The Bluegrass Standard - Volume 1, Issue 5

ge

38

Volume 1 ~ Issue 5

IBMA 201 INSIDE:

p 7~

a

Flatt Lonesome • Big Bad Rooster • Edgar Loudermilk • Grascals • Jr Sisk • and more!

This month's Contributing Journalists: Anna Hite, Hinds Community College Susan Marquez

6

Daniel Wile

IBMA 38 62

The Bluegrass Standard The Bluegrass Standard magazine is published monthly. Opinions expressed are not necessarily the opinions of The Bluegrass Standard or its staff, advertisers or readers with the exception of editorials.

Publication of the name or the photograph of any person, business or organization in articles or advertising in The Bluegrass Standard is not to be construed as any indication of support of such person, business or organization. The Bluegrass Standard disclaims any responsibility for claims made by advertisers.

Advertising rates are subject to change without notice. The Bluegrass Standard reserves the right at its sole discretion to reject any advertising for any reason. It is our policy to publish any letters to the editor that are signed and verifiable by phone number. We reserve the right of anonymity upon request. Letters must be grammatically correct, clarity and original and free of libel. The Bluegrass Standard reserves the right to decline publishing or reprinting any letter.

Please forward any letters to: editor@thebluegrassstandard.com The views expressed are not necessarily those of The Bluegrass Standard. Copyright Š2017. All Rights reserved. No portion of the publication may be reproduced in any form without the expressed consent of the publisher.

2

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

The Blue grass Standard Staff Keith Barnacastle • Publisher The Bluegrass Standard represents a life-long dream for Keith Barnacastle, who grew up in Meridian, Mississippi. For three years, Keith brought the Suits, Boots and Bluegrass Festival to Meridian, allowing him to share his appreciation for the music of his youth with fans from across the country.

Now, with the Bluegrass Standard, Keith's enthusiasm for the music and his vision of the future of bluegrass reaches a nationwide audience, every month! He hopes that for every new person that reads the magazine, it may spark a delight and enjoyment of bluegrass they might have otherwise missed.

Richelle Putnam • Managing Journalist Editor Richelle Putnam is a Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC) Teaching Artist/Roster Artist (Literary), a Mississippi Humanities Speaker, and a 2014 MAC Literary Arts Fellowship recipient. Her YA biography, The Inspiring Life of Eudora Welty (The History Press, April 2014), received the 2014 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards Silver Medal. Her non-fiction books include Lauderdale County, Mississippi; a Brief History (The History Press, 2011), Legendary Locals of Meridian, Mississippi (Arcadia Publishing 2013) and Mississippi and the Great Depression (The History Press, November 2017). She writes for many publications.

Shelby Campbell • Journalist Editor Shelby Campbell is a writer and designer whose heart beats for creativity.

A native of rural Livingston, Ala., she found her passion in journalism and design at The University of West Alabama, where she received a Bachelor's degree in Integrated Marketing Communications. While also being a Feature Writer for The Bluegrass Standard, Shelby is creative, driven and passionate as a web designer and creative specialist for The Angie Denney Agency in Pensacola, Florida. She also has her own lifestyle photography business, Shelby Campbell Photography, based in Foley, Alabama.

Kara Martinez Bachman • Journalist Kara Martinez Bachman is an author, editor and entertainment journalist.

Her music and culture reporting has appeared in dozens of publications and she's interviewed many performers over the years, from local musicians to well-known celebrities.

She's a native of New Orleans and lives just outside the city with her husband, two kids, and two silly mutts.

James Babb • Creative Director James Babb is a native Californian, and a long-time resident of Palm Springs. He has been involved in creative work of many types, ranging from electronic design in the 1980's, to graphic and online design today.

In addition to his work for The Bluegrass Standard, James designs and produces large-format graphics for trade shows and special events. James also provides custom framing of paintings by artists from his local creative community.

CONT The Special Consensus

6

10

Junior Sisk & Rambler's Choice

Big Bad Rooster

Tomorrow’s Bluegrass Stars

16

28

Flatt Lonesome

22 38 34

IBMA

Larry Cordle

Edgar Loudermilk

44 4

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

ENTS 47 46

52

58

66

Music Barn Brad Hudson

Music Barn Lady Gaga

Bluegrass Tech: Ear Trumpet Labs

Grascals

56

Back Porch ~ Dolly Parton

Kody Norris

62

Randy Wood

68

Festival Guide

Suits, Boots & Bluegrass ~ Fan photos

72 THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

5

Sharing music with a fun, receptive audience, The Special Consensus connects with every person on a gut level—even after four decades. Some things never grow old; they grow better with time.

6

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

The band began performing in the Midwest in spring 1975, with Greg being the sole constant and over 40 band members revolving in and out of the band over the years. It’s nearly impossible to describe Cahill’s extensive music career, but in four decades, he has been a banjo player, band leader, teacher, tour organizer, publicist, record producer, and an International Bluegrass Music Association board member.

Over 40 Years & A Lifetime to Go...

“I started the band with friends in the Chicago area, and in 1975, bassist Marc Edelstein and I decided we wanted to try playing full time. That became the official beginning of the band as we know it,” said Greg.

Greg

© 2017 Shelby Campbell

In 1975, the world of bluegrass was introduced

to one of the greats. When Greg Cahill stepped on stage for the first time with his band, the first VHS tape had just been introduced, Jaws had become one of the first blockbuster films, Bruce Springsteen had just released his third album and the cost of a stamp was 10¢. Longevity in anything requires dedication and patience. Not only does Greg process these qualities; he wears them humbly.

The Special Consensus is an excellent classic bluegrass band that attracts even the youngest bluegrass listeners. They approach music with an incredible energy that draws listeners from the moment the first note pours from their mouths and instruments.

The Special Consensus released its first album in 1979, the year the band began performing nationally. In 2000, Pinecastle Records released the band’s first performance video - recorded for Iowa Public Television’s Old Time Country Music Show— honoring the band’s 25th anniversary.

In the early 2000s, The Special Consensus received a standing ovation after their first appearance on the Grand Ole Opry at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium and since then has performed all over the world, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Europe, South America, and Australia.

With 18 band recordings on the shelf by 2016, The Special Consensus has recorded for Tin Ear Records, Acoustic Revival Records in Chicago, Turquoise Records in Kentucky, Pinecastle Records in North Carolina and, most recently, the Nashville-based Compass Records.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

7

The Special Consensus is made up of Nick Dumas on mandolin and vocals; Dan Eubanks on bass and vocals; Rick Faris on guitar and vocals; and Greg Cahill on banjo and vocals, with each one bringing his own personal feel for bluegrass. Their sound, somewhere between traditional and modern, is completed by arrangements of strong vocals and harmonies that present new songs with a traditional feel.

Dan was listening to bluegrass at a young age.

Growing up in Missouri, he learned to play the drums, banjo, guitar, and electric bass before reaching his teen years. He played in country and rock bands throughout high school and attended college on a music scholarship. After many years of teaching in St. Louis, Dan’s desire to get back into bluegrass led to his move to Nashville, Tenn.

Since then, he has performed with various bands, worked as a studio session musician, and appeared as a supporting musician on CMT’s Nashville. Dan joined The Special Consensus in 2013.

Nick Rick

Hailing from Brier, WA, Nick grew up listening to bluegrass music—being introduced to it by his dobro-playing grandfather. Inspired from watching his grandfather’s band, Nick was 12 when he began taking fiddle lessons. After learning to play the mandolin, guitar and banjo, Nick helped co-found his first band, Northern Departure, and quickly became a household name in the region. He later co-founded another band, North Country Bluegrass, before joining The Special Consensus in 2015.

Dan

Rick, well-known in the bluegrass industry as an award-winning guitar player, joined his first band in 1998. He plays the dobro, guitar, banjo and mandolin. Rick’s first band, The Faris Family Bluegrass Band, won many SPBGMA (Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America) awards.

Rick was one of the first teachers at the Americana Music Academy in Lawrence, Kansas. He joined The Special Consensus in 2009 and spends his spare time as a luthier building guitars.

Greg grew up in a musical family in the Chicago area. He learned how to play his first tunes from his grandfather, who gave him a harmonica at a young age. Greg took up playing the accordion at eightyears-old, but it was in high school that he truly fell in love with bluegrass and folk music.

“Many of the top folk artists came to Chicago in the ‘60s and ‘70s, and it was playing folk music that brought me to bluegrass music and the banjo,” said Greg.

8

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

While a junior at St. Mary’s College in Minnesota, Greg’s course in life changed when his friend Pat Frawley played the LP, Earl Scruggs Foggy Mountain Banjo. After graduation, Greg served in the Vietnam War before pursuing his new passion and forming The Special Consensus.

Four decades later, The Special Consensus released its eighteenth album, Long I Ride, on which they are joined by special guests Della Mae, Rob Ickes, Trey Hensley, Summer McMahan and producer Alison Brown.

“We went on one of Rhonda Vincent’s cruises years ago, and we had a big time - music everywhere for days. We are thankful that Danny Stuart invited us to join him in being a part of this one,” Greg said.

Sharing music with a fun, receptive audience, The Special Consensus connects with every person on a gut level—even after four decades. Some things never grow old; they grow better with time.

“Long I Ride continues Special C’s streak of awardwinning music on Compass Records.

When you see The Special Consensus in person, you get an energetic, entertaining set of music - and that’s just what you get on this album,” said Tom Adams, music critic.

The Special Consensus recently won an IBMA award for Instrumental Recorded Performance of the Year for Fireball, which appears on Long I Ride.

“We have been very honored to have received a Grammy nomination and several IBMA awards since working with Alison at Compass Records,” said Greg. “Recording Fireball was her idea, and we had an absolute blast recording that tune. We have learned to make every song or tune special from working with Alison.

While The Special Consensus has been busy winning awards, it has not stopped them from planning another bluegrass cruise. Sailing from Long Beach, California to Baja, Mexico, The Special Consensus invites fans to join them in playing and listening to great bluegrass music.

Like us!

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

9

© 2017 Kara Martinez Bachman

Junior Sisk said he’s glad to finally have a little break from touring. He and Ramblers Choice have been on the road a whole lot, traveling around and gigging several times a week. He’s barely home long enough these days to do his laundry or even cut the grass.

“It’s deer season now,” he said, “So I’m looking forward to kicking back.”

It’s perhaps not a bad problem, to have so many interested in your music that the several-times-a-week shows are virtually back-to-back.

A guitarist and vocalist, Sisk has been performing since he was 14. He’d been around music his whole life. His mom sang. His dad -- who handed down to Sisk his love for the Stanley Brothers -- played guitar, and made it easy for his son to follow in his footsteps.

“Dad bought me an upright bass for Christmas instead of a motorcycle,” Sisk reminisced, laughing. He’d really, really wanted that motorcycle. Once he warmed to the bass, however, it certainly kept him busy. “I just started working on it, and learning to play it,” he said. Before long, he’d moved on and also become a guitar guy. His dad showed him how to play. “And now, I’ve been playing a little over 30 years,” Sisk said, adding that his family band was called Dreaming Creek, back in the 80s.

10

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

He’d later made a mark with his songwriting (penning songs for Lonesome River Band), and spent time with a few other outfits, until the current lineup of Ramblers Choice came together in 2008.

mountains,” and when growing up there in Virginia, bluegrass was everywhere.

He was virtually nestled among its folk beauty. “I used to be five miles from the BG Cardinals...Lost and Found…” Sisk rattled off a list of the musicians that hailed from a stone’s throw away. “It was a hotbed of bluegrass music. You could shake a limb on a tree and a banjo player would fall out.”

In addition to Sisk, there’s Jason Davis, on banjo; Johnathan Dillon, on mandolin and vocals; Jamie Harper, on fiddle and vocals; and Kameron Keller, on bass and vocals.

Today, he said many artists have dug their roots out and re-planted themselves in Nashville.

However, those mountains of home continue to inspire Sisk’s work. By all indications, new tunes are always in the works.

Over the years, Sisk and the band have logged both wins and multiple nominations from IBMA, and have also been recognized by the SPBGMA. Listeners have clearly been enjoying the recent album, “The Mountains Are Calling Me Home.” Its debut single, “What Goes Around,” debuted at #1 on the Bluegrass Today monthly airplay chart in April. Sisk credits the success of his latest album to some great writing.

“I guess we’re gonna do another bluegrass record,” said Sisk, when asked what he’ll do after catching up on rest and leisure during this period of lighter touring.

“We’re listening real hard to new songs right now.”

“I’ve got a lot of good songwriters I called on,” he explained, “and I get a lot of good songs sent to me.” When selecting songs, “we try to keep it traditional, but with our own sound.”

Sisk expects a new record will be ready by sometime around March 2018, and just as with the last album, it will be a Mountain Fever Records release. If there’s time, he and the band might also sneak in an additional recording.

For Sisk, it’s always been a love affair with the folk music that is so abundant in his home area of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains.

“People have been after us to do a gospel record,” he said.

Sisk also finds time for an annual outdoor event that sends his favorite music back out into the mountains of the Blue Ridge.

“The traditional bluegrass has always been my only music,” he said. “It’s the words... and the mountain soul.” Sisk lives “deep in the

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

11

! s u e Lik

! e t i s b r we

u o t i s Vi

“I host a festival every year in Floyd, Virginia, at Chantilly Farm,” Sisk said. “It’s one of the biggest festivals around now. We have top notch bands and it’s growing every year.” It’s a three-day fest of food, music and activities, which Sisk calls his “home festival.”

Tickets are already on sale for the 8th Annual Chantilly Farm Bluegrass and BBQ Festival, which will happen May 25 through 27, 2018. The lineup includes Balsam Range; The Seldom Scene; Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time; Lonesome River Band; Volume Five; Love Canon; Breaking Grass; Darrell Webb Band; Kenny & Amanda Smith Band; The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys; and of course, Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice.

12

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

44TH ANNUAL

SPBGMA BLUEGRASS MUSIC AWARDS ~ AND ~

35th NATIONAL CONVENTION

Sheraton Music City Hotel, Nashville, Tennessee

FEBRUARY 1-4, 2018

~ FEATURING SOME OF AMERICA’S TOP BLUEGRASS BANDS ~ lonesome river band

doYle laWson & QUiCKsilver

rUssell moore & iiird tYme oUt

rarelY herd

dannY PaisleY & the soUthern grass

the Farm hands

CroWe brothers

ronnie reno & the reno tradition

donna Ulisse and the Poor moUntain boYs Carson Peters and iron mtn

Chris Jones & the night drivers

FlashbaCK

sPeCial ConsensUs

larrY stePhenson band

the grasCals Flatt lonesome

alan bibeY & grasstoWne

steve gUlleY & neW PinnaCle Joe mUllins and the radio ramblers ClaYbanK neWtoWn

dave adKins band

the KodY norris shoW

JohnnY & Jeanette Williams

remington rYde

PUnChes FamilY

Feller & hill and the blUegrass bUCKaroos david ParmleY & Cardinal tradition the Kevin Prater band

Fret high

Po’ramblin’boYs

deePer shade oF blUe

high FidelitY

deer CreeK boYs

the CoUntrY gentleman tribUte band

Cedar hill

mashtag - 2017 ibC Winners

SPBGMA 34th INTERNATIONAL BAND CHAMPIONSHIP $4,000 - $2,000 - $1,000 - $800 - $600 - $500 - $400 - $300 - $200 - $200

THE GREATEST INDOOR SHOW ON EARTH !

– SPECIAL HOTEL RATES –

SHOWCASE OF BANDS – WORKSHOPS – PROMOTERS AND TALENT BUYERS – AGENCIES RECORD COMPANIES – PRODUCERS ALONG WITH MANY OTHER TRADE EXHIBITS Sleeping Rooms – Advance Tickets – Exhibit Booths & Band Contest Registration Forms May be Downloaded from the SPBGMA Web Site below.

OR CONTACT: SPBGMA • P.O. Box 271 • Kirksville, MO 63501 Room Info: 615-456-6706 • E-mail: info@spbgma.com • Web Site: www.spbgma.com

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

13

The world's most trusted source for new & used fretted instruments & accessories... since 1972

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

15

© 2017 Shelby Campbell

At only 18-years-old, Melody Williamson has a beautiful, soulful voice that competes with the bluegrass greats. Some even compare her to a young Taylor Swift. Like Taylor, Melody writes many of her own songs. She is just one of the many reasons Williamson Branch is the newest family band to watch.

Williamson Branch is made up of accomplished guitar picker Kevin Williamson, his wife Debbie on mandolin, and their daughters - Melody on fiddle, Kadence on bass, and Caroline on fiddle.

16

The band is a third-generation bluegrass family.

Kevin’s father, Jerry Williamson, was introduced to bluegrass music in the early 1970’s. He formed a few bluegrass bands throughout his career, but many knew him as “one bluegrass, sound man extraordinaire.” Kevin grew up traveling with his dad and passed the tradition down to his own family.

“My parents started performing bluegrass before me and my sisters were born, and as we’ve grown, the band has grown,” Melody said. “We’ve been performing ever since I can remember.”

Williamson Branch, like many other family bands, is rich in tradition and diverse in taste.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Kevin played music professionally for over 35 years and worked with many bluegrass bands throughout his career, including Glenn Duncan & Phoenix and Farm Hands Quartet. He was also a founding member of Redwing and Shadow Ridge. Keith’s most memorable musical experience is singing with the Father of Bluegrass, Bill Monroe, in Nashville in the early 1990s.

Debbie’s rich history in bluegrass is performing for almost 20 years by herself and founding Shadow Ridge with Kevin. She now brings harmony vocals, as well as solid mandolin rhythm, to Williamson Branch.

Naming Alison Krauss and Loretta Lynn as artists who inspire her, Melody is a bluegrass phenomenon, having performed on stage since she was two-yearsold. She is proud to share her rare and beautiful voice with anyone who listens. Melody’s original song There’s No Country Here enjoyed over half-a-million views online and climbed to number 15 on the independent country radio charts.

“I was expecting a little girl’s voice, but when Melody started singing, I thought I was hearing a young Alison Krauss or Rhonda Vincent,” said Jeanie C. Riley, country artist.

Kadence, however, may become the instrumental star of the family. She is a wonderful bass player and provides the perfect punch to the band’s sound.

Kadence, a champion clog dancer, plays the fiddle, too.

Eight-year-old Caroline, youngest member of Williamson Branch, already plays the fiddle and has been singing harmony since she was three. She has a list of instruments she wants to learn to play, but right now she’s stealing the show with her sassy version of Loretta Lynn’s You Ain’t Woman Enough.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

17

“What a precious, talented family!” said Kimberly East Williams of East Public Relations.

“The harmonies, musicianship and stage presence are top notch.”

Williamson Branch tends to play music that is mostly bluegrass, sometimes country and gospel, but always fresh, exciting and touches the soul. Some writers compare Williamson Branch to the Carter Family, and there’s no better compliment than that.

The band has been featured on WSM’s Pickin’ on the Plaza at the Ryman Auditorium, The Old Dominion Barn Dance, Song of the Mountains on PBS, and more.

Although this family is honored to play at wonderful venues and events, the most unique part of this group is their ability to write original songs, thereby carrying on the proud tradition passed down from Jerry.

“We are always busy writing new things, and this season promises to add even more original materials to our performances,” said Melody.

The younger Williamson Branch members enjoy being a part of Tomorrow’s Bluegrass Stars, a group that supports and promotes young bluegrass.

“Our kids were drawn to TBS because of the heart of Mr. John Colburn,” Debbie said of the Chief Encouragement and Excitement Officer of TBS. “He supports these kids with everything he has and more. Mr. John has been a huge blessing to our family, always giving encouraging words, sharing our videos, and coming to our shows.”

18

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Williamson Branch’s second album, Branchin’ Out, showcases the strong family harmony and Melody’s powerful lead vocals.

They are on their first Canadian tour and will record their first project with an independent bluegrass label this Fall.

Download Williamson Branch’s album or learn more about the family band at: williamsonbranch.com

Preserving Bluegrass One Youngster At A Time!

Tomorrow's Bluegrass Stars continues to support the awareness of its many talented young members. As always, they hope to preserve yesterday’s bluegrass music for tomorrow.

John Colburn & Maggie

Click here to visit the TBS website!

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

19

Let SagaÂŽ be your Source!

For more than 40 years, Saga Musical Instruments has steadily grown to be a global pioneer in high-quality traditional American and European-designed acoustic musical instruments. We continue to set quality and value standards every day. We travel the world in search of skilled manufacturing sources, and the finest raw materials available to achieve our unwavering quality requirements and supply demands.

When you purchase a product from Saga Musical Instruments, you can rest assured that it is from the source, and that it will exceed your every expectation.

Let SagaÂŽ be your Source!

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

21

A Feather in your Cap © 2017 Keith Barnacastle

At the local hangout among the mountain cool air and Joshua trees in Pioneer Town California, Pappy and Harriet’s introduces Big Bad Rooster.

Maryland native Michael Solan guitarist, writer and lead singer, from Whiskey Bottom, Maryland started his career playing Irish music. After some time, the band morphed into more traditional Bluegrass and Americana folk music. Michael met Camilo a violinist at Long Beach State University and they started playing music together when Camilo’s brother Gaspar, a banjo player, joined the band.

Along came Tristan on bass and a luthier who built his bass guitar for his style. Camilo the fiddle player began studying classical violin at 7 yrs. old and performed with various orchestras. In high school he started playing Irish fiddle music, but had the Bluegrass Americana music in the back of his mind.

He enjoys hearing accomplished fiddlers such as Vascar Clemmons, love his technical aspect, Ryan Young, and Jason Carter of the Del McCoury Band.

Banjo player Gaspar loves playing claw hammer banjo but he mixes it up with finger picking as well. The Big Bad Rooster band is a treat for the mind and musical feat.

22

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

As songwriters the band likes to focus on more original music and play a healthy repertoire for longer sets. They do play more traditional songs like the original “In the Pines", also known as "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?" and "Black Girl”, a traditional American folk song which dates back to at least the 1870s, and is believed have originated in Southern Appalachia.

The identity of the song's author is unknown, but it has been recorded by many artists in numerous genres.

Traditionally, it is most often associated with the American folk and Blues musician, Lead Belly, who recorded several versions in the 1940s, Bill Monroe, helped popularize the song (in a different variant, featuring lyrics about a train) among bluegrass and country audiences with his versions recorded in the 1940s and 1950s. It is included on the newest Cd Big Bad Rooster, and others like “if you got the money I got the time”, originally done by Lefty Frizzell and written

by Lefty Frizzell and Jim Beck.

The band loves playing Busker Fest and likes the hometown crowd in Long Beach, California.

Currently they are on an independent label as DIY and would love to be on tour, playing more festivals throughout the west coast, in hopes of introducing their music to people who don’t typically listen to Bluegrass and Americana music.

They are experimenting with sounds like adding an organ and other instruments, to bring all genres and nationalities of people to the music.

Bob Dylan influenced Michael’s music and being an English major in college has helped him with writing the bands original material.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

23

Big Bad Rooster comes from a joke about Michael, his feather hat and that he is a nice guy, but really, it’s about the tiniest guy being the Biggest Baddest Rooster.

Tristan Cole-Falek

Artists we like: • • • • • • • • • • • • •

24

Frank Fairfield Trampled by Turtles Old Crow Medicine Show Beck Lead Belly Buena Vista Social Club Rolling Stones Osbourne Brothers Hank Williams Sr Django Reinhardt Miles Davis String Bean Del McCoury

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Gaspar Barahona

Daytime jobs: Gaspar is a professional brewer and a banjo player in Torrance, Michael does all kinds of odd jobs so he can keep the band which is his priority, Camilo teaches violin from home and Tristan, a luthier for almost 10 years, does builds and repairs for all musical instruments. Tristan started playing with Phil Alvin of the Blasters, which he credits for giving him the tools to move into the band and play Americana and Bluegrass music.

Michael Solan

Camilo Barahona

“We are a group of friends who enjoy hanging out and playing the music we love.

“We find comfort in the unexpected familiarity found between our lives, and those of folks making music far before our time.

“We know this music to embody our values - music should be unapologetic, real, raw.”

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

25

bums and our earlier al s n fa r u o k in th “I ly the music we real e ak m to s u ed ir insp ol to listen back to co 's It e. ak m to d wante e, e differences. Lik ar p m co d an m u each alb owth that have gr d an s ge an ch e hearing th d.” ually, and as a ban id iv d in e ad m n ee b — Charli Robertson

IBMA Vocal Group of the Year ~ 2016 & 2017

28

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

© 2017 Kara Martinez Bachman

Although it is often quipped that it is “lonesome at the top,” there’s nothing sad, solitary or isolating about what’s happening the past few years for bluegrass sensations, Flatt Lonesome.

Not only have the band’s chart-topping songs made rain on radio, but they were recently honored at the International Bluegrass Music Awards in Raleigh, NC, where the band picked up its award for “Vocal Group of the Year” for the second year in a row.

Robertson said new, original material always “gets us excited to get into the studio and hear how it sounds when it’s all put together.”

She said the new album contains nine original tunes, seven of which were penned by songwriters and bandmates Paul Harrigill and/or Kelsi Harrigill.

“That's the most original material we've put on an album yet,” Robertson said.

Including a mix of country and bluegrass traditions, and aiming to offer up a “powerful sense of musical exploration,” the album contains what the band website describes as “melancholy themes of heartbreak,” songs about “the harshness of life’s lessons,” plus the relief of “glowing moments of faith and love requited.”

Adjectives used to describe it all include “brooding” and “contemplative.”

The win comes during the same week the band released its latest album, “Silence in These Walls.”

Fiddle player and vocalist Charli Robertson spoke a little about the new release, a 12-track CD. It’s the band’s fourth studio album since appearing on the bluegrass scene in 2013.

“We are always looking forward to making new music, and getting inspired each and every day for different reasons,” Robertson said.

“However,” she explained, “I think our fans and our earlier albums inspired us to make the music we really wanted to make. It's cool to listen back to each album and compare differences. Like, hearing the changes and growth that have been made individually, and as a band.”

“This album has a darker feel to it than our previous albums,” Robertson said, adding that she is enjoying the change of pace.

Altogether, the band consists of Charli Robertson; Kelsi Robertson Harrigill, on mandolin and vocals; Buddy Robertson, on guitar and vocals; Paul Harrigill, on banjo; Michael Stockton, on resophonic guitar; and Dominic Illingworth on acoustic bass.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

29

“The three siblings, Kelsi, Buddy, and I, started playing music with our parents in churches,” Robertson said.

“The traveling started to get too busy for my dad as a pastor, so we decided to start our own group and take it on the road.”

The band had its first public performance—with a slightly different lineup—at the Society for Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) band competition in 2011, but got noticed with a win the following year at the 2012 competition. The rest is history.

“I always like to say to people that don't know this music, that bluegrass music is real,” Robertson said, of her genre. “The music is acoustically played and usually done very well. I feel like the musicians in this genre of music are some of the most talented. The songs that are sang are real, which is very important to me in the music I play and sing.”

She feels that “realness” and the technical acumen of folk musicians is something that attracts new listeners.

“I feel like bluegrass is getting noticed more lately than it has in a while, and those things could have a lot to do with it,” she explained. “I'm seeing a lot of young people wanting to be a part of it when I go to festivals these days, and that's exciting.”

Robertson also credited radio DJs for perhaps being part of that.

30

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

“Flatt Lonesome would like to thank DJs and fans for their support,” Robertson emphasized. “We love you guys and you're the reason we do what we do!”

As for the future?

“Hopefully we will have more fans, more shows, more music being made, more fun, building our brand, and just expanding in every way!” Robertson replied.

Well, if she gets her wish, and the past few years are any indication of what’s to come, living life near the “top” of bluegrass will likely continue in some fashion.

No doubt, that kinda life will be quite the opposite of brooding and lonesome.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

31

32

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

33

© 2017 Kara Martinez Bachman

It’s clear that singer/songwriter Larry Cordle is inspired by faith.

When asked what motivates him, the response is a simple one, infused with the spiritual side of making music: “All things are from God… and mostly, I’m just in the room.”

Some songs are about love, some about life, but Cordle believes his words and notes all come from the same source.

It took him a little while, though, to get around to creating the straight-up gospel recording he’d always wanted to cut.

“The gospel album was something I just meant to do, but I put it off longer than I meant to,” he said.

The new album, “Give Me Jesus,” recently earned him an IBMA nomination for Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year. It’s a 14-track collection of songs that, when he speaks of them, sound as if they just may be closer to Cordle’s heart than any he’s done before.

He’s a Christian and he’s proud of this record.

That’s not to say his work is always overtly about that faith; it’s not.

He spends some of his time recording his own work and touring, and the rest of it composing songs for a stellar roster of big name musicians.

Cordle’s songs have logged more than 55 million sales to date, and have been recorded by luminaries including Garth Brooks, George Strait, Alison Krauss, Alan Jackson, Trisha Yearwood, Reba McEntire, and many more.

34

He’s released his own albums over the years, including 2014’s “All Star Duets,” which he recorded with Lonesome Standard Time, and included duets with some of the biggest names in music. This one, however, is his first full-on gospel record.

“I was raised on bluegrass and gospel,” he said, “and I love to do it to this day.”

Cordle tells the story on his website bio of how he was influenced as a child by his greatgrandfather, who was an “old time clawhammer banjo stylist, fiddle player and dancer.” The Kentucky-born youngster was introduced as a little boy to bluegrass, country and gospel, so all three genres are a part of his repertoire as a songwriter and performer.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Cordle said he just writes freely based on what drives him creatively, and rarely composes for a specific artist.

“There’s only a few times in life, really only two or three, when I’ve written things specifically for artists,” he explained. “Mostly I write songs and they’re gonna fall where they do.”

For example, he and a co-writer were once given a specific request by George Strait.

“He asked me to do it,” Cordle said. It was a song called “Under This Old Hat.” In the end, though, “Chris Ledoux wound up doing it.”

It must be incredibly fun to be Cordle. To have written beloved music, such as Garth Brook’s “Against The Grain,” is something worthy of a brag, although the humble musician does not seem to be the type to take too much credit. He does his thing, and in the changing world of country music, “that thing” has stood the test of time.

Cordle has seen the changes that have come to music, particularly to country where he does most of his work. Little things have happened that help. For instance, protective laws were passed about a decade ago to help songwriters a bit in the digital world, so they’d see more profit from their writing.

traditional roots.

Cordle said this of “modern” country music: “I realized I didn’t much care for it.”

He called its current incarnation a “spinoff of southern rock” and although he considers himself a “big rock fan,” he wishes country had stayed closer to its folk origins.

“I would have rather country music had stayed country music,” he said.

Cordle’s continued role as a songwriter, however, shows there’s perhaps still an important role to be played by traditionalists.

He’s still going strong, and it’s because he has stayed true to that musical voice speaking from somewhere inside. “[Today] I write the same kind of songs I’ve always written,” he said, in a nutshell.

Because he’s obviously a gentleman, Cordle is quick to balance his critique by giving credit where credit is due.

“For guys like us it’s a lifeline,” he said, of that legislation. “It’s a really great thing that came along for us for digital.”

Availability of online music is one thing that has changed quite a bit since Cordle first started out in the business.

“There’s so much free now,” he said. “It really hurt our record sales, and there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Cordle implied that while technology can be an issue for artists, devoted music fans are a lifeblood that keeps the heart of a music career pumping.

“Once you have a fan in this business, you pretty much have them for life,” Cordle explained. “They come to live shows. They’re smart enough to know it’s how you make your money.”

He said another change came in the way country music and evolved over the past two decades or so, ending up more separated than ever from its THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

“There are still people here [in Nashville] that write great songs,” he said. “And the bluegrass world has been good to a lot of those people.”

As for the future, Cordle said he plans to keep doing what he knows best. He’s working on another album, with an expected release date of somewhere around spring, 2018.

“I’m gonna try to write and play as long as I can,” he said. “I’m gonna make music as long as God will let me.”

visit LarryCordle.com 35

The Sowell Family

LuLu Roman

Chosen Road

Carolina Blue Kevin Pace & The Early Edition

Backline

My Brother's Keeper

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

37

The conference offered so many good seminars that I couldn’t make them all and still sleep.

This was the 5th year that Raleigh hosted the IBMA, before then it was held in Nashville. I met so many wonderful people from all over the country and the world. There were bands from every state in the USA and from countries like the Netherlands, Japan, Germany, Ireland, Canada and Australia and I’m sure many that I didn’t meet during the week.

© 2017 Keith Barnacastle

IBMA Raleigh North Carolina World of Bluegrass (WoB) The World of Bluegrass kicked off on Tuesday the 26th of September, for a full week of festivities for musicians, fans and everyone who just enjoys a great street fair with music and food.

This being my first IBMA convention, I was in awe of all the things that were available to me as a participant. WoB as we now say was never a dull moment, my planning and schedules overlapped and my app on the phone tried to keep me in line with all the events that I wanted to see.

38

The typical day started around 9 am with coffee and getting to the conference seminars that I wanted to hear. Around 12 noon grab a quick bite to eat usually on the city market square area, and then to the trade show for the afternoon. The Bluegrass Standard booth was very busy every day, meeting and greeting everyone that came thru providing information on the latest online bluegrass magazine. Many of the artists stopped to say hello and get the info on what we are all about and to see the magazine playing on the digital screen we set up for viewing.

At 5pm on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and at 6pm on Friday and Saturday the trade show closed, and off to grab another quick bite before attending one of the 7 venues hosting showcase bands till 1 am. You really got to see the top bands perform as I took in all the great music venues. The shuttle bus was running so that you could do what they called the loop and experience your favorite bands each night.

If that weren’t enough for you, the Marriott hotel, the host hotel, was also having showcase rooms where bands that weren’t on the 7 stages around downtown could showcase their talents as well. Those rooms

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

started at 10pm and lasted until to 2 am. At 2 am on your way back to your hotel you might see 15 or 20 groups of musicians jamming in the hallways or even out in the lobby till sun up. I did get some rest between that 2 am time frame and 9 am the next morning. Coffee coffee coffee.

The awards banquet was a highlight of the trip. To see all that talent in one place and the friendship they shared with every convention participant was a rare treat. The best of the best stopped in to say hello and share a story or pick a tune with your idols is worth every moment.

On Friday and Saturday was the street celebration and downtown was a buzz, some 7 stages with the best of the best playing all day and night topped off with dancing in the streets, everyone was smiling.

with enormously talented musicians giving what the fans had come to hear, ending on Saturday night with Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers bringing the house down.

The tourism board published visitor information for the festival from 2013 thru 2016, the 4 years' totals being some 626,000 people visited during those 4 years and an estimated 200,000 for the year 2017, with nearly 50 million dollars spent by visitors and locals in the Raleigh community.

I thoroughly enjoyed the convention and festival but was exhausted by the time we drove back to the family farm in Mississippi... Sign me up for next year again, with more coffee coffee coffee!!!

The Red Hat Amphitheatre main stage was on fire

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

39

40

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

41

DEDICATED TO EXCEPTIONAL CRAFTSMANSHIP

Conserving players and their instruments for years to come.

RCWilliamsCompany.com | 913.912.1083

Follow the dbl Bass Buggie on social media.

©2017 RC Williams Company, LLC. Designed and manufactured by RC Williams. All products made in the U.S.A.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

43

© 2017 Richelle Putnam

want to go home and start learning to play music.”

Edgar Loudermilk was only nine when the bass player in the family band quit. His grandpa, Marvin Loudermilk, told Edgar he would be the bass player now. From the record player in the corner of the room, tunes from a Volume One Bluegrass album stirred the beginnings of a young musician’s life.

Edgar did just that and years later, just out of college, he joined the North Carolina band, Carolina Crossfire. Although it was hard leaving the family band, he started writing original material, which later became tunes for his first project. Around 2001, Edgar signed on with Rhonda Vincent and went on to work for Marty Raybon and Full Circle. But it was during his time with Russell Moore and IIIrd Tyme Out that Edgar discovered his identity. In 2013, Edgar Loudermilk went out on his own.

“That was the first stuff I learned to play bluegrass music to,” said Edgar, who had to sit on the freezer to play the bass that was way too tall for him.

Still, Edgar’s understanding of the power of bluegrass had already happened a few years earlier at the Louvin Brothers Annual Festival. Charlie Louvin asked Edgar’s dad, Bobby Loudermilk, to come up and sing a duet with him.

The song was “When I Stop Dreaming.”

“I remember holding hands with my grandpa [Marvin Loudermilk] and him crying while my dad sang tenor with Charlie,” said Edgar. “I knew it must be a big deal and that made me 44

“That was a hard choice because working with Russell was a dream job.

I remember going to the back of the bus,” said Edgar. “I was tearing up talking to him, but he totally understood and gave me his blessing because he was in the same position when he left Doyle Lawson.”

When you are a songwriter, Edgar explained, a part of you wants to release that music. Stories live inside of you as much as music.

Edgar was a teenager traveling with the family band when he wrote “The Way I Feel.” The title track on Edgar’s last record, “Georgia Maple,” written with Scott Mehaffey, wraps around Edgar’s childhood with an old maple tree, a barn, and a creek. “Grandpa watched us walk the trail down to the creek to go fishing. He had a bigger idea and when we went down there, we had to pray.” The track “Georgia Mountain Man” reveals his grandfather’s life.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

“I like writing exclusive, but when you cowrite you get different ideas.” Bringing ideas to the table and getting feedback from different writers is important. Writing to a theme is difficult for Edgar, who prefers his writing to go into the direction it needs to go and watching it have a life of its own.

Bandmate Glen Crain plays dobro and lap steel guitar, but he can also play drums and bass. The band has been together for about four years, with Edgar, Jeff and Zack primarily doing vocals.

Vocal range can also end up having a life of its own. Edgar didn’t realize his full vocal capacity until recording the Bluegrass Gospel tribute to Josh Turner. Edgar sang all the parts, from lead to tenor to baritone to bass.

Edgar does all the booking for the band and has already booked more than 60 dates for next year.

He had never sung bass.

“Networking and getting your brand out there and letting everybody know who you are, what you’re doing and who the band is, that’s where you get your

“That was a new avenue for me and I realized I could sing way lower than I ever knew.” Singing bass stretched Edgar’s range and made him think about vocals differently.

longevity,” said Edgar.

The Edgar Loudermilk band, features Jeff Autry, the masterful guitarist Edgar met while with IIIrd Tyme “You can’t expect anything to fall into Out. “I couldn’t ask for a stronger guitar player. His your lap. Believe in your brand and chord progressions make me think about a song in a work it.” different way.” Jeff told Edgar that music is like art and your minor keys are dark colors. When If Edgar Loudermilk didn’t play music, he’d love to be a professional fisherman. playing something dark, you don’t want a happy note because Zack Autry plays a Randy Wood Model F-5 Mandolin, which it doesn’t fit. “You are creating a Randy personally gave him in March 2016. (See the Randy setting and mood through the Wood feature in this Bluegrass Standard issue.) key of the music.”

Jeff’s son, Zack Autry, plays mandolin and fiddle. His strong voice and wide vocal range contribute greatly to the band’s impressive harmonies.

Edgar’s advice to new artists: “Be yourself, first and foremost. Study the artists you love but don’t be a copycat.

Always play up (with musicians better than you) and put yourself in a position where you can absorb what you want to absorb.”

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

45

Music Barn Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga—a pop music giant who’s become a household name over the past decade. Responsible for smashing hits such as “Just Dance” and “Born This Way,” Gaga appeals to the masses with her theatrics, catchy beats, and low, sultry vocals. Her first 3 albums were record-breakers; the 2 singles “Bad Romance” and “Poker Face” reached diamond sale status, a level which only 10 songs have ever reached.

However, her 4th album Artpop did not receive as much acclaim.

While it still did well, Artpop did not reach the level of success as her last album, so the pressure was on for Gaga to produce a stunning 5th album to re-cement her claim on the pop music throne. She did so in a way that surprised many fans: returning to her country music roots.

In a 2016 interview with Michael Strahan of Good Morning America, Gaga said about the country influence in her album Joanne , “My mother’s from West Virginia, and I grew up listening to country music with her.

I’ve dated my fair share of cowboys as well, so that had an influence.” However, despite its heavy country flair, Gaga added that she doesn’t consider Joanne to be a country album: “Essentially, it’s a pop record. It’s just my brand of pop. I wanted to make a record about family and friendship and togetherness and learning from the past.”

Despite not being a “true” country album, Joanne still has undeniably strong country tones. Focusing more on soft guitars and the powerful nature of her voice, Gaga delves into a bare, stripped down version of herself that is no less captivating for listeners. Her voice is a strong, mellow wave in ballads like “Million Reasons,” “Sinner’s Prayer,” and the title track “Joanne.”

She returns to her more theatrical traits in upbeat numbers like “John Wayne,” “A-YO,” and “Perfect Illusion,” the last of which doesn’t truly read as a country song at all. The album reads like an allyou-can-eat buffet, full of different choices that don’t feel the most cohesive at times, but still round out for an enjoyable plate of music. On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d give Joanne a solid 9, country album or not.

46

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Music Barn Brad Hudson

With a rich history in bluegrass and country music, it's no surprise that Brad Hudson is about to release a brand new solo project with Pinecastle Records, backed by some industry greats and featuring the incredible Dolly Parton on a track that she wrote. NEXT NEW HEARTBREAK releases November 3rd.

Originally from Raleigh, North Carolina, Brad began singing and playing music at the early age of just three years old. He began learning on guitar and later graduated to Dobro and banjo.

Brad's love for bluegrass and country music grew stronger through his adolescent years and his upbringing in an area rich with talented musicians only solidified his desire to pursue a career in the music business.

Since then he has opened up for country artists like Eric Church, Collin Raye, and performed with Dolly Parton and her family band, as well as recorded some of Dolly's songs and done a music video with her.

Professionally in bluegrass, Brad has toured with the award winning Lorraine Jordan & Carolina Road, earning a SPBGMA Dobro and Bass player of the year nomination during his tenure, Jeff & Sheri Easter, and most recently, Sideline. Brad also was invited by Lorraine Jordan to participate in the acclaimed Country Grass project, released on Pinecastle Records, which he is very proud of. For five years, Brad also performed on the Country Tonite Theatre show in Pigeon Forge, TN. Looking forward now to releasing his first solo project, Brad looks back on all of the opportunities he's had and the incredibly talented musicians he has been privileged to share the stage with and smiles from ear to ear.

It has been an amazing journey so far and he can't wait to see what's next! Brad recently signed on with Wilson Pickins Promotions to assist him with his new venture and both parties are looking forward to getting this great album out and available to the public and bluegrass radio.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

47

48

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

49

$59.99 Free US Shipping The StroboClip™ Clip-On Strobe Tuner features a high definition, true-strobe display and over 50 Sweetened™ Tunings for supreme accuracy.

Amazing things come in small packages!

The hand-made microphones from our craft workshop are unlike anything else you've seen or heard.

We combine state-of-the-art sound quality with playfully eclectic design– the perfect recipe for the creative performer.

S U E T G E R C A H S

L

B

Ear Trumpet Labs “Louise” model microphone description and specifications Louise is a medium-large diaphragm (26mm) condenser microphone designed for live vocal and ensemble use. The design features a spherical stainless steel mesh headbasket spring-suspended in a sixinch diameter stainless-steel ring, which can pivot relative to the copper-and-brass mic body. The design is reminiscent of early broadcast microphones, and is made largely from standard hardware elements. The head basket incorporates a very effective silk and foam pop filter as well as Sorbothane shock and vibration damping to minimize handling noise, and internal rubber baffles to shape the sound of the mic.

The capsule is a Chinese-made electret condenser with additional acoustic damping. Capsules are individually tested and selected – roughly 30% of capsules are rejected for not meeting design criteria. The circuit is a transformerless FET with fully balanced output and EMI noise suppression. Other electrical components in the signal path are highest quality metal film resistors, polypropylene and polystyrene capacitors, and individually tested, hand-matched and biased transistors and JFETs. The circuit includes moderate bass rolloff to compensate for proximity effect, and high frequency EQ to avoid harshness and help control feedback. The cardioid polar pattern, headbasket design, and tuned electronics all work together to make a very stable live mic with an extremely natural sound and good feedback rejection. Louise is optimized for use by singers or acoustic ensembles from 6” to 48” away. The styling, form-factor, and sound are ideal for period swing or jazz vocalists or single-mic techniques with bluegrass or traditional musicians, with significantly better feedback rejection than the LDCs typically used in these applications.

Sensitivity: 12 mv/Pa Output Impedance: 150 ohms

52

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Ear Trumpet Labs “Myrtle” model microphone description and specifications Myrtle is a medium-large diaphragm (26mm) condenser microphone designed primarily for live vocal use. The design features a unique copper and steel head basket with brass grill work, spring-suspended in a six-inch diameter stainless-steel ring with a chrome pivoting joint, and a copper-and-brass body. The design is reminiscent of early broadcast microphones, and is made largely from standard hardware elements. The head basket incorporates an effective silk pop filter as well as Sorbothane shock and vibration damping to minimize handling noise.

The capsule is an electret condenser, individually tested and selected to match strict design criteria. The circuit is a transformerless FET with fully balanced output, incorporating thorough EMI protection. Other electrical components in the signal path are highest quality metal film resistors, polypropylene and polystyrene capacitors, and individually tested, hand-matched and biased transistors and JFETs. The circuit includes moderate bass rolloff to compensate for proximity effect, and high frequency EQ tuned to the capsule to avoid harshness and help control feedback. The cardioid polar pattern, headbasket design, and tuned electronics all work together to make a very stable live mic with an extremely natural sound and good feedback rejection.

Myrtle is optimized for use by singers in with an old-school “crooner” performance technique, with ideal sound from 3” to 12” away. The styling, form-factor, and sound are ideal for period swing or jazz vocalists, roots and blues musicians, or any singer who wants to make a visual and sonic statement.

Sensitivity: 12 mv/Pa Output Impedance: 150 ohms

d un so ld ou w e ic vo r ou y en ev "Hon, bies!" sweet over one of these ba THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

53

54

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

55

Visit our website!

© 2017 Susan Marquez

Growing up in a small rural Kentucky town, Danny Roberts never dreamed he’d travel the world, play music for presidents, or perform with legends like Dolly Parton, Vince Gill, Kenny Rogers and more.

“Then we started thinking about other TV shows we all liked and ‘The Little Rascals’ came up. We played with it and added a G to Rascals and came up with Grascals. We liked that name, so it stuck.”

“I started playing guitar when I was 13,” says Roberts. His neighbor, Jimmy Mattingly, played fiddle, “and he really helped me learn. I started going to fiddle competitions, playing backup, then I began to win contests on my own as a guitar player.”

Roberts also learned the mandolin. In 1982, he cofounded the New Tradition, which toured for 20 years.

The Grascals have been successful beyond Roberts’ wildest imagination, with Kristin Scott Benson on banjo, Terry Smith on bass, Adam Haynes on fiddle, Terry Eldredge on guitar, and the newest band member, John Bryan, on guitar. They, alongside Roberts, have earned their stripes in country and bluegrass genres. Their friendships, however, make the group’s delivery.

Roberts and Mattingly reunited in 2004, along with Terry Eldredge, Jamie Johnson and David Talbot.

“We were all big Andy Griffith fans, and we tried hard to come up with a name for the group that reflected that,” recalls Roberts.

“…and then there’s this,” their CD released January 2016, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart and spent eight months at #1 on the Bluegrass Unlimited National Survey with multiple charting singles.

56

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Their newest CD, “Before Breakfast,” released September 1, debuted at #2 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart. The single, “Sleeping with the Reaper,” hit #1 on the Bluegrass Today weekly chart.

The three-time GRAMMY nominated group’s cutting-edge modern bluegrass gives a definite nod to the music’s founders, but makes music relevant to today’s fans. Taking a familiar song from another genre, they “Grascalize” it, like “The Last Train to Clarksville,” a 1966 hit song by The Monkees.

Their accompanying video of the song mimics the wacky style made famous

by The Monkees. “Making that video was fun,” said Roberts, with a laugh.

“Some of my favorites we’ve done are Elvis tunes, including ‘Viva Las Vegas’ and ‘Mystery Train.’”

The Grascals’ success happened right out of the gate. “From the get-go, we’ve been blessed,” Roberts states. “We did have a bit of an advantage, because we have all been in the business for a long time. People knew who we were.” The group recorded its first album in a studio that used Dolly Parton’s engineer. When she came in, the engineer played her some Grascals tracks. “She liked what she heard and asked us to open for her, then come back out on stage as her band. That was invaluable for us.” Dolly always made sure the marquee read “Dolly Parton and The Grascals.” “Seeing your band’s name on marquees at places like Radio City Music Hall in New York and the Celine Dion theatre in Las Vegas will never get old!” After that tour, Parton told them they needed to leave her before they became known only as her backup band. But her next opening band didn’t work out, “so we were called back to open for her. It was a delight to work with Dolly because she is wide open all the time. She is also a super nice lady.”

The Grascals also toured with Hank Williams Jr., Eric Church and Brooks & Dunn. “The country thing was fun for us, but when it comes down to it, we are a bluegrass band,” Roberts explains. “There is nothing like playing bluegrass festivals, and there is nothing like those fans. With the festivals, we sit at the CD table and really talk to the fans, who are really honest with you. We sell a few CDs or t-shirts and folks invite us to come to their campers to eat dinner. Now we know that a certain festival is where the lady always makes us the great fried chicken, or at another festival a lady brings us

homemade cookies. We talk about our families and really get to know one another, because bluegrass fans want to get to know you!”

They’ve performed twice for President George Bush and at an inauguration party for President Barack Obama at the Smithsonian.

“We were told not to look at or speak to the President and his wife when we first played at the White House,” recalls Roberts. “But then George and Laura Bush came in and they were as friendly as can be. They seemed like regular folks.” The band didn’t actually meet the Obamas, but had a great time playing for the party.

The Grascals travel the world, to places like Japan, Greece and Switzerland. “I’m doing a workshop in Germany next year and I’m going to take my wife and daughter. She’s 16 and a great singer.” Perhaps the next generation of The Grascals is in the making.

At the time of this interview, the band was preparing for a performance at The Grand Ole Opry, which they’ve played nearly 200 times.

When The Grascals performed on Tonight Show with Jay Leno, they posed for pictures with Jay and Robert De Niro, also a guest that night. Now, that’s cool!

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

57

Kody Norris for Rural Roots Music Commission Bluegrass CD of the Year Award The Rural Roots Music Commission was formed a number of years ago, in Iowa, to find a way to honor excelling recording artists who deal with traditional old-time music, and many other traditional rural musical art forms.

Stanley and The Clinch Mountain Boys. By the time he was eighteen, he had established his own blend of traditional hard driving high lonesome bluegrass music. It wasn't long before he was a regular on the Cumberland Highlanders RFD-TV national television show. The RRMC are constantly looking for music very unlike the music called 'country' today, and hope to restore the original intent of the genre.

The Rural Roots Music Commission awarded Kody Norris his "Bluegrass CD of the Year" award for his CD "When I Get The Money Made" on the main stage during the 42nd annual National Old Time Music Festival in LeMars, Iowa.

Since most traditional music genres have now been locked out of participation at the national level in America, the Rural Roots folks found a way to honor these gifted musicians, vocalists, songwriters, recording artists and small production companies, by honoring them with 'CD of the Year' awards.

One of the participants in this rather large 'gathering' of musical genres is Kody Norris of Mountain City, Tennessee.

This area of Tennessee is the extreme northeastern mountains, where Kody grew up listening to an abundance of oldtime mountain music. He began his musical journey at the age of nine singing in local churches.

By his teens, he was offered the opportunity to fill in tenure as lead singer and guitarist with Dr. Ralph 58

Always maintaining a sharp professional appearance, complete with colorful rhinestone suits and cowboy hats, The Kody Norris Show gives a bluegrass fan one of the most solid, entertaining and animated performances they will ever experience.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

The performances of The Kody Norris Show are reminiscent of traditional bluegrass artists, yet Kody brings his own special, distinct flair to the music. The band works regularly on the Cumberland Highlanders Show, a weekly Bluegrass Program on the nationally acclaimed RFD-TV network. From the first note, The Kody Norris Show will fully captivate your attention and make you laugh, cry, and stomp your feet all in one performance. story courtesy of Cybergrass.com, the Bluegrass Music News Network

experience TheKodyNor risShow.com

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

59

60

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

61

From the Back Porch

"I Believe In You" Track Listing: I Believe in You Coat of Many Colors (new recording) Together Forever I Am a Rainbow I’m Here A Friend Like You Imagination

You Can Do It Responsibility You Gotta Be Makin’ Fun Ain’t Funny Chemo Hero Brave Little Soldier Bonus track spoken audio: Coat of Many Colors (book read by Dolly Parton)

Dolly Parton

© 2017 Keith Barnacastle

Country music icon Dolly Parton is EVERYWHERE, including all over television, radio and digital platforms as she celebrates the worldwide release of her first-ever children’s album, I Believe In You. “Dolly Parton may be singing children’s songs on I Believe In You, but the album’s topics and depth speak to listeners of all ages.” -Mike Ragona, Huffington Post.

“Weaving powerful life lessons with catchy, sing-along music, led by one of the finest vocalists of any genre, Dolly pours her love of children into each of the 14 tracks on I Believe in You. It's a must-have not only for children, but for parents, grandparents, teachers, and anyone who works with the younger generation.” -Gayle Thompson, The Boot.

The album features 14 new songs, all written and performed by Dolly with the spirit and heart of children in mind. Proceeds from the album will benefit Imagination Library, which was established in 1995 to honor Parton’s father, who never had the chance to learn to read or write.

Dolly Parton is the most honored female country performer of all time. Achieving 25 RIAA certified gold, platinum and multi-platinum awards, she has had 25 songs reach #1 on the Billboard Country charts, a record for a female artist.

She has 41 career top 10 country albums, a record for any artist, and she has 110 career-charted singles over the past 40 years.

All-inclusive sales of singles, albums, hits collections, paid digital downloads and compilation usage during her Hall of Fame career have reportedly topped a staggering 100 million records – which includes sales of her 2016 chart-topping disc Pure & Simple, her first number one album on the Billboard Country Album charts in twentyfive years.

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

63

Dolly has garnered eight Grammy Awards – including a 2017 win with Pentatonix in the Country Duo/Group Performance category for their collaboration on her iconic 1973 hit “Jolene” - 10 Country Music Association Awards, five Academy of Country Music Awards, three American Music Awards and is one of only five female artists to win the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year Award.

In 1999 Parton was inducted as a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. She has her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and became a member of the National Academy of Popular Music Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001. Broadcast Music Inc. honored Parton with their Icon Award in 2003, and in 2004 the U.S. Library of Congress presented her with their Living Legend Award for her contribution to the cultural heritage of the United States.

This was followed in 2005 with the National Medal of Arts, the highest honor given by the U.S. government for excellence in the arts. The honors keep coming.

The 2016 made for television movie, Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love is nominated in the “Television Movie” category for the 69th Annual Emmy Awards. The film also won in the TV and Cable category at the 68th Annual Christopher Awards, which also includes the Movieguide Epiphany Prize for Television. The film served as the follow-up to her highly rated 2015 film Coat Of Many Colors, also broadcast on NBC, which won the Academy of Country Music's Tex Ritter Award. In 2017, Dolly will release "I Believe In You," a collection of children's songs on Dolly Records through her partnership with Sony Music Nashville.

ABOUT DOLLY PARTON’S IMAGINATION LIBRARY: Founded in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting organization that has, to date, mailed more than 100 million books to children in Australia, Belize, Canada, United Kingdom and the United States. Each month, the program currently mails more than one million specially selected, highquality, age-appropriate books to registered children from birth until they start Kindergarten in participating communities.

Dolly envisioned creating a lifelong love of reading in children, preparing them for school and inspiring them to dream. Recent studies suggest participation in the Imagination Library is positively and significantly associated with higher measures of early language and math development. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

le it when all the litt d ve lo st ju y d ad d “My e Book Lady.’ That h ‘T e m ll ca ld u o kids w the fact that I had an th im h to re o meant m my butt off.” ed rk o w d an ar st a become — Dolly 64

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

65

© 2017 Daniel Wile

The Pervasive Influence of Randy Wood I recently browsed the music section of a Barnes & Noble magazine rack and pulled a Fretboard Journal from the back row. There happened to be a feature article about mandolinist and Bill Monroe protégé Mike Compton that I immediately flipped to. The article contained a stunning, centerfold-style, two-page spread of Compton’s two-point mandolin that he calls his first “real” mandolin. It was built by luthier Randy Wood. This was a fitting encounter; Randy may not grab headlines, but if you know where to look, you can see his influence everywhere.

Randy Wood grew up on a farm in rural Georgia. In his early twenties, he befriended dobro legend Tut Taylor.

Taylor convinced Wood to move to Milledgeville, Georgia, where Tut gave Randy unfettered access to his home wood shop. “If [Tut] had been building cabinets, I’d probably be a cabinetmaker today,” Randy says. Fortunately, Tut preferred working on musical instruments.

Randy’s work immediately attracted attention. Roland White bought Randy’s second mandolin and played it for much of his career. Bill Monroe bought Randy’s third and kept it for the rest of his life.

Randy then moved to Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to work with his friend and banjoist Rual Yarbrough. One of his clients was a collector named George Gruhn, whom he had met on the festival circuit with Tut. In 1970, George, Tut, and Randy opened a pioneering vintage instrument store called GTR in downtown Nashville. The shop backed up to the Ryman Auditorium and fielded visits from celebrities performing next door. “We usually had some good pickers hanging out [in the store] all the time,” Randy says. One of those celebrity clients was Eric Clapton, who bought several guitars, including a dobro with a fingerboard on which Randy inlaid an exquisite Tree of Life. Clapton played that guitar on his multi-Grammy-winning Unplugged album.

While at GTR, Randy also inlaid Elvis Presley’s name across the fretboard of the mega-star’s Gibson Dove. That guitar was on display for a huge audience during the televised concert, Aloha from Hawaii.

Tut and George eventually left GTR, and Gruhn renamed the operation Gruhn Guitars.

Today it is a Mecca for stringed instrument enthusiasts.

Randy and Tut rejoined forces and opened The Old Time Picking Parlor on Second Avenue in Nashville. The place combined a music store, repair shop, and concert hall, and Tut and Randy opened the doors for visitors to sit around and jam. It was a popular hangout for amateurs and professionals alike. Careers were made inside the wood-paneled walls of the place.

66

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Fiddle virtuoso Mark O’Connor was just a teenager when he and his family stopped by the Picking Parlor one night. Randy heard the youngster play and was so impressed that he called his friend Roy Acuff to meet O’Connor.

“I told Acuff he can handle a fiddle,” Randy says. Acuff heard O’Connor and on the spot, invited the young kid to join him on the Grand Ole Opry stage later that week. Other bluegrass and country music notables, such as Sam Bush, Charlie Daniels, John McEuen of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and Mike Compton—as I learned in the Fretboard Journal article— found inspiration and career guidance in the Picking Parlor.

Randy was the go-to repair guy in Nashville. When Tony Rice acquired his famous 1935 Martin D-28, he took it to Randy to replace the neck and make the guitar more playable. For many years, Bill Monroe trusted only Randy Wood to work on his mandolins.

The atmosphere in the Picking Parlor stayed young and funky thanks to apprentices who clamored for a chance to study the art of luthiery from Wood. One apprentice, Danny Ferrington, built an impressive list of celebrity clients of his own. In the movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Keith Richards’s character was strumming a specially-built Ferrington guitar. Ferrington says of Randy, “I learned almost everything I know from him. Randy was a man of few words, but he had a kind of magical touch when it came to wood, and he was generous with his knowledge.”

Randy is now back in his native Georgia, running Randy Wood Guitars, a shop that has re-established the Picking Parlor triad—a music store, a workshop, and a listening room—in the small town of Bloomingdale.

Like that Fretboard Journal I found at the back of the magazine rack, Randy’s shop takes some effort to reach.

But don’t be fooled by the unassuming surroundings; Randy Wood’s impact is global. If you are a music fan, you have probably seen his work without even knowing it.

website: RandyWoodM usic.com

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

67

Festival and Event Guide ~ November

68

Dates

Event

Location

Fridays

Friday Bluegrass Night - Blue Cypress Bluegrass

Fellsmere, FL

November 3

Russell Fork River Bluegrass Show

Breaks, VA

November 4

Bluegrass, Barbecue & Brew Festival

Brookneal, VA

November 5-11

First Quality Bluegrass Cruise

Fort Lauderdale, FL

November 9-11

Mountain View Bluegrass Festival

Mountain View, AR

November 9-11

Palatka Fall Bluegrass Festival

Palatka, FL

November 10-11

Southern Ohio Indoor Music Festival

Wilmington, OH

November 10-12

Four Corner States Bluegrass Festival

Wickenburg, AZ

November 16-18

All American Indoor Music Festival

Fisherville, VA

November 17-19

Harvest Jam

Minneapolis, MN

November 17-19

Withlacoochie River Bluegrass Festival

Dunnellon, FL

November 23-25

Sertoma Thanksgiving Bluegrass Festival

Brooksville, FL

November 23-25

Thanksgiving Weekend Bluegrass Festival

Marshalltown, IA

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Festival and Event Guide ~ December Dates

Event

Location

Fridays

Friday Bluegrass Night - Blue Cypress Bluegrass

Fellsmere, FL

December 1-2

Balsam Range Art of Music Festival

Waynesville, NC

December 2

Honeymoon Island Bluegrass Festival

Dunedin, FL

December 6-9

Bluegrass Christmas in the Smokies

Pigeon Forge, TN

December 14-16

A Bluegrass Christmas Festival

Raleigh, NC

For links to websites for all of these festivals and their locations, check out our Events tab at TheBluegrassStandard.com!

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

69

70

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

71

Suits, Boots

72

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Fan photos from

& Bluegrass

across the country

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

73

Suits, Boots

74

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Fan photos from

& Bluegrass

across the country

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

75

Suits, Boots

76

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Fan photos from

& Bluegrass

across the country

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

77

78

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

Next Month... from the Publisher's desk

We are grateful to all of our advertising partners and friends who have stepped forward to support The Bluegrass Standard in our debut season!

We look forward to Nashville Feb. 1-4, 2018 at SPBGMA, sponsoring wonderful showcase performances and participating in the trade show.

Please stop by and see us at the show!

Keith Barnacastle - Publisher

Christian Davis The Isaacs David Phelps The Easter Family Southern Raised The Churchmen Redeemed Quartet High Fidelity Larry Sparks The Isbell Family Tomorrow’s Bluegrass Stars: Three Creeks Over

For the latest Bluegrass News, Event Schedules and more... visit our website, TheBluegrassStandard.com!

Don’t forget to Like us on Facebook!

THE BLUEGRASS STANDARD

79