Flaco Jiménez, Nanci Griffith and Swallow Hill Music to be Recognized for Lifetime Achievement

The Elaine Weissman Lifetime Achievement Awards are presented annually to honor the cultural impact of legendary folk music figures: one Living, one Legacy, and one Business/Academic. This year’s honorees are Conjunto accordionist Flaco Jiménez; the late singer-songwriter and interpreter Nanci Griffith; and folk music organization Swallow Hill Music.

Griffith, whose music straddled the line between folk and country, a style that she affectionately called “folkabilly,” died on August 13, 2021 at age 68. She was best known for her colorful, narrative tales of small town life that she sang in her warm, crystalline pure voice with a Texas twang. Many of her songs were covered and recorded by other notable artists. An early Kerrville New Folk Winner and a 1995 inductee into the Austin Music Hall of Fame, Griffith was honored by the Americana Music Association with its Lifetime Americana Trailblazer Award in 2008 and received a BBC Radio 2 Folk Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010. She released her 18th and last studio album, Intersection, in 2012. Griffith’s1993 Elektra release Other Voices, Other Rooms – featuring interpretations of 17 songs by other songwriters who had inspired her – won the 1994 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album.

Here’s a link to listen to Griffith’s poignant recording of “Love at the Five and Dime.”

Swallow Hill Music is a Denver, Colorado-based nonprofit music organization that provides music education, outreach, programming, and concerts for more than 138,000 people annually. Focused on diverse music traditions on stage and in the classroom, Swallow Hill’s organizational values promote inclusiveness. Its school offers music education to all ages, while Swallow Hill also hosts open stages and jams that are open to members and non-members alike. Its community and school outreach programs (including assemblies, field trips and in-school and after-school enrichment activities) have reached thousands of students in the Denver metro area.

Jason Mraz, Planet Bluegrass and Mali Obomsawin to be Honored

Jason Mraz, the multi-platinum Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter known for his positivity and commitment to conservation, ending world hunger, human rights, and LGBTQIA+ issues, will receive The People’s Voice Award, which is presented to an individual who unabashedly embraces social and political commentary in his/her/their creative work and public careers. Mraz took part in a nonprofit rescue mission in Ghana to liberate children sold into slavery, performed in Myanmar to raise awareness about human trafficking, Participated in Farm Aid, visited Antartica to help raise awareness about the environment and climate change, and was present at Standing Rock. His own foundation supports multiple organizations addressing issues to which he is committed and, in 2020, Mraz donated all profits from his Look for the Good album to Black Lives Matter and other groups working toward equality and justice.

Colorado-based Planet Bluegrass will receive the Clearwater Award, which is presented to a festival that prioritizes environmental stewardship and demonstrates public leadership in sustainable event production. For more than 30 years, the organization that produces Telluride Bluegrass, RockyGrass , and Rocky MTN Folks Festival has embraced a “Leave No Trace” ethic and demonstrated environmental leadership by engaging in strategic community-level plans and programs to center the idea of stewardship. Planet Bluegrass is a certified public benefit corporation— a legal entity recognized formally as committed to business practices that are sustainable and beneficial to society and the environment. At each of its respective festivals, Planet Bluegrass incentivizes reuse over recycling. This includes a reusable plate program, annually monitoring and reporting on waste diversion of more than 60% (twice that of the U.S. national average), employing solar power to offset more than 10 tons of CO2 emissions annually, providing composting and compostable bottles, offering free filtered water on site, and donating leftover festival food to local community organizations.

Mali Obomsawin will receive the Rising Tide Award that was established in 2021 to celebrate a new generation (under 30) artist who inspires others by embodying the values and ideals of the folk community through their creative work, community role, and public voice. An award-winning Smithsonian Folkways Recordings artist from Odanak Wabanaki First Nation, Obamsawin is a member of the band Lula Wiles, as well as a journalist and the founder and executive director of the Bomazeen Land Trust.

FAI Members to Determine Album, Song and Artist of the Year Award Recipients From Among 15 Finalists

A listing of the finalists for the 2021 album, song, and artist of the year awards based on US, Canadian, and international industry year-end lists, as well as folk DJ airplay, follows. Winners are determined by the voting membership of FAI (with the ballot open until April 15).

Album of the Year

They’re Calling Me Home by Rhiannon Giddens with Francesco Turrisi
Wary + Strange by Amythyst Kiah
Un Canto por México, Vol. 2 by Natalia Lafourcade
Outside Child by Allison Russell
The Fray by John Smith

Song of the Year

“On Solid Ground” by Reggie Harris
“Painted Blue” by Sarah Jarosz
“We Believe You” by Diana Jones
“Call Me A Fool” by Valerie June
“Changemakers” by Crys Matthews

Artist of the Year

The Longest Johns
Kalani Pe’a
Allison Russell
Arooj Aftab
John Francis Flynn

Six Spirit of Folk Awards to be Presented

Spirit of Folk Awards honor and celebrate people and organizations actively involved in the promotion and preservation of folk music through their creative work, community building, and demonstrated leadership. The 2022 recipients will include Eugene Rodriguez (musician, educator, documentary producer, and founder of Los Cenzontles — both as a band and as a nonprofit music academy and community space for Latinx artists, youth, and families in the San Francisco Bay area); Lilli Lewis (composer, producer, performing artist, and vice president & head of A &R for Louisiana Red Hot Records); Gaelyn Lea (musician, disability rights activist, co-founder and vice president of RAMPD – Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities, 2016 NPR Tiny Desk Contest winner, and an in-demand speaker); Erin Benjamin (president & CEO of the Canadian Live Music Association, and formerly a singer-songwriter, label owner, and the first executive director of Folk Music Ontario); Amado Espinoza (Bolivian-American multi-instrumentalist, composer and instrument maker, and co-founder of Resonation Music and Arts — using educational programming to inspire curiosity and respect for world cultures through music, dance, and storytelling); and Shain Shapiro (Sound Diplomacy founder and CEO, whose work has influenced more than 75 cities and countries to invest in music and culture).

Folk Alliance International is a Kansas City, Missouri-based nonprofit organization that aims to serve, strengthen and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation and promotion. For more information on the organization, its annual conference, Artists in Residence program, online programming, and the International Folk Music Awards, visit folk.org. Click here to view a recording of the April 7 awards announcement.

Brandi Carlile, a folk-rock and Americana singer-songwriter who was named Artist of the Year for a second time during the awards show that was presented at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee last September 22, is among the artists whose performances were captured for this special episode. Also featured — in order of appearance — are performances by Fisk Jubilee Singers with Leon Timbo, Sarah Jarosz, Aoife O’Donovan and Joe Henry, Allison Russell, The Highwomen (Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hembry, Maren Morris, and Amanda Shires) with Yola, Jason Isbell, Valerie June and Carla Thomas, Emerging Act Award-winner Charley Crockett, Amythyst Kiah, Buddy Miller (the show’s musical director), and The Mavericks. The Fisk Jubilee Singers, The Mavericks and “Queen of Memphis Soul” Carla Thomas were recognized as Lifetime Achievement Award honorees last September.

The Americana Honors & Awards show is a centerpiece of the annual AmericanaFest, a multi-day celebration of American roots-inspired music put on by the Americana Music Association each fall. A combination festival and conference, it is filled with daytime panel discussions and seminars and evenings chock-full of artist showcases at venues throughout the Music City. Established in 1999, the Americana Music Association is a professional not-for-profit trade association whose mission is to advocate for the authentic voice of American roots music around the world.

Here’s a link to an article about the Americana Honors & Awards that was posted on AcousticMusicScene.com on September 23, 2021.

Jim Olsen, the festival’s director, expressed gratitude that 84% of fans who purchased tickets for this year’s festival opted to hold onto them for 2021 and forgo refunds. ”We want to show our appreciation and bring together our festival community by offering an incredible weekend of performances,” Olsen said. Noting that streaming live musical performances will be interspersed artist interviews and fan reflections on festivals past on the campus of Greenfield Community College, he added: “We’re envisioning mini-listening parties in backyards and parks and hope to bring the spirit of the festival into homes everywhere.”

Artists slated to perform include the Avett Brothers, Billy Strings, Birds of Chicago, Deer Tick, Dustbowl Revival Samantha Fish,Michael Franti, I’m With Her, Eilen Jewell, Pokey LaFarge, Lake Street Drive, Heather Maloney, Mandolin Orange, The Mavericks, NRBQ, Old Crow Medicine Show, Chuck Prophet, Josh Ritter, Todd Snider, Mavis Staples, The Suitcase Junket, Tedeschi-Trucks Band, Toots & The Maytals, Lucinda Williams, and The Wood Brothers, among others.To view the full lineup and schedule, visit https://greenriverfestival.com/.

Olsen is also the co-founder and president of Signature Sounds, an indie label on whose roster many of the festival’s artists appear. Earlier this year, the label also established The Parlor Room Home Sessions — a live-streaming portal for its artists and others to share their music online at https://signaturesounds.com/homesessions. Next up are Tracy Grammer & Jim Henry on Saturday, July 18 at 9 p.m. EDT.

A video archive of past performances, dating back to late March, may also be found on the website. Included are such artists as Brooke Annibale, AJ Croce, Kris Delmhorst, Mark Erelli, Melissa Ferrick, Mary Gauthier & Jaimee Harris, Rhiannon Giddens, Caroline Herring, Charlie Hunter, Freedy Johnston, Amythyst Kiah, Sonny Landreth, Patty Larkin, Liz Longley, Leyla McCalla, James McMurtry, Miss Tess & Amanda Anne Platt, Bruce Molsky, Ryan Montbleau, Peter Mulvey, Tim O’Brien, Parsonsfield, Amy Rigby, Chris Smither, Anna Tivel, Twisted Pine, and several of the artists who will be part of Green River Festival On The Air.

Streaming online from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., the virtual festival will feature storytelling, activism, education and celebration, in addition to lots of musiic. Among the featured performers are Scott Ainslie, David Amram, Andes Manta, David & Jacob Bernz, David Celia, The Chapin Sisters, Tom Chapin, Judy Collins, Guy Davis, Emma’s Revolution, Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer, Gangstagrass. Abbie Gardner, Fred Gillen, Jr., Lisa Gutkin, Bill Harley, Reggie Harris, Jaeger & Reid, Joe Jencks, Geoff Kaufman, Amythyst Kiah, James Maddock, Magpie, The Mammals/Mike & Ruthy, John McEuen, John McCutcheon, Tom Paxton, The Rix, Tommy Sands, The Scooches, Noel Paul Stookey, Matt Turk, Jay Ungar & Molly Mason, Peter Yarrow, and Dan and Claudia Zanes.

A number of folk radio DJs will serve as emcees. These include Jimmy Buff (Host of Jimmy Buff Loves You airing weekdays on WKNY Radio Kingston in upstate New York), Wanda Fischer (host of the long-running Hudson River Sampler on WAMC in New York’s Capitol Region), Sonny Ochs (host of Folk Music & Other Stuff on WIOX in New York’s Catskills Region and on Folk Music Notebook), Ron Olesko (creator of Folk Music Notebook, a 24-7 online music channel and longtime host of Traditions on WFDU in Teaneck, NJ), Rik Palieri (host of Folk Talk with Rik Palieri on WBTV in Burlington, VT and also on Folk Music Notebook), John Platt (host of Sunday Supper on WFUV in New York City) and Bob Sherman (longtime host of Woody’s Children that now precedes Platt’s Sunday Supper on WFUV).

The live stream may be viewed on either https://clearwaterfestival.org (where more information also can be found about it), https://youtube.com/user/HRSloopClearwater or https://facebook.com/sloopclearwater/. Although the virtual festival is free, donations will be gratefully accepted. Funds raised will help keep the sloop Clearwater afloat and support the ongoing work of the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Inc., a nonprofit, member-supported organization launched by Pete Seeger and others to preserve and protect the Hudson River and its tributaries.

Clearwater’s 2020 Virtual Revival will be available for viewing for about six months so you can watch the parts you missed or re-watch those that you loved.

New Orleans resident Leyla McCalla, part of Our Native Daughters along with Kiah and also a former member of the Grammy Award-winning Carolina Chocolate Drops, served as the evening’s emcee. In addition to the FAI member-voted awards for artist, song and album of the year that were chosen from among a list of nominees culled from a number of top folk DJ charts, publications, lists and other awards rosters around the world, Lifetime Achievement, Spirit of Folk, Clearwater, and People’s Voice Awards also were presented.

The Elaine Weissman Lifetime Achievement Awards are presented annually to a living recipient, a memorial recipient, and an organization or recognized academic. Honored this week were Grammy Award-winning Cajun band BeauSoleil (avec Michael Doucet) – Living; the “Queen of Gospel” Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972) – Legacy; and New Orleans’ Preservation Hall – Organization/Academic.

Spirit of Folk Awards honor and celebrate people and organizations actively involved in the promotion and preservation of folk music through their creative work, their community building, and their demonstrated leadership. Recipients include Ellen Bello (Native American Music Awards), Ephraim Bugumba (refugee-artist), Laura Hassler (Musicians Without Borders), Ake Lundstom (Nordic Folk Alliance), Jan Ramsey (OffBeat Magazine), and Ben Sandmel (folklorist and writer).

Ani DiFranco is this year’s recipient of he People’s Voice Award that is presented to an individual who unabashedly embraces social and political commentary in his/her creative work and public career. A vocal activist and female icon whose folk roots run deep, Ani DiFranco’s international career was made notable through meaningful songwriting that embraces and embodies social activism. DiFranco launched Righteous Babe Records in 1990 and has released more than 20 albums to date.

Pickathon, based near Portland, Oregon, received the Clearwater Award recognizing a festival that prioritizes environmental stewardship and demonstrates public leadership in sustainable event production.

Featuring 180 juried official artist showcases and several-thousand private ones, a wide array of workshops and panel discussions, keynotes by Rhiannon Giddens and Mavis Staples, mentoring and peer group sessions, a large exhibit hall, an associated music camp, receptions and networking opportunities galore, the Folk Alliance International Conference is the world’s largest gathering of the folk music industry and community – drawing some 3,000 participants this year. Through its theme of The Story of People and Place, this year’s conference is focusing on cultural equity — with some programming exploring such topics as diversity, inclusion, immigration, intersection, and influence.

Folk Alliance International is a Kansas City, Missouri-based nonprofit organization that aims to serve, strengthen and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation and promotion. For more information on the organization, visit www.folk.org.

Extending from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., the festival kicks off with performances by the five top finalists in CT Folk’s 2019 Grassy Hill Songwriting Competition: Nick Depuy, Sharon Goldman, Margo Hennebach, Monica Rizzio, and Stan Sullivan. One of them will receive a performance slot in next year’s festival, as well as a cash prize. Susan Cattaneo, a Boston, Massachusetts-based singer-songwriter and songwriting professor at Berklee College of Music, who won he competition last year, will perform a 30-minute set immediately following the competition finals.

Other artists slated to showcase their talents on the Main Stage include (in order of appearance) Christine Sweeney, Quarter Horse, Jim Allyn Band, Amythyst Kiah Trio, Ghost of Paul Revere, and Birds of Chicago, while Donna the Buffalo will close out the festival.

Since coming together as a band in 1989, Donna the Buffalo has played thousands of concerts and such notable festivals as Bonaroo, MerleFest, Newport Folk Festival, Philadelphia Folk Festival, and Telluride. The band also launched the Finger Lakes Grassroots Festival in Trumansburg, New York – an annual four-day event near Ithaca that has spawned two other Grassroots Festivals in Florida and North Carolina.

Throughout the day, the Green Expo will feature a wide array of exhibitors, informational talks and demonstrations, workshops, and activities to promote sustainable lifestyles. There also will be plenty of music and activities for children in the Green Kids Village.

Edgerton Park is located at Whitney Avenue and Cliff Street. Attendees are advised to bring lawn chairs or blankets and plan to picnic. Eight food trucks will be on site offering a wide variety of food and beverages for purchase.

CT Folk seeks to educate, entertain, and inspire a diverse audience through music and conversation to create a socially responsible and environmentally sustainable community. A suggested $10 donation during the festival will help the nonprofit organization carry out its mission. Besides presenting the festival, CT Folk also hosts a Folk Fridays concert series that runs from October through May and promotes traditional and contemporary folk and roots music throughout Connecticut. For more information, click here or visit www.ctfolk.org.

Editor’s Note: It is my honor and pleasure to again help judge this year’s Grassy Hill CT Folk Songwriter Competition finals that extend from 11 a.m. -12 p.m. on the Main Stage.