Over the course of nearly three years, we at Americana podcast have spoken with a wonderful collective of artists and industry professionals alike about the workings in and of this ever expanding umbrella of music we lovingly refer to as Americana music. Parts of that discussion have at times touched on its history- but we have never really broached the subject of its early days and what that entailed. And who exactly was there at the beginning. With that in mind, we’ve decided to shake it up a bit and welcome longstanding Americana advocate and friend Rob Bleetstein. Bleetstein in casual circles, is a music lover. A long time ticket collecting, road junkie, band following fan if there ever was one.  Which all tracks for an original deadhead mind you- but he’s not someone stuck completely in the past either. Driven by just the desire to hear good music- there isn’t an artist old or young on the scene that he seemingly doesn't already know about. And if you happen to somehow introduce him to someone he hasn’t heard of- he’ll send you what can only be described as an essay or a review of his thoughts on their first two records in addition to the direction their heading with their next one. You can’t beat him. Professionally, Bleestein’s credentials range from publicist, archivist, and currently program director of Pearl Jam Radio on Sirius XM. What he is to Americana as a genre though… well he was one of the early, if not original adopters of the term. From when he worked at Gavin magazine in the 90’s. One of the original coiners of the description “Americana”. Rob Bleetstein is not only a music lover- but a true music shaper. So Join us as our host Robert Earl Keen speaks with Rob Bleestetin about the early days of Americana, his experiences as a long-time music lover, his contributions, and what’s on the horizon of the genre