The Glory-Beaming Banjo

Look, I'm well aware that I haven't been posting much. I feel like I've been stuck in a rut ... a month's long rut. Awhile back I saw a link to a banjo podcast with an interview with Cleveland-base banjo player Mark Olitsky , and I finally got around to listening to it today. And now, I want to make sure you all have a chance to hear it. The interview was posted in September 2024, so this isn't exactly breaking news. But with all the news that's been breaking lately, I think some old news would do us some good.  I've recommended the podcast Get Up in the Cool before. Host Cameron DeWitt always seems to find some great guests to interview. And last September, he interviewed Olitsky on the subject of "Changing as a Musician."  If you've read this blog for any amount of time, you would know of my appreciation for Olitsky's banjo prowess. I did my own interview with the man I called "The Banjo Wizard of Cleveland" back in 2011. It r...

Sorry for the monthlong gap between this and my previous post. I do have some upcoming stories in the works that should prevent a similar hiatus in the next couple weeks. I've also written some reviews for The Old-Time Herald , which should appear in the next issue. For now, though, I'm here to steer you to a wonderful old-time music podcast I've recently discovered. Get Up in the Cool is a weekly podcast hosted by banjo-player Cameron DeWhitt, who I believe is an Oregon native but now is based in the Washington, D.C., area. That's just what I've gathered from my listening to past episodes. The podcast typically revolves around an interview and jam session between DeWhitt and his guests. Recent participants have included banjo builder Brooks Masten, melodic clawhammer master Ken Perlman, fiddler Chirps Smith and many more. He's also interviewed a few musicians with Ohio ties, which certainly caught my attention, including David Bass , Nikos Pappas, Hilari...