Jake Blount - "Shady Grove"

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Photo by Renee Cornue Studios

The good news is that we're getting a new album from Providence's Jake Blount in two weeks! The bad news is that it will be his last string album before he starts a new project in 2027. The first single from his upcoming album, "Shady Grove," is a masterful traditional folk track. This is vintage Appalachian music, and shows how great Blount is it this style. It will be great to hear him expand on a new sound in the near future, and Single-Footing Horse is a great way to hear him play the style of music that made us fans years ago. The fiddle work in "Shady Grove" is fantastic, and fans of roots music are going to be blown away by this one. 

Jake Blount says of his latest single:

"This version of Shady Grove is adapted from one played by Jon Bekoff of Greenfield, MA. I didn't get to meet him before he died, but Jon was a major influence on many of my own mentors. His tunes are queer and full of mystery, and his version didn't sound quite as magical coming from me—so I dropped the top string of my fiddle down a whole tone, added the singing section, and started playing it that way. Shady Grove was probably one of the first three songs I learned when I was first starting out in this music. My upcoming release is a celebration of my teachers, friends, and musical community as I look toward a new musical chapter. It felt important to include both Jon and Shady Grove in that celebration."

You can listen to "Shady Grove" below. Single-Footing Horse is due out September 18. For more on Jake Blount, check out the artist on Instagram and Facebook. Upcoming tour dates are below the song and include September 20 at Swell Folk Festival in Providence, RI, October 14 at Club Passim in Cambridge, MA, and October 15 at The Parlour Room in Northampton, MA.


Tuesday, September 8

The Station Inn

Nashville, TN

Wednesday, September 9

The Woodshop Listening Room

Chattanooga, TN

Thursday, September 10

The Grey Eagle

Asheville, NC

Friday, September 11

Laurel Theater

Knoxville, TN

Saturday, September 12

Floyd Country Store

Floyd, VA

Sunday, September 13

Culture Center Theater

Charleston, WV

Monday, September 14

John C. Campbell Folk School

Brasstown, NC

Tuesday, September 15

The Pinhook

Durham, NC

Wednesday, September 16 

Potter's Craft Cider

Charlottesville, VA

Thursday, September 17

Pie Shop

Washington, DC

Friday, September 18

Creative Alliance

Baltimore, MD

Saturday, September 19

Jalopy Theatre and School of Music

Brooklyn, NY

Sunday, September 20

Swell Folk Festival 2026

Lippitt Memorial Park, Providence, RI

Wednesday, October 14

Club Passim

Cambridge, MA

Thursday, October 15

The Parlor Room

Northampton, MA

Friday, October 16

May Memorial Unitarian Universalist Society

Syracuse, NY

Saturday, October 17

Caffè Lena

Saratoga Springs, NY

Sunday, October 18

One Longfellow Square

Portland, ME

Saturday, October 24 

Riddlefest 2026

Burnsville Town Center, Burnsville, NC

Thursday, November 19

The Cedar Cultural Center

Minneapolis, MN 

Friday, November 20

The North Street Cabaret

Madison, WI

Sunday, November 22

The Focal Point

St. Louis, MO 

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