Bluegrass, newgrass and beyond. From Bill Monroe to Billy Strings, the Yolo County Breakdown is a journey through acoustic string music ranging from the traditional to the cutting edge.
Podcast
The Yolo County Breakdown for Dec 12, 2025Fri, 12/12/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky Outcrop50 years ago, an album was released that would sell more copies than any other album in bluegrass history - and hold on to that record for 25 years. The album was called Old & In The Way and its all-star cast of pickers included Grateful Dead icon Jerry Garcia on banjo, David Grisman on mandolin, Vassar Clements on fiddle, John Kahn on bass, and Peter Rowan on guitar. Peter and Rocky recently had a great conversation about his music career, and this episode of the Yolo County Breakdown features that interview. Peter talks about his early days sneaking into music clubs in Massachusetts, and Rocky follows the path of his musical journey through his time with Joe Val, Bill Monroe, Muleskinner, Townes Van Zandt, Wyatt Ellis, and much more. Peter is a gifted story teller, and this conversation is one you will not want to miss! |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Dec 05, 2025Fri, 12/05/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropRocky walks the traditional path with Bill, Doc, Earl and Jimmy but also branches out with Stuart Duncan and Natalie Merchant. And there is a romping cover of Jimi Hendrix's Purple Haze brought to you via Tommy Emmanuel and Jerry Douglas. Excuse me, while I kiss this guy! |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Nov 28, 2025Fri, 11/28/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropIf you ate some turkey this week, then come along and Ride the Wild Turkey with Rocky! Lots of tracks from the year 2023 this week for some reason including a great cover of a Crosby, Stills & Nash classic. And for all you pilgrims out there, Kris Kristofferson offers an update. Rocky is sure to make you hit the buy now button for all the Black Friday Bluegrass Specials. |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Nov 21, 2025Fri, 11/21/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropRocky has a delightful set from some lovely ladies of bluegrass including names like Alison, Emmylou, and Laurie. If you know Rocky's taste, you already know who those 3 are! Plus a couple of bluegrass covers of Beatles tunes. Rocky serves ya the goods! |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Nov 14, 2025Fri, 11/14/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropReno & Smiley show us where we came from and Billy Strings shows us where things are going. Tony Rice tells the tale of the Edmund Fitzgerald which sank 50 years ago this month. And the husband and wife team of Kristen Scott Benson and Wayne Benson close the show with an instrumental that has as deep a groove as any bluegrass tune of the last decade. Rocky picks tunes that are sure to keep your toes tapping... |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Nov 07, 2025Fri, 11/07/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropRocky has 2 different bluegrass covers of Adele songs this week - one from the son of a country music legend and the other from a powerhouse trio of female folk & bluegrass superstars. Plus a track that is decidedly grassy from a member of Crosby, Stills and Nash. Guess which one?! |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Oct 31, 2025Fri, 10/31/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropRocky's got a challenge for all you mandolin afficianados this week. He spins a set of mandolin-centric instrumentals. How many of the 8-string pickers can you name? No cheating and looking at the playlist before you listen! Plus he has a brand new bluegrass cover of a Blind Faith song from Dre Anders & Ronnie Bowman that is bluesy and real real fine. |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Oct 24, 2025Fri, 10/24/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropRocky checks out the bluegrassy side of a few legends of country music - Johnny Cash, George Jones, and John Prine. Plus something brand new from Megan McKamey that sounds real nice and a look back at the sound of the newest member of Alison Krauss's band (Russell Moore) when he was with IIIrd Tyme Out long ago. |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Oct 17, 2025Fri, 10/17/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropRocky plays a version of the song that brought a lot of fans to bluegrass. From the movie Deliverance, people surely remember the epic tune Dueling Banjos. Lester Flatt's outfit knows the original title was Feudin' Banjos, and they take it for a ride. Plus outlaw Billy Strings enjoys singing about weed and running from the law. Well C.W. McCall was doing that before Billy was born, so Rocky lets him show young Billy how it was done before it was cool. |
The Yolo County Breakdown for Oct 10, 2025Fri, 10/10/2025 - 10:00am | Rocky OutcropYou like the Beatles and the Stones? Well Rocky spins a set of bluegrass covers of classic rock tunes. Plus as he returns from a trip through India, he plays a track from the collaboration between Bela Fleck and Zakir Hussain that is sure to mesmorize. |
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