Pam Linton grew up in rural central Minnesota (St. Stephen, specifically) and she says, “In that little-bitty town, music was what entertained us.” Pam knew very early on that she wanted to be directly involved with the making of that music. As a matter of fact, she says, “I told my second grade teacher I was going to be a ...

Corey Hunt and Todd Allmon, primary songwriters for Corey Hunt and the Wise, were high school buddies; but the story of their being in a band together doesn’t follow the typical template for this kind thing. Corey didn’t pick up guitar and start writing until college, and Todd only decided to take up playing music after much time spent supporting ...

These days, Kyle Davis is enjoying an extended second act as a singer-songwriter. In his previous musical life, he achieved a level of success many artists strive for but never grasp. He has also experienced the vicissitudes of the music industry firsthand. As for the origin of his creativity, Kyle says, “I was bitten by the bug early on,” and ...

Florida native, Amanda Cook has become one of the top female band leaders on the bluegrass scene today. The Amanda Cook Band has reached the 10 year mark under her leadership, and just recently released their fifth album, Restless Soul. Sparked by her dad’s influence, and the desire to lead a band of her own, Amanda now has an appearance ...

Rock Hearts is a bluegrass group based in the south—the southern part of New England, that is. Despite their physical distance from the southern Appalachian center of bluegrass, their dedication to the musical traditions of the genre places them squarely in its musical territory. According to the band’s lead singer and guitarist Alex MacLeod, “We are a New England-based bluegrass ...

Singer-songwriter, horse breeder/trainer and occasional chef Mike Schikora says “I always keep plates spinning; life’s much too short to have one focus.” His latest album, Outlaw from the South (his third solo effort, released July 2024) reflects this diversity of interests, in that, according to Mike, it has no single overall theme. “This is the first time I went without ...

Bluegrass fans will probably recognize Daryl Mosley from his work with New Tradition, The Osborne Brothers and The Farm Hands. Most recently he has also carved out a satisfying solo career, which has seen him release four solo albums over the last five years. Daryl’s fourth solo album, Long Days and Short Stories, which came out in October, turned out ...

The members of bluegrass outfit Appalachian Smoke literally embody the first part of their moniker, all residing in the southern portion of the great mountain chain. “…Where Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina all meet, there’s kind of a point there and we’re all roughly an hour away from that in different directions,” says Tim Williams, the group’s bass player, when ...

When Connecticut’s Rusty Gear got started in music, he was playing bass along with his older brother John, who was an accomplished guitarist. At a certain point however, Rusty decided that he too would like to play guitar. “I went to a friend’s house, a guy who was pretty handy. And we drilled a couple of extra holes in it, ...

Hailing originally from small town New Brunswick, Canada, singer-songwriter Robert Ross grew up in a music-loving household and started singing at a young age. “I was shy as a kid. I kind of just sang in the back room,” Robert remembers. His first public performance came at the tender age of twelve, at a community fundraiser. He laughs, “I was ...