musicreporterblog

Musings on folk, Americana, country, bluegrass and newgrass


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Sugarland’s Kristian Bush and Asheville’s Caleb Johnson among free entertainment at Lexington Barbecue Festival

The 31st annual Lexington Barbecue Festival is set for Saturday, Oct. 25. Organizers of the festival are expecting some 150,000 people to attend this weekend’s festivities that include music, food, craft vendors and children activities. Among the free performers will be Sugarland’s Kristian Bush and 2014 American Idol winner Caleb Johnson, who is a native of Asheville. Find the entertainment schedule here.

Following is an interview with Bush that I wrote for The Fayetteville Observer in April 2007.

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Steep Canyon Rangers to perform at Blue Ridge Music Center on Saturday, Oct. 11

Want to catch glimpses of autumn color and hear some amazing music at the same time? Mark your calendar to head to the Blue Ridge Music Center near Galax, Va., off the Blue Ridge Parkway to hear the Grammy Award-winning Steep Canyon Rangers at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11. Continue reading →


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Southern rockers to permeate southwest Virginia the weekend of Sept. 25-27

If you like Southern rock, or “Southern Fried Rock” as the old K-Tel albums used to refer to it, there are a lot of chances for you to get your groove on to some classics as well as some new tunes this weekend beginning Thursday, Sept. 25, in southwest Virginia. Continue reading →

John Cowan


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Lonesome River Band and John Cowan, John McFee & Friends headline the 40th annual Stokes County Stomp

DANBURY, N.C. — The annual Stokes Stomp Festival on the Dan is celebrating its 40th birthday with free concerts including bluegrass sensation The Lonesome River Band and the Doobie Brothers’ John Cowan, John McFee and Friends. Continue reading →


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Sample the sounds of New Orleans’ Caleb Caudle and tastes of microbrews, food trucks at Reynolda House’s Harvest Moon Festival

Celebrating the Harvest Moon and the Reynolda Estate in Winston-Salem, N.C., this annual event connects art, food, and music on the Reynolda lawn. Hear rising star Caleb Caudle, a New Orleans singer-songwriter, and enjoy outdoor games, the exhibition The Art of Seating: Two Hundred Years of American Design , a keepsake art activity, microbrew beer, free tastings, and meals available from food trucks, according to the Reynolda House Museum’s website.

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