| Old School Freight Train | |
| Origin: | Virginia, United States |
| Genre: | Folk Country Americana Bluegrass Old-time |
| Years Active: | 2000 - 2009 |
| Label: | Acoustic Disc management: Ann Kingston |
| Current Members: | Jesse Harper Pete Frostic Nate Leath Darrell Muller Nick Falk |
| Past Members: | Ann Marie Calhoun (née Simpson) Ben Krakauer |
Old School Freight Train (OSFT) was a Charlottesville, Virginia-based band that combined bluegrass, jazz, Latin, and Celtic sounds to create their music.
The band's eponymous debut album, Old School Freight Train, was met with considerable acclaim. Relix magazine, included them in their "Artists Too New to Know" series in May 2005. Daniel Gewertz of the Boston Herald called them: "The most talented young string band in the land."
Mandolin master David Grisman heard their music in the Fall of 2004 and invited them record at his Dawg Studios in Mill Valley, California. He manned the production and recording himself with the help of Dave Dennison. From these sessions came Run, OSFT's second album and their first for Acoustic Disc, Grisman's acclaimed independent label. He says of the experience:
They have backed David Grisman as his band on several tours in 2005 and 2006. They opened for Merle Haggard on May 3, 2006, at the Charlottesville Pavilion. They were co-billed with King Wilkie at the Starr Hill Music Hall in Charlottesville, Virginia November 15, 2006. They played at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., on September 23, 2006.
The band's tour schedule has included the Newport Folk Festival, MerleFest, Wintergrass, Strawberry Music Festival, and the Menokin Bluegrass Festival in Warsaw, Virginia. In 2007, they played the Stagecoach Festival in Indio, California.
Six Years was released on March 17, 2009. The group has since disbanded.
Tim Dickinson, National Affairs Correspondent for Rolling Stone, said of the group's sound:
Relix magazine, including OSFT in their "Artists Too New to Know" series in May 2005, described their playing as:
Daniel Gewertz of the Boston Herald noted:
David Grisman, who recorded their album Run on his independent label, said:
In his review of Six Years, John Borgmeyer said in the C-Ville Weekly:
Old School Freight Train's vocalist, songwriter, and guitarist was Jesse Harper. Pete Frostic played mandolin, Nate Leath played fiddle, Darrell Muller played upright bass, and Nick Falk was the drummer.
Former members have included Ann Marie Calhoun (née Simpson) on the fiddle, and Ben Krakauer on banjo. They went on to play in Walker's Run. Calhoun has also performed with Jethro Tull, Steve Vai, and well as Ringo Starr. She was also the "My GRAMMY Moment 2008" winner on the 50th Annual GRAMMY Awards, chosen to perform with the Foo Fighters live.