This is an unprecedented work of oral history which consists simply of interviews with 29 contemporary West Virginia song-writers. The interviews are divided geographically into 6 regions of the state – Charleston, The Ohio Valley, The Eastern Panhandle, The Southern Coalfields, The Tamarack Scene (Beckley to Bluefield to Lewisburg) , and Morgantown. “West Virginia’s hills are alive with the sound of music. And with Travis Stimeling as Mountain State music tour guide, audiences can now explore the work of songwriters who call these coalfields, creeks, and cities their home.”—Joni Deutsch. “Travis Stimeling has painted a representative, pointedly contemporary portrait of West Virginia songwriters.”—Jewly Hight
Morgantown: West Virginia University Press, 2018. 251 pages with “Notes and Interviews.” Trade paperback