Blue Highway - Since bursting on the scene in the late-'90s, Blue Highway has all but dominated the bluegrass charts. Comprised of five experienced musicians, the members of this progressive group have played with Alison Krauss & Union Station, Ricky Skaggs, Larry Sparks and Doyle Lawson. The Tennessee-based group was nominated for four International Bluegrass Music Association Awards, and its 1996 debut stayed at No. 1 on the national bluegrass chart for five months. On the band's new release, "Through the Window of a Train," a number of the songs take a surprisingly liberal slant and take on issues like homelessness and war.
Larry Sparks - A self-described "young old-timer," guitarist Larry Sparks cut his teeth playing in the Stanley Brothers' Clinch Mountain Boys band. Growing up in Lebanon, OH, Sparks played in country and rock bands while in high school. In 1964, he was picked up by the Stanley Brothers and subsequently spent three years as the lead vocalist after Carter Stanley died in 1966. Sparks formed the Lonesome Ramblers in 1970 and the influential group has since nurtured the careers of numerous players including Ricky Skaggs and fiddler Stuart Duncan. Sparks and the Lonesome Ramblers released several albums throughout the '90s and in 2005, Sparks was awarded the IBMA "Male Vocalist of the Year" award. In 2007, the Lonesome Ramblers issued "Last Suit You Wear."
Tony Furtado - After winning the Grand National Banjo Championship in the late-'80s, Tony Furtado went on to play banjo for Laurie Lewis & Grant Street and to record for Rounder Records. His 1992 release, "Within Reach," featured Jerry Douglas, Alison Krauss and Stuart Duncan. Also an accomplished slide guitarist, 1994's "Full Circle" signaled a change in direction and was influenced by the likes of Ry Cooder and Blind Willie Johnson. His recent releases are built on deep grooves that owe as much to the North Mississippi AllStars as his bluegrass roots and have featured guests artists like Buckethead.
Carrie Newcomer - An uncommon vocalist who utilizes a variety of styles, Carrie Newcomer first gained attention singing and writing in the folk band Stone Soup. Since releasing her first solo record in 1991, Newcomer has incorporated jazz, blues and rock into her folk style. Her latest CD, "The Geography of Light," is her 11th release on Rounder Records. Of that release, "Rolling Stone" wrote, "Newcomer asks all the right questions and refuses to settle for easy answers." A Quaker, Newcomer supports several progressive issues, both spiritual and secular, and has pledged to donate 10 percent of the CD's sales to The American Friends Service Committee.
John Lilly - The editor of WV's "Goldenseal" magazine since 1997, John Lilly's music recalls the sounds of a different era. "Bluegrass Unlimited" magazine called 2000's "Broken Moon" one of the "most unusual and interesting acoustic disks of the year" while 2005's "Blue Highway" was a collaboration with legendary Tennessee fiddler Ralph Blizard. His latest release, "Haunted Honky Tonk," features a guest spot by Sonny Landreth and reached the No. 1 position on both the Freeform American Roots (FAR) and Euro Americana radio charts.