Posts Tagged ‘Bryan Sutton’
Hadley Music Group releases Red Grass by Ilya Toshinskiy
April 15, 2016
Ilya Toshinskiy is the former lead guitarist and banjoist for the Russian Grammy nominated band Bering Strait. Classically trained in a music conservatory in Moscow, he came to the United States as a young teenager and part of Bering Strait. The band was featured on 60 Minutes, had a documentary made about them (The Ballad of Bering Strait) and was signed to Universal South Records and released two critically acclaimed albums.
Ilya was quickly scooped up into the world of studio work in Nashville and was the first member to leave the band with so much studio work being offered to play on the records of others. We are thrilled that he was able to find the time to compose ten fantastic banjo instrumentals and record the album Red Grass for Hadley Music Group.The album is set for a release date of May 20, 2016 and includes a stellar group of supporting musicians such as Jerry Douglas on dobro, Bryan Sutton on acoustic guitar, Luke Bulla and Aubrey Haynie on fiddle, Andy Leftwich on mandolin to name just a few. Below is the EPK about the album.
Posted in Ilya Toshinskiy | 
Tags: Aubrey Haynie, banjo, bluegrass music, Bryan Sutton, Ilya Toshinskiy, Jerry Douglas, Luke Bulla, Red Grass
Ulisse releases companion CD to her book
March 24, 2015
Hadley Music Group has released a companion CD to the book The Songwriter in Me: Snapshots of My Creative Process written by singer songwriter Donna Ulisse. The CD is titled The Songwriter in Me: The Demo Recordings and includes all twenty-four songs that are featured in the book as lyrics.
As soon as the book was completed, Donna approached Kathy Anderson at HMG with the vision of a companion CD offering readers of the book the opportunity to also listen to the songs as they were reading the lyrics along with the notes Ulisse has in the book regarding the meter of each song, how the melody works with the lyric and rhyming patterns. It was also her vision to present the songs in much more sparse arrangements than her other recordings to show the listeners how she often hears her songs when she writes them and also how she records them to present to her publisher as a representation to pitch to other artists, inspiring “The Demo Recordings” as part of the title. All of the songs are recorded with just acoustic guitar tracks and and on occasion an additional mandolin, fiddle and vocal harmony. Musicians on the CD are Bryan Sutton, Kenny Smith, Glen Duncan and Tony King. Ulisse’s husband and co-writer on many of the songs, Rick Stanley, sings harmonies on multiple tracks and also sang lead on the song “The Man That I Am” which Ulisse felt was a bit more believable than singing it herself.
The album includes some of Donna Ulisse’s most popular songs such as “Let it Rain”, “Showin’ My Roots”, and “I Am A Child of God” as well as many songs that have yet to be heard. However, even the familiar songs will sound fresh to those familiar with the original releases when they hear them in this stripped down setting.
Posted in Donna Ulisse | Tags: Bryan Sutton, Demo, Donna Ulisse, Glen Duncan, Kenny Smith, Rick Stanley, songwriter, Tony King
Donna Ulisse to head back into studio with producer Bryan Sutton
February 1, 2015
Singer songwriter Donna Ulisse and guitar virtuoso Bryan Sutton are preparing to team up for their second studio effort on the Hadley Music Group label. The album will be Ulisse’s eighth release on the label.
Hadley Music’s Donna Ulisse included on RFD-TV’s Simply Bluegrass
November 13, 2013
Donna with Eric and Leigh Gibson; The Gibson Brothers and also IBMA Entertainer of the Year
Donna Ulisse recently spent a day in the Nashville Northstar TV studios surrounded by the “who’s who” of bluegrass music taping RFD TV’s Country Family Reunion: Simply Bluegrass. The show was hosted by Grand Ole Opry star Bill Anderson and Ricky Skaggs.
Other guests on the show included The Grascals, Bobby Osborne, Mac Wiseman, The Whites, The Roys, Larry Cordle, Carl Jackson, Rhonda Vincent, Del McCoury, Doyle Lawson, Jesse McReynolds, The Gibson Brothers, Jerry Douglas, Ramona Jones, Sierra Hull and Donna’s duet partner on her new album, Newgrass icon Sam Bush.
Donna sang the song One Way Rider off her new CD at the request of Terry Choate who booked her on the show and Carl Jackson and Larry Cordle sang harmony with her. The staff band consisted of Barry Bales on upright bass, Adam Steffey on mandolin, Ron Stewart on banjo, Stuart Duncan on fiddle and Donna’s co-producer on her new CD “Showin’ My Roots” on guitar, Bryan Sutton. Air dates are yet to be announced.
Posted in Donna Ulisse | Tags: Bill Anderson, bluegrass, Bryan Sutton, Carl Jackson, Del McCoury, Donna Ulisse, IBMA, Larry Cordle, RFD-TV, Ricky Skaggs, The Gibson Brothers
Hadley Music Group releases Showin’ My Roots by Donna Ulisse!
October 15, 2013
It might seem surprising for a performer who has been nominated as IBMA’s top songwriter for two successive years to be releasing a “covers” album, but ― in a sense ― that’s what Donna Ulisse has done with her latest effort.
Yet, while Showin’ My Roots puts Ulisse’s interpretive skills on fine display, it stands as far more than a stylistic exercise or even a tribute. Although her deft touch as a lyricist and composer is present on only two of these 13 tracks, the rest are songs that form the bedrock of her musical heritage: She has lived and breathed them for so long, she might as well have written them.
And she breathes new life into them with her magnificent voice, as warm and supple as ever, backed by some of the finest musicians in bluegrass music. Ulisse co-produced Showin’ My Roots with acoustic guitar virtuoso Bryan Sutton, and the supporting cast includes Scott Vestal on banjo, Rob Ickes on Dobro, Andy Leftwich on mandolin and fiddle, and Viktor Krauss and Byron House on upright bass. Sam Bush duets on the traditional work song “Take This Hammer,” and harmony vocalists include John Cowan, Carl Jackson, Larry Cordle, Fayssoux McLean, Larry Stephenson, Frank Solivan, Jerry Salley and Rick Stanley, Ulisse’s husband and band mate.
This is a diverse collection of songs, in tempo and sentiment. The Stanley Brothers (cousins of Ulisse’s husband) are represented in songs penned by Carter (the sprightly “How Mountain Girls Can Love”) and Ralph (the resigned “If That’s The Way You Feel”). Ulisse honors two heroes with her spin on Merle Haggard’s version of Dolly Parton’s “In The Good Old Days When Times Were Bad.” “Your Good Girl’s Gonna Go Bad,” made famous by Tammy Wynette, shows her feisty side, as does Loretta Lynn’s “Fist City.” She serves up a gorgeously wistful take on Hank Locklin’s “Send Me The Pillow You Dream On,” and an earnestly prayerful “Wait A Little Longer Please Jesus.”
Two songs that Ulisse wrote with her husband bookend this album. Both beautifully illustrate the love that went into this project. The album-opening title track is an ode to those whose “singin’ and writin’ lit a fire in me”: Haggard, Parton, Lynn, Carter Stanley. And “I’ve Always Had a Song I Can Lean On,” closes the album with a message that illustrates the importance music has always played in Ulisse’s life.
From beginning to end, Showin’ My Roots is as an extended love song to her influences, and one that lovers of bluegrass and traditional country music are sure to enjoy again and again. These timeless performances may well light a fire in generations to come.
Street Date: October 15 2013
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: Andy Leftwich, banjo, bluegrass, Bryan Sutton, Byron House, Carl Jackson, Carter Stanley, dobro, Dolly Parton, Donna Ulisse, Fayssoux McLean, fiddle, Frank Solivan, Jerry Salley, Larry Cordle, Larry Stephenson, Loretta Lynn, mandolin, Merle Haggard, Ralph Stanley, Rob Ickes, Sam Bush, Scott Vestal, Tammy Wynette, upright bass, Viktor Krauss