About Music From The Hills Of Home

The first Music From the Hills of Home was hosted by Katie Laur and Buddy Griffin on the first Sunday of November, 1989, and it has been heard on Sundays ever since that time. Buddy Griffin was co-host for only a couple of months, and he was followed by Wayne Clyburn, who is the engineer, the one who "mashes" the buttons, or as Pester Flatt has dubbed him, "the guy who plays Wayne." Wayne is an engineer in real life. He lives and works in Northern Kentucky. He graduated from Ohio University and has been a stalwart bluegrass fan and an ongoing banjo picker since then. He spent some time in Boston, where he was a regular at the Hillbilly Ranch, the famous bluegrass bar where the Lilly Brothers and Don Stover played six nights a week. When he returned to live in Cincinnati, he went to the Ken-Mill and heard most every bluegrass band passing through town in the late 60's and early 70's. He has attended more bluegrass festivals and concerts than he can remember, and he is as knowledgeable of the music as most experts. This is important when it comes time to frame those "trivia" questions which make "Music from the Hills of Home" a popular ticket give-away vendor. Who was the first banjo player to play with Jimmy Martin after J.D. Crowe left? Wayne can tell you.

About The Show's Co-Hosts

Katie Laur and Wayne have been playing music together and conducting an ongoing conversation about bluegrass for about 30 years. In 1975, they formed the Katie Laur Band with Don Parker on mandolin (and Katie on guitar). Katie, after years of travel, became a jazz singer for a time in the 1980's, but bluegrass remained an emotional taproot for her. Music From the Hills of Home was a perfect way to re-enter the magical realm of Flatt and Scruggs and Bill Monroe. So many things have happened in the 15 years of the show: interviews with Bela Fleck, John Hartford, even jazz radio stalwart Leo Underhill, have graced the "Coveted Pewter Microphone" through the years. The popularity of the movie soundtrack from "O,Brother" ramped up the popularity of the music. Music from the Hills of Home hasn't changed much, though, and many long-time fans still listen to cassette tapes of the show from its early days. Bluegrass hasn't changed that much, and neither have Katie and Wayne.