Martha Scanlan may be best known for her nationally acclaimed string band, the Reeltime Travelers, with whom she toured for six years, playing at such prestigious venues and festivals such as the Grand Old Opry and the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, but she's definitely a class-act on her own. With her new, solo release, The West Was Burning, Martha showcases her strength as a songwriter and her deep roots in old time music.

Recording the album was an amazing process for her. Most of it was recorded at Levon Helm Studios over the course of a few snowy days, and she categorizes the experience as like "hanging out with friends and playing great music, real loose like that." Everyone on the album contributed and Dirk Powell, who produced the album, did a great job of letting the music and the songs steer their direction.

Martha's musical journey has consisted of a lot of travels that have taken her back to the roots of music, from Appalachia in east Tennessee and western North Carolina to the stirring landscapes of Montana. Much of what has drawn her to and inspired her in the art of old time music lies in the connection between the land and the music. "Even fiddle tunes that don't have words are of a place, are named for places," she says.

In earlier years, she worked as an outdoor educator with troubled youth. "I loved being with kids, and I loved being outside for weeks at a time, being that intimate with a particular landscape, waking up at night and knowing what time it is by where the stars are, knowing where to look for good water in the height of the dry season, knowing that wild rose hips get sweet after the first frost."

Today, her deep bond with the land can be seen not only in her music, but in her support of the Northern Plains Resource Council ( www.northernplains.org), a local grassroots campaign based in Montana, dedicated to saving and reclaiming the quality of the land and water for future generations. Their work and the issues they face interest her not only out of her love for the people and the country there, but also because "it deals with land use issues that affect all of us. (The people there) are the most hardworking and inspiring people I know."

Martha will be at Swallow Hill Music Association on Saturday, April 14, 8 p.m. Tickets are available now at www.swallowhillmusic.org or by calling 303-777-1003. She will be joined by members of The Wilders, with whom she expects to have a blast. "We're all really excited," Martha smiles. "I've been hearing great things about (Swallow Hill) for years. Places like Swallow Hill, that have been giving live music a home for years, are always special, like being inside an old guitar."

NOTE: This article was originally published in Pow'r Pickin', the official publication of the Colorado Bluegrass Music Society, in their April, 2007issue.