It’s officially winter, and freezing temperatures have brought cold nights to towns all over the South, where most of Music Maker’s partner artists live. And every night when the temperatures [...]
When I called him, Robert Lee Coleman’s phone was disconnected. This pandemic year has made hard times harder for many Music Maker partner artists. Losing regular gigs has brought ripple effects, [...]
“My great-grandparents and grandparents were not educated because state laws prohibited the education of slaves; but they developed their own language, music, and other means of communication. My [...]
You can blame Henry Slyker’s two decades-plus loving relationship with Music Maker on Holiday Inn Express. Up through 2002, if you checked into a Holiday Inn Express, you would find in your room [...]
After 26 years of running the Music Maker Foundation, I have a lot to be thankful for, and most all of it comes down to the laughs and good times I’ve had with Music Maker artists in their homes, [...]
Here are our suggestions for holiday gifts at every budget. Proceeds from every purchase go directly to help our partner artists — Southern musicians who live on the edge of poverty, but keep our [...]
I first met Freeman Vines in 2015 at his home in the rural town of Fountain, North Carolina. Vines’ work had slowed down considerably as a result of poor health and isolation—both geographic and [...]
Alabama Slim, a Music Maker partner artist based in New Orleans, has an upcoming album, The Parlor, that takes a rip at President Trump. Music Maker fans might know a bit already about Little [...]
New England-based music teacher Earle Pughe has recently been exploring Music Maker’s catalog and transcribing our Partner Artists’ most iconic performances. We’re putting the material together [...]
Stories To Live Up To by Harvey Dalton Arnold Slink into the Fall season with Harvey Dalton Arnold’s opening song from his most recent release – Stories to Live Up To. Mr. [...]
MusicMakerRelief · A Living Past – Episode 2 From Jerry Garcia to Bob Dylan, Etta Baker’s influence on American music was profound. Born in 1913 in Caldwell County, NC, her [...]
Southern NPR correspondent Debbie Elliot covers Music Maker Partner Artist Freeman Vines’ new book – Hanging Tree Guitars. Purchase Hanging Tree Guitars
Immerse yourself in the world of Freeman Vines. Explore the Hanging Tree Guitars virtual exhibition: https://exhibit.hangingtreeguitars.com Freeman Vines (b. 1942) built his first guitar [...]
This is the first year I have not made my yearly pilgrimage to the Old time fiddle festivals in Galax, VA and Mount Airy, NC in my adult life. These music festivals and others peppered [...]
Learn about Music Maker’s partner artists, mostly unknown musicians that have shaped American culture through their blues, gospel and folk music. The first episode of A Living Past, [...]
Ninth Wonder of the World of Music by Ironing Board Sam Ask Ironing Board Sam about how this rare demo was recorded back in 70s and he will explain to you that he hypnotized his bandmates to [...]
Join us for a series of online artist talks with Music Maker Partner Artist Freeman Vines and voices from the field of contemporary art. **All talks take place at 6pm ET** Facebook LIVE YouTube [...]
Hallelujah Boogaloo by Drink Small The deep baritone of longtime Music Maker Partner Artist Drink Small (that’s his legal name, no lie!) embodies the blues. Mr. Small was born in [...]
Since 2009 Music Maker has been partnered with Lakota John through our Next Generation program. This program was founded on the belief that our rich musical traditions must be embraced by younger [...]
Here’s another youtube adventure for you. This selection features a blend of Music Maker partner artists including John Dee Holeman, Algia Mae Hinton, Etta Baker, Guitar Gabriel and [...]
Amazing Grace by Cora Fluker Cora Fluker was born in Livingston, Alabama, around 1920. When Denise and I visited her in 1997 it was a deeply moving experience. She told us of a childhood growing [...]
Route 66 by Eddie Tigner Eddie Tigner was a tiny man with a big smile that could knock you down from across a room. Born in Macon, GA in 1926, Eddie cut his teeth playing for Rock n’ Roll [...]
Amazing Grace by Music Maker Recordings Every artist interprets Amazing Grace so personally and distinctively, like you are a witness to their own intimate spiritual journey. Piedmont bluesman [...]
Watch the NC Roots Music Series: Facebook Live YouTube Live Music Maker Relief Foundation has partnered with the Arts and Science Council’s Culture Blocks program and the Charlotte [...]
NPR Music’s All Songs Considered featured the Dedicated Men of Zion‘s song Down Here Lord on their New Music Friday playlist. NPR Music had this to say about the song and upcoming [...]
Loneliness is a recurring subject in the Blues. A lover gone or the loss of a family member typically inspires one of the most archetypal themes within the genre. For our Partner Artists, music [...]
Raw Sugar by Cootie Stark This week’s blog post touched on the social isolation that our Partner Artists are experiencing in the pandemic. On this track from blind acoustic bluesman Cootie [...]
Rufus McKenzie was born to a sharecropping family in Perry, Georgia, in 1927. As a child he worked in the cotton fields, singing to his mule to pick up the pace. Rufus reflects, “I learned my [...]
Purchase Can’t Turn Me Around HERE! Harmony is serious business where the Dedicated Men of Zion come from. For their eldest member Anthony “Amp” Daniels, it was so serious that every day [...]
MusicMakerRelief · Pat “Mother Blues” Cohen – Grinnin’ In Your Face (A Capella) Pat “Mother Blues” Cohen takes this powerful Son House tune head on. Pat sheds [...]
The Blues was born in the South and dispersed wherever people would congregate. Shot houses, railroad depots, local bars, VFW halls and other community gathering places served as the melting pots [...]
Pat “Mother Blues” Cohen takes the spotlight in this feature from PBS NewsHour. A partner artist since 2005, Pat is no stranger to struggle but perseveres through her music. [...]
NPR Weekend Edition: Freeman Vines PBS NewsHour NPR Weekend Edition The Bitter Southerner Read Searching for High John written by the Bitter Southerner founder Chuck Reece – here PBS [...]
Turner Contemporary has created a virtual tour of its ground-breaking exhibition We Will Walk – Art and Resistance in the American South. It is available to view for free from midday on [...]
LIVESTREAM MUSIC SERIES HONORING PIEDMONT BLUES WOMAN ELIZABETH ‘LIBBA’ COTTEN TO FEATURE N.C. ARTISTS PERFORMANCES BY MANDOLIN ORANGE, HISS GOLDEN MESSENGER, PHIL COOK, LIGHTNIN’ WELLS, AND [...]
Ester Mae Wilbourn, the eldest of the Como Mamas, embodies the Southern gospel tradition. Her voice is powerful enough to shake the floorboards and burst through walls like Joshua’s trumpet. She [...]
“Little Red Rooster told little Brown Hen I ain’t had no loving since I don’t know when, I wanna boogie! yeah! The hen chews tobacco, the rooster dips snuff, the little rooster [...]
Filmed at their old homeplace in Panola County, Mississippi, the Como Mamas’ Angelia Taylor leads this powerful number. Her voice carries the familial trio through this powerful song [...]
Outsider Lounge Music by Captain Luke The power duo is a truly rare occurrence in music. Just a handful of musicians have captured the musical magic that happens when two performers come together [...]
Every year since 1991 Music Maker artists have toured Europe. In 2005 we formed a partnership with Dixie Frog Records and Nueva Onda booking. Dixie Frog went on to produce 16 records of Music [...]
Born in Rosa, Louisiana, Chuck Bush helped redefine Zydeco’s sound in the 80’s and 90’s for a new audience while playing bass behind Beau Jocque and then Terry Dominique. In December 2019, Chuck [...]
Youtube is a respite. Its a great place to go when you want to explore and you are stuck at home. I was on the phone with Curtis Harper, drummer for the Glorifying Vines and husband to Mattie [...]
These past couple of weeks have been a whirlwind. Most of our office has shifted to working remotely and we have been in daily communication with our Partner Artists who are experiencing, like [...]
When you’ve had enough bad news for the day and can’t be bothered to find the one movie on Netflix you haven’t watched, maybe it is time to kick back, close your eyes and hear a couple of good yarns..
Dear Listener’s Circle Members, Thank you for your support of the Music Maker Relief Foundation. It is times like these when our great American musical traditions can still bring a smile to [...]
Grasshopper Pie by Slewfoot and the Angels Recorded in a gritty, pre-Katrina New Orleans, the dissonant strains of Slewfoot and the Angels’ “Give Your Love” draws us in and reminds us of the [...]
Wayne Henderson is a famous luthier from southwest Virginia. I met him in 1981, I was 18 years old and had just moved South. Wayne worked for the US Post Service as a rural mail carrier. We [...]
To say the coronavirus has had a devastating impact on our partner artists would be an understatement. All Spring concerts have been cancelled and with the bars and restaurants closed the smaller [...]
Dear supporters, As the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise we are communicating with our partner artists on a daily basis to ensure they are aware of this rapidly developing [...]
View this post on Instagram An unbelievable second day of our Sacred Soul Sessions with Bible & Tire Recording Company in Eastern North Carolina #gospel #greenvillenc [...]
Classic Rock is alive and well on this track from Harvey Dalton Arnold‘s upcoming Music Maker release – Stories To Live Up To (out February 28th). A slew of ace studio musicians wreak [...]
MUSIC MAKER PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBIT HONORING BLUES & ROOTS MUSICIANS TRAVELS TO THE CAPE FEAR MUSEUM On March 26th at 6pm, Cape Fear Museum will host an opening reception for We Are the Music [...]
The Music Maker Blues Revue feat. Pat “Mother Blues” Cohen, Robert Lee Coleman, Willie Farmer, and Alabama Slim play Jazz Fest in New Orleans on Thursday, April 30th in the Blues [...]
Music Maker partner artist Freeman Vines was featured in a recent Guardian article about the group exhibition We Will Walk, currently on view at the Turner Contemporary in Kent, UK. Hanging trees [...]
“Folk music is high class music, cause a lot of low class people sangin’ it. Matter of fact, most so-called folk singers don’t even look like folk. Folk songs tell true stories, [...]
Over the years Music Maker has partnered with some unbelievable female artists. From the subtle acoustic stylings of Algia Mae Hinton to the ripping electric blues of Beverly “Guitar” [...]
TURNER CONTEMPORARY TO SHOWCASE ARTISTS AND MAKERS FROM AMERICA’S DEEP SOUTH IN GROUND-BREAKING EXHIBITION WE WILL WALK Turner Contemporary will showcase the work of artists and makers from the [...]
Ironing Board Sam embodies the spirit of New Orleans with his boogie woogie piano and fantastical performance style. This playlist is just a smattering of some of Sam’s finest recordings [...]
