Brian D'Ambrosio

2 months ago | thebluegrasssituation.com | Brian D'Ambrosio |Justin Hiltner

Some of more commonly associated marvels of the Badger State are salty cheese curds, verdant farmsteads, and acrimoniously freezing winters ‚Äď as well as a whole bunch of simple roadside attractions and signature small-town revelries. It‚Äôs the adopted home of Harry Houdini and John Muir and the birthplace of a memorable host of charming eccentrics, including Orson Welles and Thornton Wilder.

2 months ago | glidemagazine.com | Brian D'Ambrosio

During those long school bus rides in Franklin County, Tennessee, Mike Farris entered a different planet. It was the world of radio. The bus driver fixed the dial to WCDT (1340 AM). From country to rock and roll to Motown and soul, from Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn, to the Staples Singers and Al Green, its flavors were notably diverse. “I was a quiet kid and sitting on the bus and soaking in this station,” said Farris. “I didn’t have a dream about music. My parents were too busy trying to feed us.

2 months ago | americanahighways.org | Brian D'Ambrosio |Hannah Means Shannon

Bear Rinehart photo by JM CollectiveSon of a preacher, William Rinehart grew up in Seneca, South Carolina, at the high foothills of the Appalachians. His mother taught piano lessons. His father played the trumpet. Music was a mixture of gospel, rural hillbilly, bluegrass, and rock and roll, all slammed together. At age 13, his job on the weekends was to vacuum the old ugly carpet at the church and he liked it when the congregation left their instruments strewn about.

2 months ago | briandambrosio.substack.com | Brian D’Ambrosio |Brian D'Ambrosio

By Brian D’AmbrosioOne of Josef Skye Tornick’s photographs is of an old woman who sold candles and religious objects out of a makeshift shrine in her Santa Fe home many years ago. She holds a photo of herself as a young girl, any hint of similarity almost imperceptible. Tornick doesn’t remember the woman’s name. Both the subject and the setting are long gone. Then there’s the photo of an old train station in Ancho, NM, where a couple once sold antiques from dusty display cases.

2 months ago | americanahighways.org | Brian D'Ambrosio |Melissa Clarke

There is a line from renegade author Charles Bukowski that Kelli Baker said that she likes to live by. “If it doesn’t come bursting out of you in spite of everything, don’t do it.” For the budding blues artist, the Bukowski reference serves as her reminder to be true to herself and her chosen art, to be stanch, committed and certain. “It’s an instruction for me to be authentically me,” said Baker. “For years, I was so scared to be putting myself out there, especially in writing songs.