This week, before emancipation, Appalachia provided pathways to freedom for enslaved people trying to escape bondage. A new project identifies more than two dozen previously unknown underground railroad sites. Also, the Fly Around Music & Arts Festival in North Carolina was inspired by the hard work that followed Hurricane Helene. And, a ballad about floods recorded a generation ago still provides solace for people today.
As the stockings come down and the New Year’s champagne is brought out, take a breather and relax with some great live performance radio. Broadcast from 1am-5am Saturday and Sunday mornings here on West Virginia Public Radio, “Mountain Stage After Midnight” takes the best episodes from the show’s 31 year history and shares their memories and songs with our late-night listeners. Each week we’ll hand-pick two of our favorite episodes that’ll alternate order each night.
Tune in this Saturday December 27 and Sunday December 28 for the last “Mountain Stage After Midnight” of 2014!
First up: a June 2012 show featuring Todd Burge, The Quebe Sisters Band, Elizabeth Cook, Alejandro Escovedo and Justin Townes Earle.
Credit Brian Blauser / Mountain Stage
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Mollie O’Brien and Rich Moore on Mountain Stage in Grand Marais, Minnesota.
Next is a September 2012 show, recorded at the North House Folk School in breathtaking Grand Marais, Minnesota. You’ll hear from Mollie O’Brien & Rich Moore, Chip Taylor featuring Paal Flaata, Gretchen Peters, Jonathan Edwards and Chris Hillman & Herb Pederson.
Need more Mountain Stage in your life? Look no further than our new website, which features past show playlists and even a 24/7 Mountain Stage stream? Keep in touch with us on the show’s Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Instagram, and subscribe to The Mountain Stage Podcast on iTunes to hear the best live performances around these public radio parts.
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Young students at Floyd County, Virginia’s Handmade Music School are compiling a songbook of tunes that have become standards in their community. One of those songs came from influential Virginia bluegrass band The Lost & Found. This summer, Handmade Music School student Rylah Grim spoke with the band’s longtime banjo player Gene Parker, about a song he helped write, called “Brown Hill.”
This week, a new generation is learning the story behind "Brown Hill," a song by influential bluegrass band The Lost and Found. Also, data centers are changing the landscape, and one project is planning to plow over an extremely rare stand of seed-producing American chestnut trees. And, small food producers embrace digital technology for the humble farm stand.
Appalachia has a rich history of protest music. Today, some regional musicians are using their voices to oppose data centers being built across Appalachia and the artificial intelligence they power. Folkways Reporter Andrea “river” Peterson has more.
Southern West Virginia has rich but often overlooked musical traditions. Chris Haddox is a WVU professor of sustainable design, but he's also spent years uncovering more information on those overlooked musicians. We spoke with him to learn more about his effort to shine a light on the musical talents of local miners, now with the help of a grant from the Mellon Foundation.
