Rog Samples' Flood Homecoming

When someone says The Flood is an eclectic string band, they're actually paying tribute to one of our founders, Roger Samples. And whenever Roger stops by to sit in again with his old partners, we're reminded all over again of just how wide and deep our dear friend's musical tastes run, from folk and blues and The Beatles to a sweet old Jimmy Rodgers tune. Here are three tracks from Roger's Flood Homecoming.

The L&N Don't Stop Here Anymore

Doug Chaffin has played with us for more than a dozen years now. Most nights he's busy driving the band on his big upright bass, but last night our buddy Randy Hamilton came by to sit in with his sweet acoustic electric bass, so Doug switched off to other instruments -- and he plays a bunch of them. On this tune, you hear him take the first solo on guitar, but by the end of the song, Doug's switched to his fiddle. Oh, and if you listen closely, you'll hear Randy also singing that high harmony with us on the choruses of this beautiful old Jean Ritchie composition.

The Flood Gets Churched with Rob McNurlin

We don't get to see our old buddy Rob McNurlin nearly often enough. But recently the Ashland, Ky., singer-songwriter was home from Nashville and waiting on the doorstep before the jam session even got started. The whole evening was shaped around Rob's tunes, and my favorite part was when we got him into a mood for some of his gospel tunes.

A Big Send-Off for Jacob Scarr

Jacob Scarr started sitting in with us when he was 14 years old, and has played lead guitar as a regular member of The Flood for the past three years. Well, now Jacob's 18 and at the end of this summer, he'll be heading off to college in Colorado. Recently, we moved the regular Wednesday night jam session to Jacob's house, where neighbors, family, friends and Flood fans all came together for a huge send-off party in Jacob's honor. And of course, on the morning-after, we had to share a couple of tunes from that special night with our podcast friends.

A Reunion of Old and New Friends

One of the things we love about our Wednesday nights is that the weekly jam session is a kind of crossroads where old and new friends get to meet. Last night, our old buddy percussionist Dan Trout dropped by on a trip from Athens, Ohio, and got to meet fellow drummer John Smith, who lately has been sitting in with us with his brushes and snare. Meanwhile, it was the first jam session for Paula Stewart, a talented member of Jim Rumbaugh's wonderful Huntington Harmonica Club. Here's a tune that features all our visitors.