Sounds Good

Kate Lochte continues our series of interviews with young people of western Kentucky who are finding success “out there” in major markets.  This time we meet a co-founder of the Brian Blade Fellowship Band, Jon Cowherd.

Pianist Jon Cowherd is a member of jazz vocalist Cassandra Wilson's band, and his instrumental work has graced albums by the likes of Rosanne Cash, Lizz Wright, Iggy Pop, Marc Cohn, Mark Olson and Victoria Williams. He tours with Ms. Wilson, Rosanne Cash and also his Fellowship Band, which he co-founded with percussionist /bandleader Brian Blade with whom he discovered musical brotherhood while both were students at Loyola University in New Orleans. 

WKMS hosts a special early-bird fundraising event with live string band music in Studio A for Sounds Good with Tracy Ross. One of the rotating hosts of Music from the Front Porch, Mike Gowen, joins in to introduce old-time string music of the Purchase Region with Nathan Blake Lynn and Josh Coffey, known through Bawn in the Mash and other groups. 

As part of today's special presentation, Nathan plays music from his historical music project titled The Places I Used To Know. The album features 10 original songs focused on Lynn’s experiences in the Jackson Purchase. All songs were written, performed, and engineered by Lynn at his farm in Heath, Kentucky. For more information visit nathanblakelynn.com.

See a video describing the album and a special fundraiser premium after the jump.

On Sounds Good, Tracy Ross spoke with to "The Voice of The Racers" Neal Bradley about all things Racer Basketball. They caught up on the last couple of weeks of Racer basketball, specifically the last four games, and preview tonight (Thursday) and Saturday's games. Also, they preview next week's OVC tournament in Nashville.

We continue our occasional series previewing good reads for young adults from Katherine Farmer, Coordinator of the Racers Children's Preview Collection at Murray State University. This week's recommended read is Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage, a Newberry Honor Winner that School Library Journal describes as a hilarious modern day mystery, that leaves the readers hoping for sequels.

Next week, the American Shakespeare Festival returns to the Murray State campus to present Shakespeare's hilarious comedy Twelfth Night and John Webster's gripping tragedy The Duchess of Malfi. Check out the full festival schedule, which also includes an exciting lineup of workshops, film screenings, and stimulating scholar-led discussions at murraystate.edu/shakespeare. Festival organizers Dr. Barbara Cobb and Dr. Rusty Jones came to the studio to read some Shakespeare and talk about some of the more... interesting elements of  both featured productions.

The Hopkins County Literacy Celebration is March 4 through 9th. Schools are getting books written by Lin Oliver and Henry Winkler, as well as Linn Oliver and Theo Baker. Author Lin Oliver visits for a Chamber Hot Topic Lunch and there's a short story contest for students. Kate Lochte speaks with Patricia Wiles, Coordinator of Marketing and Media for Madisonville-Hopkins County Chamber of Commerce, previewing the upcoming event.

Dr. Ihsan Alkhatib, Assistant Professor of Government, Law and International Affairs at Murray State gives a presentation on Shariah Law and American Family Courts on Thursday (February 28) in Room 500, Faculty Hall, at 4:30 p.m. Dr. Alkhatib examines the workings of the Wayne County Family Court Division in Detroit, Michigan. This county includes a large Muslim population. Interviews with attorneys who represent Muslim litigants reveal that Islamic law issues do frequently come up in family law cases, but instead of Islamic law crossing the boundary separating church and state and imposing itself on the Court, it is the secular law that is imposing itself on the religion. We welcomed Dr. Alkhatib to Sounds Good for a preview.

In December, we reported that Land Between the Lakes will have to cut $1 million from their annual operating budget, following across-the-board budget reduction for all national parks. On Sounds Good, Land Between the Lakes' Denise Schmittou outlines the new season and a few fee changes due to the budget review.

Mark Manning, President. Murray-Calloway County Economic Development Corporation, and Jim Carter, Vice President Institutional Advancement, Murray State speak about the time-frame of two German industries, iwis and Kemmerich, establishing themselves in Murray and hiring and the prospect of partnerships with the University.