Roots of American Music

In March of 2020 the Coronavirus upended the entire globe and the live music was brought to a halt. The Pandemic Tapes explores this crisis through interviews with musicians and by sharing songs they have written and recorded during "stay at home" orders. Cleveland folk musician Charlie Mosbrook is the featured artist in episode 1.

Hotz Cafe is a Cleveland landmark. Hotz is a small neighborhood tavern in the Tremont area of Cleveland, Ohio. First opened in 1919, Hotz recently celebrated 100 years of family ownership. Join Clint Holley and musical guest The Luckey Ones as we interview members of the Hotz family and record the band while the bar is open for business.

Podcast 4 highlights songs and stories of the Ohio River and the story of the Underground Railroad and the role that the John Rankin House, and the daring abolitionist John Parker played in helping African-Americans flee slavery from Northern Kentucky. The John Rankin House is one of Ohio’s best-documented and most active Underground Railroad “stations”. Featured performers are alt-country blues singer/songwriter Amythyst Kiah, and the Pedigos, whose style spans folk and bluegrass. Narration and storytelling is provided by Betty Campbell from the John Rankin House, Dewey Scott from the John P. Parker House in Ripley, and Carl Westmoreland from the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati. A direct-to-disc recording session with Amythyst Kiah was held earlier in the day at the John Rankin House Visitor Center. This is great stuff . Enjoy and share with a friend.

 Johnny Kilbane was a world champion featherweight boxer from Cleveland Ohio and held his title longer than did any other fighter in any weight class in history.  Born into poverty in Cleveland’s Irish Immigrant ‘Angle’ neighborhood, Kilbane eventually leveraged his celebrity, determination, and smarts into a successful political career – holding public office in Columbus and then in Cleveland, Ohio.    Kilbane’s early life and career teach us great lessons about the immigrant experience – specifically concerning the Irish, but also lessons that apply generally to all those who have left their homes behind and journeyed to America in search of a better life.  No doubt, a ‘fighting spirit’ served Johnny Kilbane well during his well-lived life and a similar spirit has buoyed the prospects of  many of those who came before us from every corner of the globe.     Roots Music Revue: “A Fighting Heart” is part of ROAM’s program called The Ohio Heritage Music Project, whose mission is to re-imagine music production in order to document, preserve and build awareness of regional music. Roots Music Revue is funded, in part, by the Ohio Arts Council.

Robert Crumb is an American cartoonist and musician. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contemporary American culture. His band Robert Crumb and the Cheap Suit Serenades released 3 albums on the Blue Goose record label, featuring pre-war acoustic blues, rags and old time classics. Crumb is a prolific artist and contributed to the publication, Zap Comix. Inspired by psychedelics and cartoons from the 1920s and 1930s, he introduced a wide variety of characters that became extremely popular, including cultural icons Fritz the Cat and Mr. Natural, and the images from his Keep on Truckin' strip. In this episode, we explore Crumb's time working for American Greetings in Cleveland, Ohio at the now iconic 78th Street Studios building. Special musical guest: Tim Easton.

Recorded at the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Louis Penfield House on River Road in Willoughby, Ohio. Listen to the history behind this home, the families who live in it, and the rare, final blueprints Frank Lloyd Wright created for an additional house that was never built. Music performed by David Childers, North Carolina’s most prolific living songwriter. This is ROAM’s first podcast in the Ohio Heritage Music Project Series. Stay tuned for more to be released soon! Roots Rearview and the Ohio Heritage Music Project is generously supported by The Ohio Arts Council and Cuyahoga Arts and Culture.