A Few Honest Words : The Kentucky Roots of Popular Music

In industry circles, musicians from Kentucky are known to possess an enviable pedigree -- a lineage as prized as the bloodline of any bluegrass-raised Thoroughbred. With native sons and daughters like Naomi and Wynonna Judd, Loretta Lynn, the Everly Brothers, Joan Osborne, and Merle Travis, it's no wonder that the state is most often associated with folk, country, and bluegrass music. But Kentucky's contribution to American music is much broader: It's the rich and resonant cello of Ben Sollee, the velvet crooning of jazz great Helen Humes, and the famed vibraphone of Lionel Hampton. It's exemplified by hip-hop artists like the Nappy Roots and indie folk rockers like the Watson Twins. It goes beyond the hallowed mandolin of Bill Monroe and banjo of the Osborne Brothers to encompass the genres of blues, jazz, rock, gospel, and hip-hop. A Few Honest Words explores how Kentucky's landscape, culture, and traditions have influenced notable contemporary musicians. Featuring intimate interviews with household names (Naomi Judd, Joan Osborne, and Dwight Yoakam), emerging artists, and local musicians, author Jason Howard's rich and detailed profiles reveal the importance of the state and the Appalachian region to the creation and performance of music in America. In industry circles, musicians from Kentucky are known to possess an enviable pedigree -- a lineage as prized as the bloodline of any bluegrass-raised Thoroughbred. With native sons and daughters like Naomi and Wynonna Judd, Loretta Lynn, the Everly Brothers, Joan Osborne, and Merle Travis, it's no wonder that the state is most often associated with folk, country, and bluegrass music. __A Few Honest Words__ explores how Kentucky's landscape, culture, and traditions have influenced notable contemporary musicians. Featuring intimate interviews with household names (Naomi Judd, Joan Osborne, and Dwight Yoakam), emerging artists, and local musicians, author Jason Howard's rich and detailed profiles reveal the importance of the state and the Appalachian region to the creation and performance of music in America. Front Cover 1 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Dedication 6 Epigraph 7 Contents 8 Foreword 10 Introduction 12 1. Naomi Judd: Ancestral Memory 31 2. Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore: Sword and Snow 51 3. Chris Knight: Trailer Poet 73 4. Carla Gover: Mountain Edge 85 5. Kevin Harris: Freedom Doxology 102 6. Joan Osborne: Brooklyn Meets Appalachia 115 7. Dwight Yoakam: A Hillbilly in Hollywood 129 8. Nappy Roots: The Pursuit of Nappyness 143 9. Matraca Berg: Headwaters 155 10. Cathy Rawlings: From the Wings 178 11. Dale Ann Bradley: These Prisoning Hills 190 12. Jim James: The Ghost of Jim James past 203 13. Kate Larken: Far West 216 14. The Watson Twins: Southern Manners 229 Acknowledgments 246 Bibliography 250 Index 254 Explores how Kentucky's landscape, culture and traditions have influenced notable contemporary musicians, in a book that features interviews with Naomi Judd, Joan Osborne and Dwight Yoakam, as well as emerging artists and local musicians