Grits

Grits

Here’s one from a couple of years back: If you’re gonna play bluegrass, you need to know something about grits. I’m not talking about textures of sandpaper from the hardware store and I’m not talking about hip hop groups. No, I’m talking about a delicacy native to the...
Foibles, Bon Mots and Thoughts

Foibles, Bon Mots and Thoughts

The harbinger of a healing America is spreading like a shot filled tequila bluegrass jam as actual real flesh and blood blue grass bands are being booked to perform on real non zoom incorporated stages. I just saw the good news that my friend Jason Winfrey and Red Dog...
Complimentarily Speaking

Complimentarily Speaking

One of the coolest things about being a performing musician is, people generally say nice stuff to you. If you did a good job, you made a lot of people happy and entertained them, and it’s very natural for them to want to convey thanks to you during a break or after...
Three Chords and the Truth

Three Chords and the Truth

A few weeks ago my wife and I were visited by a couple who had been good friends of ours since student days. We hadn’t seen them for some years, and it came up in conversation that the husband had presented his wife with a ukulele last Christmas. After a bit of...
Feeling Like a Musician

Feeling Like a Musician

After a good rehearsal, or a good gig, I come away with a pleasing afterglow, which I have to term as “feeling like a musician”. It means, during those events, I let the music wash over me, enjoyed the participation of it, and reveled in the release it provided for my...
Part 5: Louvin Brothers Secular Songs

Part 5: Louvin Brothers Secular Songs

“I CAN’T KEEP YOU IN LOVE WITH ME”: SECULAR SONGS OF THE LOUVIN BROTHERS Charlie and Ira Louvin returned to the Capitol Records studio in 1958 to prove that they were capable of selling secular records. While the duo continued to record and perform sacred songs until...
Rambling about Rambling

Rambling about Rambling

This is a going to be a rambling column about recent and upcoming ramblings, made possible by a vaccine, a negative COVID test, and a mask. Ramble 1: Local I went to a jam this past weekend, and a certain fabulous bass/guitar player (okay, it was Steve Pottier) called...
Suits Me to a T!

Suits Me to a T!

I like t-shirts – always have.  They’re plentiful, inexpensive and comfortable. OK, maybe only that first thing is always true.  The T-shirt has a fairly long history – even longer than Bluegrass. The garment that came to be known by that name dates back...