Summary: Ozark Highlands Radio is a weekly radio program that features live music and interviews recorded at Ozark Folk Center State Park’s beautiful 1,000-seat auditorium in Mountain View, Arkansas. In addition to the music, our “Feature Host” segments take listeners through the Ozark hills with historians, authors and personalities who explore the people, stories, and history of the Ozark region. This week, original Ozark Alternative Folk music ingenue Grace Stormont performs live at the Ozark Folk Center State Park. Also, interviews with this fast rising new folk artist. Mark Jones offers an archival recording of the Junior Rackensack Society, singing the Jimmy Driftwood song “Down in the Arkansas.” Writer, professor, and historian Dr. Brooks Blevins profiles the Brockwell School, and its tradition of education in the uniquely American art form of shape note singing. One of the most exciting and talented young musicians in Arkansas, Grace Stormont is just getting started. After moving to Mountain View, Arkansas a few years ago to immerse herself in the local music scene, Grace has made a name for herself among a long list of outstanding musicians. A multi-instrumentalist (bass, guitar, banjo and dulcimer,) sixteen year old Grace also excels as a vocalist and interpreter of traditional Ozark ballads. Her musical phrasing and insight are well beyond her age. Aside from her solo performances, which are featured on this program, Grace also performs with the incredible all female group “Pretty Lil Miss.” In this week’s “From the Vault” segment, musician, educator, and country music legacy Mark Jones offers an archival recording of the Junior Rackensack Society, singing the Jimmy Driftwood song “Down in the Arkansas,” from the Ozark Folk Center State Park archives. From his series entitled “Back in the Hills,” writer, professor, and historian Dr. Brooks Blevins profiles the Brockwell School, located in Brockwell, Arkansas, and its tradition of education in the uniquely American art form of shape note singing. This episode features an archival recording of Orgel Mason and a gospel quartet singing the traditional song “It’s a Mighty Hard Road to Travel.”
