by Christine | Apr 24, 2016 | Welcome Column
One of the very first things I heard on Ray Edlund’s show, “Pig in a Pen,” was a field recording of E.C. and Orna Ball playing “Jenny Jenkins” and “Pretty Polly” in 1937. They were made for the Library of Congress by...
by Christine | Jul 22, 2019 | Welcome Column
Life is so full of important decisions. What’s important differs, of course, by circumstances. The decision over which girl you ask to the prom is supremely important when you’re 16. But as you age, things get more real. In the corporate world, the best leaders...
by Christine | Aug 6, 2016 | Welcome Column
(Editor’s’ Note–Taken from 2013 but still true today) Dear friends,Happy Monday morning. Half the clocks in our house say it’s an hour later, so I’m living in a world of “Hey! I’ve got an extra hour to live my life!”Before I begin my welcome...
by Christine | Oct 4, 2019 | Welcome Column
What happened in October of 1962 has forever been burned into my brain. In October 1962 as we faced off with Cuba and the Russians in a stare down that almost brought about a nuclear war. Despite our faults and egos sanity prevailed. What follows is an...
by Christine | Feb 22, 2020 | Welcome Column
(Author’s note: My life changed for the better on September 25, 2008 when I got this e mail from Rick Cornish. I had sent Rick a little vignette because I felt sorry for him and the other welcome columnists who had to write columns every day, rain or shine. I admired...
by Christine | Nov 23, 2020 | Welcome Column
(From 2014)Dear Friends,This is a happy place, this CBA website. These are the art of enjoyment and the enjoyment of art, these events we produce here at the largest bluegrass organization in the world. While our songs frequently deal in loss, our mode is far from...
by Christine | Jan 8, 2015 | Welcome Column
Two members of the music community passed away in recent days. The one who got national coverage, including even an obituary and photo in the San Francisco Chronicle, was Little Jimmy Dickens, who died January 2 at the age of 94. But before getting around to Little...
by Christine | Jul 21, 2012 | Welcome Column
In the world of ice cream flavors, where Wintergrass is a ”Psychedelic Rainbow Buzz”, and Father’s Day Festival a “Vanilla Vern’s and Cherries Jubilee”, and Bower’s Mansion a “Monroe Marmelade Mudslide”, I’d have to say that Susanville Bluegrass Festival has got to be...
by Christine | May 30, 2020 | Welcome Column
Possibly the most famous voice in bluegrass music of the 21st century, Dan Tyminski has again shown his face (and voice) to the world outside bluegrass on his new project Southern Gothic. This time, not as a personification of southern values as he was as the voice of...
by Christine | Nov 10, 2010 | Welcome Column
Mathematicians say some of the most complex systems include traffic flow, hydrodynamics, and global weather patterns. To this, I say “feh!”Those high-falutin’ number crunchers have never observed a bluegrass jam. Like the birth of a solar system, it begins with a tiny...
