The temperatures are rising, our Blue Ridge Mountains are bursting with color, and Trail Mix is rockin’ this month.  Heading outside as things get green?  Take these twenty-five songs on the May Trail Mix with you.  Good times outside only get better with great tunes.

Leading off this month’s mix is a track from noted singer/songwriter Josh Ritter.  Ritter recently released The Beast In Its Tracks, a critically acclaimed record that is both catharsis from,  and chronicle of, his recent divorce.  We are happy to include “Joy To You Baby” this month.

Trail Mix is also happy to finally feature a track from West Coast rockers Tea Leaf Green.  These guys and their retro organ/guitar jams have long been on our radar.  Make sure to check out “Give Me One More Chance” off of their new record In The Wake, which releases on May 14^th.

Few Southern bands have garnered more buzz in recent years than Athens, Georgia’s, Futurebirds.  The quintet caught the ear of both Bonnaroo and The Drive-by Truckers and quickly became a fixture of the South’s roots rock scene. Baba Yaga, the band’s new record, released last month and Trail Mix is glad to have “Virginia Slims” featured this month.

Fans of bluegrass and old time will be especially stoked about this month’s mix.  Check out the new tune from Steve Martin & Edie Brickell – the combination of Martin’s banjo talents with Edie’s vocals on their new record, Love Has Come For You, is brilliant, as well as the tight pickin’ on ”I Fell Short,” the new tune from Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen, and the gypsy jazz of Hot Club of Cowtown’s “Dark Eyes/Ochi Chornye.”  Bluegrass stalwarts Dailey & Vincent  and Peter Rowan are also featured, as is a tune from The Bankesters, a relatively new family band in the vein of Cherryholmes.

We are always excited to highlight artists from our area.  This month, take a listen to the new tune from Andrew Leahey & The Homestead.  Andrew is currently in Nashville, but he hails from Richmond, Virginia.

Brand new tracks from Beth Hart, Hymn For Her, Cold Satellite, Marshall Crenshaw, Laura Cortese, and Paper Bird are featured this month.  Check out Jerry Miller’s rollin’ rockabilly guitar, the gritty rock of The Del-Lords, and the new track from Scott Tournet, known for his work with Grace Potter & The Nocturnals.

Also featured is “Boxcars,” a new cut from one of our favorite songwriting duos, Eric Brace and Peter Cooper.

Rounding out the May mix are tracks from Highbeams, Heather Maloney, Sons of Fathers, Randall Bramlett, and Coastwest Unrest.

This is a great month of music.  Download it, stream it, share it.  Spread the word and, of course, get out to your local record store and grab a couple of these records.  These artists would appreciate it.

Stay tuned to the Trail Mix blog this month, too.  We’ll be giving away tickets to see Josh Ritter in Asheville and Tea Leaf Green in Washington, D.C.

Download Trail Mix May 2013 here.

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Download more music from month’s past here! They never go out of style.