Lydia and Laura Rogers, aka the Secret Sisters, are among the nominees announced on Monday for the annual Americana Music Association Honors and Awards to be given in October. The sisters, along with Jessica Lea Mayfield, The Civil Wars, and the British group Mumford and Sons, have been nominated for the New/Emerging Artist of the Year award. Mumford and Sons and The Civil Wars are also candidates in the Duo/Group category.

Justin Townes Earle‘s “Harlem River Blues” is up for both Album of the Year and Song of the Year. Lucinda Williams‘s album “Blessed” is another Album of the Year nominee. Elizabeth Cook, Buddy Miller and Robert Plant are nominees in multiple categories. The full list of nominees is available on the American Songwriter, Country Music Television and Music Row sites.

At the recent National Folk Festival in Canberra, the Australia Council for the Arts presented the Don Banks Music Award to folk artist and publisher Warren Fahey. The award is given only once to a particular artist. Among Fahey’s many accomplishments are the founding of the Larrikin folk music label and the Folkways music retail business, the writing of numerous books and the collection and recording of bush folk songs and folk stories….

Southern folk singer Caroline Herring was recently given a 2010 Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters award in the Popular Music Composition category for her album Golden Apples of the Sun. Herring will be performing at the All Good Cafe in Dallas on Friday evening.

Leonard Cohen is one of several artists scheduled to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in June. Cohen, who received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammys in January, recently postponed his tour due to health issues.

Bonnie Raitt will be inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in May.

American folk musician Nanci Griffith and Scottish musician Dick Gaughan received Lifetime Achievement Awards at Monday night’s BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards ceremony at The Brewery in London. Other winners included Jon Boden, Folksinger of the Year; John Kirkpatrick, Musician of the Year; Bellowhead, Best Live Act; Show of Hands (Steve Knightley and Phil Beer), Best Duo; Lau, Best Group; Hill of Thieves, by Cara Dillon, Best Album; “Arrogance Ignorance and Greed,” by Steve Knightley, Best Original Song and “Sir Patrick Spens,” by Martin Simpson, Best Traditional Track. The Horizon Award, given to an emerging artist, went to Sam Carter.

In Sunday night’s Grammy Awards ceremony, Loudon Wainwright III was awarded Best Traditional Folk Album for High Wide & Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project, and Steve Earle took home the Best Contemporary Folk Album title for Townes, an album of songs written by Townes Van Zandt. Steve Martin’s The Crow: New Songs for the Five-String Banjo, mentioned in an earlier post, was named Best Bluegrass Album. Electric Dirt, recorded by Levon Helm, earned the Best Americana Album award, beating out Willie Nelson & Asleep at the Wheel, Bob Dylan, Lucinda Williams and Wilco.

The nominees for the 2010 Grammy Awards were announced Wednesday evening. One of the nominees for Best Traditional Folk Album is Cutting Loose, by David Holt and Josh Goforth. This compilation of comedy and music is a treat to listen to, with a surprise around every corner.

Until recently I had two variations on Steven Foster’s “Oh! Susanna” in my music library — one by The Be Good Tanyas and one by Ruthie Foster. I now have another to add to the list, from ukulele player James Hill and cellist Anne Davison’s first album together, True Love Don’t Weep. The collection of new and traditional music won Traditional Album of the Year at Canadian Folk Music Awards ceremony on Saturday November 21st.