November 2018
And the Winner is ... 2018 AMA Awards Album of the Year: "The Nashville Sound," Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit
Artist of the Year: John Prine Song of the Year: "If We Were Vampires," Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (written by Jason Isbell)
Duo/Group of the Year: Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit Emerging Artist of the Year: Tyler Childers Instrumentalist of the Year: Molly Tuttle "Spirit of Americana" Free Speech Award: Rosanne Cash Americana Trailblazer Award: k.d. lang Lifetime Achievement Award: Irma Thomas
Americana Rhythm is published six times a year. All correspondence should be sent to PO Box 45, Bridgewater VA, 22812 or CONTRIBUTORS email to greg@americanarhythm.com. Copies of Americana Ed Tutwiler Rhythm are made available free at various pick up locations within Wayne Erbsen Donna Ulisse the publication’s region. Subscriptions are available inside the United States (only) for $24 US currency made payable by check or Mike Aiken money order sent to, Subscriptions at PO Box 45, Bridgewater, Andrew McKnight VA, 22812. Foreign subscription requests should be sent to Emily Kresky greg@americanarhythm.com. Copyright 2018. All rights reDon Brown served. Reproduction of any content, artwork or photographs DISTRIBUTION is strictly prohibited without permission of the publisher or origi- North River Publishing Integrated Music Media nal owner. All advertising material subject to approval. PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF Greg E. Tutwiler Associate Editor Ed Tutwiler MARKETING & PROMOTION Mark Barreres (GrassRootsNetworking.com) Letters, Comments, Suggestions ADVERTISING greg@americanarhythm.com Business office 540-433-0360 advertising@americanarhythm.com www.americanarhythm.com
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November 2018
By Edward Tutwiler
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November 2018
Preserving the Past to Educate the Future
By Edward Tutwiler
museum’s needs and that a completely new building was needed as well as a good bit more money.
Remembering back to issue #45 in 2013, we told you the back story about the International Bluegrass Music Museum (IBMM) located in Owensboro, KY. In that story, we teased you with the bold dream for a new building to be built for housing the artifacts; telling the stories; and preserving for future generations the special Americana musical art form that we loving refer to as bluegrass music. Since publishing that story, we have kept in touch with the folks at the IBMM to see how things were progressing—and progressing they certainly have done. Even though the IBMA headquarters has moved to Nashville, TN, the International Bluegrass Music Museum always planned for its permanent home to remain in the city of Owensboro, KY. With this fact established, city officials told museum officials that if they raised the money to re-purpose the state office building, the city
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would give the museum that building and a bit of seed money if they could raise some more money on their own. This was a generous offer as this building offered a much bigger floor space. Unfortunately, after a good bit of study and planning, it became apparent this building was not going to fulfill the
Sometime earlier, the city had received money from the federal government to do reclamation work on the eroded river bank downtown, and this effort reclaimed a good bit of development land. Owensboro city officials did a tremendous amount of research on how to best use this riverfront land and ultimately determined that they would develop it into a showplace and magnet for tourists and home folks alike. One of the items the research pointed out was this: such a development needed a museum that featured local culture as an anchor. You guessed
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it—they quickly pin-pointed bluegrass music to represent Owensboro and the bluegrass state.
In Need Of Funds All this was great but where was the money for that ambitious project coming from? People from the city of Owensboro and the IBMM made a few trips to the state capitol to see the governor. It was a tough sell but they ultimately gained $5M from the state of KY for the project. The city came up with another $5.4M, and the IBMM folks were able to raise $5M on their own. Thus, the new museum would become a reality and would be located in this block long showplace riverfront development in a brand new building. In the summer of 2016, the officials from the city of Owensboro, the state of Kentucky, and the IBMM gathered to break continued on page 6
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November 2018
Continued from page 4 ground on this new $15.4 million facility to house the world’s foremost collection of bluegrass artifacts, memorabilia, and music recordings in a safe environment for generations to come. This is very important as bluegrass music is a treasured musical art form that grew out of the
amalgam of Appalachian roots music, African rhythms and chants, white and black gospel music, and other stringed instrument sounds into a musical art form now performed in dozens of countries around the world.
Adjusting The Name In the spring of 2018, the museum issued a press release that told the world of a name change. The International Bluegrass Music Museum (IBMM) is now the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum. This name change reflects that the Owensboro, KY location has been the home of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame since the beginning of the association and that it is now the worldwide destination for folks interested in the musical genre known as bluegrass music. Mr. Chris Joslin, who is the Executive Director of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum stated, “We have been the home of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame since day one, so it’s time our name reflects that. Much like the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, we are the worldwide destination for our genre,
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bluegrass music.” Joslin added, “It’s more than a name change. This new branding sets the stage for the grand opening of our new facility.”
Re-Branding Identity This new museum is a multi-use facility. It features a Hall Of Fame section that is dedicated to the
bluegrass music founders. The museum exhibits and multimedia displays tailored to detail the origins of the genre of music now known as bluegrass. Plus, the museum houses artifacts galore to enhance the story. The museum complex includes the 450-seat Woodward Theater built for concerts and events plus a 2000 seat outdoor stage facing the Ohio River. The plan is to have concerts scheduled all year long. Other amenities include: a gift shop, a research library, and teaching rooms. The museum building is adjacent to the Owensboro Convention Center, and is accompanied by two new hotels, and Owensboro’s worldrenowned waterfront park. The entire property encompasses a full city block at the heart of the revitalized downtown area. With the completion of this very special project, it is worth noting the stated vision and mission of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum: The vision is to be the world center for the presentation of the history, culture, and future of bluegrass music; and their mission is to gather, preserve, exhibit and disseminate artifacts, continued on page 8
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November 2018
Concluded from page 6 history, collections and performance art of the global history of bluegrass music through an educational experience. All the sweat and tears; the search for funds; and the hard work by many folks have finally paid off. Just months ago, officials announced the grand opening of this new $15.4M Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum for the weekend of October 18-20, 2018. This grand opening has been made possible with investments from the City of Owensboro, Daviess County, the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and many corporations and individuals. The grand opening will include live music, special guests, exhibit openings, and a celebration of the legends of bluegrass music.
out what is already true about our organization and about Owensboro. The new building just affords us the capability to live this out in more innovative, creative, and impactful ways.” Bluegrass music fans, you owe it to yourselves to make a trip to Owensboro, KY to visit this very special place; if not for the grand opening being held this October, then certainly in the very near future. Owensboro and western KY is rich in the history of this genre of music. If you do plan a road trip, Owensboro is easy to reach via major interstate routes. The city is two hours north of Nashville, TN along the Ohio River. By all means navigate your computer browser to www.bluegrassmuseum.org to learn much, much more
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Adding A Director Mr. Chris Joslin, the Executive Director, joined the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum in September 2015. Joslin oversees day-to-day operations of the museum and its many programs. He has been involved from the beginning in the making of the reality that this project has become. He recently shared with us some personal observations and insights. “Bluegrass music is enjoyed and played all over the world, but what sets us apart is this: western Kentucky is the source of that music. Certainly, Bill Monroe is the individual credited with developing this distinctive style of music, but it was the people, culture, sights, sounds, lifestyle, values, and beauty of the area that influenced and shaped his creativity. Much of the bluegrass songbook is about the State of Kentucky, and the genre itself gets its name from Kentucky, the Bluegrass State.” He continued, “In addition to Owensboro’s link to the roots of bluegrass music, the genre was also first galvanized here when the International Bluegrass Music Association was formed in Owensboro in the mid 1980s. Our relationship with the IBMA is this: we have an agreement with the IBMA to exhibit the plaques of the Hall of Fame inductees and to be the place where people come to celebrate and honor its members. When considering all this, it just made sense for us to brand around the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame as we transition to the new building. And the leadership and Board of the IBMA were glad to see us move in that direction.” In response to what the road ahead looks like, Chris observed, “This next chapter in the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum is not simply about a new building, new name, and an updated logo. We are launching a new brand that offers something very unique for those who love great music, especially bluegrass music. I believe in the future of this because we are not simply capitalizing on a novel idea. Rather, we are more fully living
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November 2018
Without the Maker, there’s no Music
By Mark Whetzel
there is a solid connection between all aspects of the instrument from the “braces to the top, from the braces to the sides, from the sides to the back.” He feels this helps the entire guitar to better resonate with the top as well as contributes to improving the sustain of the instrument.
One thing that becomes clear
after speaking with luthier Steve Showalter for a few moments is that he loves to build guitars. A retired furniture and cabinet maker, Steve found his true passion in his second career as a luthier. A native of Linville, Virginia, Steve lives in the same stone house in which he was born and raised. As a young man, he raised chickens in what is now his guitar shop. In these rural surroundings in the Shenandoah Valley, Steve produces beautiful instruments with unique wood choices and innovative designs. Striving to be self-sufficient, Steve built his first guitar in 1981 after he decided to learn how to play. He built a second guitar in 1984 and began to develop a serious interest in guitar building. However, the economic realities of raising a family kept him from becoming a full time luthier. It wasn’t until he was ready to retire in 2012 that Steve thought there was nothing he would rather do than build guitars. As Steve puts it, “I get up in the morning and I just love it. I don’t care if I have a sale or not. I’m going to build a guitar.” Having initially studied with Kent Carlos Everett in Georgia, Steve then learned of Wayne Henderson apprentice, Ron Sharpe. Under Ron’s guidance, Steve built his seventh guitar and the rest, as Steve says, is history.
Equipped with both knowledge and inspiration, he began to pursue becoming a full time luthier. Currently working on guitar number 69, Steve’s goal is to build 100 guitars in his career. Approaching guitar building as an art rather than a science, Steve is a self-described “cowboy” luthier who is not afraid to use his intuition to modify traditional designs as well as develop approaches that he believes will improve the sound and playability of his guitars. While still offering conventional dreadnoughts, OM’s and other standard models, Steve’s own designs offer a wide array of features and options. For example, his Free Spirit model, which Steve refers to as his player ’s guitar, features an asymmetrical body shape combined with an arm bevel and a tapered body that is a bit more narrow on the upper side in order to improve the comfort of the guitarist’s right arm. In addition, two strategically placed sound holes located close to the player not only allow the guitarist to better hear the instrument but also provides nice balance, clarity and projection. His Signature model is Steve’s version of a jumbo guitar utilizing his own design. In this guitar Steve uses a particular bracing pattern which secures the X brace to the dovetail joint. This is part of Steve’s belief that a guitar should be built so
Not surprisingly, Steve uses a variety of woods in addition to the more standard spruce, rosewood and mahogany. He is willing to experiment with anything he can find that is local. Some of his favorites are: locust, walnut, and cherry. Sycamore and Osage orange are also woods which Steve has used extensively. Although he describes sycamore as a “softer, hardwood” that he finds similar to mahogany, Steve feels its best use is for tops. Believing that the soundboard is the most important part of a guitar, Steve was pleased with the early results he had with sycamore and believes it
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compares favorably with Spruce. A hardwood that some have compared tonally to Brazilian rosewood, Steve has had success using Osage orange for backs, sides and occasionally necks. For those interested in the general feel and playability of Showalter guitars, Steve has settled on the standard 25.34" scale length for all of his guitars. Always one to pay attention to every detail, many players feel that Steve’s guitars offer superb playing comfort and intonation. Some have described our current time as a golden age for luthiers. Modern instrument builders are constantly searching for new techniques and approaches in order to refine and further develop classic designs. Steve Showalter is clearly following this path by combining original ideas with classic guitar designs while always keeping the player in mind. For those interested in more info, Contact Steve at www.showalterguitars.com
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November 2018
Today, as I sit and try to write this article I am fighting little dog kisses and some pawing as my newest adopted member of our fur baby family tries desperately to gain my attention. My husband and I have been struggling with the name that a stranger before us dubbed him with. It is a derogatory name, something meant to put down this precious critter but it’s the sound he recognizes. We are searching for names that sound or rhyme with this terrible title, and with that thought I started thinking about the importance of a name. Of course you all know me a little by now, all things lead me back to songwriting. Voila, the subject of today’s musings will be the importance of a song title and how you go about finding it in the body of your song. A large percentage of the time the hook of a song will be the title. The hook is the summation of a song and as I have talked in previous musings, once the hook is established, the rest of the song should be written towards that hook. I might have mentioned a trick I use with my creations to you in the past but I will
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mention it again to you. Once I have a song written out and start working on the edit phase of my work, I will take each line of my song and follow it up with my hook, double checking the strength of each line. Nine times out of ten the whole line, including the hook will make pretty good sense. This little exercise never fails to show me that I am writing towards the hook and supporting the theme of my song. The lines do not always make perfect sense but if the idea of the hook against any line is working then I am writing my song with a true mission and continuity and my idea becomes stronger. Now remember, it’s just a tool, I don’t leave my hook against every line, I put the hook back in place and I have a stout lyric. Now it is time to go about the work of finding the title to my song. All parents know how important the naming a child is. There was a song some years ago that Johnny Cash had out called A Boy Named Sue, which always made me realize the importance of a label or moniker. Even in the careless naming of the boy named Sue, the name gave this character strength, having to live past this tag.
I feel like every song I write is my little baby, and naming that little baby takes thought beyond the moment. I try to look at this song as something that will survive time. I also try to look at my composition, as something a listener will hear for the first time on the radio. If you are driving down the road listening to music and you hear a catchy song, you will most likely recall the line you heard more than once or the line that struck you most as a way to find the song if you were to search for it. If the writer of the song you heard on the radio were to give this song an obscure title, then the writer might miss an opportunity for a new fan. This is an example of why many composers use their hook as the title of their song. A title is important! I say this and will back up the previous words with contradiction because in songwriting you must know when to break the rules.
kick to the listener, then the writer probably does not want to give it away with their title. I always worry over this situation but in the end will choose a title that skirts around the hook but holds the idea of the song. Again, you always want to choose something that a disc jockey with a phone in request line will be able to figure out if a fan calls to request your song. It is not easy, not at all, but try to love the challenge, at least that is my approach.
There are many songs written that have a wow factor, a story that must unfold mysteriously, keeping a listener engaged until the punch line or the hook shows up. If the hook is meant to be the swift
Donna was the 2016 IBMA songwriter of the year, and co-writer of the IBMA Song of the Year for 2017. Reach Donna at www.DonnaUlisse.com.
Helping you become more thoughtful with each song you write is my goal with these articles. Writing and re-writing is the key to becoming a great songwriter and all of these elements are important; the idea, the hook, the rhyme patterns, the title, the length, the story, the melody, all so necessary to give your song legs. Write on my friends.
November 2018
Thanks to our partnership with ReverbNation (www.reverbnation.com) we are honored to give you a peak at a few of the nation’s hardest working indie artists. Each month we select one entry to showcase for you here. Enjoy! THIS MONTH’S FEATURE:
By Greg Tutwiler
Strong Water
FEATURE ARTISTS When lead singer and guitarist Greg Brennan finished his American Literature course in 2013, the term, Strong Water, stuck in his mind. It was the perfect name; borrowed from the Puritans; for his whiskey drinking, Americana/ Folk band. Although inspired by artists such as Noah Gundersen, Mumford and Sons, and The Lone Bellow, Strong Water remains unapologetic and unafraid to break the conventions of its genre, adding drum beats or a reggae breakdown here and there.
Growing Up And Out The band originally formed as a duo then grew to a six piece act before dropping off to its original founder, Brennan, as band mates graduated college and moved away. What could have easily died as a nostalgic college memory was reborn with the addition of classically trained fiddle player JJ Hostetter, drummer Evan Hunsberger, and banjo player Tim Cannon. The Harrisonburg, VA band found a home in the thriving underground music community, releasing their 2014 EP as a local college band. The now graduated musicians recorded a full-fledged, self-titled, 14-track project in 2016 and began touring the Mid-Atlantic region on the weekends while maintaining day jobs.
not feeling in control of what we are doing or becoming, to experiencing fleeting moments of “feeling at home” and happy with where we’re at. This record is a conglomeration of styles, influences, and ideas, like our song, “Don’t Ask,” simply puts, ‘this is who we are, don’t ask us why.” Strong Water has stood the tests of time and transitions, and has it’s sights set on bigger things to come. “Right now, our goal is to make this a full time gig by getting on a national tour and making enough money that we don’t have to continue working our day jobs,” Evan quipped. “Longer term goals are to play larger festivals, gain national attention, and really just share our music and touch hearts with our talents. Greg, on the other hand, has a more specific goal; to take Strong Water to Red Rocks in Colorado.”
With noted success and encouragement from their growing fan base, Strong Water returned to the studio recently for their upcoming release, Bearfoot, due out September 21st, 2018.
Serendipity “Strong Water happened on accident,” Hunsberger told us recently. “Greg Brennan, our lead singer and primary songwriter, moved to Harrisonburg, VA in 2012 to go to James Madison University. The following year, he met a fiddle player and they began to write music together, though he never thought anyone would hear it. With the addition of a cellist and banjo player in 2014, we released that first EP, The After Math, under the name Strong Water. The band expanded again in January 2015, and despite most of the members still being in college, we managed to continue writing music, playing a few shows and wound up recording and releasing our first full length album in 2016.”
The new release, Bearfoot, initially started as an EP in the fall of 2016, Evan told me. Not long after recording was completed and mixing had began, their engineer/producer’s hard drive crashed. They lost all of the files, with the exception of an initial mix for their first single/title track, “Bearfoot.” Nearly a year after initially being recorded, that single was released in October, 2017. It took until August, 2018 to finish the rest of the tracks. And in the process, the band almost broke up as members went through some tough life situations and transitions.
New Record, Finally “Now that the album is finished and we’ve had time to look back on what we’ve gone through,” Evan said. “We’ve realized we’re better for it, and are ready to take the next step, together. Each song on the record represents a part of what we experienced over the past two years: from finding and losing love - to finding it again when we least expect it, searching for who we are - yet somehow
Next Level “At the moment, we all have full time jobs except for our banjo player, Tim, who is still a full time student. Having a full time job can be very difficult when it comes to playing gigs, staying up late, long weekends, and long drives, but it’s well worth it. If we didn’t enjoy what we did, we wouldn’t be doing it.” “It’s the moments that keep us going; those stand out moments when you know you’re doing the right thing. “Some of our collective moments have been while playing at the Red Wing Roots Music Festival in 2017, and opening for The Steeldrivers at The Hamilton. At Red Wing, it felt like time stopped, because we were so immersed in the music, and the audience was loving it too. All of us couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear. At The Hamilton, getting to open for a Grammy Award winning band like the Steeldrivers and being treated so well by the venue; it made us feel like we were on top of the world.”
www.strongwater.band
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November 2018
By Wayne Erbsen
Gussie L. Davis; Tin Pan Alley/Bluegrass Songwriter Some of the greatest traditional bluegrass songs were apparently written by someone named “Public Domain” or “Traditional.” What kind of decent mother or father would name their child that? In this article, I’m going to acquaint you with a songwriter named Gussie Lord Davis, who has seldom been credited as the composer of such well-known folk and bluegrass songs as “Maple on the Hill” (1880), “Goodnight Irene” (1899),”One Little Word” (1899), “Just Set a Light” aka “Red and Green Signal Lights”(1897), “In the Baggage Coach Ahead” (1896) “He’s Coming to Us Dead” (1899), and “Make Up and Be Lovers Again” aka “Jack and Mae” (1893). So who was Gussie Davis? Have a seat in this comfy chair, and I’ll tell
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you about him. Small in size, Gussie Lord Davis (1863-1899) was an African-American who grew up in
Dayton, Ohio. From an early age, he wanted to be a songwriter. He was later quoted as saying, “They tell me that all song writers, as a rule, die in the poorhouse, broken down in health and empty in the pocket.” Wanting to avoid the fate of most songwriters, he knew his ticket to success was in receiving a formal musical education. Gussie then applied to the Nelson Musical College in Cincinnati. However, he was denied admission because the college did not admit black students. Not to be deterred, Gussie got a job at the college as a janitor. His wages were $15 a month and he received private musical instruction from several of the instructors. In 1880, at the tender age of eighteen, Gussie wrote one of his most popular songs, “We Sat Beneath the Maple on the Hill.” Because of his race, he couldn’t find a publisher who would publish it, so Gussie paid out of his own pocket to have the song printed and distributed. The phenomenal success of this song opened up the doors and before long he was one of the most successful songwriters
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in New York’s Tin Pan Alley. Here is how Gussie himself explained it: “I was just eighteen years old, and not caring to enter in the rear, I set to work to study music, and before long I managed to get together a pretty air and had it arranged. It was the ‘Maple on the Hill,’ and became quite popular throughout the West. Music publishers are not over generous in taking to publishing or even handling music from an unknown person, and I found a great deal of trouble, but I gave one publisher money to get it out, and he took pity on me. The song proved a great go.” What was Davis’ songwriting secret? To quote Tin-Pan Alley historian Maxwell F. Marcuse, “Gussie Davis reached for the tender spots that lurk deep within all of us, no matter how thick or tough our outer crusts may be. In an era of ‘sing-em-and-weep’ melodies, Davis did more than his share to open up the tear ducts of America.”
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When asked by a reporter what it takes to make a successful song, Davis’ answer is interesting. “I can best answer you by showing that should a man write a song each day for 365 days and pay ten dollars for each one to the publisher, he would spend something like $3,650, and if one song was a real go, h e would be a fortunate fellow.” In 1895 the New York World selected the ten most popular song writers in America to compete for prizes. First prize was a fivehundred dollar medal, the second was f ive-hundred dollars in gold. The contestants were a Who’s Who of popular composers in the 1890s. In addition to Gussie Davis, there was James Thornton, Charles Graham, Felix McGlendeon, Charles K. Harris, Harry Dann, P ercy Gaunt, Raymond Moore, Joe Flynn and Charles B. Ward. When the prizes
were awarded, Davis won second with his “Send Back the Picture and the Ring.”
To give you an idea of Davis’ impact on early country and bluegrass music, here is a list of some of the musicians who later recorded Davis’ songs: Vernon Dalhart, Ernest V. Stoneman, Bradley Kincaid, Dick Burnett, Al Craver, Posey Rorer and The North Carolina Ramblers, Darby and Tarlton, J. E. Mainer’s Mountaineers, Wade Mainer and Zeke Morris, Callahan
Brothers, Ernest Thompson, George Reneau, Fiddlin’ John Carson, Lester McFarland and Robert A Gardner, Andrew Jenkins and Carson Robison, Frank Luther, G.B. Grayson and Henry Whitter, Roy Harvey and Posey Rorer, Carter Family, Dixon Brothers, Morris Brothers, Monroe Brothers, Chuck Wagon Gang, Doc Watson, Ralph Stanley. You may be wondering why Davis’ songs struck such a chord with these musicians. The answer is that country and bluegrass musicians have always had a soft spot in their hearts for sentimental songs. It’s no wonder that bluegrass music has been called “the High Lonesome Sound.” Along with other popular songwriters in the late 19th and early 20th century, the sentimental songs of Gussie Davis, and the feelings they revealed, were woven into the very fabric of bluegrass music, and there they have stayed.
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Note: You can find the words and music of Gussie Davis’ “Maple on the Hill” in my songbook, The Rural Roots of Bluegrass.
Wayne Erbsen has been researching old songs since he was knee high to a pup. You can find the words and music to “Jimmy Brown the Paper Boy” and “Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane” in his book, The Rural Roots of Bluegrass. Visit his web site for easy instruction books for bluegrass and clawhammer banjo, fiddle, mandolin, guitar, dulcimer and ukulele www.nativeground.com.
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November 2018
On The Cover ...
Songs From The Road Band By Greg Tutwiler
The
bluegrass/roots/folk scene has expanded exponentially in recent years, and the talent level has progressed right along with it. Artists are doing things today with traditional string instruments that Jimmy Martin and Bill Monroe probably never imagined wereto be you could probably count the number of top acts with 10 fingers, to a time when there are better than 10
“The first CD was in 2004 and we just called it, Songs From The Road, because it was songs that I’d written when I was traveling,” Charles said. “Sam Wharton, our guitar player, and Mark Schimick, our mandolin player, were on that record along with a couple other guys that were in full time bands. It was just for fun. When it was released it was really well received. I had plenty more
bands now that are collectives of artists who have either combined from several top acts, to bands that feature musicians working together on a side project while staying in their full time bands.
songs, so we decided to do another one. We called that record, Songs From The Road Band, As The Crow Flies; same thing, rotating cast of guys doing it for fun. But then it started getting some radio play, and we could do four or five shows a year with it. It was slowly building momentum, but still just an outlet for songs,” He told me.
Side Show No More One such installment is a North Carolina powerhouse group featuring Mark Schimick, Charles Humphrey, Ryan Cavanaugh, Sam Wharton, and James Schlender, know as the Songs From The Road Band. It started as a part time outlet for founder Charles Humphrey’s (formally with the Steep Canyon Rangers) songwriting.
Their the next CD was produced by Andrew Marlan from Mandolin Orange. Called, Travelin’ Show, it was recorded at Echo Mountain. “It’s the same kind of deal,” Charles said, “Just a bunch of guys having fun. But continued on page 16
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Continued from page14 it had a song that sat on the charts for two years or something crazy like that. Then recently, as of January 2018, we did another record, Road To Nowhere. It came out in July. We were all available to go on tour full time with it this time, so we decided that’s what we wanted to do.”
we’ve still got to get out there and spread our name around and let everybody know what we’re doing.” “The formula we’ve been following so far in the summer is to work long weekends every week, then sometimes we’ll string together some longer runs. I think we ended up with 26 days in a row at one point this summer,” he said.
All these guys understand the importance of p ro f e ss i on a lis m too.” Charles said, “Onstage and offstage, we’re all representatives of the band, and not only do you have to have great music you have to also put on a great show. Because of the experience, we all bring to the band, we’re not going through the learning curve for the first time, so we can really focus on the nuances of building together what we’ve already established separately
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Already Top Performers Collectively, this group of guys has received top accolades in the bluegrass, Americana, and even jazz genres. Humphrey is an IBMA award, and Grammy recipient. He has also earned a spot in the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame. Schimick soared to the top of the progressive and jam grass scene alongside legends like Larry Keel, Vassar Clements, and Tony Rice. Cavanaugh has made his longawaited return to bluegrass after 10 years of touring the world with jazz great Bill Evans. Cavanaugh has been acknowledged by Bela Fleck as an acoustic pioneer on the 5-string banjo. James Schlender is a two time National Fiddle Champion and has shared the stage with Chick Corea, Bobby McFerrin, and George Benson. And Sam Wharton is an award winning guitar picker and singer who refined his chops in the bluegrass halls of Telluride, CO. Yet with all that clout, the band is just beginning to establish their presence in the bluegrass/Americana scene. “Nobody really knows what we’re doing as this band,” Charles said. “Even though it’s been around as a side project for years, and all the players have actively been on a national scene for 20 years,
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“This is everybody’s full time job now. It’s hard work but we’ve all been at this a long time and everybody is invested in the band and in the business of the band. It’s rewarding. We’ve been getting a lot of support from the music lovers and promoters, which is this reassuring.”
Mentoring For The Future One of my goals too, outside of being a successful band, is to promote the guys individually, and help them manage their business careers as well as the music,” Charles said. “I have a lot of experience in that, and I feel like that’s something I can bring to the table for these guys. A lot of them have been sidemen before but never owners in a band like they are now. It makes it more rewarding for the people in the band that way. You’re more dedicated when you’re putting your sweat and blood into the shows and in the business. These guys are going to blow people’s minds at how talented they are. They’re just not household names yet, but they will be. There’s a strong bond of friendship almost like a brotherhood with this group, so it’s really exciting. That’s the background of the band.”
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November 2018
Listen to the expanded interviews at www.spreaker.com/show/ americana-music-profiles, or search Americana Music Profiles in iTunes!
Alan Bibey and Grasstowne
Sister Sadie
Super groups are inevitable in every genre’ I suppose, but it seems most exciting when a group of bluegrass guys and/gals, who all have regular gigs in some other fashion, find themselves together forming a new band. Sometimes it is on the side, and sometimes it becomes the main thing.
Alan Bibey has been entertaining audiences professionally with his mandolin chops since the early 1980’s. He picked up the instrument at the of age of five, and since then, has become one of the most creative and technically gifted mandolinists in bluegrass and acoustic music today. Alan was an original member of three of bluegrass music’s more contemporary pioneering acts; The New Quicksilver, IIIrd Tyme Out, and BlueRidge. His most recent configuration has been with the band Grasstowne, which he started with Steve Gulley and Phil Leadbetter. He’s been fronting the band for about the past eight years.
When Jerry Salley began putting together a new bluegrass/Americana label, Billy Blue Records, he needed some new acts to populate his roster. It just so happened there was a new group in the horizon – new in name and approach – not so new in talent. Darrell Webb and Barry Abernathy had been working on a new venture together and it was time to launch their new project – the Appalachian Road Show.
In 2007, 09, and 10, Alan earned the SPBGMA “Mandolin Performer Of The Year” award. He won the IBMA “Instrumental Album of the Year” in 2001, “Album of the Year” in 2006, “Recorded Event” in 2012 and SPBGMA “Album of the Year” in 2008. In 2004, a BlueRidge project for which he wrote the title track was nominated for a Grammy. And in early 2004, the Gibson Company put into production the Alan Bibey Signature line of mandolins, reaffirming his status as one of the most influential mandolin players in bluegrass and acoustic music history.
An impromptu performance about six years ago at the Station Inn in Nashville, TN, led to another of bluegrass music’s exciting mash-up of musicians. The part-time super group consists of five-time IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year and Grammy Nominated, Dale Ann Bradley, along with veteran Nashville powerhouse singer, Tina Adair, fiddle player; Deanie Richardson ((who’s worked with all kinds of artists like Patty Loveless, Vince Gill, and Bob Seger), hard-driving banjo player, Gena Britt (who’s played Lou Reid and Carolina, Alan Bibey & Grasstowne and more), and Beth Lawrence who is a widely known and sought after free-lance acoustic bass player in Nashville.
Appalachian Road Show
“Barry and Darrell bring a rich history to their vision for Appalachian Road Show,” Salley said. “This band is exactly the type of first-rate musicianship that a new label seeks in order to take flight.” “We’re just really excited about it,” Darrell told us recently. “I’ve known Barry for quite a long time and we’ve been playing music together off and on for the last 20 years. I’ve really wanted to do this kind of project with him for a long time.” The venture is called the Appalachian Road Show. “It really describes what we’re trying to do with it,” Darrell said. “It’s the music, and the culture and the history of the Appalachian people. It also describes where Barry and I come from; we’re both from mountain communities. (Barry from Georgia, and Darrell from Southern West Virginia) “You can’t get more mountain that that,” Darrell quipped. “We really want this to be more than just a music concert. The audience will also get a bit of a music history tour too,” Darrell said. “We’re going to go through every kind of culture of the music that’s been created, like old time, acapella gospel, and fiddle tunes. The album turned out great and it’s probably one of my favorite things I’ve done in the past 20 years.” To find out more, visit
Alan says he’s seen a lot of changes in music since he began in the 80s. “There’s a ton more bands now than there used to be. Back then, you automatically knew everybody that came on the radio because you already knew all the bands. There just wasn’t that many professional touring bands back then,” he said. “It’s basically a good thing, but it’s just changed the whole scope of the way things are done.” Grasstowne’s recent CD, Grasstowne 4, yielded three #1’s and all 12 songs from the project charted on Bluegrass Today’s Airplay Chart. Alan also owns his own recording studio, Maggie’s Crib, in Surfside Beach, South Carolina where he lives. “It’s nice to be able to just walk out my back door to work after having to travel so much for so many years,” Alan commented. The band’s new gospel CD, Gonna Rise and Shine has just been released.
The ladies call themselves Sister Sadie, inspired by the Tony Rice song, “Little Sadie,” and the fact that they feel as though they are sisters. They felt the chemistry on stage right away, and apparently so did the audience. It wasn’t long after the sold out show that they began getting calls for gigs. They made it official, but also decided that each member would remain in their own band. Whenever time would allow, they would meet up and perform, which is currently about a dozen or so times a year, more heavily when they want to promote a new recording project, like their new, second CD, simply called, Sister Sadie II, on Pinecastle Records. The ladies credit Ann Sawyers, who worked at the Station Inn before passing away recently, for having the idea of putting something like this together for a long time. “She contacted Gena initially to get it set up, and it went from there,” Dale Ann told us recently. “We sat down about five o’clock that evening to work up some songs, because we really didn’t know what we were going to play,” Gena said. “And from the first note we hit together we all just looked around like, ‘okay, here we go, this is pretty good.” “It was quite magical,” Dale Ann added. “It really was.” “We still do that, every show. When we start to warm up, that first note, we all just look around at each other and agree, that’s good!”
To find out more, visit www.grasstowne.com
To find out more, vivit www.sistersadieband.com
www.appalachianroadshow.com
Check out
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November 2018
Listen to the expanded interviews at www.spreaker.com/show/ americana-music-profiles, or search Americana Music Profiles in iTunes!
Billy Droze
Jim Stanard
Billy Droze was born in Lafayette, Louisiana, the 10th of 12 children, in 1986, but he grew up in Alabama, knowing the whole time that music was going to be his life, “as far back as I can remember,” he said.
Beaver Creek, CO resident Jim Stanard grew up listening to, loving, and absorbing the music of all the greats. He grew up in an era when he could watch first hand entertainers like Tom Rush, Doc Watson, Bruce Springsteen, hanging out at the legendary Main Point Coffeehouse in Bryn Mawr, PA. He even attended Woodstock in 1969 although his perspective is less than glorious. “We basically escaped,” he mused. “It was raining, there was no food.” But the heart for music came to mean so much to him that he sold his childhood coin collection to buy his first guitar, a Martin D-28, one he still plays today.
Billy said he got his start in gospel music before finding his way into a traveling bluegrass band with his father, Robert “Red” Droze. He did that until he was about 16, when he decided he wanted to do his own thing in country music for a while. When he was 18, he moved to Nashville to pursue life as a full time musician and enjoy his new record deal Sony/BMG. “I was always rooted in traditional country and bluegrass, and at that time, country music was turning to the more commercial pop sound. I kept cutting records though, making one a year since then, making the kind of music I believe in, and the kind of people who I appeal to love to hear. Eventually though I made my way back to bluegrass, which is the smartest thing I ever did,” he chuckled. Though Billy’s country records never quite garnered the success he was looking for, Billy developed a career with his pen as a staff (song) writer, with publishing deals that resulted in several successful cuts that include “You Never Know” - Darryl Worley, “Free Again” Shenandoah, “That’s Why I Run” Billy Yates (#1 in Europe), “Sunday Clothes” - Randy Kohrs,”Big Pain” - Marty Raybon, “Bottle Was a Bible” - Junior Sisk, “Her Memory Again” Flatt Lonesome, “Like I Do” - Jamie O’neil, “I Know Better” (#1 Bluegrass Today Chart) - The Grascals, and others.
His debut bluegrass record, To
Whom It May Concern, earned an unprecedented five number one singles that is a feat unheard of and unmatched in his genre of music. He was considered for the prestigious 2018 Grammy Awards along with IBMA and ICM Awards. With a new single out, and more on the way, Billy is considered one of the fastest rising stars in roots music of his generation.
As the story goes for many young performers, life gets in the way, things don’t add up like you hoped, and you’re faced with the decision to back burner your music career. Such is the story for Jim too. He stopped playing to pursue a career in the world of finance and insurance. But the music never left his heart. His early exposure to it remained a guiding force all through his professional career. “I’ve always carried around a Dylan line, ‘he not busy being born is busy dying’,” he said. And so in the early 2000s, his wife of 42 years encouraged him to brush off the music chops and return to his first passion. With an opportunity to take guitar lessons noted guitarist Jon Skibic, and voice lessons from front man Kip Winger of the band Winger, Jim began to deepen his understanding of writing, and singing songs too. It became the foundation for his debut CD, Bucket List. “For me, this album is already a roaring success,” he adds, acknowledging the teamwork effort that went into his debut CD, and the good luck of finding that team, “because the great musicians and songwriters who have participated and mentored me have made it sound great, in my opinion.” Jim abides by a philosophy of, “Most people overestimate what they can do in six months and underestimate what they can do in six years,” he said. “I’ve learned to set attainable short term goals, but shoot high on long term goals. Be stubborn as gravity.”
To find out more, visit www.billydroze.com
Their act, Carrington Kay, began as a duo after a chance meeting performing together at a summer theme park. Romance blossomed and their music along with it. As time progressed, so did their endeavors and the expansion of their act. “We’ve been trying to add a new band member every year,” Rob told me recently. “We’re now playing as a quartet most of the time,” he said, referring to the addition of Eric Hollandsworth on bass, and Curt Baker on Dobro. “We’re finally getting that full band sound and we’re really happy with the chemistry we have right now. We’ve really gelled as a group.” “Adding Eric really helped shift us in a new direction musically,” Rob said. “The new album is really diverse, but we do have elements of a folky grassy feel in it for sure. I think that stuff has always been there in the spirit of the music we write, but just adding the instrumentation and the chemistry we now have has us leaning in that direction.” The larger version of the band now opens doors that might not been available before, and it’s an element that has helped Carrington Kay find new audiences for the music. “We’re getting to do bigger festivals now. You know, you can fill up a bigger stage than we could with just two of us also.” Look for their new CD featuring new music and all four members of the band out soon. To find out more, vivit www.carringtonkay.com
To find out more, visit www.jimstanardmusic.com Check out
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Carrington Kay It’s always good to get the chance to revisit with artists that we’ve featured here in previous issues. Rob and Kristen Smith are excellent examples of an act that just stays with it, stays at it, and keeps the musical fires burning as they pursue their passion for sharing their gift with whomever will listen. Rob is a graduate from Virginia Commonwealth University’s College of Music, while Kristen graduated from Baylor University with a Bachelor of Music Education in Choral/Classical Voice with Piano and Religion Minors and from New York University Steinhardt with a Master of Music in Musical Theatre Performance.
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November 2018
Sing Me Back Home Recently (Issue 72), we told you the story of Alice Gerrard and Hazel Dickens who are revered as musical pioneers for women in the Americana string music genre known as bluegrass. They came together as a duo around Baltimore and Washington, D.C., in the early 1960s; sang songs about hard times and heartbreak in the Appalachian countryside; and displayed a chemistry that was unique. Alice, being an up-town girl from California, and Hazel, the polar opposite hailing from the coal camps of West Virginia, gelled musically and produced a rich porridge of musical record. Hazel passed from this life some years ago but Alice, who is in her 80s, is still musically active. Several years ago Alice was reviewing her personal archives and discovered a forgotten collection of, rare reel to reel recordings of her and Hazel from the early 1960’s. These were recordings they made in practice sessions
By Edward Tutwiler
there and conversations with officials at Free Dirt Records, the principals all agreed to turn these basement tapes into an album for commercial release.
and private performances. The overwhelming majority of the songs on these recorded sessions have never before been commercially released by the duo. After reviewing the collection, Alice delivered the tapes to the Southern Folk-life Collection at UNC-Chapel Hill. After a listening session with an audio engineer
Almost two years after Alice sat down to listen to these tapes, the album titled Sing Me Back Home: The DC Tapes, 1965-1969, is set for release in September, 2018 by the Free Dirt Records label. The album features just the sounds of a few instruments and the voices of Hazel and Alice working out the song arrangement process together. The record contains 19 tracks with the duo singing the classic country of The Carter Family, The Louvin Brothers, and Jimmie Rodgers; contemporary tunes of the 1960s penned by Dolly Parton and Merle Haggard; and a sprinkling of traditional standards. One press release describes the album as a raw, unfil-
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tered listen to Hazel and Alice at the height of their collaborative energy. Another press release has M. C. Taylor (producer of Alice Gerrard’s 2014 Grammy-nominated album) remarking, “For listeners who like it pure and unfiltered, this collection . . . may be humble home recordings, but the music shines through like a rough gem, refreshingly free of pretension once all the artifice of the music industry is stripped away.” The press release also quoted Alice as saying, “This is Hazel and I unplugged, un-produced, unaccompanied (except by ourselves), warts and all, wailing our hearts out.” If you are a follower of the emergence of women in bluegrass in general or maybe just a fan of Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard in particular, you might find this is an album you need to add to your collection. Contact Free Dirt Records & Service Co. for ordering details: https://freedirt.net/ on the internet or snail mail to PO Box 11451, Takoma Park, MD 20913.
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November 2018
The Largest Collaborative Bluegrass Project Ever ... 50 Artists, 30 SudiosByGreg Tutwiler Rick Monroe Musician/songwriter Rick Monroe is no stranger to moving around, but he feels like it’s part of what makes his musical style unique. “I definitely come by a gypsy soul legitimately,” he told me recently. He was born in Clearwater, FL, moved to England, moved back to Kansas, then Connecticut, North Carolina, and back to Florida, then L.A., and now he lives in Nashville, TN. He’s performed in 17 countries – and every state in the U.S. state except for Oregon. He has opened for acts such as Eric Church, Dierks Bentley, Charlie Daniels Band, Dwight Yoakam, Montgomery Gentry, and Patty Loveless, just to name a few.
Gregg Welty’s initial exposure to bluegrass music is like so many other musicians growing up in musical families. “I remember listening to my dad (the 1993 Winfield national bluegrass banjo champion) play music throughout childhood,” Gregg told me recently. “I really hated the Banjo for the majority of my childhood. When I was in middle school/early high school, I decided I wanted to learn electric guitar. Of course, my dad was the only guitar player I knew. So he taught me the couple of bluegrass guitar licks he knew (on an electric guitar by the way). It was learning those bluegrass licks and listening to bluegrass music while trying to play electric where I really began to appreciate bluegrass. I started playing banjo when he finally bought me a one for my birthday,” he recalled.
Sticking With It Greg went on to college, continuing to appreciate and play bluegrass music. He played full-time for The Allegheny Drifters for a couple years. He also played with Gold Heart, the Haybalers, and a jamband called Big Leg Emma. He’s done fill-in work for various bands as well, including a recent stint with Blue Mafia in 2017.
more than that though. The first record was all about me. It was my record and about my musical journey, etc., etc. In the process of releasing that record, I realized that I am where I am because of the bluegrass community. The people who helped me get to where I am today, and it is really about everyone else - the Community!”
“As a kid, you do one of two things when you move around a lot like that,” he said. “You either become introverted, not knowing how to handle people, or you start to be the funny guy and the entertainer, and you find ways to ingratiate yourself to people by finding ways to entertain them, and I think that was a big part of my personality.
Gregg casually suggests that he has a day job too. No small venture, he earns his keep as med student/ soon-to-be doctor. “I’m applying for residency training right now,” he commented. Nonetheless, his passion for his music runs deep. “I think that is why I spend a lot of my music time either playing in contests, recording (whether that means studio work for other people or writing/recording my own projects) and doing fill in work for various bands.”
His family was always listening to music so it was an easy transition into adapting his personality into a music performer. “I got turned onto all kinds of stuff way early which ultimately had a lot of influence on me.”
To date, Gregg has won 15 state bluegrass banjo championships, “Which I think is the national record for most state contests. But I still can’t seem to win Winfield though,” he exclaimed. “But it’s next weekend, so we will see.”
Rick recalled actually being kicked out of his high school as a percussionist. “I just wasn’t that good as a drummer,” he quipped. “But then I started really getting into songwriting and that’s when I started to grow as a musician.”
So what does a medical doctor with 15 state banjo bluegrass championships do next? How about the largest collaborative effort for a bluegrass album, ever? He calls it Community, and it’s his latest CD.
Rick said it was after his move to Nashville 10 or 11 years ago when he began being able to live his life as a full time country music artist and song writer. “The sensibility of country music lyrics really shows the reality of life,” he said. “Pop music is fine, but it’s more like candy, good for a quick fix. But country, that’s more like your meat and potatoes.”
“I released my first record. Memoir, in August 2015. That was supposed to be a one off sort-of-thing. Just to see if I could do it. However, it was surprisingly super successful. I had a couple songs chart on the Bluegrass Today singles chart and the record was named by roots music report as one of the top bluegrass albums of the year. It was when I was actually doing a bunch of radio interviews for that project that sparked the idea for Community.”
Gregg was very careful to make sure nothing was lost in the quality of the final product though. “I didn’t want it to sound like it was done in 30 different studios. So, the rhythm tracks were all done live. Every song has the same rhythm guitar, bass, mandolin chops. No click track. Just live. And then I went back in with different vocalists and instrumentalists to sing all the songs, harmonies, breaks, etc. It was a gigantic project. I waited eight months for a single mandolin solo, but it is awesome. It was a waiting game. And truthfully, it worked out because it also stretched out the cost. I’d say, ‘Okay I have X dollars this month, I’m going to try and finish the baritone harmonies on these three songs.”
“That first project had about eight guest artists on it. But the whole thing was done with a click track and done separately. Bass was recorded first with just the charts and a click, then mandolin, then guitar, etc. On interviews, people would ask, ‘how did you make this sound like it was live, when there are clearly a bunch of different studios?’ So I got the idea, how many artists could I get on one project? It’d be like a bluegrass family reunion! I think it became even
“I’ve learned so much it is honestly hard to put into words. I think first and foremost, if I didn’t love the bluegrass music community and those who are a part of it before, I sure do now! I still can’t believe the kindness, professionalism, and welcome I was shown by everybody that was a part of this record. It was so humbling. It really feels like you’re part of something bigger than yourself.”
Rick’s latest record, Smoke Out The Window, is one he’s super proud of. “My producer JD Shuff said to me, ‘I believe if you put this record on in 15 years, it will still hold the quality of a cool-sounding record.’ That’s pretty cool,” Monroe mused. To find out more, visit www.rickmonroe.com
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The Big Idea
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So Many Involved “I mostly just asked,” when I asked him how he got so many artists involved with the project. “I had a couple people reach out to me and ask if they could be a part of it once they heard I was doing it, but for the most part I simply reached out to people. When I set out on this journey three years ago, I made a pact to not offend anyone, to only make friends in this process, to do it right. So I paid people what they asked, I let people take as much time as they needed, let them record where/when they wanted. I humbly reached out to people and said, ‘Hey, I love what you do. I’m working on this. Would you be a part of it? How much will it cost, and I’ll paypal you.”
What Have You Learned
November 2018 Don Brown has spent the better part of his career doing what he calls, “helping people with people.” He’s written five books, including his latest, Simple Truths in Music and Life. This latest project is a collection of wisdom gathered from Don’s experiences and time spent with Uwe Kruger of the Kruger Brothers.
The Pick And The Pendulum “For your playing hand, it comes down to taking advantage of the pick and the pendulum.” - Uwe Kruger Let’s start with the pick first. Uwe explained to me that, “As you hold your pick, two parallel points should be formed by the pick and the point of your index finger behind it.” This took me a while to understand at first. What he’s getting at is that your play-hand thumb rides parallel to the strings. If you look at where your thumb points when you play, it would be straight up the strings to the nut. Your play-hand index finger in contrast is pointing down into the sound hole. This then gives us both control and touch. There are two
parallel points: the point of the pick, and the point of your index finger. Uwe’s always tries to simplify with concrete examples of his conceptual guidance. With flat picks, his advice is also all about simplicity and consistency. Find a pick you like, and then stick with it. Buy 100 of them! Probably the most profound right-hand technique I’ve learned (but not yet mastered) from Uwe is a hybrid - that of finger picking while holding a flat pick at the same time. This integrates the two styles. By this I mean instead of finger picking with thumb, index and middle finger, he’s taught me to use the flat pick as I normally would – and then adding the middle and ring fingers to pluck or brush the strings. His intent is of course to simplify effort
and expand options. What I produce by integrating the flat pick into my finger picking style is that three-finger tempo and style, coupled with a stronger baseline and the ability to play a melodic run with the flat pick when it’s needed (or when I just want to have fun!). I’m about 75 percent proficient with this. I am still more comfortable putting the flat pick down and just using thumb, index and middle as I’d originally learned. But the potential I’ll gainwhenI do arrive at 90 to 100 percent dexterity with the addition of the pick is far, far greater. It’s worth the investment to me. And now for the pendulum! Several quotes come into play here; let me give you three at once to set the meaning of the “pendulum” in play-hand technique: “Clocks were built very early on
to be efficient. They found that the longer and more stable the pendulum, the more accurate the clock. In using your whole forearm, you have a longer pendulum and more solid timing in your playing.”
“Keep the fingers of your strumming hand open. If you constantly open and close them, you shift the weight of the pendulum that is your arm.” “You also limit the freedom of your right hand by always planting your finger on the pick guard. You stop the clock! It doesn’t mean you can never do it, just be aware of it when you do.” - Uwe You get the message? We’re playing from the elbow on down. Now, I know there are accomplished musicians that appear to play only from the wrist down - the exceptions that prove the rule I guess. I think the meaning we are after with the pendulum analogy is consistency, removing variables and obstacles. The same way we strain our left wrist when we don’t keep it straight, we do the same with our right wrist by putting all of the movement through it. Some of us have lots of bad habits to unlearn. This is one of them for me. A helpful mantra? The pick and the pendulum.
Welcome Back County Sales R ecords;
you know, those round, black, flat pieces of plastic about the size of a dinner plate? For most of the history of recorded music, it has been captured, preserved, and enjoyed with records as the medium. In 1965 Dave Freeman founded a mail order business called County Sales, selling those records predominately those celebrating the authentic rural music of the South. He eventually launched Rebel Records as a recording label to further capture those precious bluegrass, country and old-time sounds. For the last 50 plus years, County Sales in Floyd, VA has supplied many a music lover with LPs, tapes, CDs and books. It was announced not long ago though, that Dave would be retiring from the mail order business and closing the County Sales store for good to the chagrin of its many fans and customers.
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But wait! On August 26th, 2018 a letter from now new owner of County Sales, Dylan Locke announced that the store would re-open. “I hope you are as happy as I am to know that this world-famous business is reopening today,” Dave Freeman wrote in an open letter on September 2nd. “I consider it a stroke of luck to be able to find a buyer, in Dylan Locke, who is knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the music … fans of old time music and bluegrass will continue to appreciate and enjoy the huge selection of rare, hard to find recordings in stock.” “It is with excitement and gratitude that I launch this next chapter of County Sales,” Dylan said. “Even in the day and age of streaming services and digital downloads, (this) should not go away. It holds an important place in the hearts of thousands of music lovers ”
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November 2018
The glamor of being ‘on the road’ is a sweet dream and when the music is right, it is a magical thing. The reality of getting from point A to point B has been the make or break point for many a band. The truth is (Zen or not) that you have to enjoy the process!
playing the festival or about the state of music biz. No. We were swapping stories of keeping the buses going and the adventures that those misadventures and breakdowns lead to along the way. CJ’s attitude echoes mine and I wanted to share his tales.
This year I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know CJ Lewandowski of the Po’ Ramblin’ Boys, a brother in arms, in music and in keeping those bus wheels rolling. I first met the band at MerleFest this year and then again at Jam In The Trees in Black Mountain, NC where we had a chance to talk about the trials of keeping bands rolling down the highway. CJ and I found our selves hanging backstage trading stories…not about the bands
The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys
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The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys bus is a 1965, 35 foot GM PD-4106 with an 8V71 Detroit Diesel, fondly named Lloyd. As CJ says, That baby holds 6.5 gallons of oil and it needs a gallon every 1000 miles or so…they say if a Detroit don’t leak, then there is something wrong with it. That cracks me up. As many of you know, I am also a ship’s captain, and I have run tugboats with Detroits. The joke on the water is
that you can hang a picture of a Detroit Diesel on the wall and it leak oil! CJ’s bus started out as a passenger coach and was converted into an entertainer coach with five bunks. CJ got it a few years ago and rehabbed and updated the interior. It is evident that he has some carpentry skills to go along with his mandolin chops. He said that before he bought it, “the bus belonged to another artist and we all thought it was one of the prettiest buses on the Bluegrass road.”
talking maintenance, CJ says, “it’s just like music. If you get lazy with it, it’ll fall apart. Checking fluids, cleaning filters, adjusting brakes etc. takes a little bit of time but can save you thousands of dollars. You can’t get paid if you don’t get to the gig, right?” I heard this and thought, this guy goes at it just like I always have. It’s all a part of the lifestyle. Play hard, work hard, drive hard and believe in yourself.
Always Be Prepared Conversation then shifts to good bus/diesel mechanics and how they are harder to find then hens teeth. When you find a good one, save their number. We both have phone numbers saved for good mechanics, all over the country. Here are a couple of CJ’s bus stories that are too good to miss:
With over 40,000 miles on Lloyd this year, CJ spends almost as much time under or behind it as he does inside. I get it, this is true for me and my bus. We were
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“On our way to Boston in the late winter, we stopped at a rest area in Pennsylvania, just south of the continued on page 25
November 2018
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November 2018
Married to the Music: An Interview with Three of the Bluegrass Industry’s Top Professionals By Lisa Brewer
Marriage
is not only marrying the right partner, but also being the right partner, it’s been said. Many of the 60.8 million pairs of married couples in the United States may wonder what that means, especially for those couples whose circumstances require frequent travel. Here, three well-known professionals in the bluegrass music industry discuss precisely what that means. They reveal how their marriages work as hard as they do. And they share how much fun it is to be married to the music with their spouse.
Which came first? The music or the marriage? Alison Brown (Harvard-educated Grammy award-winning banjo
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player, co-founder of Nashville’s Compass Records, winner of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Distinguished Achievement Award): “Ours was a case of music first. I was a band leader on a Michelle Shocked tour and brought [husband] Garry [West] into the band to play bass. So we got to know each other over the course of a world tour. It’s pretty sweet getting to know someone while touring the capital cities of Europe!” Tim White (host of the public television award-winning Song of the Mountains; host of the syndicated radio program, The Tim White Bluegrass Show, and banjo player with the bands Troublesome Hollow and The VW Boys): “Yes, I was in music before I met Penny. September will be 18 of marriage for us.”
John Holder (founder of Blue Ridge Sound, one of the nation’s premier production companies in acoustic sound): “I’ve been in the music business since I was 13, so the music was definitely first....I was a touring engineer for most of my twenties, but came off the road to pursue my own musical career at 29. That’s when I met my wife.”
How do you balance family life with life on the road? “Before we had kids, it was the two of us with our band mates in the van and once the kids arrived, it became the guys in one vehicle and us in the other with the kids,” Alison said. “We still do bring the kids on the road with us as often as their school schedules will allow and, as a result, both our son and daughter have been to Japan twice and the Shetland Islands (to name a couple of exotic places) as well as most of the 50 states.” White added, “It is a balance. Fortunately, Penny does everything with me. She works the merch table. She is a great
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flatfoot dancer....She enjoys the music and the spirit and the lifestyle. For younger musicians, if they have children, that throws a different dynamic into it. When you’re young and you’re trying to do that road traveling, it is a strain if you have a young wife and children at home. It can play out in a good way or bad way.” It’s actually difficult to balance a full time career in this industry and a normal home life,” Holder said. “But everything worth having, and doing, takes work. This year I got to go to my granddaughter ’s 5th birthday party. It was the first one I had ever attended.”
What’s it like to work with your spouse? Are you “opposites” or do you complement one another? “We are definitely opposites” Brown responded. “Because of that, we complement each other really well. Garry has always been great on the phone and I’ve always been the writer. He’s much better at ‘selling’ than I am but when it comes to putting a plan continued on page 26
November 2018
Continued From Page 22 New York State line. We shut the bus down and start making some breakfast. When we were all full, Jasper pushed the starter button and nothing happened. I figured it was a loose wire or the solenoid failed on the starter. I crawled under the bus, started trying to cross wires and all I got was sparks and wet from the downpour of rain that started while I was under the bus. We left the bus because we had a show to get to. Rented a van, and kept on trucking to Boston to let the bus sit a few days until the festival was over. While at the festival, another promoter introduced me to an elderly gentleman named Mac McGee that asked what the bus problem was. I told him what had happened and what I thought the problem was and that was it. After our set that day, Mac shows up at the table with his son, Herman. Herman asks what happened to the bus, says Mac had one just like mine and had the same problem. He drew a little diagram, and tells us to get in the engine bay, pull the cap off the back of the starter solenoid, turn the bus power on and stick a broom handle on the now exposed nut and push. ‘They will
start, guaranteed!’ Really? A broom handle will start the bus? Sure as sh—, we did what Herman said and it worked! Actually, however many months later, we still start the bus with a broom handle! The solenoid may be bad, but pushing the nut in manually engages the bendix into the starter and the old girl fires every time!” “Check them fluids!!! Don’t be afraid to get dirty for a few minutes. That grease you get under your fingernails while checking the transmission fluid may save you a lot of money. Vehicle maintenance…I can’t stress that enough.” “It takes a lot to get across the country to play a 90-minute set of music. Carry a good guitar and a good set of wrenches.” This can-do attitude is keeping the Po’ Ramblin’ Boys going and shines through in their shows. They play it like they mean it! Check them out. (http:// www.theporamblinboys.com)
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For more on Mike Aiken, his personal stories as a boat captain, and his music, visit MikeAikenMusic.com.
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November 2018
Continued from page 25 on the page and running the numbers, that’s my wheelhouse. Those differences have served us really well with Compass Records, which is coming up on 25 years old next year. It’s really hard for me to imagine what it would be like to do something entrepreneurial without your spouse. Starting a company is an all consuming, 24-hour-a-day endeavor and I think it would be tough to have a partner that wasn’t immersed in and thinking about the same challenges all the time.” “It’s a mixed bag,” White said. “We’ve learned to adjust. Some things we would rather approach differently. She doesn’t tell me how to pick and sing, and I don’t tell her how to work the merch table and work the mailing list. We adjust to one another.” “My wife and I are definitely opposites in lots of ways, but we do complement each other in other ways, in the sense that we give each other balance” said Holder. “That’s not to say that it doesn’t get interesting/difficult when I’m pushing and she’s pulling (or vice-versa) but that’s part of being married. You won’t
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always be in sync with one another.”
Name some of the best moments when marriage and music collided. “These days, pretty much any time we’ve got an out of town show in a destination city and the kids are staying home with our favorite babysitter!” Alison said. “In 2006, on Christmas Eve, we were trying to save a pot-bellied pig from my sister’s house fire, and we ended up going to jail together because an officer assaulted my wife and I assaulted the officer. That resulted in a song,” White recalled. Holder added, “My wife and I always took our two daughters to music festivals and concerts even when they were little. Now they are in turn teaching our granddaughters to enjoy music. This year I had a special moment when my wife, daughter, and 2 granddaughters came and watched “Pawpaw” mix the Balsam Range/Atlanta Pops Orchestra at MerleFest. We had a wonderful weekend there as a family.”
Do you have any advice to offer to young, single artists trying to establish a career and also establish a lasting relationship? To young married artists working in the industry? “It’s different for everyone, of course,” said Alison, “but I would find it hard to be in a long term relationship with someone who wasn’t also a member of the same musical community. There is a real lifestyle aspect to bluegrass and roots music and I think it’s very important to find someone (whether a professional player, weekend picker or simply a fan) who shares your passion for being a part of that community and enjoyment of the music. To young married artists in the industry, especially those that are thinking of starting families, I’d say there’s no better community than the bluegrass and folk community in which to raise your kids. Hilary Clinton famously said: “It takes a village to raise a child” and, in our experience, you won’t find a more supportive or generous “village” than the one we have in bluegrass music.”
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“Everybody’s situation is different,” Tim said. “Professionally, [music] takes a lot of time. It’s not a job, it’s a lifestyle. If you’re dating someone, make sure that they’re on board; Make sure as best you can before you take the plunge and put a ring on someone’s finger, that they’re on board. John Holder concluded, “Don’t ever forget to keep dating your spouse. Whether you’re in the entertainment industry or not, marriage takes hard work. In any work situation that takes you from home, you’ll have to make a more concentrated effort to stay connected. Learn what your spouse’s “love language” is and speak it to them. Always consult with your spouse before making any decisions. It’s easy to say “let me check with my wife/husband and get back to you.” Keep God at the center of your marriage and family. And if God opens a door of opportunity, don’t be afraid to go through it. He’s still in control. Before we got married, I was sure I was going to have a career playing music, but God had other plans for me. Now I am thankful to be allowed to make my living not playing music but making other musicians sound great live ”
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November 2018
Music From The National Scene
Music From Your Neighbors
w elcome to the Fall edi-
tion of SPINS! Check out all this wonderful ear candy (in no special order)! Plug in your ear buds and dial up some of these fine folks. With winter and holidays around the corner, there’s plenty here to keep you warm! Got one you want us to listen to? send it to:
Uncle Woody, The Spin Doctor PO Box 45 Bridgewater, VA 22812
Clay Hess Band Just Another Story
Ozark Mountain Daredevils
Off The Beaten Path
Blue Yonder Rough And Ready Heart
www.clayhess.com
www.hilaryscott.com
www.theozarkmountaindaredevils.com
www.blueyonderhonkytonk.com
Clay Hess has spent a lot of time with Ricky Scagg’s band, Kentucky Thunder and it’s where the inspiration comes from for his second solo project, Just Another Story. If you like hard driving traditional, you’ll like this
Don’t Call Me Angel is Hilary’s 12th studio release. The multiinstrumentalist singer has a voice you won’t soon forget. This CD coincides with the 20th anniversary of her brother’s sudden passing which inspires her greatly
Once described as “a ragtag collection of hippies, bohemians, and musicians of no fixed ambition” The Ozark Mountain Daredevils have been a band since 1971; they’re an original Americana band, with a new CD. We like it too
The backbone of Americana music is rooted in honky tonk, and few play it better today than John Lilly. The award winning singer/songwriter and his band Blue Yonder are proud to share their new CD, Rough And Ready Heart. Fun!
New Town
Sister Sadie II
Nothin’ Fancy Time Changes Everything
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Rudi Ekstein Carolina Chimes
Hilary Scott Don’t Call Me Angel
Old World
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Lorraine Jordan and Carolina Road True Grass Again
www.carolinachimes.com
www.thenewtownband.com
www.sistersadiemusic.com
www.nothinfancybluegrass.com
Rudi Ekstein is a noted mandolinist, producer and studio owner. Dennis Caplinger says his new 12 track project, Carolina Chimes, “are sure to become classics.” Ekstein calls on noted musicians like Stuart Duncan, and Mark Schatz to sit in
Lexingtown Kentucky is home for this hard hitting progressive grass act. Led by the powerful vocals of Kati Penn, New Town’s latest project, Old World, has already produced two highly successful singles. The rest of the CD is just as good. You’ll like this
(See full article on this female super group, page 17) The second release from these fantastic ladies, simply called II, is already smokin’ up the charts as well as the DJ playlists. They have limited dates, but you owe it to yourself to check them out if you can
This band has been making sweet traditional bluegrass music their own way for 24 years now. Three of the original members are still at the helm, and some say the band is sounding better than ever. Their new CD is already gaining national attention
Lorraine Jordan and her band are true flamekeepers of traditional bluegrass music. Their latest CD, True Grass Again, aims at making that point quite clear - and does, profoundly so. Always good stuff from this hot band
Come See About Me A Benefit for the IBMA Trust Fund
Tyler Grant & Robin Kessinger
Ranger Doug Sings Songs Of The Frontier
Williamson Branch Free
Jim Stanard Bucket List
Kanawha County Flatpicking
www.ridersintheskycom
www.williamsonbranch.com
www.jimstanardmusic.com
www.ibma.org/bluegrass-trust-fund
www.tylergrant.com
Created by the Mountain Home Music Company, Come See About Me features loads of great acts including Donna Ulisse, Sideline, The Grascals, Doyle Lawson, Balsam Range, and more. Pick up this one for sure
W hat happens when two pickers connect at a pickin’ contest, become admiers of each others work, become friends, and decide to cut a record together? You got it. Over 10 years of pickin’ together shines on this set
For 40 years, Ranger Doug has been the front man for the multi-Grammy band, Riders In The Sky. Doug, with a lot of help from his Riders friends, debut his solo collection of 11 traditional Americana roots clasics. Think Gene Autry and Roy Rogers
Family band W illiamson Branch has a new CD, a new single, and a new video for the title cut, Free. Sounding like something taylor made for the top of the charts, this family has all the makings of a group that plans to be around a while. You need to hear this
(see full story on page 18) Jim Stanard is living proof that if you want something bad enough, and you put in the work, there’s not much you can’t accomplish. Recording his debut CD, Bucket List, in his 60s He is inspiration to us all. Keep singin’ Jim!
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www.carolinaroadband.com
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You can send new Americana CD releases for consideration to PO Box 45, Bridgewater, VA, 22812 www.AmericanaRhythm.com
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