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.

Sturgill Simpson’s Cuttin’ Grass Vol. 1 (The Butcher Shoppe Sessions), his first bluegrass project, was named Album of the Year. It’s one of two albums that he released in 2020 featuring bluegrass interpretations of songs from his early solo recordings, as well as with his former band Sunday Valley. To date, Simpson, a Kentucky-bred and Nashville-based singer-songwriter who is often compared to outlaw country artists, has released seven solo albums — including The Ballad of Dodd and Juliana just last month. He was previously honored as Emerging Artist of the Year in 2014, while his “Turtles All the Way Down” was named Song of the Year in the 2015 Americana Honors & Awards. A Sailor’s Guide to Earth, his third studio album, received a Grammy Award for Best Country Album in 2017, while Simpson was named International Artist of the Year in the UK Americana Awards that year.

Fiona Prine, widow of the late John Prine and president of Oh Boy Records, accepted the award for Song of the Year on behalf of the late internationally acclaimed and revered singer-songwriter, who died in April 2020 at the age of 73 from complications of the coronavirus (COVID-19) Prine was recognized for “I Remember Everything,” a co-write with Pat McLaughlin, which was the last original song that he recorded. Earlier this year, Prine, who toured and plied his craft for nearly 50 years, posthumously received a Grammy for Best American Roots Performance for “I Remember Everything” and shared the Grammy for Best American Roots Song with McLaughlin. Carlile performed the song during the Grammy Awards Show telecast in his honor and was joined by Margo Price and Amanda Shires (with whom she is part of The Highwomen, the all-female group that dominated last year’s awards) in doing so during the Americana Honors & Awards show.

Known for his well crafted, observant, often humorous story songs featuring indelible characters and vivid imagery, Prine was a 2003 Americana Lifetime Achievement honoree for songwriting. He was named Artist of the Year in 2020 and was the big winner in 2019’s Americana Honors & Awards. His 2019 release, The Tree of Forgiveness, was named Album of the Year, while “Summer’s End” was voted Song of the Year. Prine, who previously won Grammy Awards for two of his albums, also was honored by The Recording Academy with its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020.

Black Pumas, an Austin, Texas-based psychedelic soul band, was named Group/Duo of the Year after having been voted Emerging Act of the Year in 2020. Actor Kiefer Sutherland accepted the award on the band’s behalf since its members were unable to attend. Charley Crockett, an Americana, blues and neo-country singer-songwriter from south Texas, who has released ten albums since 2015, accepted the Emerging Act of the Year Award, while Kristin Weber, a Nashville-based fiddler who has been touring worldwide and recording for 14 years, was honored as Instrumentalist of the Year.

Recognized as Lifetime Achievement Award honorees were the Fisk Jubilee Singers (Legacy of Americana Award), The Mavericks (Trailblazer Award), Keb Mo’ (Lifetime Achievement Award for Performance), Trina Shoemaker (Lifetime Achievement Award for Producer/Engineer), and ‘Queen of Memphis Soul’ Carla Thomas (Inspiration Award).

Musical highlights from the 20th Annual Americana Honors & Awards show will be featured on a special episode of Austin City Limits that is set to air on PBS television stations in February 2022.

AmericanaFest, which began Sept. 22 and continues through Sept. 25, is a festival and conference 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. Visit americanamusic.org for more information.

Prine, an internationally acclaimed and revered singer-songwriter who toured and plied his craft for nearly 50 year, posthumously received a Grammy for Best American Roots Performance for “I Remember Everything” and shared the Grammy for it as Best American Roots Song with co-writer Pat McLaughlin. Americana and folk-rock singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile performed the song during the telecast in honor of Prine, who died last April 7 at the age of 73 from complications of the coronavirus (COVID-19).

Here’s a link to view Brandi Carlile’s performance:

https://www.grammy.com/grammys/videos/brandi-carlile-honors-john-prine-i-remember-everything%E2%80%AF-%E2%80%AF2021-grammy-awards-show

“John Prine is a hero and one of the most important and significant songwriters of our time,” said Carlile, who was, herself, the big winner in the American Roots Music Field during the 61st annual Grammy Awards in February 2019, with Grammy Awards for Best American Album, Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song. “I feel so lucky to have called him a friend. It was an absolute honor of my life to pay tribute to him on the Grammy Stage. His songs will live forever.”

“My sons and I thank The Recording Academy for recognizing John’s final recording. Brandi’s beautiful performance was perfect,” said Fiona Prine, his widow. “We miss John but are grateful too for the incredible legacy he left us – songs to enjoy and to learn about his capacity to love unconditionally.”

Named as Best Americana Album was World on the Ground by Sarah Jarosz, a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist (mandolin, claw hammer banjo and guitar) who previously won Grammy Awards for Best Folk Album and Best American Roots Music Performance in 2017, was an occasional guest host on Garrison Keillllor’s A Prairie Home Companion, and also has performed with Sara Watkins and Aoife O’Donovan in the trio I’m With Her.

All The Good Times by Gillian Welch & David Rawlings won the Grammy Award for Best Folk Album. The Nashville-based acoustic roots artists — whose music fuses elements of Appalachian, old time, classic country, bluegrass and Americana — are also recipients of the Americana Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting (2015), while she was named Artist of the Year (2012) in its Americana Music Honors & Awards.

The Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album went to Billy Strings for Home. He was previously named Guitar Player of the Year in the 2019 International Bluegrass Music Awards.

Blues Hall of Famer Bobby Rush’s Rawer Than Raw, was chosen as Best Traditional Blues Album — an honor the 87-year-old bluesman previously won for Porcupine Meat in 2017 — while the award for Best Contemporary Blues Album went to Fantastic Negrito for Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? The singer-songwriter also won the award in 2017 for The Last Days of Oakland.

New Orleans Nightcrawlers’ Atmosphere was named Best Regional Roots Album. It’s the first Grammy Award for the brass band.

Other Grammy Award winners that may be of particular interest to AcousticMusicScene.com readers include:

Best Country Song: “Crowded Table,” written by Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hembry and Lori McKenna for The Highwomen – a group featuring Carlile, Hembry, Amanda Shires and Maren Morris that burst on the country-American scene during the 2019 Newport Folk Festival and was the big winner in the 2020 American Awards & Honors — taking home awards for Album, Song (“Crowded Table”) and Duo/Group of the Year.

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album: American Standard by James Taylor

Best Music Film: Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice

Comprised of Brandi Carlile, Amanda Shires, Natalie Hembry and Maren Morris, The Highwomen burst on the country-Americana scene during last summer’s Newport Folk Festival. Carlile and Hembry co-wrote “Crowded Table,” along with Lori McKenna.

Here’s a link to view the official video for “Crowded Table” by The Highwomen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubNY-CPAp_I

Carlile, a folk-rock and Americana singer-songwriter, who was named Artist of the Year in the 2019 Americana Honors & Awards and was among the nominees in that category this year, also was the big winner in the American Roots Music Field during the 61st annual Grammy Awards presented by the Recording Academy at which her eighth album, By The Way, I Forgive You, was named Best Americana Album, while one of its tracks (“The Joke”) was named both Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song.

John Prine, the revered songwriter, who died April 7 at the age of 73 from complications of the coronavirus (COVID-19), was named Artist of the Year. He was the big winner in last year’s Americana Honors & Awards. His 2019 release, The Tree of Forgiveness, was named Album of the Year, while “Summer’s End” was voted Song of the Year. Prine, who previously won Grammy Awards for two of his albums, also was honored by The Recording Academy with its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020.

Black Pumas, an Austin, Texas-based psychedelic soul band was named Emerging Act of the Year, while Nashville, Tennessee-based fiddler Brittany Haas – a solo artists who is also in the quartet Hawktail and has been part of the chamber-grass band Crooked Still and the house band for Live From Here, among others_ — was honored as Instrumentalist of the Year.

The Americana Honors & Awards is usually a highlight of Americanafest, a six-day festival and conference celebrating American roots-inspired music that is put on by the Americana Music Association. Since the COVID-19 pandemic prevented the professional not-for-profit trade association from hosting the live event this fall, it announced the winners via its website (https://americanamusic.org) and social media channels.

Besides its nomination for Best American Roots Music Performance for “Colors,” Black Pumas is also is nominated for two of the top Grammy Awards. The deluxe edition of the Austin, Texas-based psychedelic soul band’s eponymous debut album is among the nominees for Album of the Year, while “Colors” is up for Record of the Year. In addition to her nomination for Best American Roots Music Performance for “Short And Sweet,” singer-songwriter Brittany Howard, who formerly fronted Alabama Shakes, was nominated for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song (“Stay High”), Best Alternative Music Album (for her solo debut, Jaime) and Best R & B Performance (“Goat Head”).

Here’s a list of the nominees in the American Roots Music Field that were announced Nov. 24 during a first-ever livestream on Grammy.com:

Best American Roots Performance

• Colors (Black Pumas)
• Deep In Love (Bonny Light Horseman)
• Short And Sweet (Brittany Howard)
• I’ll Be Gone (Norah Jones & Mavis Staples)
• I Remember Everything (John Prine)

Best American Roots Song – a songwriter(s) award

• “Cabin” – Laura Rogers & Lydia Rogers, songwriters (The Secret Sisters)
• “Ceiling to the Floor” – Sierra Hull & Kai Welch, songwriters (Sierra Hull)
• ”Hometown” – Sarah Jarosz, songwriter (Sarah Jarosz)
• “I Remember Everything” – Pat McLaughlin & John Prine, songwriters (John Prine)
• “Man Without A Soul” – Tom Overby & Lucinda Williams, songwriters (Lucinda Williams)

Best Americana Album

• Old Flowers (Courtney Marie Andrews)
• Terms Of Surrender (Hiss Golden Messenger)
• World On The Ground (Sarah Jarosz)
• El Dorado (Marcus King)
• Good Souls Better Angels (Lucinda Williams)

Best Bluegrass Album

• Man On Fire (Danny Barnes)
• To Live In Two Worlds, Vol. 1 (Thomas Jutz)
• North Carolina Songbook (Steep Canyon Rangers)
• Home (Billy Strings)
• The John Hartford Fiddle Tune Project, Vol. 1 (Various Artists)

Best Traditional Blues Album

• All My Dues Are Paid (Frank Bey)
• You Make Me Feel (Don Bryant)
• That’s What I Heard (Robert Cray Band)
• Cypress Grove (Jimmy “Duck” Holmes)
• Rawer Than Raw (Bobby Rush)

Best Contemporary Blues Album

• Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? (Fantastic Negrito)
• Live At The Paramount (Ruthie Foster Big Band)
• The Juice (G. Love)
• Blackbirds (Bettye LaVette)
• Up And Rolling (North Mississippi Allstars)

Best Folk Album

• Bonny Light Horseman (Bonny Light Horseman)
• Thanks For The Dance (Leonard Cohen)
• Song For Our Daughter (Laura Marling)
• Saturn Return (The Secret Sisters)
• All The Good Times (Gillian Welch & David Rawlings)

52. Best Regional Roots Music Album

• My Relatives: Nikso’Kowaiks Pow-Wow Songs Recorded Live at Fort Collins (Black Lodge Singers)
• Cameron Dupuy And The Cajun Troubadours (Cameron Dupuy And The Cajun Troubadours)
• Lovely Sunrise (Nā Wai ʽEhā)
• Atmosphere (New Orleans Nightcrawlers)
• A Tribute To Al Berard (Sweet Cecilia)

Also of note: folk-rock and Americana singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile — who was the big winner in the American Roots Music Field during the 61st annual Grammy Awards in February 2019 with Grammy Awards for Best Americana Album, Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song — is in the running for Grammys for Best Song Written for Visual Media (“Carried Me With You” for Onward, co-written with Phil and Tim Hanseroth) and Best Country Song (“Crowded Table” for The Highwomen), co-written with bandmates Natalie Hemby and Lori McKenna. Hemby is also nominated in that category with co-writers Luke Dick and Miranda Lambert for “Bluebird,” recorded by Lambert on Wildcard, which is among the nominees for Best Country Album. Other nominees that may be of particular interest to AcousticMusicScene.com readers include Bela Fleck, whose Throw Down Your Heart: The Complete Africa Sessions” is nominated for Best Historical Album; Alastair Moock and Friends, whose Be A Pain: An Album for Young (and Old) Leaders is vying for Best Children’s Music Album; Grace Potter, whose “Daylight” is in the running for Best Rock Performance; and James Taylor, whose American Standard is up for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. Nominees for Producer of the Year include Dave Cobb, who produced albums for Lori McKenna (The Balladeer), The Highwomen (The Highwomen), John Prine (I Remember Everything), Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit (Reunion), and William Prince (The Spark), among others. Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice is nominated in the Best Music Film category.

Lawrence Azerrad and Jeff Tweedy, art directors for Wilco’s Ode To Joy, are in the running for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package. Brittany Howard’s aforementioned album, Jaime, is among the nominees for Best Engineered Album – non-classical (Brian Everett, engineer and mastering engineer) as are Sierra Hull’s 25 Trips (Shani Gandhi and Gary Paczosa, engineers; Adam Grover, mastering engineer) and Katie Pruitt’s Expectations (Gary Paczosa and Mike Robinson, engineers, Paul Blakemore, mastering engineer).

Yola, a 35 year-old rootsy British singer-songwriter, was selected by AMA-UK members as UK Artist of the Year, while her critically acclaimed debut album Walk Through Fire (produced by Black Keys frontman Dan Auerbach) was voted UK Album of he Year. Yola — who showcased her talents at the Newport and Philadelphia Folk Festivals, SXSW, AmericanaFest and Farm Aid, as well as such notable venues as the Hollywood Bowl during 2019 – also was recently nominated for four Grammy Awards.

Here’s a link to view the official video for “Faraway Look,” a rack on Yola’s debut album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWTwuQ3LeH4.

Other recipients of AMA-UK member-voted awards included:

International Album of the Year: The Highwomen. The self-titled, Dave Cobb-produced debut album by the Nashville based all-female group of the same name that features Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby, Maren Morris, and Amanda Shires.

International Song of the Year: “Me and The Ghost of Charlemagne,” written and performed by Nashville-based singer-songwriter Amy Speace. Here’s a link to the official video for the song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvQqHCguhQU

International Artist of the Year: Brandi Carlisle, an American folk-rock and Americana singer-songwriter, who also was the big winner in the American Roots Music Field during the 61st annual Grammy Awards presented by the Recording Academy last February during which she was recognized for Best Americana Album (By The Way, I Forgive You), while one of its tracks (“The Joke”) was named both Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song.

UK Instrumentalist of the Year: Sian Monaghan, a session drummer who has played with a number of artists and tours with UK country band The Wandering Hearts.

In addition to he AMA-UK member-voted awards, board members of the professional trade association that represents and advocates for the voice of American roots music in the United Kingdom, honored a number of folks with special awards. The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Joan Armatrading, a British singer-songwriter whose recording career spans nearly 50 years and who also keynoted the conference. Nick Lowe — an English singer-songwriter (“Cruel to be Kind,” among others), multi-instrumentalist and producer (Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, Pretenders) — received the Trailblazer Award; while Mark Whitfield from Americana-UK.com received the Grassroots Award. The Legend Award recipient was Lonnie Donegan, the late influential British skiffle singer, songwriter and musician.

The Outstanding Contribution Award was presented to Bob Harris OBE — a longtime program host on BBC Radio and former host of The Old Grey Whistle Test on BBC-TV, who also hosted the awards show and has been a passionate advocate of Americana music on both sides of the pond. Harris himself selected and presented the recipients of the Emerging Artist Award – Ferris & Sylvester, a British duo whose music fuses Americana, folk, blues and rock.

22 year-old London-based singer-songwriter Jade Bird’s eponymous debut album was the Best-Selling Americana Album by a UK Artist.

A number of Florida-based musicians and other national touring acts also are slated to perform. These include Ellen Bukstel, Mickey Clark, Michelle & Scott Dalziel, James Durst, Dusty Road Rangers, Flagship Romance, Friction Farm, Tret Fure, Bing Futch, Ashley Gang, Marci Geller, Steve Greenberg, Jennings & Keller, Colleen Katau, Grant Livingston, Larry Mangum, Rod MacDonald, Austin Miller, Tal Naccarato, Marie Nofsinger, Bill & Eli Perras, Peters Road Swamp Blues Band, Roadside Revue, Matthew Sabatella & the Rambling String Band, Samuel & Caleb, Mindy Simmons, Doug Spears, 2 Guys (former members of the Highwaymen), Andy Wahlberg, Amy Carol Webb, Annie Wenz, Steve Wildey, Elizabeth & Lon Williamson, Valerie C. Wisecracker & The Walking Catfish, and Joel Zoss. Some of the performing artists also will lead workshops, while there also will be a jam area for those who enjoy playing traditional folk and other acoustic styles of music.

Kicking-off the weekend’s musical festivities on Saturday, Jan. 18, will be the 12 finalists in the 2014 South Florida Folk Festival’s singer-songwriter competition, each of whom will perform two songs. They are Ruth & Max Bloomquist, C. Daniel Boling, Steve Chizmadia, J.J. Crowne, Lou Dominguez, Spook Handy, Lauren Heintz, Paddy Mills, Heather Pierson, Carolann Solebello, Debbie Tassone & Gary Frost, and Joe Virga. Three winners selected by a panel of judges will each receive the Vic Heyman Songwriting Award – a $200 cash prize and an invitation to perform at next year’s festival. In addition, all winners and runners-up will be afforded the opportunity to play ‘in-the-round’ during the festival’s second day on Sunday, Jan. 19.

The songwriting competition is co-presented by Reba Heyman. Along with her late husband, Vic, Reba has been an integral part of the folk community in South Florida and nationally for many years. The couple has been known for decades for their generous financial backing of folk festivals and artists. They formerly ran a concert series in Rockville, Maryland known as Vic’s Music Corner, have established scholarship funds for artists, and served on the boards for several music festivals.

For more information and a complete festival schedule, and to order tickets in advance, visit www.southfloridafolkfest.net.

Noble initially conceived of and broadcast The 50 Most Successful Folk Group Recordings of All Time in late 2008 while he was working on his book, Number #1: the story of the Highwaymen: a journey through folk music history – the Folk Revival, “The Great Folk Scare,” and their legacies, published under his real name, Richard E. Noble, and available through online retailers.

“As mentioned in the book, very little had been written about those artists – particularly groups like the Weavers, the Tarriers, the Kingston Trio, the Brothers Four, the Limeliters, the Highwaymen, the New Christy Minstrels, Peter-Paul-&-Mary, the Rooftop Singers, the Chad Mitchell Trio, etc. – who took the boom in traditional and traditional-style folk music in the 50s and 60s and turned it in to commercial success,” Noble told AcousticMusicScene.com. “Most studies of the ‘Folk Revival Period’ have tended to marginalize most of these artists and their commercial success, while focusing on the traditional and protest elements of the period,” he maintains, citing the Weavers and PP&M as about the only ones mentioned with any regularity. “Other highly successful college groups (the Brandywine Singers, the Cumberland Trio) are also often ignored or treated as incidental,” he continues. “But those are the artists and the songs the average person remembers, so I thought they deserved celebration.”