I’ve been meaning to write and tell you more about the new STEEL & WIRE radio show on community radio station Sheffield Live. It’s actually been going for a couple of months and features a really interesting mix of Americana, bluegrass, old timey and acoustic roots music, with a sprinkling of Cajun, Western Swing and old style country. You can tune into STEEL & WIRE on your radio every Wednesday from 10am-11am on 92.3FM if you’re in Sheffield – or tune in online via their Listen Live button here. Alternatively, you can catch up via the STEEL & WIRE podcasts, just click on the download or listen now button of your chosen show. Host Harry Welburn is an enthusiast for all these styles and is keen to include quality local bands and musicians playing these genres, as well as some great American artists both past and present.
It can only be good to have another way of sharing and promoting traditional and grassroots music, much of which rarely gets radio play. I’ve tipped Harry off about some of the great bands out there, both from the USA and UK, and he’s already been kind enough to feature some of this music on his show. I was pleased to get a shout out on this week’s show for introducing him to the music of The Kentucky Cow Tippers (hailing from Leeds/Newcastle). The latest edition of STEEL & WIRE featured their new Northgrass EP and a track from the excellent first CD from local heroes The Backyard Buskers, in addition to several classics from The Louvin Brothers. Other artists featured on recent editions include Tim O’Brien, Steve Martin & the Steep Canyon Rangers, Rhiannon Giddens and many more. Harry also includes a weekly Live Local List of Americana, bluegrass & old time concerts, sessions and events happening in Sheffield and across Yorkshire. Do let him know if you’d like him to add your event listing – you can connect with STEEL&WIRE via their Facebook page here.
I’m looking forward to meeting Harry in the near future for a chat about True North Music & our upcoming events, as well as my own musical adventures. I’ll also be listening in next week when he’s planning to interview my good friends at Steel City Opry, who also put on occasional old time concerts in Sheffield. I imagine they’ll be telling us more about their Evie Ladin Duo concert on Friday 5th February at the Heeley Institute – more about that in my recent blog here. So do support STEEL & WIRE if you can – tune in and enjoy the fabulous music, like their Facebook page and most importantly, get out and support the events featured on the Live Local List!