I was just having a conversation with our intern, Margot, about our weekly Diggin’. (Margot, it should be said, is so devoted to MMRF that despite having ended her internship in June, she still comes in whenever she’s got time in between her other internships and job hunting.) She was in this afternoon and we talked about writing a Diggin’ – she was concerned that she didn’t have anything much to say musically about the track because she is not as familiar with Roots music as, say, Tim or Aaron.

I pointed out that she’s probably more knowledgeable than I am, and I’ve been writing Diggins for two years. (Sorry folks!) All kidding aside – the idea behind our Diggins isn’t to get very technical or fact-heavy about each track. (Although sometimes we definitely do try to be as educational as possible.) We have an enormous amount of recordings here at Music Maker. And while we love it when people buy CDs or join our Listener’s Circle and Record Club to support the artists we serve, one of our main missions is to preserve Southern Roots music. And part of preservation is getting it out there, to you, to the public, and to people who haven’t heard it before.

So, I told Margot to go find a song she liked. She grinned and agreed, because she’s wonderful. What we aim to do with the Diggins is to give you further access to the music. We have a Jukebox on our site, and you can hear each artist’s music on their page, but for many, they might not know where to start. I felt that way when I first discovered Music Maker – so many great artists, but where to start?

The Diggin’ gives you some insight into why I, or Whitney, or Aaron, Tim, or anyone, might like that particular track. For Tim it might be the guitar picking style, for Aaron it might be the interesting reimaging of a classic, and for me or Margot it might simply be that the title or lyrics remind us of something. But, whatever the individual’s reaction to that track, we feel like it gives many a place to start.

So, if you ever wonder what the heck we’re up to with these things, know that that the subject of the Diggin’ always changes from week to week, track to track. The history of the song or the artist might be mentioned one week, a particular lyric the next and then a feeling or emotion might follow the next week. What stays constant is that we highlight a particular song each week, making sure the music stays alive. And above all, we hope you enjoy it!

Check out some of the most recent Diggins:

Cora Mae Bryant – Cool And Rainy Day

Larry Shores – Let’s Make Love

Little Freddie King – Sweet Home New Orleans

Ironing Board Sam – Nothing But Your Butt