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As we approach springtime here in Appalachia, temperatures are steadily growing and so is our excitement for what’s shaping up to be a memorable year for live events at “Mountain Stage.” We’ve already announced several shows for the first half of 2022, and we’re excited to catch you up on a few more additions to our current show schedule. All of these shows are on sale now via Eventbrite or via our hosts when we’re on the road. View the entire show schedule and make plans to be a part of our radio audience.
On Sunday, April 24th we make our way back to Ohio University in Athens, Ohio as the guests of OU Performing Arts with support from our long-time affiliate WOUB Public Media. Singer and first-time guest Rissi Palmer brings her soulful, R&B-steeped country influence to the Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium. In 2020, Rissi launched her radio show Color Me Country to spotlight artists of color who’ve been underrepresented in mainstream country music. This year she’s got select tour spots opening for Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, and she’s scheduled to appear at this year’s Merlefest in April.
Returning to the show in Athens is California-based performing songwriter Maia Sharp, whose tunes have been cut by The Chicks, Bonnie Raitt, Trisha Yearwood, Keb’ Mo’, Cher, Edwin McCain, David Wilcox, Art Garfunkel, Lizz Wright, Paul Carrack, Lisa Loeb and many more.
Tickets for April 24 are available through Ohio University Performing Arts.
Multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer David Bromberg makes his fifth appearance on the Mountain Stage on May 1st as we return to our home venue the Culture Center Theater in Charleston, WV. Appearing alongside Bromberg will be Canadian neo-folk singer and activist Sarah Harmer.
Summer will be here before we know it, and we’re delighted to welcome back musical storyteller and Americana poet James McMurtry on June 26th. Also on the bill is the piano-driven pop of Connecticut-based ensemble Sammy Rae & The Friends, who we recently featured on NPR Music’s Slingshot Artist To Watch 2022 series. The band is sure to heat things up on what already looks like a classically eclectic Mountain Stage lineup.
The solo-electric appearance from Bob Mould, originally scheduled for Mountain Stage on Sunday, March 6, has been postponed. We are working to reschedule the date as soon as possible, and let you know via our e-mail newsletter as soon as we’re able. If you have questions about your tickets, please send us an e-mail to live@mountainstage.org.
Finally, we have added a few guests to our previously announced live shows. Those adds include Crys Matthews, Tray Wellington Band, and the duo of Kieran Kane & Rayna Gellert, who will all join us on Sunday, March 6th in Charleston. Elsewhere, Winterpills songwriter and frontman Philip B. Price has been added alongside Janis Ian, Lido Pimienta, and more at WVU’s Canady Creative Arts Center in Morgantown, WV on March 27th.
As usual, we’re constantly adding new dates and new artists. So, stay in the loop by checking in via the Mountain Stage newsletter or our website MountainStage.org.
Below is a quick snapshot of what you can expect from some of the exciting artists listed above. Take a few minutes to familiarize yourself, and don’t wait to get your tickets today!
Rissi Palmer – Rissi Palmer’s gift lies in reaching across all musical boundaries. While she made her mark in Country Music, she is equally at home in R&B music, bringing the entire spectrum of popular music to bear on music she calls “Southern Soul.”
Maia Sharp –Maia Sharp has had her songs recorded by The Chicks, Bonnie Raitt, Trisha Yearwood, Keb’ Mo’, Cher, Edwin McCain, David Wilcox, Art Garfunkel, Lizz Wright, Paul Carrack, Lisa Loeb and many more. And through it all, Maia has continued to record her own albums including eight solo releases, one collaborative project with Art Garfunkel and Buddy Mondlock and her duo project, Roscoe & Etta (with writing/production partner Anna Schulze). Each release has been embraced by press and radio and led to extensive touring and appearances on Mountain Stage, Acoustic Cafe, World Cafe, NPR’s “All Things Considered,” CBS Early Morning and the Today Show to name a few. Her new album, Mercy Rising is out now.
David Bromberg – With his 1971 self-titled Columbia Records release, multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter David Bromberg emerged as a wunderkind of American music. The blend of traditional and original material, virtuosic musicianship and iconic cover art trumpeted the arrival of a new and audacious artist. With seven more albums and associations with Bob Dylan, Jerry Jeff Walker, George Harrison, the Grateful Dead and Bonnie Raitt,
Sarah Harmer –Are You Gone? – the first new album in a decade from Sarah Harmer – is a deeply personal and momentous collection of songs motivated by the beauty of life, the urgency of climate crisis, and the question of loss. The first song “New Low” is more than a return to music for the internationally celebrated singer-songwriter and activist: it is a definition of form, a call-for-uprising in the face of global disaster, at the most critical moment for Harmer to raise her voice – one of the most distinctive in Canadian music.
James McMurtry –In James McMurtry’s new effort, The Horses and the Hounds, the acclaimed songwriter backs personal narratives with effortless elegance (“Canola Fields”) and endless energy (“If It Don’t Bleed”). This first collection in seven years, due August 20 on New West Records, spotlights a seasoned tunesmith in peak form as he turns toward reflection (“Vaquero”) and revelation ( closer “Blackberry Winter”). Familiar foundations guide the journey. “There’s a definite Los Angeles vibe to this record,” McMurtry says. “The ghost of Warren Zevon seems to be stomping around among the guitar tracks. Don’t know how he got in there. He never signed on for work for hire.”
Sammy Rae & The Friends –For as much as Sammy Rae & The Friends may be a band, this collective of, dreamers, and artists considers itself a family first. Fronted by singer and songwriter Sammy Rae, the group flourishes in any spotlight with a combination of all-for-one and one-for-all camaraderie, palpable chemistry, deft virtuosity, and vocal fireworks. Their sound is a mélange of Sammy’s influences, rooted in classic rock, folk, and funk and sprinkled with soul and jazz. Complete with a rhythm section, horn section, keyboards, and two backup singers, Sammy Rae & The Friends have or will deliver their high-energy, spirited and unrestrained shows to sold-out audiences in the Northeast and beyond.
Crys Matthews –Matthews blends Americana, folk, jazz, blues, bluegrass and funk into a bold, complex performance steeped in traditional melodies and punctuated by honest, original lyrics. Having been compared to everyone from Toshi Reagon to Tracy Chapman to Ruthie Foster, Matthews’ eclectic infusion of genres has won her honorable mentions at the 2013 and 2014 Mid-Atlantic Song Contest and extensive radio play from Woman of Substance radio.
Tray Wellington Band –Tray Wellington Band is a high energy acoustic Newgrass group led by banjo virtuoso, and multi-time IBMA Award winner, and 2019 Momentum Instrumentalist of the year Tray Wellington. This group pushes the bounds of bluegrass music, incorporating Bossa Nova, Jazz, and Blues elements, to their originals to create a unique, new exciting sound, as well as pay tribute to their Bluegrass heroes before them.
Philip B. Price – Philip B. Price is a musical polymath, best known as the lead singer/songwriter of chamber pop luminaries Winterpills since 2005. But his sprawling and emotive songbook stretches further back into the late 80s and draws on minimalist and jagged art rock, bedroom lo fi pop, power pop, 70’s singer songwriter and outsider folk.
