Marissa M. Conner 
Banjos return to the top of BillboardThe Alternative Songs release chart (dated Jan. 7, 2017), as Judah & the Lion go up 2-1 with “Take It All Back,” the group’s first entry on the tally. The song reigns in its 19th week on the count.
Judah & the Lion thus became the first act of 2017 to land an alternative title n ° 1 with a first title in the format. Four acts accomplished the feat in 2016: Nothing But Thieves (“Trip Switch”), The Strumbellas (“Spirits”), Kaleo (“Way Down We Go”) and The Head and the Heart (“All We Ever Knew”) ).
Nashville-based Judah & the Lion, which formed in the early 2010s as a folk group with undertones of bluegrass, with some banjo and mandolin part, took a more alternative rock approach (although the folk instrumentation be preserved) for his third album, Folk hop n ‘roll, which debuted and peaked at No. 7 on Americana / Folk Albums in March 2016. A deluxe version of the set released later in the year includes a re-recorded version of “Take” which aired at the radio.
Of course, the group isn’t the only folk-leaning group to dominate alternative songs this decade. Mumford & Sons made a career out of it (before their more alternative rock makeover in 2015), with five top 10s in 2010-13, including two No. 1s: “Little Lion Man” and “I Will Wait”. Imagine Dragons’ debut hit “It’s Time”, which peaked at # 4 in 2012, features the mandolin. And the Lumineers continue to add hits, with “Ophelia” in power for four weeks in 2016 after “Ho Hey” conducted for two weeks in 2012. (“Ophelia” became the No. 1 hit at the end of year 2016 Table of alternative songs.)
Meanwhile, “Take” reached a new high in the multi-format Rock Airplay rankings, up from 8 to 7 with 8 million audience impressions (up 5%), according to Nielsen Music. The track also reached the Hot Rock Songs Top 10 (13-10) in its 18th week on the multimeter chart, further fueled by its 14-12 surge on Rock Digital Song sales (6,000 downloads sold, up 15%).
