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As far back as 1978, Louisa Branscomb’s name was called a “household word” in bluegrass music. By then, she had been one of the first woman to lead a touring bluegrass band while performing on banjo (1972), co-founder of one of the first modern all-female bluegrass bands (1971), and the first woman in bluegrass to produce 3 albums of nearly all original music. Her song “Blue Ridge Memories” had made the charts in Japan, her band (Boot Hill) had a number two bluegrass gospel album, and she’d played 200 to 250 gigs a year as a full time musician for nearly a decade.
Now it’s 2006, and she’s still going strong. Since Boot
Hill days, Louisa played banjo with Cherokee Rose, a band that for a time
included now-known artists such as Missy Raines and Lynn Morris (1979-1980). She
then formed the popular Atlanta band, Born Gypsy,
in which she played mandolin and banjo. Most recently she played banjo
and guitar with Fontana Sunset.
Despite this notable 30 year performing career, Louisa is
probably best known for her songwriting. Louisa has the honor of the longest
running Number One song on Bluegrass charts, the world-wide hit “Steel
Rails,” recorded by Alison Krauss. “Steel Rails” appeared on Alison’s
Grammy-winning CD, “I’ve Got that Old Feeling.” Critics have attributed
this now standard favorite as largely responsible for “bringing an entire new
generation of young women into bluegrass music.” Steel Rails earned Louisa a
second Grammy songwriter appearance on John Denver’s last album. Alison’s version won SPBGMA song of the year in 1991.
Beyond “Steel Rails,” Louisa continues to garner
accolades as a songwriter. In 1991,
along with 13 other prestigious women in bluegrass, Louisa shared honors for
IBMA Recorded Event of the Year for Mark Newton’s Tribute to Women in
Bluegrass CD, “Follow Me Back to the Fold.”
In 2006, Louisa is again
part of a group of talented women up for Recorded Event of the Year, with her
song, “Fool’s Gold,” on Lorraine Jordan’s production of “Daughter’s
of Bluegrass: Back to the Well”. Other songs have earned her Finalist and
Semi-finalist awards in the Georgia Musician’s industry Songwriting Contests,
and an alternate position in the prestigious IBMA songwriting showcase. Louisa
has been a judge for songwriting competitions for GMAI and was one of the first
bluegrass songwriting mentors for IBMA.
Louisa has had over 70 songs recorded in bluegrass by artists including Alison Krauss, Dale Ann Bradley, the McPeak Brothers, Broad River, Fontanna Sunset, Valerie Smith and Daughters of Bluegrass.
Louisa continues to write songs and mentor other
songwriters at her country home and retreat, Woodsong Farm, in the mountains of
North Georgia. As part of her goal
to give back to the music she loves, she is now spearheading a songwriter
interest group that is working toward forming a first bluegrass songwriting
organization. Also with an eye on
the future, Louisa supports her daughter, Olivia, as an enthusiastic member of
the next generation in Bluegrass. Olivia has already garnered several
publications for her own bluegrass articles at the age of 13.
Lance Leroy, veteran Bluegrass promoter, has called Louisa
“always 20 years ahead of her time.” She’s been writing songs since she
was six and playing and writing professionally for 36 years. She’s a pioneer
for women in bluegrass and a trailblazer for songwriters in bluegrass. Chris
Jones, himself a noted songwriter, says of Louisa:
“Louisa’s career, both inside and outside of music, has been guided by a powerful creative force. It’s a force that has not only brought us a staggering amount of original recorded music, but one that has enabled her to juggle and synthesize her love of music, writing, people, and the mountains around her.”