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Feb. 5, 2008 - 34th Annual SPGMA Awards Announced - Rhonda Vincent and Rage receive three, Entertainer of the Year, Vocal Group of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year (contemporary). Click HERE to see the full list.
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Jan. 03, 2008 - Orange Blossom Special Songwriter to be Recognized - Who in bluegrass hasn't heard the "Orange Blossom Special", the famous fiddle and bluegrass song? The man who authored the piece, Ervin T. Rouse, is to be honored in North Carolina later this year. Click HERE to read more.
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01/09-/08 - A Bluegrass Mecca in an Archery Range- Spectators can witness 'love, pain, death and destruction at 150 beats per minute' at Orange County Archery. Here, beneath the posters of archery products, images of American flags and mounted animal heads, archers and bluegrass music players play alongside each other from 6 p.m. to closing time every first and third Thursday of each month. Click HERE to read more.
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11/01-07 - Hazel Dickens Inducted into West Virginia Music Hall of Fame - Renowned folk/bluegrass artist Hazel Dickens honored as one of the inaugural inductees into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame, Friday, November 16, at The Cultural Center in Charleston, WV. Considered one of the most influential and powerful artists, male or female, in the world of Americana music, Dickens will be presented with her award by her longtime admirer, Alison Krauss.
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11/01-07 - Country Gent Bill Emerson Returns by John Lupton - This year marks a half-century since singer and guitarist Charlie Waller and a then-teenaged banjo standout Bill Emerson formed the Country Gentlemen, a band that changed the face of bluegrass and continues today under the direction of Waller's son, Randy. Click HERE to read rest of the story.
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10/02/07- 2007 IBMA Awards announced. Grascals and Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver among winners. Click HERE to see complete list.
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08/18/07- IBMA Announces 2007 Distinguished Achievement Awards - The 2007 Distinguished Achievement Awards, an honor that recognizes those who have made a significant impact to the genre, will be awarded to: Mike Auldridge (resophonic guitar player), The Bluegrass Breakdown (monthly publication of the California Bluegrass Association), Marko Cermak (musician and watercolor artist who lives in the mountains of Bohemia in the Czech Republic), Warren Hellman (San Francisco-based investment banker/banjo player and philanthropist), and Happy & Jane Traum (owners of Homespun Tapes based in Woodstock, New York). Click HERE to read more of what the IBMA posted on Cybergrass.
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05/20/07- Teacher pulls his own strings - By day, Don Fraley is a math teacher at A.B. Miller High School in Fontana. By night and on weekends, he is a member of The Mill Creek Boys, a traditional-style bluegrass band. The band specializes in performing old favorites made popular in the 1940s by the likes of Bill Monroe, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys, according to the liner notes on the group's latest CD, "Florida Rose." Click HERE to read more.
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04/03/07 -Columbus, NC - The Osborne Brother's Live In Germany 2 CD/DVD set is available in stores today. The release marks the first of several unreleased Osborne Brothers bluegrass music recordings that will become available to the public over the course of the next few years. Click HERE to read more.
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3/30/07 Dueling Banjos - This is an article by Mark Rubin in the Austin Chronicle, in which he discusses Old Time Music and it's relationship to Bluegrass, both of which, as a performer (he played Bass for Bad Livers), he knows about. Click HERE to read more
Click HERE to return to top of page
(NOTE: Bluegrass events, such as festivals and concerts in the
Western United States are posted on our EVENTS page)
Announcements are listed from most recent to the oldest.
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Southwest Bluegrass Group (not affiliated with the Southwest Bluegrass Association) provides an opportunity for bluegrassers throughout the southwest and the the rest of the US to share information, pictures and discuss bluegrass related topics. Click HERE to read more.
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Northern California Bluegrass Society's Bluegrass Awards Announced - Sidesaddle and Co. from San Jose was named Northern California's "Bluegrass Band of the Year" for 2008 at a ceremony held on Saturday, February 16 in downtown Redwood City. The first time "Northern California Bluegrass Awards" were presented by the Northern California Bluegrass Society as part of that organization's inaugural "Bluegrass On Broadway" Festival. Click HERE to read more. [posted 2/20/08]
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Working Girl Blues: The Life and Music of Hazel Dickens - The University of Illinois Press has announced another valuable book, Working Girl Blues: The Life and Music of Hazel Dickens. Working Girl Blues is the life story of singer and songwriter Hazel Dickens, the inspiring voice of a whole generation of women and workers. This latest book is another volume in the University of Illinois Press Music in American Life series. Click HERE to read more. [posted 1/22/08]
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Bluegrass in Russia - Click HERE to visit the webs site of a bluegrass group in Russia that recently contacted SWBA, seeking interest in their music here in the United States. Music samples are also available online (not exactly traditional bluegrass). [posted 11/19/07]
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The Rainbows of Fall. Not exactly about bluegrass, but nice. Turn on your speakers and click HERE for some pictures of fall splendor. [posted 11/19/07]
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Bobby Osborne Joins Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music Faculty. Dean Osborne revealed the addition of Bobby Osborne to the faculty of the Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music in Hazard, Kentucky. Bobby Osborne is teaching bluegrass music history. Click HERE to read more about Bobby Osborne's appointment to the faculty, and click HERE to read more about the Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music. [posted 9/13/07]
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Rounder releases of Clair Lynch CD. Burlington, MA – Claire Lynch, one of bluegrass's most beloved vocalists, songwriters, and bandleaders, released Crowd Favorites October 9 on Rounder Records. Crowd Favorites is a collection of some of the most-requested songs from Claire Lynch's impressively rich repertoire. Click HERE to read more. [posted 9/8/07]
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Homer Ledford featured on Kentucky Luthiers Exhibit and Web Site. The Kentucky Arts Council and the Kentucky Historical Society has a special exhibit and companion website featuring the art and tradition of Kentuckians who are considered masters in the making and repairing of guitars, fiddles, banjos, mandolins, dulcimers and other original stringed instruments. Click HERE to see the article about Homer Ledford, and from there possibly visit the other web pages that are part of the web site. [posted 9/8/07]
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Video clips of Silverado performance available online. These are video clips of a concert for Bluegrass Association of Southern California at the Braemer Country Club. BASC reports that Silverado set an attendance record for their Tuesday night concerts. To view the clips click HERE.
- High Hills CD released: High Hills’ newest CD, Leaves on the River, is now available. Leaves on the River celebrates and expresses life's journeys and adventures, separations and reunions. Click HERE for list of songs and link to sample and/or order CD. [Posted 5/1/07].
- New book published about fiddler, Howdy Forrester: Fiddler of the Opry: The Howdy Forrester Story, by Gayel Pitchford, has been published by Viewpoint Press in California. Click HERE to read more about the book and how to obtain it. [Posted 5/1/07]
- Website features vintage Bluegrass Posters: Mitch, aka the Kardboard Kid, has been collecting posters all his life. He's posted them on his own website, where they are divided into several categories, including Country and Bluegrass. Click HERE to go to his website and view his vintage bluegrass posters. [Posted 3/10/07]
Click HERE to return to top of page
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Infamous Stringdusters - Fork in the Road
Song List: No More To Leave You Behind, Fork In The Road, Starry Night, 3 X 5, 40 West, Tragic Life, Poor Boy's Delight, No Resolution, My Destination, Letter From Prison, Dream You Back, Moon Man
For a bluegrass band, the Infamous Stringdusters are an uncommonly large group, with six members, encompassing all the commonly used bluegrass instruments: guitar, mandolin, Dobro, banjo, fiddle and bass. Many bluegrass bands establish their sound based not only on the instrumentation in their group, but also which of the key instruments is absent. The Stringdusters have them all, and the members come with impressive resumes. Two are second generation bluegrass players. Guitarist Chris Eldridge performed with his father in the Seldom Scene. Fiddle player Jeremy Garrett is the son of Nashville bluegrass player Glenn Garrett who wrote a song that appears on this CD. The younger Garrett also played with Lee Ann Womak and Bobby Osborne.
Click HERE to read more of this review.
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LITTLE ROY LEWIS, EARL SCRUGGS & LIZZY LONG - Lifetimes (CD & bonus DVD)
Vine Records / Mountain Home MH11182
Playing Time – 47:19
Song list: All the Good Times Are Past and Gone, James White, Heaven is a Small Town, Obelisk Flour, The Has Been, The Preacher and the Bear, Gotta Travel On, One More Yesterday With You, I Will Find You Again, The Bluebirds Singing for Me, Catamount Chase Breakdown, The Five-String Song, I'm Not Falling for You, The Road Before Me, (posted 7/19/07)
Buegrassers are familiar with the many accomplishments of Earl Scruggs and Little Roy Lewis who are given top billing on this album despite their fairly understated roles. Scruggs appears on five cuts, and Lewis only on four.
Click HERE to read more of this review.
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J.D. Crow and The New South - Lefty's Old Guitar
Rounder Records 11661-0512-2
One Camp Street, Cambridge, MA 02140
SONGS - Mississippi River Raft, Lefty's Old Guitar, Just Loving You, Rovin' Gambler, In My Next Life, You Can Be A Millionaire With Me, I Only wish You Knew, Loneliness, I'm A Hobo, Too Often Left Alone, Blue Bonnet Lane, She Know When You're On My Mind Again
Playing Time – 34:10
From Kentucky, J.D. Crowe began his career as a member of Mac Wiseman's band in 1955. Thus, "Lefty's Old Guitar" is also somewhat of a half century celebratory milestone for J.D. ."
Click HERE to read more of this review by Joe Ross.
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Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder - Instrumentals
This
first all-instrumental release from Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder
features an entire collection of music penned by Skaggs himself.
Selections: Goin' To Richmond, Missing Vassar, Wayward To Hayward, Montana
Slim, Crossing The Briney, Crossville, Gallatin Rag, Dawgs' Breath, Spam
Jelly, Goin' To The Ceili, Polk City
Ricky Skaggs has featured instrumentals on his various albums before (where they're often among the highlights), but this set is the first time Skaggs and his Kentucky Thunder bluegrass ensemble have released an album solely of instrumentals, which makes this a special treat. From the Irish feel of the opening "Going to Richmond," Skaggs and the band hit a confident and assured groove that is at times as much string band jazz as it is bluegrass, and on the absolutely huge-sounding "Crossing the Briney," which makes used of the Nashville String Machine, the sound shifts closer to classical music, complete with massive, swelling crescendos. But this set has a traditional side, too, highlighted by the easy-rolling "Missing Vassar," and while Skaggs wrote all the pieces here, it isn't difficult to imagine Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder as an old-timey string band hanging out on the porch and playing a set of local favorites on a Saturday afternoon. It is this ability to stretch the boundaries of bluegrass while still adhering to a traditional base that makes Skaggs and company so interesting, and when Andy Statman brings his clarinet to the gentle, bright "Gallatin Rag" in a guest spot, the music ceases to be bluegrass or jazz or traditional or anything in particular, but emerges instead as a hybrid of everything at once. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide
Click HERE to return to top of page
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Boohers - Grandma’s Songs (CD, 2005)
Lonesome Day Records LDR-008; 143 Deaton Road, Booneville, KY. 41314;
TEL. (606)398-2369; EMAIL murraymusicgroup@hotmail.com;
www.lonesomeday.com OR http://www.theboohers.com/; Playing Time - 37:01
The Boohers are a captivating family band that makes their debut on Lonesome Day Records with "Grandma’s Songs” which is actually the group’s fourth album overall
Click HERE to read more at Bluegrass Works.
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Cherryholmes - self-titled (CD, 2005)
Skaggs
Family 6989020142
PO
Box 2478, Hendersonville, TN. 37077
www.skaggsfamilyrecords.com
OR www.cherryholmes.net
Michelle
Nikolai michelle@skaggsfamilyrecords.com
INFO:
Kissy Black TEL. (615)298-1144 OR kissyblack@lotosnile.com OR jocelyn@lotosnile.com
Playing
Time - 45:51
The Cherryholmes' pendulum of repertoire swings from Bill Monroe ("Tallahassee") to the Dirt Band ("Workin' Man"), and Hazel Dickens ("Workin' Girl Blues") to the Louvin Brothers ("No One to Sing for Me").
Click HERE to read more at Bluegrass Works
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David Grier - I've Got a House to Myself
Dreadnought
Records (David's own imprint)
david@davidgrier.com
Available from Tricopolis Records
Playing Time - 46:24
David Grier's been a giant of the bluegrass guitar for a good while now....and a lot of folks out there will tell you with good reason. One of Acoustic Guitar magazine's Artists of the Decade, Davis takes a big step here with an album completely and exquisitely performed on solo guitar.
Click HERE to read more of this review at Tricopolis Records.
Here are some internet website that have Bluegrass reviews: http://www.talentondisplay.com/joeross7.html and http://www.bluegrassworks.com/reviews.php;
Click HERE to return to top of page.
For Sale: 25" 2000 Allegro Motor Home for sale.Millage 16000,g ood condition; features,Hydraulic levelers, Microwave, coffee maker, Oven/fridge, Generator. Roof Air, TV&CD Player, CB Radio 454 Workhorse Chassis,4 Awnings, Automatic Stepts.Asking,24900.00.Contact Ken Allen e-mail kmallen2@verizon.net, or Ph 909-982-8485 [posted 12/08/07]
For Sale: Silver Princess 5-string banjo with hard shell case, $800.00 Kay bass (ser. no.: 41202) Model C-a full size upright, tuners black and brass with no engraving; excellent condition; circa 1959; $1000. (951) 372-8266 Debbie McBriety [posted 10/03/07]
For Sale: 1988 Southwind 28' CL A basement model motor-home, good condition, new tires & brakes, plus more. Chev 454 engine, 63,000 miles. Special price for SWBA member. For more information call Dave at 310-978-8196. [Posted 6/10/07].
For Sale: 2003 Martin HD35 Guitar & Martin Case. Original owner, excellent condition, pick-up installed under bone saddle, strap button installed. This guitar has a beautiful 3pc Rosewood back accented by the heringbone trim. $2,150.00 405-830-3631 505-377-9476 or blbarnes@brightok.net for more info. [Posted 4/1/07]
For Sale: Applause guitar, around 20 years old and in excellent condition, asking $150. Contact Ken Allen at kmallen2@verizon.net
Wanted: A reliable transportation car for sale (or give-away); please call Sharon Stanton (760) 244-8233. [Posted 3/1/07]
Click HERE to return to top of page.
Q: What would a Bluegrass musician do if he won a million dollars?
A: Continue to play gigs until the money ran out.
Q: Why do fiddle players pick on banjo pickers?
A: Cause they can’t pick on their fiddles.
Q: Why aren't there tubas in bluegrass bands?
A: Because they are HEAVY METAL!!!
Q: What does a banjo player do when asked "Give me a five"?
A: He says, "Go get your own banjo."
Q: What does it mean when a guitar player is drooling out both sides of his mouth?
A: The stage is level.
Q: What did the guitar say to the guitarist?
A: Pick on someone your own size!
Q: How many guitarists does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Twenty. One to change the bulb and nineteen to say, "Not bad, but I could've done better".
Q: What is the difference between a guitarist and a Savings Bond?
A: Eventually a Savings Bond will mature and earn money!
Q: What is the difference between a guitar and a tuna fish?
A: You can tune a guitar but you can't tuna fish.
Q: How many bass players does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Only one - but the guitarist has to show him first.
Q: How can you tell the difference between all the banjo songs?
A: By their names.
Q: What's black and blue and laying in a ditch?
A: A guitarist who's told one too many banjo player jokes.
Q: How can you tell if a violin is out of tune?
A: The bow is moving.
Q: How many upright bass players does it take to change a lightbulb?
A: 1...5...1...5...1...5...
Q: How do you keep your mandolin from getting stolen?
A: Put it in a banjo case.
Q: What does a mandolin player say when he gets to his gig?
A: Would you like fries with that?
Q: Why did the Boy Scout take up the Dobro (i.e., resophonic, slide guitar)?
A: They make good paddles.
Q: Why don't banjo players play hide and seek?
A: Because no one will look for them.
Q: Why do many bluegrass bands have dobro players?
A: They need someplace level to set their drinks.
Q: How do you get a banjo picker off your front porch?
A: Pay him for the pizza
Q: How many bluegrass musicians does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Three, one to do it and two to argue about whether that was the way Bill Monroe
would have done it.
Q: What's the difference between a fiddle player and a dog?
A: The dog knows when to stop scratching.
Q: What's the least-used sentence in the English language?
A: "Isn't that the banjo player's Porsche?"
Q: How do you make an upright bass stay in tune?
A: Chop it up and make it into a xylophone.
Bluegrass Dictionary
The world of Bluegrass Music is awash with esoteric, arcane, and otherwise marginally comprehensible terminology. In an effort to simplify and clarify these words, the following dictionary is offered. In other words, here's a list of a few common Bluegrass vocabulary term and their definitions:
A-Hole Mandolin: A fully assembled mandolin...not in parts.
Acoustic: An instrument for playing pool of billiards (not necessarily a banjo)
Album Jacket: Item to keep posterior warm in winter.
Backbeat: Used to greet an old friend at a Bluegrass festival.
Banjo Pot: Used for cooking stew or soup when camping at a Bluegrass festival.
Banjo Tab: A diet soft drink for pickers.
Bark: Mandolin's sound when playing Dawg music.
Bass: What Daddy sings.
Breakdowns: What occurs after 14 hours of parking lot picking
Bridge: To help you cross those troubled waters.
Capo: Hot cereal that sponsors a Bluegrass radio show.
Chinrest: An instrumental played to give the lead singer a break.
Chops: A mandolin player's disease
Chords: Type of pants seldom worn by Bluegrassers
Chromatic Picking: Polished playing (often performed on a dobro).
Chromatic Scale: Nothing a little dobro polish won't remove
Chunking: Chinese mandolin rhythms.
Clawhammer: A tool for straightening bent fingerpicks or arthritic fingers.
Clog Dancing: Originally for Holland, a cross between rhumba, cha-cha-cha, and waltz
Crosspicking: What happens when a picker gets angry.
Dawg Music: Something your pet sings to.
Dobro (r): Pillsbury Doughboy's brother.
Double Stops: Two endings to a song, often seen in jam sessions.
Duet: Instruction, or command given to the banjo play to start a song (opposite of "refrain")
Fifth String Nut: Person crazy about banjos.
Fine Tuners: Best tuners that money can buy.
Fingerboard: What happens to a picker's fingers after playing the same old licks year after year.
Flatpicking': To pick like Lester Flatt.
Flattop: John Duffey's hair style.
Frailing: Turning pale and sickly white when electric instruments are used to play bluegrass
Frets: What a guitar player gets when about to do a break for a song never played before.
Guitar Case: A psychotic guitar player.
Gutbucket: Bucket for used fiddle strings.
Hot Lick: Something your pet does to your arm while you hold a burger
Lloyd Loar: Folk Loar's brother.
Mountain Dew: What's on the flower petals when you stop picking at 4am.
Pick Guard: Deodorant for pickers.
Pitch: Act of promoting you band to get gigs.
Refrain: Don't Duet!
Reno roll: Winning gambling spree in Nevada
Resonator: Automatic device for applying resin to strings.
Scrugg's Style: Desinger dress code for Bluegrass bands.
Slap Bass: What's done to awaken the bass singer, or alert the bas player to take a break.
Solo: Word used to describe the bass vocal part.
Tater-bug: Spying device to record hot mandolin licks.
Truss Rod: Item to improve a banjo player's posture, or contain the overhand above the belt.
FOR THE MUSICIANS AMONGST US:
You're too old to play gigs when:
1.
It becomes more important to find a place on stage for your fan than your
amp.
2. Your gig clothes make you look like George Burns out for a round of
golf or Dolly Parton with no bosom.
3. All your fans leave by 9:30 p.m.
4. All you want from groupies is a foot massage and back rub.
5. You love taking the elevator because you can sing along with most of
your set-list.
6. Instead of a fifth member, your band wants to spring for a roadie.
7. You lost the directions to the gig.
8. You need your glasses to see the amp settings.
9. You've thrown out your back jumping off the stage.
10. You feel like heck before the gig even starts.
11. The waitress is your daughter!
12. You stop the set because your ibuprofen fell behind the speakers.
13. Most of your crowd just sways in their seats.
14. You find your drink tokens from last month's gig in your guitar case.
15. You refuse to play without earplugs.
16. You ask the club owner if you can start at 8:30 instead of 9:30.
17. You check the TV schedule before booking a gig.
18. Your gig stool has a back.
19. You're related to at least one member in the band.
20. You don't let anyone sit in.
21. You need a nap before the gig.
22. After the third set, you bug the club owner to let you quit early.
23. During the breaks, you now go to the van to lie down.
24. You prefer a music stand with a light.
25. You don't recover until Tuesday afternoon.
26. You hope the host's speech lasts forever … … …
27. You buy amps considering their weight and not their tone or “cool”
factor.
28. Feeling guilty looking at hot women at the audience, 'cause they're
younger than your daughter.
29. You can remember seven different club names for the same location.
30. You have a hazy memory of the days when you could work 10 gigs in 7
days and could physically do it!
31. Your date couldn't make it because she couldn't find a babysitter for
the grandkids.
32.
The set list has to be in 20 point type..
33. Your drug of choice is now coffee…
34. It seems impossible to find stage shoes with decent arch support.
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
You know, sometimes, when I lie in bed at night and look up at the stars, I think to myself,
"Man! I really need to fix that roof."
An hour before church service, the pastor approaches the guitar player and says, "I'm glad to see you include Bible precepts in your playing."
The guitarist asks "Do you mean "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord?'"
"No," answers the pastor, "Don't let the left hand know what the right hand is doing."
For those of you who missed the Monsters of Bluegrass in concert, Halloween 2005, you're in luck! You can see video highlights by clicking HERE and HERE and HERE.
IN CONCLUSION:
And finally, due to several typos found on the SWBA website brought to the SWBA webmanager's attention by devoted readers of the SWBA website, the webmanager has decided to terminate employment of two Spell Checkers, one from the English edition and one from the Latin edition. Also, any devoted reader wishing to make a complaint should do so by writing legibly in this space: ( )
For more Bluegrass Humor(?) visit: http://www.markfair.com/editor.html
Click HERE to return to top of page.
National
Bluegrass Playoffs The nine year old Playoffs is held each year at the Huck
Finn Jubilee, and is designed to assist deserving bands further their
involvement in the Bluegrass music industry.
After
a six month review, which began at the International Bluegrass Music
Association’s (IBMA) Convention in Nashville
last September, four top flight bands are offered an invitation to showcase
during the Playoffs. Dick Pierle with Old Blue Sound assists in the
selection process. “It takes several dozen festivals, and music
submissions before we extend an invitation”, states Pierle. “We are very
careful to create a level playing field, and we are very proud of this
year’s selection”.
A
warm-up set is requested of each band on Friday, June 13th, and
$500 is given to cover travel expenses. The Southwest Bluegrass Association
is raising funds by raffling a Deering “Calico Model” banjo, a Beard
“Series E” resonator guitar and Martin D18V donated by
participating companies. All monies collected support the Playoffs.
The
National Bluegrass Playoffs Band of the Year, is then chosen to attend the
IBMA Convention, Awards Show and Fan Fest in Nashville
, Tennessee . An expense allowance for travel, lodging and
registration up to $4,000 is provided.
This
year’s Playoff bands will perform before thousands of bluegrass fans
and share the stage with some of the music’s top acts, including Doyle
Lawson & Quicksilver, The Dan Tyminski Band, Blue
Highway and Dry
Branch Fire Squad.
A
schedule of performance is posted at www.huckfinn.com.
Click HERE to return to top of page.
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NCBS Lifetime Achievement Awards were presented to Carl Pagter of Walnut Creek, Jack Sadler of Los Gatos, and the late Jake Quesenberry of Morgan Hill. The trio formed the West Coast's first and largest bluegrass music club, the California Bluegrass Association, in 1973.
The Northern California Bluegrass Society's Bluegrass On Broadway Festival received principal financial support from the City of Redwood City's Civic Cultural Commission, the Redwood City Public Library, and the Peninsula Christian Center. The four-day event concludes Sunday with a bluegrass film festival at the Redwood City library.
Other individual award winners honored at the program were:
- Male Vocalist – Billy Pitrone
- Female Vocalist – Diana Donnelly
- Guitar Player – Jerry Ashford
- Mandolin Player – Butch Waller
- Banjo Player – Bill Evans
- Fiddle Player – Annie Staninec
- Dobro Player – Jim Mintun
- Bass Player – Lisa Burns
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February 11, 2007 - Review of Bluegrass Album: "Instrumentals," Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder
Ricky Skaggs has featured instrumentals on his various albums before (where they're often among the highlights), but this set is the first time Skaggs and his Kentucky Thunder bluegrass ensemble have released an album solely of instrumentals, which makes this a special treat. From the Irish feel of the opening "Going to Richmond," Skaggs and the band hit a confident and assured groove that is at times as much string band jazz as it is bluegrass, and on the absolutely huge-sounding "Crossing the Briney," which makes used of the Nashville String Machine, the sound shifts closer to classical music, complete with massive, swelling crescendos. But this set has a traditional side, too, highlighted by the easy-rolling "Missing Vassar," and while Skaggs wrote all the pieces here, it isn't difficult to imagine Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder as an old-timey string band hanging out on the porch and playing a set of local favorites on a Saturday afternoon. It is this ability to stretch the boundaries of bluegrass while still adhering to a traditional base that makes Skaggs and company so interesting, and when Andy Statman brings his clarinet to the gentle, bright "Gallatin Rag" in a guest spot, the music ceases to be bluegrass or jazz or traditional or anything in particular, but emerges instead as a hybrid of everything at once. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide
Click HERE to return to top of page
Announcing the Southwest Bluegrass Group on Yahoo - Have you heard about the Southwest Bluegrass Group on Yahoo? If you haven’t, you can take a look by clicking HERE. There are many benefits in and reasons for becoming a member of the Southwest Bluegrass Group. Most importantly, it's a place for connecting with other bluegrassers, a place to share, to learn and to chat about:
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All kinds of bluegrass information, news, trivia
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Instruments for sale, lessons, and luthiers
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Calendar of events with timely reminders
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Songs, lyrics, tablature
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Photos from Bluegrass events
The Southwest Bluegrass Group is rapidly growing, with more and more members showing a strong bluegrass
presence here in the southwest. It’s FREE and EASY to join (how to join is clearly indicated at the website).
It’s not affiliated with any bluegrass association, and ANYONE can become a member. Those who belong to
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Fiddler of the Opry: The Howdy Forrester Story, by Gayel Pitchford
The book is the first thorough
account of the life and music of the influential Tennessee fiddler who
died in 1987, with sections covering his upbringing in Hickman County, his
early career and partnership with Georgia Slim Rutland, his long stint
with Roy Acuff's Smoky Mountain Boys, and his various recordings,
compositions, and arrangements. It's over 240 pages in length, including
musical notations for 23 of Forrester's pieces and a nice selection of
photographs. The wide-ranging sources for Pitchford's research are
well-documented in the book's notes, and they include extensive
information and ephemera provided by the Forrester family.
Copies can be mail-ordered directly from the publisher for $26.95 each,
plus $4.00 shipping per book (California residents add $1.95 sales tax per
book). Canadian orders must be accompanied by a postal money order in US
funds. Allow 15 days for delivery.
Viewpoint Press
PMB 400, 785 Tucker Road #G
Techapi, CA 93561
Click HERE to return to top of page
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High Hills CD Leaves on the River
Songs: When I Get home I'm Gonna Be Satisfied. Angel's Flight, Night Rider's Lament, Leaves on the River, Orphan Girl, I'll Fly Away From Here, Rawhide, Moonlight, Lullaby, Maui Sunrise, I'll Stay Around, Someday Soon, Wayfaring Stranger, Amazing Grace, Over the Rainbow
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NASHVILLE, TN (April 30th, 2007) – Doyle Lawson states, “I'm happy to announce that the new member of Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver will be Ron Spears. Ron will be playing bass and handling lead and harmony vocals. Ron is a longtime student and fan of Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, and he understands the style—when we got together, the vocal blend with the trio and quartet was extremely pleasing to my ear. I’m looking forward to his vocal input as well as having another songwriter in the band.” Spears, who penned “Ocean Of Teardrops” on Lawson’s latest release, will start his new duties with Quicksilver on a yet-to-be-determined date. Click HERE to visit Lawson's web site and read more.
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Dry
Branch Fire Squad CD on Rounder - "What
separates Dry Branch Fire Squad from most neotraditionalists is its
knowing, unsentimental evocation of mountain culture. Rather than
representing Appalachia as a kind of mythical paradise lost, the band
often speaks to the present-day realities of lost jobs, rural slums,
poverty and social disintegration.' – Los Angeles Daily News
Burlington, MA – May 15, 2007, Rounder Records
released Thirtieth Anniversary
Special – a definitive collection by one of America’s most venerable
and beloved bluegrass bands, Dry Branch Fire Squad. An extensive album,
with 21 tracks, Thirtieth Anniversary Special spotlights the wide spectrum
of Dry Branch Fire Squad’s repertoire of mountain soul, bluegrass and
old-time music, featuring live tracks, studio favorites, rarities and a
capella gospel cuts, packaged with new liner notes and archival photos.
Thirtieth Anniversary Special complements Rounder’s previous Dry Branch
Fire Squad anthology, 1987’s Tried and True and includes new recordings
since that collection’s release (plus four previously unreleased
tracks). Led by singer, mandolin-picker and raconteur Ron Thomason, Dry
Branch Fire Squad is one of the most compelling and unique bluegrass bands
to emerge in the past three decades. With each album (over a dozen to
date), Dry Branch Fire Squad carries timeless traditions into the modern
era with a blend of reverence, soul and wit all their own. Bluegrass
Unlimited calls Thomason “one of the most soulful vocalists in bluegrass
history.”
Thirtieth Anniversary Special
follows up Dry Branch’s 2-disc live CD, Live at the Newburyport Fire
House (Rounder, 2005) which documents their endearing live performance,
with Thomason’s humorous storytelling and between-song commentary. The
Boston Globe called the album “irresistible,” while Dirty Linen said,
“The 15 songs reveal a group that is at the peak of its form.”
Dry Branch Fire Squad is: Ron
Thomason (lead vocals and mandolin), Brian Auldridge (guitar, mandolin and
harmony vocals), Tom Boyd (banjo, Dobro and vocals) and Dan Russell (bass
and guitar). Beginning May 19, the band will perform at festivals and
concert halls throughout the U.S.
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Scott Gates and the Pacific Ocean Bluegrass Band went in to the Topanga Banjo and Fiddle Contest on Sunday the 20th of May, 2007, performed their hearts out and captured the Top Band Award! The band consists of Scott Gates on Mandolin, Victor Skidanenko on Banjo, Jessica Johnson on rhythm guitar, Paul Davis on lead guitar and Dave Gooding on Bass. They went up against the competition and when the dust was settled, they emerged with the top prize! This band is a youth driven outfit with leader Scott Gates only 14! All of the other members are 18 or younger with the exception of experienced Bluegrass Bassist Dave Gooding. The future of Bluegrass looks bright.
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The 6th Annual Florence Winter Folk Festival is now accepting applications for performers. There will be a total of seven performers in addition to the two headliners. Each performer is expected to perform a one hour set. You can sell CD's and a $500 honorarium will be paid. Performers provide their own transportation, but lodging can also be provided if necessary. For more information click HERE to visit the event web site. To apply, download the application and mail it to the address shown on the application, or apply electronically via Sonicbids. Applications are due on September 15th and selections will be made by the end of September. For further information please contact Hal Weiner by e-mail at: admin@winterfolkfestival.org or phone him at 541-902-2336.
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Rounder announces upcoming release of Clair Lynch CD. New recordings of favorites from her Front Porch String Band days highlight the signature groove of the Claire Lynch Band, while ten classics from her Rounder catalog form an ideal introduction to one of acoustic music's most innovative artists. Luminous and elegant, Lynch's music is a mesmerizing blend of bluegrass, country, folk, and swing, exquisitely showcasing her gifts as a vocalist, songwriter, and bandleader.
Crowd Favorites Track Listing:
- Train Long Gone
- The Day That Lester Died *
- Fallin' in Love
- Hills of Alabam' *
- If Wishes Were Horses
- Your Presence is My Favorite Gift
- Jealousy
- Silver and Gold
- Sweetheart, Darlin' of Mine
- Kennesaw Line