Last week we would have convened in Nashville for AmericanaFest! Sure did miss the folks and the fanfare, and especially the music. Thriving Roots took its place, as a virtual Music Conference online, but I sure do hope that we get to come out of the house and be together someday. In the meantime, we have streaming to deliver live music, and thank goodness for that! And since we aren’t traveling the way we used to, there is the romance of the music of far away places that we can virtually travel to. Brennen Leigh’s new album Prairie Love Letter is just out, and it transports us to the turf Brennen grew up on in the upper Midwest. Just beautiful, seeing and feeling those wide open spaces through her music.

Brennen joins partner Noel McKay for this Music Fog video of “The Old Pawnee Waltz,” which transports us to yet another grand vista, in Pawnee, Texas. Noel is also accompanied by Melissa Carper on upright bass and backing vocals. Of course, Noel and Brennen made their way from Austin to Nashville a couple of years ago, and have found a home of like minded artists who honor the grand country music traditions. Here is the Music Fog rendition of “The Old Pawnee Waltz,” filmed during a private session in Nashville last year.

-Jessie Scott