Tip Jar Jam #30: “I’d Be Happy To Pick Like Any Of You Girls”

We were talking about the T-shirts that the Murphy Method is offering for a limited time. (Order by July 4 if you want one!) The shirts that say "Pick Like A Girl!" (I got that idea after seeing a shirt supporting breast cancer awareness that said, "Fight Like A Girl!") Many of the women at…

Help! Logan Needs A Banjo For The Summer!

Hi folks, My long-time student and now friend, Logan, is up in Anchorage, Alaska, with his mom this summer. I just found out that he didn't bring his banjo!!!! (Bad boy!!) But I told him I'd send out the call in case anyone has one they can lend him until he goes back to college…

Tip Jar Jam #28: Jam Gets Cut-Throat!

Everyone thinks that bluegrass jams are all touchy-feely and lovey-dovey and that everyone is just there to have a good time and help their neighbor if she or he gets lost or stuck. Few people recognize or admit to the subtle undercurrent of competition running beneath this "aw shucks" facade! The Tip Jar Jam is…

The Longest Day Jam on JUNE 21: The Details

Howdy, folks! Here are few last-minute details for those of you who are planning to come to The Longest Day Jam this Friday, June 21, from 9 am-9 pm. I have NO IDEA how many folks are coming but I'm hoping we have a big crowd! (Here is the previous post with a little backstory.)…

Tip Jar Jam #27: Chords and Couture

As the White Rabbit said as he ran by Alice, looking at his watch, "I'm late, I'm late for a very important date!" (From memory, so not verbatim!) I do believe he prefaced it with "Oh, my ears and whiskers" but I, having no whiskers, didn't readily remember that part!   Anyhow, I'm sure you…

Scholarship Available for Women’s Banjo Camp

I know it's last minute, with the dates for the Women's Banjo Camp being July 19-21, but we have scholarship money available for one young woman, age 8-22. The scholarship would cover camp tuition only (it does not cover lodging) but still, it's a chunk of change! ETA: Thanks to an anonymous donor we now have TWO scholarships available.  …

Tip Jar Jam #26: Ben’s Binky

Back story: I told you in an earlier blog that at one of our jams Ben pulled a trick on me. He had taken a funny looking photo of me at our Intermediate Banjo Camp and had framed it and put it on the fireplace mantel in our jamming room where everybody could see it…

For Girls Only: My Second Banjo Newsletter Article

Since Casey and I are holding our first-ever Women's Banjo Camp soon (July 19-21), I thought I would reprint my second Banjo Newsletter column. This blog also celebrates (again!) the publishing of my long-awaited book about women in bluegrass, Pretty Good for a Girl. As you will see, I've been writing about women in bluegrass…

Riding Around On Saturday Night: Red and Murphy’s First Album

Imagine our surprise to find that someone recently posted an audio copy of our first vinyl LP, Riding Around On Saturday Night, on YouTube! (He did ask our permission first.) We got in touch with the guy and asked him to mention our publishing company, Arrandem Records (pronounced "R and M" for Red and Murphy!),…

Music Tomes Interview with Murphy Henry

MusicTomes.com published this excellent interview with Murphy a few days ago (written by Eric Banister) and has graciously given us permission to reprint it (reblog it?). You can read the original here. Murphy Hicks Henry Is Pretty Good. Period! May 24, 2013 In the history of music, the contributions of females is often overlooked or…