Wednesday, March 4, 2026 | The Orange Peel | Asheville, NC

Friday, February 20, 2026 | Chapman Cultural Center | Spartanburg, SC

It’s been a few years (2018) since we last heard from this great Canadian bluegrass band, so we’re most excited to welcome them back to our area. Get to know what’s new with them, and the latest on the Toronto and Canadian roots music scene. They play the Morganton Music Patch on Thursday, and the Wortham Center for the Arts in Asheville on Friday.

February 12, 2026 | Knight Theater | Charlotte, NC

Saturday, January 31, 2026 | Dreaming Stone Arts & Ecology Center | Rutherfordton, NC

We’re excited about our upcoming “Goin’ Across the Mountain Live” concert on Saturday, February 21st in Spindale, with Balsam Range and the Jacktown Ramblers. We’re also excited to welcome the Ramblers to Studio B to catch up on what they’ve been up to lately. That includes their new live album, “Live & Local Vol. 2.” It’s a collection of live recordings from various venues around Western North Carolina where they live as well as Johnson City, TN and Edisto Beach, SC. The band is known for bluegrass, swing, and gypsy jazz, and they have a number of shows in the region over the next couple months.

Enjoy this episode on our page here and wherever you follow podcasts

The list always feels too long. The truth is, we are constantly reminded how fortunate we are to have shared our time with such inspiring musicians of various genres, and to have their recordings to continually draw from. Sam Moore of Sam & Dave, Garth Hudson of The Band, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, Sly Stone, Jill Sobule, Flaco Jimenez….Listen with Martin Anderson as he played selections from some of the greats who passed away this past year.

We were elated to have another Pre-Jam this month, after last year’s Helene cancellation. And it was a great one! Daniel Donato might have surpassed Warren himself for the most blistering performances, with impressive contributions to three different sets. Asheville’s own MJ Lenderman and the Wind was among the other highlights, along with a tribute set to Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh from various musicians including Phil’s son Grahame Lesh, plus a special local connection made between Jerry Garcia and “Cold Rain and Snow” early on. Tune in as we rebroadcast the magic of the night.

Here are the Top Ten new album release picks from some of the WNCW staff. Click here for the complete Top 100 list as voted by our listeners and programming staff.