Bluegrass, An Admiring Mantis, and Lots of Dough

by | Jul 21, 2018 | Welcome Column

The last time I attended Strawberry Music Festival, the only things I recall are running around the meadow naked, and being covered in face paint. Now, admittedly those of you who know me might wonder if this was a recent event, but no, I was a little dude at the...

Bluegrass, Banjos and Barbecue

by | Nov 8, 2007 | Welcome Column

We’ve had a few posts lately about Rosine, KY. It brought back memories of a visit my wife Barbara and I made there shortly after Bill Monroe’s death. I poked around in the archives and found this story I had written for the August, 1998, Breakdown. The headline was:...

Bluegrass, Lasers, and Flashing Shoelaces

by | Aug 17, 2019 | Welcome Column

One thing you can count on with bluegrass musicians is they have a guaranteed and bonafide calico quilt of a musical pedigree. It seems like the more talented the player, the more diverse their roots. At any given bluegrass festival, usually if you stay up late...

Bluegrass: An Alternate History

by | Nov 11, 2019 | Welcome Column

Like Western Classical music and various other genres or musical styles, bluegrass has been assessed as and plagued by the notion that it is a static and dying music. Yet, the “death of bluegrass” conversation pivots away from other such discussions in the fact that...