WFDU-FM’s TRADITIONS Playlist for January 25, 2015

Not even a month old, 2015 has delivered several powerful new recordings from some of the folk communities guiding lights as well as talented new artists on the rise. I spent a significant portion of today’s broadcast sharing selections from CDs released during the first few weeks as well as a few that are due for release in early February.

“Trust” The Levins

One of my favorite new releases is Trust from the Levins (pronounced The LeVINNS). I first met Julia and Ira Levin at last year’s one day NERFA event in New Jersey. The couple, originally from California, moved to New York to 2010 and have since been gaining strong attention in the Northeast, including winning the 2011 Connecticut Folk Festival songwriting award and being named as Emerging Artists at the 2014 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival. Their new CD was recorded at Mark Dann studios and features support from drummer Dan Hickey (B-52’s and They Might Be Giants), violin from Sara Milonovich among the group.

Trust is a musical journey through life and shared humanity. Any CD whose title song kicks off the recording with a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt (“you’ve got to move to change the state you are in”) is going to be affirming.  There are original songs influenced by Shakespeare (“God’s Spies) and Hermann Hesse (“The Great Constellation”) that were written by the duo, and the end song Laugh With Me” will leave you with a strong feeling of togetherness. I also enjoyed the one cover song on the recording, a lovely rendition of Bruce Cockburn’s “Love Song.” A winner!

The Levins

Full disclosure – I was so impressed by the Levins after seeing them perform last year that I booked them to open for Modern Man at the Hurdy Gurdy in Fair Lawn, NJ on Saturday May 9.  Before that, the Levins will have their official CD release party when they open for Sloan Wainwright at the Acoustic Cafe in Park Ridge, NJ on Saturday March 28.

Other new recordings include Jorma Kaukonen’s “Ain’t No Hurry” (Red House), a masterful collections of songs from the guitar master, who continues to tour with Hot Tuna and this year will help celebrate the 50th anniversary of Jefferson Airplane!

We also shared a sneak preview of Tom Paxton’s forthcoming CD “Redemption Road” (Pax Records.)  The CD will be released in March, when Tom will be touring with Janis Ian, who also appears on the recording. Tom recently announced that in November, following a tour of the UK as well as some US dates, he will retire from touring. He plans to keep writing and recording, and perform the occasional show, but the touring will come to an end. Don’t miss Tom if he is performing anywhere near you, he is a national treasure and his shows continue to have the same charm and closeness that have made him a legend in the folk community and beyond.

Today was also the anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns, Scotland’s poet laureate. With Burns Suppers being held around the glove to celebrate the life, poetry and music of Burns, we held our own “virtual” Supper complete with a virtual haggis. It was yummy!

(Tune in to TRADITIONS every Sunday from 2pm to 5pm Eastern Time over WFDU-FM 89.1 in the NYC/Northern New Jersey area, or on the web at www.wfdu.fm or iHeartRadio.com. On-demand streams of shows, including this one, are archived for two weeks by clicking HERE. A Sing Out! Radio Partner.)

ARTIST “Tune / Song”
ALBUM Label Website
2PM
Theme: HARVEY REID “Dirty Dish Rag”
Solo Guitar Sketchbook Woodpecker Records – www.woodpecker.com
DOUGIE MACLEAN “Rattlin Roarin’ Willie”
Tribute Dunkeld – www.dougiemaclean.com

CASSIE & MAGGIE MACDONALD “Sisters”
Sterling Road self – www.cassieandmaggie.com
BURNING BRIDGET CLEARY “The Elfin Knight”
Totes for Goats self – www.burningbridgetcleary.com
EILIS CREAN “Tatter Jack Walsh / Killimore / Knocknagow”
The Lonesome Fiddler The Irish Gift – www.theirishgift.org

SEAHORSE “Angelina”
The Fire’s Heart Ravens Flight Records – www.seahorselovesyou.com
BOBTOWN “Morning Sun”
A History of Ghosts self – www.bobtownmusic.com

JOHNSMITH “Sweetgrass”
The Longing Road self – www.johnsmithmusic.com
ELLIS PAUL “Drive-In Movie”
Chasing Beauty self – www.ellispaul.com
ALICE DIMICELE “Ripple”
Swim self – www.alicedimicele.com

JORMA KAUKONEN “Brother Can You Spare a Dime”
Ain’t No Hurry Red House Records – www.redhouserecords.com
MARK ERELLI “These Cold Fingers”
Milltowns self – www.markerelli.com

3PM
TOM PAXTON “Time To Spare”
Redemption Road  Pax Records – www.tompaxton.com

TOM PAXTON “The Mayor of MacDougal Street”
Redemption Road  Pax Records – www.tompaxton.com
TOM PAXTON “Redemption Road”
Redemption Road  Pax Records – www.tompaxton.com

THE LEVINS “Trust”
Trust  self – www.thelevinsmusic.com
THE LEVINS “Love Song”
Trust  self – www.thelevinsmusic.com
THE LEVINS “Laugh With Me”
Trust  self – www.thelevinsmusic.com

NEPTUNE’S CAR “A Blue Sky Turned to Rust”
The 45th Parallel  self – www.neptunescar.com
BELA FLECK & ABIGAIL WASHBURN “Railroad”
Bela Fleck & Abigail Washburn  Rounder – www.rounder.com
NORA JANE STRUTHERS & THE PARTY LINE “The Wire”
Wake  Blue Pig Music – www.norajanestruthers.com

JERRON “BLIND BOY” PAXTON “Casey Jones”
Pickathon Music Festival 2010 Pickathon – www.pickathon.com
TILLAMOOK BURN “Corrina”
Tillamook Burn  self – www.laurensheehanmusic.com

LOUDON WAINWRIGHT III “Place in Line”
Link of Chain – A Songwriters Tribute to Chris Smither Signature Sounds – www.signaturesounds.com

4PM
LINDA TILLERY & THE CULTURAL HERITAGE CHOIR “I’ll Fly Away”
Say Yo’ Business  Earth Beat – www.earthbeatrecords.com

WADE & JULIA MAINER “Bring Back My Mountain Boy to Me”
In the Land of Melody  June Appal – www.appalshop.org
THE GIBSON BROTHERS “What A Wonderful Savior is He”
Brotherhood  Rounder – www.rounder.com
CAROLINE COTTER “Bella Blue”
Dreaming As I Do Bella Blue Records – www.carolinecotter.com

MAX DUNBAR “Selkirk Grace”
Poems and Letters of Robert Burns on the Bicentenary of His Birth Folkways – www.folkways.si.edu
EMILY SMITH “Rigs of Barley”
A Day Like Today Whitefall Records – www.whitefallrecords.com
EDDI READER “John Anderson, My Jo”
Eddi Reader Sings the Songs of Robert Burns Compass Records – www.compassrecords.com  , www.eddireader.co.uk
EWAN MAcCOLL “Green Grow the Rushes Oh”
Songs of Robert Burns Folkways – www.folkways.si.edu

GIL BOWMAN “Coming Through the Rye”
Toasting the Lassies Greentrax – www.greentrax.com
JEAN REDPATH “To the Weavers Gin Ye Go”
The Songs of Robert Burns Vol. 1 & 2 Greentrax – www.greentrax.com , www.jeanredpath.com
OLD BLIND DOGS “A Man’s A Man For All That”
Play Live  Compass Records – www.compassrecords.com , www.oldblinddogs.co.uk
THE BATTLEFIELD BAND “My Love is Like A Red Red Rose”
Dookin’  Temple Records – www.templerecords.co.uk

THE MORGANS “Rolling Home to Old New England”
Rolling Home to Old New England  Morgan Productions – www.crackerbarrel-ents.com
THE WEAVERS “Almost Done”
The Weaver’s at Home Vanguard Records – Vanguard Records – www.vanguardrecords.com
THE ROOFTOP SINGERS “Swing Down, Chariot”
The Rooftop Singers- Best of the Vanguard Years Vanguard Records – www.vanguardrecords.com

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Ron Olesko
WFDU-FM
1000 River Road
Teaneck, NJ 07666

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