Thursday, July 28, 2011

Wendell Dobbs Sits in with His Oughta-be-Brother, Joe

Joe Dobbs and Dr. Wendell Dobbs are not related, but when you hear Joe's fiddle and Wendell's flute together, you'd swear these Dobbses were brothers. Or at least, they ought to be. Wendell, a music professor at Marshall University and a section leader of the Huntington Symphony Orchestra, is an old friend. Here, he and Joe put their special touch on a beautiful ballad from the British Isles, "The Water is Wide."

Thursday, July 21, 2011

A Great Evening with Jesse Smith

Our friend Jesse Smith -- the phenomenal, nationally known fingerpicker -- came down from his home in Wadsworth, Ohio, near Akron, to sit in with us last night for one sweet evening. Jesse makes everything sing -- just listen to his solo near the end of our trot through this 1918 Leo Wood standard. And stayed tuned as he leads the guys on a tear through "Little Rock Getaway."

Thursday, July 14, 2011

The Aussies Have Landed!

It's always a good summer when our friends Rod and Judy Jones arrive on one of their regular visits from their native Australia. And now 2011 is officially a good summer. The Aussies have landed again! The Flood first met Rod and Judy, experts players of old-time stringband music of the 1920s and '30s, more than three decades ago, during the couple's first visit to The States. Now, as then, whenever they sit in with us, we all get back to our roots.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Paul Martin Swings by The Jam Session

One of our favorite local bands used to be Sheldon Road, a trio of great singers and pickers named Paul Martin, Randy Hamilton and Kenny Adams. Alas, the group disbanded a few years ago, but we've stayed in touch with all the guys. In fact, Randy Hamilton has been sitting in with us on bass for several weeks now. And last night, Randy's old compatriot Paul Martin dropped in with his sweet mandolin. We even got Paul singing some -- here he leads us through a great old Bob Dylan standard.