Get Up in the Cool

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friend is Craig Edwards! We recorded this interview at the Harry Smith Frolic at the tail end of a thunderstorm, which I maintain is one of my favorite settings for recording this show. Craig is a musician who thinks about this music as much as he plays it, which, if this isn’t your first Get Up in the Cool episode, you know I really appreciate. He tells some great stories about hanging out with Ernie Carpenter and Clyde Davenport and watching the Birchfields play, all while emanating this energy of gratitude and respect, which I found pretty contagious.  Tunes we’ll play: Shelvin’ Rock Natchez Under the Hill Cousin Sally Brown Rowdy Blues Sleepy Eyed John Jaybird Died of Pertussis Bonus Track: Sweet Milk and Peaches Craig's website: http://fiddlecraig.wixsite.com/craigedwards  Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friend is Libby Weitnauer! We recorded this interview in front of a live audience at Black Creek Fiddlers’ Reunion, and I’ve been really excited to share it, because Libby is a wonderful fiddler and she’s lovely to talk to. One of my favorite things is listening to classically trained violinists who fall in love with Old Time, because they take the same dedication and discipline necessary to play classical violin and apply it to accurately transmitting this old music. Some never quite make the transition and have trouble getting it, but others, like Libby, bring something really special to the tradition.  Thanks again to Black Creek for hosting us and supporting Get Up in the Cool on Patreon! I’m going to get this show started. Stick around after the interview for details on how to support the show and maybe hear Libby and I play this week’s bonus track, Dull Chisel.  Here’s my jam and chat with Libby Weitnauer. Enjoy! Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool  Buy tickets and/or fund the Midwest Sing & Stomp: http://singandstomp.com/ 

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friend is clawhammer banjoist, restaurateur, and queen of Burhania, Hilarie Burhans. We recorded this episode at the Brandywine Revival Festival, and I’m really excited for you to hear it! Hilarie is one of my very favorite humans; she’s charming and generous and hilarious, and I think she’s responsible in no small part for the quality of the culture of Old Time Music, which is mostly why I play, so I feel a lot of gratitude and respect for her. Oh, and Hilarie Burhans is badass at the banjo. She’s one of the best. Her rhythm is unstoppable, her tone is incredible, and the way she adapts fiddle melodies to the banjo, I think, makes her one of the musically wisest players in the old time community. You have to have a real insight into what makes a tune special to make it sing on the banjo the way Hilarie can.   Buy Hotpoint Stringband’s albums: http://www.hotpointstringband.com/music/4590975104  Follow Sugar Pie on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/janehilariekelliesabra/  Buy Sugar Pie’s album A Message From Home: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/sugarpie2#  Subscribe to Hilarie’s youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/clawhammerlady  Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool  Tunes we’ll play: Cumberland Gap Avalon Quickstep Squirrel Hunters Jeff Sturgeon Missing You All the Way Home Bonus Track: Jane and Hilarie’s Tune

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friends are Rusty and Nancy Neithammer! I’ve been trying to get them on the show for quite a while, because they’re the best. And they have awesome stories about hanging out with Tommy Jarrell and Bruce Greene! Tunes we’ll play: Cindy Moonlight Give the Fiddler a Dram Neithammer Honeymoon Polly’s Mountain Kettle Bonus Track: Aldeline Waltz Buy Cliffhangers' CD's: http://www.5-string.com/ Buy tickets to the Midwest Sing and Stomp: http://singandstomp.com/ Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This is a very special episode of Get Up in the Cool, because my guest is Seth Swingle. We recorded this interview at Clifftop last year, very late in the festival. Seth was actually my eighth recording that week, so when he said he wanted to showcase solo banjo music in weird tunings, I said, so you mean I don’t have to learn any tunes? I can just sit and listen to you??? I was very excited. Tunes we’ll play Shortenin’ Bread Lost Gander Buck Creek Gals Grigsby’s Hornpipe  Whoop ‘Em Up Cindy Rye Whiskey  Bonus Track: Rebels’ Raid Buy Seth's new album: http://www.sethswingle.com/store/  RSVP to Seth's Old Time Banjo Workshop and Concert (Facebook event) https://www.facebook.com/events/338197586623823/?acontext=%7B%22action_history%22%3A%22[%7B%5C%22surface%5C%22%3A%5C%22messaging%5C%22%2C%5C%22mechanism%5C%22%3A%5C%22attachment%5C%22%2C%5C%22extra_data%5C%22%3A%7B%7D%7D]%22%7D

Sorry, couldn't make it happen this week. Too much prep for clifftop. Anyway, you should all listen to Jake's first episode, then buy his new CD!  iTunes: https://goo.gl/uBJ6zi Spotify: https://goo.gl/igk63a Amazon: http://a.co/8gFClvC We'll be back on schedule next week for my episode with Lucas Pasley!

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friend is Joe Showalter. I stopped by his house a couple months ago at the end of my first Get Up in the Cool tour, and it was really nice to get to know him a little better and play one on one. We talked about religion and music, and the tension that exists there sometimes. Specifically, the line between worship and performance, which, incidentally, I think, is a false dichotomy that is also present in old time music.  Tunes we’ll play: Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss Cuckoo’s Nest Round the Horn Billy in the Lowground Texas Gals Bonus Track: Swingin’ On A Gate Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s guest is one of my dearest friends in the Old Time community, Jake Blount, and this is his second appearance on Get Up in the Cool. I love having Jake on the show, because he’s an incredible musician, and he’s uniquely insightful and sometimes incisive about the roots of this music and the way people perceive it and the discrepancies between the two. Jake actually throws a lot of shade in this interview, which is an interesting choice, considering he’s on the show to promote his new EP with Tatiana Hargreaves, no big deal, and some of the things he says might make his audience defensive.  But every grievance Jake expresses is matched and exceeded with this effusive gratitude, and humility, which he articulates just as eloquently. So, I’m just going to go ahead and encourage you to adopt an open posture while listening to this, because the things Jake has to say are things we need to hear, and no one is going to communicate them as clearly, or as gracefully as he does. If you can do that, you will be touched by this music in the way it’s intended, which is to bring joy, through discomfort.  Stick around after the interview and I’ll give you a sneak peak at Jake’s new EP. You don’t want to miss it. Here’s my wonderful conversation with Jake Blount, who I like a lot. Enjoy. Jake’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/notjacobnotblunt/  Jake’s first episode: http://www.camerondewhitt.com/getupinthecool/jakeblount  Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool 

Welcome to episode 50 of Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends. That’s right! 50 episodes! Technically 53, but 3 of those are rebroadcasts or best of episodes, so they don’t count. And who better to feature on Get Up in the Cool’s 50th episode than Tricia Spencer and Howard Rains, experts in the field of traditional Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas fiddle tunes, fantastic visual artists, and, perhaps, Old Time’s cutest couple. Tunes we’ll play: Judge Parker Take These Shackles Off Of Me Big Springs Miller Boy Kash Kersey Cotton Eyed Joe Get Up in the Cool Bonus Track: Ladies’ Fancy Buy Spencer & Rains' new CD/Book combo, The Skeleton Keys: http://spencerandrains.com/product/the-skeleton-key/  Follow Hamlin Street Diner on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hamlinstreetdiner/  Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friends are Palmer and Greg Loux from Run of the Mill String Band! I got to know them at my first clifftop back in 2014, when I gave their son’s friend a ride and ended up camping with them. I remember sitting in on a jam with them and not being able to keep up. Palmer has a taste for notey melodies with less internal repetition than your typical old time tune. Basically kryptonite for a banjo player like me who likes to match a fiddler note for note. Fortunately, she gave me the tunes in advance; so I had quite the homework session preparing for this interview. And I still play a lot of these tunes, especially this first one: Flowers of Edinburgh, which is beautiful and very interesting, and in the process of learning it, I think I became a better banjo player and old time musician in general.  Make sure and stick around after the interview to find out where Palmer and Greg are playing next and how to order all their CDs and download all their music. Also, details on how to support Get Up in the Cool and get access to exclusive, members-only content like this week’s bonus track, Blue River, which is one of the best bonus tracks yet featured on the show. You gotta hear it.  Let’s get started! Here’s my interview and jam with Palmer and Greg Loux; enjoy! Tunes we play: Flowers of Edinburgh  Sail Away Ladies Wagoner Hornpipe Horseshoe Bend Hell Up Coal Holler Eye of the Beholder Bonus Track: Blue River Run of the Mill String Band: https://www.runotmill.com/  Snow Hill Strings: https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/snowhillstrings  The Hootenanny: http://www.camphillkimberton.org/hootenanny/ 

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friend is Scotty Leach! Scotty was one of the first names on my list when I started asking people to be on my show, because he was basically the first friend I made at my first Clifftop. That was almost 4 years ago, and I think playing with Scotty that week was yet another point of no return for me and my relationship with Old Time music. Scotty’s fiddling… the best way I can think to describe it is “flippantly brilliant.” Case in point: he won first prize in the Morehead fiddling contest last year playing a tune he learned in a jam right before he went on stage. But more than just his fiddling, I really like him. I would go visit Scotty even if he wasn’t an old time musician, which is like the main reason I visit people any more. It was really neat to hear Scotty’s story. Somehow, a lot of the details were new to me, so once again, I’m glad for the pretense of this show to get to know my friends better.  Tunes we play: Julianne Johnson Mose Coffman’s Lost Indian Katydid  Don Messer’s Breakdown L&N Rag Altamont Bonus Track: Bill Brown  Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friend is Patrick Heavner, the CEO and founder of Pisgah Banjo Company. If you’re a banjo nerd, this episode’s for you: we talk a lot of shop. I’m actually pretty ignorant when it comes to how banjos are made, so it was really cool to talk to someone who’s passionate about this whole other aspect of Old Time music. I sometimes forget that someone made my instrument, and they’re actually very responsible for my sound, even though I like to take all the credit.  In our interview, Patrick shares his philosophy as a business owner, and it really mirrors the spirit of the music that he’s enabling, which was really encouraging to hear. I love about this show that I have these talented, amazing guests, who are also generous and full of gratitude, and Patrick is no exception. Tunes we’ll play: What’re You Gonna Do With the Baby Chicken and Dumplings Jenny Run Away in the Mud in the Night Tater Patch Cat on a Leash Bonus Track: June Apple Pisgah Banjo Company: http://pisgahbanjos.com/ Balsam Banjo Works: http://balsambanjoworks.com/ Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool, Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends. This week’s friend is one of my favorite flat-pickers, songwriters, and old time musicians, Ethan Hawkins. I met him at Mt. Airy a couple years ago, and immediately got a big ol’ crush on him. He’s a very good guitarist, with a dreamy voice, and he’s a very animated performer, so I’m really glad I got him on video. Oh, did I not mention that? Check out Get Up in the Cool's Facebook page and you'll find some videos from this episode.  Tunes we'll play:  Josie-O New Harbor How’s Your Family Been? (what’s the official title?) Winderslide Greasy Coat Road to Malvern Bonus Track: Grigsby’s Hornpipe http://www.iamgailanne.com/ http://www.jubals-kin.com/

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friend is Kilby Spencer, and he’s kind of my new favorite fiddler. I wasn’t able to fully enjoy his fiddling while playing with him, because I was really concentrated on trying keep up, and not make a fool out of myself. But I just finished editing our interview and jam, and my jaw was on the floor the whole time. Kilby’s awesome. And, the best part is, I didn’t even get a chance to be intimidated, because he’s one of the nicest, most hospitable people I’ve met in my travels. He let me crash at his house, threw a bunch of amazing musicians with awesome stories in front of my microphones, and fed me all the fried chicken I could eat. Five Stars, would do business again.   I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Kilby’s a kind and generous person and a fantastic fiddler. His story’s full of gratitude and humility; because he came to this music more honestly than most of us do, and I think that understanding of what he’s doing, why he’s doing it, and where it all came from, is apparent in his playing and living. I learned a lot playing with him, and I had blast. I’m so glad I got some of it on tape so you all could catch a glimpse.    Stick around after the interview for details on how to hear more of Kilby’s music and how to support Get Up in the Cool and get access to exclusive bonus content.  Tunes we’ll play: Richmond Lafayette Nancy Blevins Old Sport Lost Train Blues Katy Did Bonus Track: Say Old Man Can You Play the Fiddle Buy Always Been a Rambler: https://thecrookedroadramblers.bandcamp.com/  Buy albums from the Field Recorders' Collective: https://fieldrecorder.bandcamp.com/ Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool  Buy Get Up in the Cool vol. 1: https://camerondewhitt.bandcamp.com/

Welcome to Get Up in the Cool: Old Time Music with Cameron DeWhitt and Friends! This week’s friend is Mark Simos, fiddler and professor at Berklee College of Music. I visited him in his home back in February when I took my Boston trip. I didn’t know Mark at all prior to our session, but both Mark Kilianski and Adam Hurt recommended him, so my expectations were high. And I wasn’t disappointed! Mark’s a fantastic fiddler and he has a lot of ideas about what music is and why it’s important; traditional music especially. So, basically the perfect Get Up in the Cool guest. It was nice to not feel like I was being self-indulgent when I wanted to wax philosophical about fiddle tunes, he was right there with me. But, don’t get the wrong idea, this is by no means an overly talky episode. Mark curated a great jam of great versions of great tunes, with an emphasis on effective, intentional simplicity. I’m really excited for you to hear it! Tunes we’ll play: Old Aunt Jenny With Her Nightcap On Old Billy Hell Poor Little Johnny’s Gone to the War Duck River Shaking Down the Acorns aking Down the ShAcorns Bonus Track: Run All Night Mark's CDs: https://store.cdbaby.com/Artist/MarkSimos http://www.5-string.com/ Mark's songwriting book, Songwriting Strategies: A 360º Approach (Berklee Press/Hal Leonard 2014) www.songwritingstrategies.com www.360songwriting.com - community site (w/book audio files) https://www.facebook.com/songwritingstrategies/ Mark's blog:  http://songwriterscompass.wordpress.com/ Mark’s artist/songwriter site www.devachan.com  The Singer Songwriter Handbook, which features Mark's chapter, "The Performing Songwriter's Dilemma": http://www.bloomsbury.com/us/the-singer-songwriter-handbook-9781628920291/ Miles of Music camp: http://www.milesofmusiccamp.com/  Berklee’s Summer Songwriting Workshop (June 26 - 30): https://www.berklee.edu/summer/programs/songwriting California Coast Music Camp July 9 - 15: https://www.musiccamp.org/2017 Support Get Up in the Cool on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/getupinthecool That Radiolab episode I mentioned: http://www.radiolab.org/story/debatable/