Every Friday around 11 a.m. Central, it’s time for Classic Americana on Radio Heartland. We pull a special track from the archives or from deep in the shelves to spotlight a particular artist or song.

Thursday, October 2, was the birthday of musician Gillian Welch, an artist who has carved an enduring career through the unlikely blend of fearless innovation and a deep respect for traditional musical forms.

Welch grew up in Los Angeles and went on to study at the University of California, Santa Cruz. While a student there, Welch played in a few different bands in various genres, but when she heard a dorm mate’s Stanley Brothers record, Welch says she’d “found [her] music.”

After graduating from UC-Santa Cruz, Welch relocated to Boston to attend the Berklee College of Music, where she studied songwriting. It was there she met her musical partner, David Rawlings. After graduating from Berklee, Welch moved to Nashville, and not long thereafter, so did David Rawlings.

In 1996, Welch and Rawlings released their debut album, Revival. Produced by T Bone Burnett, the album included original songs by Welch and Rawlings that rejuvenated an interest in American folk music forms. At the 1997 Grammy Awards, Revival was nominated in the category of Best Folk Album, an award that ultimately went to Bruce Springsteen’s The Ghost of Tom Joad. Nevertheless, Revival remains a foundational album in folk and Americana. In 2023, Paste magazine’s Josh Jackson ranked Revival No. 3 in Paste’s list of the 70 Best Alt-Country Albums of All Time, describing Revival as a “perfect debut.”

For our Classic Americana pick, we’ll hear a track from Revival called “Acony Bell.” Not only is this an excellent track from a stellar album, it foretold a new chapter in the career of Welch and Rawlings. In 2001, the duo set up their own record label, and they named it Acony — not just because of the song, but because of the flower the song is about. The acony bell flower is among the first to bloom in the spring, and it can even bloom when there is still snow on the ground; that is to say, it is not averse to challenging conditions. Here’s Gillian Welch with “Acony Bell.”

Of course, Welch and Rawlings remain as relevant as ever. Their 2024 album, Woodland, won a Grammy Award this year for Best Folk Album, and in September, Welch and Rawlings took home the award for Best Duo/Group of the Year at the 2025 Americana Music Association’s Honors & Awards. Later this month, they’ll tour Ireland and the U.K., performing concerts in Dublin, Manchester, London and Glasgow.

Related Links

• Studio Session: Gillian Welch and David Rawlings play songs from 'Woodland' at The Current for Radio Heartland
• The Current's Guitar Collection: Gillian Welch, 1956 Gibson J-50

External Link

Gillian Welch & David Rawlings – official site