It's no secret that the roots revival is built on hillbilly shoulders. Just listen to great new bands like Fleet Foxes, The Low Anthem, and Carolina Chocolate Drops. They all draw from musical forms that were either created in the Appalachians or that endured there because mountain people were just so isolated.

Well, our hillbilly forbearers are finally getting their dues. The folks who created the Crooked Road-a 300 mile musical heritage trail in Southwest Virginia-have launched a new music tour. It's called Roots of American Music (how hillbillies helped invent it).
It recognizes that the original hillbillies came from all over--the Ulster region of Ireland, Germany, England and many African nations. Traditional music from each of these cultures contributed to our unique mountain sound, so the show blends them.
Picture Cheick Hamala, a guy from Mali who plays the n'goni (the instrument that preceded the banjo), next to Joey Abarta, an Irishman on the bagpipes, and Burl Rhea, a coal miner who plays the banjo itself, along with Dale Jett, a powerful singer and member of the legendary Carter family.
It's a great mash-up of musical styles, and these are just four of the twelve artists featured on the tour.  Things kick off this Tuesday at the Pulaski Theater. Check out the below clip of Joey Abarta tearing up the Irish bagpipes, and click on through to the full schedule to see when the tour hits a venue near you.
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