Blue Ridge Music Trails of NC

Blue Ridge Music Trails of North Carolina: A Guide to Music Sites, Artists, and Traditions of the Mountains and Foothills

by Fred C. Fussell and Steve Kruger

Second Edition, Revised and Updated, including a CD with 26 music tracks. Published in association with North Carolina Arts Council.

The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina are the heart of a region where traditional music and dance are performed and celebrated as nowhere else in America. This guide puts readers on the trail to discover many sites where the unique musical legacy thrives, covering bluegrass and stringband music, clogging, and other traditional forms of music and dance. The book includes stories of the legendary music of the Blue Ridge Mountains, maps, and contact information for the featured sites, as well as color illustrations and profiles of prominent musicians and music traditions. Chapters are organized county by county, and sidebars include interviews with and profiles of performers, information about various performance styles, and a brief history of Blue Ridge music.

The updated second edition adds three new music venues, along with updated information on the almost sixty music sites in Western North Carolina profiled in the previous edition. Also included are new full-color photos, two new artist profiles, and a CD of twenty-six classic songs from the mountains and the foothills.

Fred C. Fussell is a writer, curator, artist, and documentary photographer whose work focuses on the traditional folk culture of the American South. Steve Kruger is a folklorist and Appalachian musician who lives in Pembroke, Virginia.

“It can be used as a traveling guide, an encyclopedia — using the excellent index — or as an engaging and comprehensive compendium of contemporary musical fold culture.” —Appalachian Heritage

“For anyone with a taste for traditional song and dance. . . . Included is a CD with more than two dozen songs, representing the diverse styles profiled in the text. It’s a fitting soundtrack whether you’re sitting back reading or hitting the road.” —WNC Magazine

Published 2018; Paperback, 304 Pages, 6.00 × 9.00 in, 155 color plates., 7 maps