The "resophonic guitar" or dobro as it is affectionately known is championed by Rob Ickes (rhymes with "bikes"). A mainstay in the contemporary bluegrass group Blue Highway, Rob steps aside here to play in an unusual piano/dobro duet. We were curious about that combination, but the aim of this show is to provide different, even daring music for the season. We've all heard the same old Christmas songs the same old way. Rob offers his own composition and his own arrangement. In doing so he awakens in us the same joy we had as kids hearing holiday music for the first time.

Rob is a Californian, playing music rooted in Appalachia, on an instrument that many aren't familiar with, to an audience he often doesn't know. He often gets "ribbed" at home during Christmas by his brothers and sisters, who have "regular" jobs, but they didn't end up on a national broadcast did they?

Learn more about Rob Ickes at acousticnetwork.com/RobIckes.