Northern Lights

Northern Lights was an American progressive bluegrass band formed in 1975 in New England, whose career spanned more than three decades. The band went through numerous lineup changes, counting among its members banjo player Alison Brown and multi-instrumentalist Jake Armerding, son of founding mandolinist Taylor Armerding, who began playing full-time in the band at 14, after a few appearances starting at 12. By 2009, no founding member remained in the band. Guitarist Bill Henry, who joined in 1982, then took over its leadership; Northern Lights continued to perform without interruption as a quintet, with Bill Henry, John Daniel and Alex MacLeod, alongside younger musicians Eric Robertson and Mike Barnett.

The band released ten studio albums and one live album with Vassar Clements, most of them now out of print. From Take You to the Sky, released in 1990, to its final album One Day, the band blended traditional roots music, rock, country, soul and gospel with the high, mournful sound of bluegrass voice and instrumentation. Three of its records also reached the top ten of Bluegrass Unlimited's National Bluegrass Survey.