and love like Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Jim Lauderdale, and The Kruger Brothers and adding to them some of the top traditional plus acts performing today like Tyler Childers, Wynonna & The Big Noise, Keb\u2019 Mo\u2019. The initial lineup reflects the musical diversity and quality of performers who are the hallmark of the festival,\u201d says Lindsay Craven, MerleFest Artist Relations Manager.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
The full initial lineup includes the following:<\/div>\n
We are thrilled to announce our initial 2019 lineup!\u00a0Wynonna<\/a>\u00a0and The Big Noise,\u00a0Tyler Childers<\/a>,\u00a0Keb’ Mo’<\/a>,\u00a0Jerry Douglas<\/a>,\u00a0Earls of Leicester<\/a>,\u00a0Sam Bush<\/a>,\u00a0Peter Rowan<\/a>\u00a0and The Free Mexican Airforce,\u00a0Jim Lauderdale<\/a>,\u00a0Scythian<\/a>,\u00a0Kruger Brothers<\/a>,\u00a0Gibson Brothers Music<\/a>,\u00a0The Black Lillies<\/a>,\u00a0Radney Foster<\/a>,\u00a0Junior Sisk<\/a>,\u00a0Chatham County Line<\/a>,\u00a0Donna the Buffalo<\/a>,\u00a0Mark O’Connor<\/a>,\u00a0The Waybacks<\/a>,\u00a0Yarn<\/a>, T. Michael Coleman,\u00a0Jim Avett<\/a>,\u00a0Junior Brown Fan Page<\/a>,\u00a0Elephant Sessions<\/a>,\u00a0Cane Mill Road<\/a>,\u00a0Salt and\u00a0Light<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0The Trailblazers<\/a>, Wayne Henderson,\u00a0Presley Barker<\/a>,\u00a0Laura Boosinger<\/a>,\u00a0Jeff Little\/Jeff Little Trio<\/a>, Jack Lawrence, Mark Bumgarner, Mitch Greenhill,\u00a0String Madness<\/a>,\u00a0Pete Wernick<\/a>,\u00a0The Harris Brothers<\/a>, Tony Williamson, The InterACTive Theater of Jef,\u00a0Driftwood<\/a>, Roy Book Binder, Joe Smothers,\u00a0Jess Morgan<\/a>, Jontavious Willis and Andrew Alli,\u00a0Happy Traum<\/a>,\u00a0Irish Wren Mythen<\/a>,\u00a0David LaMotte<\/a>,\u00a0American Aquarium<\/a>, Bob Hill,\u00a0Ana Egge<\/a>\u00a0and the Sentimentals, Andy May, Banknotes,\u00a0Carol Rifkin<\/a>, Charles Welch,\u00a0Elizabeth Cook<\/a>,\u00a0Gordie MacKeeman and His Rhythm Boys<\/a>, Larry Stephenson Band,\u00a0Lindi Ortega<\/a>, B Townes, Professor Whizzpop, Nixon, Blevins and gage,\u00a0Mile Twelve<\/a>, Si Kahn,\u00a0Steve Poltz<\/a>,\u00a0Todd Albright<\/a>, Tom Feldman, Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike, The Local Boys,\u00a0Shane Hennessy<\/a>,\u00a0Maybe April<\/a>, Ellis Dyson & The Shambles, Dirk Powell Band, Carolina Blue,\u00a0AZTEC SUN<\/a>, Ken Crouse, Catfish Keith,\u00a0Michaela Anne<\/a>, Webb Wilder and our very own Flattop!<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Additional performers for MerleFest 2019 will be announced in the coming months. The lineup and performance schedule is accessible viaMerleFest.org\/lineup<\/a>.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

MerleFest Adds Brandi Carlile, Dailey & Vincent, and The Brother Brothers to 2019 Lineup<\/div>\n
Tickets on Sale Now<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
WILKESBORO, N.C. (Dec. 10, 2018) \u2013 MerleFest, presented by Window World, is proud to announce new artist additions for MerleFest 2019:\u00a0Brandi Carlile, Dailey & Vincent,\u00a0and\u00a0The Brother Brothers.\u00a0The annual homecoming of musicians and music fans returns to the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains,\u00a0April 25-28.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Brandi Carlile: GRAMMY-nominated Brandi Carlile is currently celebrating her breakthrough new album,\u00a0By The Way, I Forgive You, which debuted earlier this year at No. 1 on the\u00a0Billboard\u00a0Top Current Albums chart, Rock Albums chart and Americana\/Folk Albums chart and Number 5 on the\u00a0Billboard\u00a0200 chart\u2014a career high for the Seattle-based group. Produced by Dave Cobb and Shooter Jennings, the album continues to receive overwhelming acclaim, including recent “Best Albums of 2018” coverage at\u00a0Rolling Stone,\u00a0Entertainment Weekly,\u00a0Billboard, NPR Music and more.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Most recently, Carlile joined forces with Sam Smith on a new duet version of \u201cParty Of One.\u201d Recorded at L.A.\u2019s Capitol Studios, a portion of the profits from this recording will be donated to Children in Conflict via Brandi Carlile\u2019s Looking Out Foundation as part of its ongoing campaign to raise $1 million for children impacted by war.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Beloved by fans and critics alike, Carlile has performed sold-out concerts across the world and has appeared on various TV shows including The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Tonight Show, The Today Show, Conan and CBS This Morning.\u00a0Carlile will perform on Saturday evening at MerleFest.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Dailey & Vincent:\u00a0Grand Ole Opry Members, Five-time GRAMMY award winners individually, three-time GRAMMY award nominees collectively, four-time DOVE Award winners, and winners of 35 IBMA Awards altogether (including 3-time IBMA Entertainer of the Year Award winners and 3-Time Vocal Group of the Year Award winners), Jamie Dailey and Darrin Vincent, backed by one of the best bands on tour today, are some of the most reputable and elite entertainers in American music; bluegrass, traditional country and gospel music. Now on Season 3 of their nationally broadcast television series, \u201cThe Dailey & Vincent Show on RFD-TV,\u201d Dailey & Vincent bring their music to a national audience on a weekly basis. After a decade spent performing together and with over 1,000 airings of their PBS special \u201cDailey & Vincent ALIVE \u2013 In Concert,\u201d their concoction of fantastically instinctive vocal blends of Dailey\u2019s tenor and Vincent\u2019s reedy harmonies has gained them well-deserved praise for their own distinctive style and worldwide recognition as American Music gold. Their most recent live CD,\u00a0Dailey & Vincent ALIVE, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Bluegrass charts and remained at the top position for over 15 weeks.Dailey & Vincent will appear on Thursday at MerleFest.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The Brother Brothers: The Brother Brothers are Adam and David Moss, identical twins carrying on the folk tradition for a new generation. Using minimal instrumentation, heartfelt lyricism, and harmonies so natural they seem to blend into one beautiful voice, the siblings draw on the energy and creativity of Brooklyn, New York for their full-length debut album,\u00a0Some People I Know.\u00a0The Brother Brothers will make their MerleFest debut on Saturday.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u201cFor over 30 years, one of the major factors that has built and sustained MerleFest has been the quality of the artists and performances that our guests see over the 4 day festival,\u201d says\u00a0Ted Hagaman, Festival Director. \u201cPeople truly feel that the festival is a great value and that is why music fans and families return year after year. We feel that the 2019 lineup again reflects the diversity and quality of performers and we look forward to another successful festival in April.\u201d\u00a0The three artists announced today join over 75 artistsannounced last month via Rolling Stone Country<\/a>. Headliners include\u00a0Wynonna & The Big Noise, Keb\u2019 Mo\u2019, The Earls of Leicester, Sam Bush, Tyler Childers, and Peter Rowan and The Free Mexican Air Force.\u00a0The Late Night Jam presented by\u00a0The Bluegrass Situation<\/a>\u00a0will be hosted by Chatham County Line.\u00a0In addition to the above mentioned artists, the following will be performing at MerleFest \u201819:<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n