Nu-Blu

Location: R.A. Fountain

from our promo for this concert

Nu-Blu, one of the hottest bluegrass and country bands in the southeast, returns to Fountain General Store this coming Friday night for a concert of traditional, original, and contemporary music.

Fronted by the husband-wife duo of Carolyn and Daniel Routh, the band has rrecently signed with Turnberry Records, the Southern California based agency that also represents Jeff Brown and Still Lonesome.

Nu-Blu has released eight CDs and, earlier this month, a DVD of live performances and videos. They also host the TV show “Bluegrass Ridge,” from Nashville, TN. It airs weekly in syndication on the Heartland Network, the Family Channel, and internationally. It also streams and is archived online. The Rouths are the show’s first permanent hosts. 

The Rouths, who have been performing together since 2003, share vocals and songwriting in the band. She plays bass and he plays guitar and does most of their arranging. Zach McCracken is their banjo picker.

The band’s newest member is Justin Harrison, a Martin County native and 2018 graduate of Morehead State University’s bluegrass studies program. “We watched Justin grow up as a picker here,” said Alex Albright, Fountain General Store proprietor. “His dad, Frank, is a legendary mandolin picker in these parts, and Justin used to tag along as a little guy learning the fiddle and sitting in with his dad’s bands when he could. We’re all real proud of how well he’s done.”

Justin Harrison now plays mandolin and fidddle with Nu-Blu. While still a student at Morehead State, he toured nationally with the Texas-based Frank Shiflett and Big Country Show before joining Nu-Blu last fall.

“This is one of those shows we’d likely never get to present without such a solid local connection,” added Albright. “We think of it as a sort of homecoming for Justin and his new bride, Morgan Rice.” The couple has moved to Williamston, and Justin is now playing some local gigs with his dad again.

Tags: bluegrass, bluegrass gospel, Concert, new grass, tradtional bluegrass