Craig Havighurst

It looked like a tech meltdown. They had to hide the standings bc it wouldn't refresh. Then they wrap the Fast 6 with no display at all of the grid positions. @foxsportslv.bsky.social, not good!

This is the kind of PR that keeps Lee Greenwood's lifelong "God Bless the USA" schtick going. These MFers pitched us that infernal song days after 9/11. Now they're selling "gold" and "platinum" bibles like they're airline mileage tiers. I replied - called them blasphemous money grubbers.

Mickey Raphael, Harmonica Man To The Stars, On The String It was 50 years ago this month that a 23-year-old Mickey Raphael felt his way through his first recording session with his relatively new band boss Willie Nelson. And it was no small thing, producing ...

I got to interview Mickey Raphael for The String - and this time it's on video! He got one of the greatest jobs in the world (playing harmonica for Willie Nelson) by being good and showing up. www.wmot.org/show/the-str...

The Ghosts in the Machine, by Liz Pelly Spotify’s plot against musicians

There's nothing wrong with muzak-style background sound for low-attention time. It's age old. The problem here is Spotify misleading its users and cynically diluting playlists with works-for-hire - and hoping nobody notices. Also, calling it jazz or classical is a crime.
harpers.org/archive/2025...

Nashville Indie Music Advocates Hit 2025 With New Data And Ideas Is Nashville’s diversification and rapid growth ultimately compatible with the village-like, art-first ethos that’s made so many of us want to live and create here? That question has been debated in t...

I've posted a year-end survey of the indie music ecosystem in Nashville, powered by two recent studies about artists, money, venues, and the cost of living. Hope you find it interesting. #Nashville #music #business #venues

www.wmot.org/roots-radio-...

Do Bluesky people do the Threads thing where they yell their favorite subjects and people goals at the algorithm in hopes of fulfillment?

This release is blowing me away.

YouTube video by Jacob's Ladder Don't You Hear Jerusalem Moan (Offical Music Video)

We're working up a holiday special edition of The Old Fashioned for WMOT and Amy Alvey came across this performance by Jacob's Ladder. I haven't had such a profound reaction to a seasonal song in ages. Beautiful direction and photography too. Wow.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=t89y...

We Like It Here (Remixed + Remastered + Reimagined) [FLAC] From the moment Snarky Puppy played its first overseas show to a sold-out London crowd, they felt at home in Europe. Recorded and filmed live with a studio audience over 4 nights in the Netherlands, '...

They've remixed and remastered Snarky Puppy's breakthrough album We Like It Here, and the streaming version sounds just amazing. "Lingus" remains a staggering work and performance. The vinyl edition $$$. But this might be a good one for a FLAC purchase.

store.snarkypuppy.com/products/we-...

All Smiles And Footwork, Minnesota's Humbird Is ‘Right On’ One of my highlights of 2024 was finally getting to see Minneapolis folk rocker Humbird, an artist whose three recordings display an unusual degree of sonic imagination and bandcraft, even beyond her ...

I love Minneapolis-based songwriter/artist/guitarist Humbird. Enjoy an hour with her casual, intelligent energy. I love her 2024 album 'Right On'.

www.wmot.org/show/the-str...

YouTube video by Jacob's Ladder Don't You Hear Jerusalem Moan (Offical Music Video)

We're working up a holiday special edition of The Old Fashioned for WMOT and Amy Alvey came across this performance by Jacob's Ladder. I haven't had such a profound reaction to a seasonal song in ages. Beautiful direction and photography too. Wow.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=t89y...

Uh, too close to Jane's for mine!

Allison de Groot AND Tray Wellington have been named as this year's winners of the Steve Martin Banjo Prize. It's a substantial $25k grant to each, and I think the first time with two winners in a year. Great leadership in roots music philanthropy. We need more.

Zakir Hussain, Tabla Virtuoso Who Forged Global Fusions, Dies at 73 His collaborators included John McLaughlin, Béla Fleck, Ravi Shankar, Herbie Hancock, Yo-Yo Ma and members of the Grateful Dead.

A world master has passed. I got to hear Zakir Hussain a couple of times and even interview him once with Béla Fleck and Edgar Meyer. We tend to listen to rhythm quite superficially in the USA. Indian rhythm is like quantum mechanics. (Gift article)

www.nytimes.com/2024/12/15/a...

#Nashville Gold on a rainy Monday evening. First, Mr. Sun at Analog, playing their arrangement of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn's swinging jazz remake of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite. Then off to East for Jack Silverman's sonic #jazz adventures in the parlor at Urban Cowboy. This town man...

I did eat Dicey's this weekend and could eat it about every day.

Deep River Blues: Asheville’s Music Scene Rebounds From Hurricane Helene Residents of western North Carolina are still reeling and recovering two months after Hurricane Helene slammed the region in late September. Despite some normalcy (and the recent return of potable wat...

...published this report on the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on the music culture in this vital region.
www.wmot.org/roots-radio-...

The Resonance Sessions, by The Resonance Sessions 35 track album

This important album just went up for pre-order. TK in March. Some friends mine are involved, and the project is of, by, and for the people of western NC, my spiritual home. I visited Marshall in Nov and...

resonancesessions.bandcamp.com/album/the-re...

Famous last words, posted on Threads.

2024's Thirty Essential And Outstanding Americana Albums Who are these people who say that there’s no great music being released anymore - you know, not like when they were young? Maybe they’re just online trolls, but in any event, they couldn’t be more out...

Hi there. New account. Gotta start somewhere, so here's a stab. Every year I write about 30 Essential and Outstanding Americana albums for my radio station WMOT in Nashville. It'll tell you a lot about where I'm coming from. Looking forward to new connections here.

www.wmot.org/roots-radio-...