Dom Flemons, Boo Hanks and MMRF founder Tim Duffy were featured on NPR Weekend Edition. Listen to the whole piece here
In the winter of 1995, I discovered how a simple gift can be the difference between life and death for our elderly artists. In that year, there was a terrible ice storm in Winston-Salem, NC [...]
Hard Luck & Trouble exemplifies the blues with Marie Manning’s haunting vocal performance accompanied by the Bishop’s quintessential driving guitar licks. Marie Manning’s [...]
The next day was the big event, which included even more musical and life revelation for me than night before. Being able to mix and mingle with some of the most talented guys and gals who bring [...]
Cootie Stark was a dear friend to Music Maker. A blind blues bard who spread joy and hope, and inspired everyone he met. Not one to stay home, Cootie would often call me from the Durham, NC [...]
Maybe it was the captivating music; maybe it was the welcoming people; or maybe it was the place and the laid-back, everyone’s like family attitude that made me fall in the love with the Roots [...]
Leyla McCalla’s debut album, Vari-Colored Songs is one of the most well rounded a intellectually stimulating records I have heard in a long time. The elegant simplicity of the traditional [...]
When we learned that George Daniels had passed away last month, I thought back to my first meeting with him. I went to look for George Daniels in 1995 as I was re-tracing the trail of the great [...]
We’ve been working hard to edit and post video from the Homecoming Celebration – and this clip of Alabama Slim performing is one of the first we finished. In this video, Slim is performing at our [...]
Having a regular, reliable gig is something working musicians depend on to keep make ends meet. In the South, many of our artists are paid to play every Sunday in the church. No matter how late [...]
On yonder hill there stands a creature, Who she is I do not know. I go and court her for her beauty, She must answer yes or no… These words could conjure a beauty standing atop a [...]
It is always interesting when stories are told and there is no photographic evidence to validate the story. This is particularly true when the story is so outrageous that it is borderline [...]
Tim Duffy and BB King in 1995 I met B.B. King in 1995 at Ocean Way Studio in Los Angeles, CA when he was recording with the Rolling Stones. I showed him photographs and played him our first CD [...]
I never got the chance to meet Etta Baker but was a long time fan of her music even before I started to work at the Music Maker Relief Foundation. Her style of guitar playing is the most eloquent [...]
J.C. McCool composed the fiddle standard “the Black Mountain rag.” he began his career when he was just 10 years old playing with Walter Davis and Clarence Greene, who recorded in the [...]
Photo by Jimmy Williams Listen: Dr. Feelgood This track was on our Listener’s Circle #6, which I was listening to the other day as we were printing this month’s [...]
After Music Maker’s 20th Anniversary Homecoming Party Peter O’Dowd from NPR’s Here and Now came to Music Maker studio to interview Captain Luke and Boo Hanks.
Tim recently did an interview with the Tavis Smiley Radio Show to discuss our 20th Anniversary and the Music Maker mission. Listen to the interview below.
The Music Maker Relief Foundation was founded in Winston-Salem in 1994. Check out this incredible article from our hometown! Read the article here
Listen to Black Mattie Even if you are not a fan of Hip-Hop music you can still appreciate the deep grooves of this [...]
Garden & Gun Magazine did a full page feature on our 20th Anniversary Homecoming event! Read the feature here Purchase tickets here
Check out this great piece from the Huffington Post. Tim talks about the many facets of the Music Maker Relief Foundation. Read the article here
Listen: Lucy’s Voodoo When you see images of Lee Gates around the Music Maker office, you know you’re looking at a real deal, tried and true bluesman. The guy is over six feet tall, yolked [...]
The Music Maker Blues Revue will be performing in Columbia, MO at Roots N Blues N BBQ September 28th at 12:15 on the Missouri Lottery Stage. Get your tickets here
Listen: Bring It On Down to My House Honey Little Pink Anderson’s “Bring It On Down to My House Honey” is a song that popped out at me from our new jukebox. I’m so excited to finally meet Pink, [...]
Check out this incredible article about Robert Lee Coleman and the work he did in the 60s and 70s with Percy Sledge and James Brown. Robert Lee Coleman played an integral role at the beginning of [...]
Listen: Today I Started Loving You Again Ironing Board Sam is a relentless and prolific creator. Whenever I call him or go by his house to discuss business, I have almost always interrupted a [...]
Listen: Get It I was speaking to George Stancell on the phone yesterday morning. We were chatting about the fantastic CD he sent me, a compilation of recordings he has personally written, [...]
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Listen: Why Don’t These Young People Understand? I’ve been so excited about the new Jukebox, and have been listening to the general playlist we have up right now. (Soon to come – curated [...]
Here at the Music Maker Relief Foundation our passion is MUSIC and the people who make it. We are always looking for ways to share the incredible history that Music Maker artists continue to make [...]
Check out Barry Mazor’s article about Music Maker’s 20th Anniversary in the Wall Street Journal! https://online.wsj.com/articles/giving-music-makers-a-hand-1407362559
Listen: “Greasy Greens” “Well, way down South where I was born Didn’t raise nothin’ but cotton and corn Green tomatoes and black-eyed peas Man, good Lord, them greasy greens…” This groovy ode to [...]
Music Maker supporter Michael Weintrob joined us for our recent performance at the Lincoln Center Out of Doors Series, where he took these amazing photographs!
Taj Mahal curated a Music Maker playlist, streaming on the New Yorker now! Check it out! https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/listening-booth-taj-mahal-unsung-blues-south
Sam’s new album, Ironing Board Sam & the Sticks, is streaming on Billboard.com! Check it out here!
Listen: Nora When the Goins sing together, two distinct voices declare the most incorruptible love that could ever be shared. Mother Pauline sings the melody with a nasal vibrato while Elder [...]
American Songwriter debuted a song from Pura Fé, Rhiannon and Charly Lowry today! Read about the creation of the tune and listen to it here!
After a jamming show at the Southern Pines Blues Crawl and in anticipation of their upcoming performance in Durham this weekend, I just can’t seem to get Lakota John & Kin’s “Key To [...]
I spend a lot of time on the phone these days. The conversations are varied, consisting of in-depth discussions regarding various blood pressure medications, the process of adjusting to bifocals, [...]
Don’t Miss Dom Flemons on Fresh Air! Wednesday, July 30 Dom will perform and chat with Terry Gross about his upcoming album from the Music Maker label. Find your local NPR station here [...]
Check out this great article about Music Maker’s 20th Anniversary on Wondering Sound – https://www.wonderingsound.com/feature/music-maker-relief-foundation-20-years/ The [...]
Several weeks ago I got to attend my first out-of-town music festival with Music Maker – the 14th annual Blues Crawl in the charming downtown area of Southern Pines, NC. Having been the first [...]
You could say that my long journey to Music Maker started at the Mt. Airy Fiddler’s Convention which also happened to be old time fiddler Benton Flippen’s home. My immersion in [...]
Music Maker Events in NYC August 9th & 10th Join us for a celebratory weekend! Saturday – August 9th 4pm – Meet up with MM staff for a tour of We Are the Music Makers! [...]
Come out and celebrate Dom Flemons’ upcoming release, Prospect Hill! You can preview the album on USA TODAY here. And you can pre-order the album on our store here! John Dee Holeman will [...]
Listen: Two Trains Runnin’ Last Saturday night the Music Maker team headed down to Southern Pines for their Annual Blues Crawl, which this year featured Music Maker artists for the entire [...]
My Dad and I were able to make the recent Blues Crawl in Southern Pines, NC. We were very excited to be going because 1) it’s a nice town and 2) the line-up of MMRF artists was one of the [...]
Check out the story behind Ironing Board Sam’s incredible new album, here!
This year, we’ve been able to hang with Cool John a lot, for which we are very grateful. Back in April, Cool John and his wife Shirley were both with me at Byron Bay Bluesfest. Our conversations [...]
The Como Mamas – Meet Me At The River Being in the room while these five women sang was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. The lead singer, Esther, sang with Mississippi [...]
Michael Weintrob’s InstrumentHead series of photographs captures an eclectic array of unique musicians and characters including Ironing Board Sam, Bootsy Collins and King Sunny Ade, Big Chief [...]
Listen: Chokin’ Kind A few weeks ago I picked up guest of honor John Dee Holeman and his girlfriend Joan to take them to the North Carolina Heritage Awards, an event familiar to the two as [...]
Robert Lee Coleman is playing at the Mars Theater in Springfield, GA on Friday, June 21st, as part of our series there. Today, we saw a wonderful article about Robert’s decades long career, [...]
Listen: Dap-Walk At New Orleans Jazz Fest Tim ran into an old friend, rhythm and blues legend Ernie Vincent. A fixture of the New Orleans music scene for years, after Katrina, he received [...]
If you’ve never seen Cool John and Captain Luke play together, you are missing out. These two never fail to blow me away, and everyone I know feels the same. But Cool John lives in Atlanta [...]
Beale Street Caravan featured Music Maker on their May 28th show! Artists featured include John Dee Holeman, Beverly “Guitar” Watkins, and Captain Luke. Check it out here! From the [...]
Listen: My New Next Door Neighbor I never had the pleasure of meeting Jerry “Boogie” McCain but I spoke with him on the phone many times in order to set him up to receive [...]
6pm – 8pm Fridays in June! Village Green in Southern Village, Chapel Hill (Aberdeen and Market Streets) Rain Location: Christ United Methodist Church 800 Market St, Chapel Hill, NC 27516 [...]
Our We Are the Music Makers! exhibit has been a year and change in the making. Really, the idea has been ruminating for all the years I have been a part of the Music Maker team, but began to take [...]
In October 2012, Simon Arcache and Raphaël Evrard, students from the prestigious Toulouse University, a business school, convinced their professors to allow them to spend a year of college credit [...]
Music Maker Homecoming Events We hope you can join us, buy your tickets here! October 3rd 3pm – Panel Discussion with Music Maker Artists and Folk Scholars The ArtsCenter, 300 E. Main St, [...]
“The blues tell you the truth,” the woman on the screen said with conviction. Even though I was watching Precious Bryant’s nearly twenty year-old interview on a giant iMac screen, it felt as if [...]
Music Maker has been blessed with some great summer interns, and it’s time for us to introduce them to you! Masyn and Erica will be working with us until they head back to school in the [...]
On my very first day of interning with the Music Maker Relief Foundation I was offered a chance to drive down to Mississippi and meet the Como Mamas. All I knew was they were a female gospel trio [...]
This past Thursday and Friday, Music Maker had the pleasure of hosting Piedmont blues master, Jeffrey Scott. Jeffrey, nephew of National Folk Heritage fellow John Jackson, is the heir to his [...]
Last month, while in New Orleans for Jazzfest, Ironing Board Sam and myself traveled down to Michael Weintrob’s temporary studio in a tailor’s workshop to get Sam’s “InstrumentHead” photo taken. [...]
On the way to the Juke Joint Festival, we stopped off in Como, Mississippi, to meet the Como Mamas – sisters Della and Angelia and cousin Ester Mae, all the grandchildren of Miles Pratcher. [...]
In October 1995 my friend the audio pioneer Mark Levinson was working hard to help me launch the Music Maker Relief Foundation. He had recently moved his audio company Cello to a brownstone on [...]
International travel is tricky. In the best of circumstances you can expect that there will be many transfers, visas, customs interrogations, passport inspections and the occasional pat [...]
Carl Rutherford and Tim Duffy Coupled with footage of “The L.B.J Poverty Tour” the New York Times recently released an article about McDowell County, the poorest in West Virginia, and the balance [...]
I was honored to accompany Ironing Board Sam as his road manager for the 45th annual New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival this past weekend. Tim and I had been working so hard “beading [...]
Last fall we found out that Ironing Board Sam was invited back to the 2014 New Orleans Jazz Festival; they made a special request for him to come with a big show. Early in Jazzfest’s history Sam [...]
MaryAnne is our spring intern, and she has helped us immensely with PR and artist services! Week before last she headed to Juke Joint with Aaron and several artists, and we asked her to write [...]
Listen: You Want to Boogie I’ve been listening to Willie King’s classic blues tune this week – it helps me set the pace for our busy 20th Anniversary year! If my toe is tapping to “You Want to [...]
We arrived at David Bryant’s house just before sunset and he was sitting on his porch waiting for us. “Yes, mm hmm,” he said, and waved a greeting. We were picking up David on [...]
Aaron, Intern MaryAnne, Ironing Board Sam and David Bryant are on their way to the Juke Joint Festival in Clarksdale, MS! They’ll be playing off and on all day tomorrow. We thought [...]
Jakprints & Michael Weintrob proudly present… INSTRUMENTHEAD Pop-Up Gallery Debuts in Charleston During Spoleto! Quirky Photography Series Showcasing Musicians From Bootsy Collins To Sol [...]
Listen: Whistlin’ Britches – Clickin’ I had the pleasure of meeting Haskell “Whistlin’ Britches” Thompson on several occasions before his passing. His [...]
Berklee School of Music Student David had an incredibly meaningful trip to the Piedmont region of NC in March. When we asked the students who visited to write about their experience, David jumped [...]
Listen: Two Train’s Runnin’ I let fate choose this week’s Diggin when I stuck my hand into our set of master CD’s and pulled out John Dee Holeman’s “You Got To [...]
My name is David Guillaume; I am a junior at the Berklee College of Music. I was recently invited to take part in what would become the single most rewarding vacation of my life. The premise was [...]
On April 4th, we celebrate the official Kickoff of Music Maker’s 20th Year – with a free, fun night at The Crunkleton!* Friday, 4/4 7 – 10pm The Crunkleton 320 W. Franklin [...]
Listen: Let’s Talk It Over I happened to be in my car, stuck in rush hour traffic after a day’s work, when I first heard this wonderful song by Guitar Gabriel. My car’s manual transmission [...]
Tim Duffy and Aaron Greenhood will exhibit their Tin Type photography at the Skylight Gallery in Hillsborough, NC beginning March 28th. The exhibit will launch with an opening event on March 28th [...]
Beverly “Guitar” Watkins was born in 1940 in Atlanta, Georgia. She began a lifelong love of music at the age of eight, when her aunt gave her a guitar; the very first song she learned to play was [...]
Algia Mae Hinton was born on August 29, 1929 in Johnston County, North Carolina. Her parents, Alexander and Ollie O’Neal, were farmers who raised tobacco, cotton, cucumbers and sweet potatoes. [...]
March is Women’s History Month, and we’re spotlighting women in roots and blues on our blog for the next several weeks. This week we’ve written about Etta Baker, legendary [...]
Listen: Lima Beans We’ve been working to spotlight women in blues and roots on our blog this month, and that has us digging further into the albums from our female artists. Algia Mae Hinton, a [...]
Don’t miss this wonderful show with the students from Berklee School of Music and John Dee Holeman! Friday, March 21st Free! Show begins 9pm Mystery Brewing Public House 230 [...]
This month, Women’s History Month, Music Maker is shining a light on women in Roots music. Etta Baker’s legacy will live on indefinitely as her influences on music can still be heard [...]
Listen: Cocktail Boogie We’ve been working with a lot of photos of Mr. Q lately, and Tim always tells the story of Mr. Q’s hat, which he painted over and over again until it weighed a ton. The [...]
We think of the blues player as a wandering, itinerant musician, traveling with his guitar, playing his music and spreading the musical styles of the South across the nation. What we often don’t [...]
Tim and Corn decorated this guitar for David Bryant last week. He was elated when he received it and said, “All I’m gonna do is play guitar!” Read about Tim, B and [...]
Berklee College of Music’s Country Blues Program will travel to Durham, N.C. from March 20th-23rd to learn about the history of the Piedmont Blues tradition! The group includes students [...]
Listen: King Cotton I was lucky enough to be running the recorder when Harvey recorded “King Cotton.” It’s a short song with a lot of punch. Harvey writes from his own [...]
B reminisces on the blog about her first road trip as part of the Music Maker team! Check it out here.
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