We’ve commented in the past about the ongoing outrage that Blue Highway guitarist - and highly influential flatpicking stylist - Tim Stafford has never received IBMA’s Guitar Player Of The Year Award.

Well, there is one organization who recognizes Tim’s stature in the acoustic guitar world. CA Guitars (Composite Acoustics) of Lafayette, LA is set to introduce a Tim Stafford signature guitar model at the Summer NAMM show in Nashville next month.

Tim has been using a CA guitar on the road with Blue Highway for a number of years, and in the studio as well. The guitars are made from a carbon fiber composite material and Tim has praised his for its constancy with regard to temperature and humidity extremes - common concerns for road musicians.

“I have the second prototype here, and it has a new bracing pattern, an enlarged soundhole and beautiful rosette design by Bobby Starnes. My name is inlaid at the 12th fret tastefully in the same blue shell that cosmetically offsets the black carbon fiber well. They aren’t finished with it–still some modifications to be done, including a soundport. The thing sounds wonderful–every new guitar I hear from CA gets better acoustically, and they were already great recording guitars. They also play like a dream right out of the factory.”

The soundport Tim mentioned is an opening in the upper bout of the guitar’s side, which he says makes the guitar project more forcefully forward - generating more volume. The Stafford model will also come with a custom Fishman Aura pickup system installed, which uses onboard software (tweaked for this guitar’s properties) in what Fishman describes as a new breakthrough in acoustic image modeling to accurately replicate the way different classic microphones would capture the tone and response.

CA was hesitant to comment much on the Tim Stafford model, saying that it is still a work in progress, but they are very excited about their association with Tim, and looking forward to debuting the guitar at Summer NAMM in June.

We’ll have more details as the actual launch draws near.

It seems the debate over what constitues ‘traditional bluegrass’ and what should be labeled ‘progressive bluegrass’ has no end. Stack on top of that, the debate over how much ‘progressive’ bluegrass should be allowed at a certain festival or event, and you’ll have a lively discussion for sure.

Popmatters.com posted a story yesterday about this very topic. Guitarist Russ Barenberg is the center point of the piece. Barenberg has recently returned to music full time, after a number of years working behind the scenes at the Saturn car company.

My favorite quote from the article follows.

…people talk about `traditional bluegrass.’ You hear that term a lot. Well, in 1946, bluegrass was brand-new. It wasn’t traditional music. It was just as much of an experiment from what came before it as anything we’re doing now. It’s a continuous process for musicians and creative people. They discover new things but appreciate music from the past at the same time.

I think he’s right. I love the ‘traditional’ stuff as much as anybody, but if I never heard anything new, I’d get bored after a while. As it is, I enjoy the new artists, like Punch Brothers, pushing the boundries of what we call bluegrass, and that just enhances my enjoyment of The Stanley Brothers all the more.

The Bluegrass Blog would like to wish a very happy 83rd birthday to George Shuffler. George was born April 11, 1925.

Shuffler is viewed by many as a pivotal figure in the development of bluegrass guitar styles. He spent 18 years with The Stanley Brothers, where he developed his trademark guitar style known today as crosspicking.

At 83 years young, George is still active in and around the music, influencing many young pickers still today with his impeccable timing and tasteful playing.

Happy birthday George!

This year marks the third annual Americana Music Festival at Peaceful Bend. The festival takes place May 15-18 in Steelville, MO. It’s going to be flatpick central for four days.

The festival takes place on the grounds of the Peaceful Bend Vineyard in Steelville, MO. The vineyard sits on seventy acres above the Upper Meramec River about ninety minutes south west of St. Louis on Highway T. There will be camping available at the vineyard limited to advance reservation with other lodging available nearby.

The festival is more than just performances. It consists of workshops and private lessons during the day, followed by a concert each evening. Most of the performances will be held in the wine garden and will be limited to 200 seats. Thursday evening however will be special. National Flatpicking Champions Mark Cosgrove, Robin Kessinger, and Robert Shafer will perform in the wine cellar Thursday evening. Seating is limited to 100 in the cellar. I’m told the acoustics are fantastic in there, and I certainly hope so. I’ll be on hand that evening to record the performance for a future DVD release from Flatpicking Guitar Magazine and SimpleFolk Productions. The title of the DVD will be Pickin at the Peaceful Bend. This will be the fifth in a series of flatpicking concert DVDs I’ve produced for them. So come out and be part of the audience for this live production.

After Thursday’s taping, the rest of the weekend looks pretty spectacular as well.

Performers include

Friday: The Grass Pack, David Grier and Wyatt Rice.

Saturday: Will Maring and Robert Bowlin, Bryan Sutton and Russ Barenberg.

Sunday: Josh Williams, The Chapmans, Plus an All-Star-Jam!

For more information and registration details, visit SimpleFolkProductions.com.

The Washburn Guitar folks have a number of new acoustic models. All were debuted at the recent Winter NAMM show, and will be arriving in dealer showrooms later this summer.

Striking and unexpected wood choices are a theme with these five new guitars, three of which are available with onboard electronics.

The two dreadnaughts (D46SP and D46CESP) are maple guitars, using a highly-figured spalted variety for the top, back and sides. This splating is a result of the action of fungi on maple after harveting, but prior to manufacture.

The D46SP will retail for $839.90 and the D46CESP with cutaway and B-Band A-15 electronics for $999.00.

Another interesting wood choice is Java Ebony, used on the J27CE jumbo cutaway. The body is ebony with a mahogany neck and a rosewood fingerboard and bridge. Many people associate ebony with a nearly-black appearance, but a great deal of ebony has a streaked, reddish-brown look before staining. Washburn has left this wood in its natural state.

The J27CE, with onboard electronics will retail for $1,099.90.

There are also two new additions to Washburn’s long-running and very successful Festival Series guitars. These feature an oval sound hole and a cutaway with the EA17 ($649.90) being a deep body guitar and the EA21HM ($1,299.90) a much thinner model. Both feature the same B-Band A-15 electronics.

The New York Times has an interesting article published last Friday (2/22) entitled A Journey Shaped by a Guitar. It gives an insight into the workings of the famous Martin Guitar company’s Nazareth, Pennsylvania, factory.

Spoken of in terms of being a tourist attraction, it outlines what a visitor may see of the guitar-making process and the facilities and services provided.

The full illustrated story can be read at the New York Times website, including a number of multi-media features.

It seems Marty Stuart has given quite a Valentine’s Day gift to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. On Wednesday, February 13, 2008, he donated Lester Flatt’s old 1950 D-28 to the museum.

History tells us Lester bought the guitar for $115 at a pawnshop in Charleston, WV, in 1956. He used the instrument for the better part of his career.

Home to Flatt’s world renowned G-run for nearly 25 years, the Martin was used on most of Flatt & Scruggs’s classic recordings and live performances, including Grand Ole Opry broadcasts and their appearances on the national television show Beverly Hillbillies and the Martha White-sponsored Flatt & Scruggs Grand Ole Opry.

This instrument is just part of a larger collection of items donated by Marty Stuart and Connie Smith. You can view the complete list of donated items on the museum’s website.

Our friend Laura Leder from Cool Mandolin Company emailed recently to ask us to remind students of bluegrass and old time music - both here in the US, and in the UK and Europe - about Sore Fingers Week 2008.

The annual event will be held March 24-28 in Oxfordshire (UK), with classes offered in a residential setting over five days for fiddle, guitar, mandolin, banjo, resophonic guitar, bass, singing and autoharp. The faculty is drawn from top performers from both sides of the Atlantic.

A full instructor listing can be found on the Sore Fingers web site.

Bluegrass has always been a highly participatory genre, with a higher than average number of fans being amateur or part time players as well, something we share with jazz and folk music.

One of the surest signs of the continuing growth of interest in bluegrass music is the success of the many new instructional camps and workshops held each year. Some are instrument specific, while others offer classes for many or all bluegrass instruments at the same time. They are gaining in number and popularity all over the US and Europe as pickers seek to learn more about the music they love.

St. Louis Flatpick is one hosted by guitarist Bull Harman, who developed the concept and started the weekend workshop event to help boost interest in flatpicking in the Midwest.

My wife, Tammy, and I attend workshops throughout the U.S. and have noticed that our area was severely lacking in a weekend workshop type event. So based upon on our experience with others’ weekends, we decided to start St. Louis Flatpick. We are proud to say that this is our 4th year, of hopefully many. We planned the 3 day event months before it’s actual time to allow for preparation and advertising. Our Exhibit Hall hosts several of our sponsors throughout the weekend and our Saturday evening concert has become the highlight of the weekend. Students are thrilled at the opportunity to sit back and watch their instructors shine.

Our goal was to bring a workshop of this kind to the Midwest area, where there aren’t classes available of this type. We outgrew our first hotel after the first year moved to the Crowne Plaza Airport Hotel in St. Louis where we have lots of room to grow including a ballroom for the concert.

This year’s event will be March 7, 8 & 9th in St. Louis, MO. Featured instructors will be Clay Hess and David Grier

How many steel string acoustic guitars do you think are sold each year? I don’t know either, but it must surely be in the millions.

With a large bulk of them being sold - or given - to folks without much knowledge of the workings of a flat top box, one imagines that there are millions more who own a guitar and don’t know much at all about how it works, or what should be done to keep it in top condition.

It is for just these people that the newest DVD release from AcuTab was produced, as well as for serious guitarists and guitar owners who want to know more about their cherished six strings.

Get To Know Your Acoustic Guitar featuring Marty Lanham is designed as a DVD owner’s manual for guitarists. Marty Lanham is a well-respected luthier and the owner/builder of the Nashville Guitar Co. Top Nashville guitarists in both bluegrass and country music regularly entrust him with their priceless vintage instruments for set up, repair or restoration, and many of them also use his fine, hand made guitars on stage or in the studio.

The 2 hour video takes the viewer through an overview of the various component parts of the guitar, and how they work together to create its distinctive tone.

It also covers the most crucial guitar repair issues and how you can both spot and prevent them. Fret wear, loose braces, bridge plate wear, bridge pulling up, and neck twist and warpage are among the topics covered in detail, with many close ups. Marty goes over neck relief, temperature and humidity, tuning machines, intonation, finish issues and when a guitar’s neck may need to be reset. Causes (and corrections) for high or low action are also discussed and demonstrated.

AcuTab has posted a clip on YouTube with a number of brief video samples, along with clips from their various other banjo, guitar, mandolin and fiddle DVD projects.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2YNQs_rTmM

It’s not meant to teach you to become a luthier, but to educate and inform while providing insight about the care and repair of your steel string pals.

The new DVD is due for release on February 15, with advance orders being accepted now. Get more details (screenshots, video clips) on the AcuTab web site.

The February ‘08 edition of Acoustic Guitar magazine includes a new gear report about the Blueridge BR -40AS guitar. This particular version of the Blueridge, the Saga Music brand guitar, continues the pattern of the range that mixes affordability with quality in the shape of an Adirondack top.

The Adirondack spruce is, in part, the reason the pre-war Gibson J-45 and the Martin D-28 are both so very popular and are demanding premium prices when they become available for sale. Taking cues from the pre-war dreadnoughts the sound and feel belies the guitar’s more modern origins.

The reviewer concludes that the guitar is a pleasure to play, citing the BR -40AS as “playable, good looking” despite blurred overtones when the guitar is driven hard.

A video review can be seen on the Acoustic Guitar web site, where you can also read the full text review

The specifications are ….

• Solid Adirondack spruce top with hand-carved parabolic forward X-braces
• Mahogany back and sides
• Vintage late-30’s style sunburst high-gloss finish
• Black 5-ply body binding (B/W/B/W/B) (more…)

Here’s a cautionary story for those bluegrassers who prefer the tone of tortoise shell picks.

Agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have indicted 10 people after a multi-year investigation for smuggling hawksbill tortoise shells as well as finished guitar picks and fiddle bows into the US from China. The hawksbill tortoise is listed as an endangered species under US law and commercial trade of such items is prohibited.

The value of the confiscated material was estimated at $8,000 and sentences may range between six and twelve months in jail and up to $20,000 in fines.

The Environmental News Service quotes the prosecutor in this case:

“Trafficking in endangered species doesn’t pay,” said Troy Eid, U.S. attorney for the District of Colorado. “We will pursue these offenders across the globe to help save sea turtles for future generations.”

Read the full ENS article online.

HT:  Fretboard Journal

Our UK correspondent, Richard F Thompson, shares this review of a project he found especially worthy.

When cross-pick guitar expert and Clinch Mountain Boy James Alan Shelton was selecting the songs and tunes for this, his ninth solo CD, Walking Down The Line, he was in a nostalgic mood, reflecting on particular moments in his musical life.

The opening track, Soldier’s Joy, pays tribute to the late Clarence White, tragically killed in an automobile accident, and sets a driving tempo with plenty of hot licks from fellow Clinch Mountain Boy Dewey Brown (fiddle) and Adam Steffey (mandolin) as well as Shelton himself. Audey Ratcliff (rhythm guitar) and Barry Bales (bass) provide a solid rhythm section here and throughout.

Shelton had worked up a finger-picked rendition of My Grandfather’s Clock some years ago, but it isn’t until now that he has gone ahead and recorded the tune. Young straight-ahead banjo picker, Daniel Grindstaff provides the essential harmonic chimes here. Also played finger style is Old Toy Trains; it’s one tune that I am going to have to listen to again and again. It’s a lovely sedate melody, written by country singer Roger Miller.

I love Tony Ellis’s original tunes and Shelton’s version of Stephen twins lead guitar and his own banjo playing beautifully. Both of these last two performances are captivating. Salt Creek, or Stoney Creek as it is known in Stanley Brothers’ circles, features Stanley-style banjo from Steve Sparkman, a long-standing Clinch Mountain Boy with Shelton. These four tunes alone admirably demonstrate the varied shadings in style that can be found on this CD.

Nashville Blues comes from the version on the original Will The Circle Be Unbroken LP, a set that is a musical landmark in so many people’s lives. Shelton recalls Randy Scruggs’ guitar break while Grindstaff echoes Earl’s break, at the same time being innovative with an overdubbed second banjo part to one of the breaks. Another slower-paced tune is Fair And Tender Ladies; it is much enhanced by some triple fiddle parts from Brown. (more…)

Homespun Video is set to release a new instructional DVD this week featuring Peter Rowan and Tony Rice. Entitled Peter Rowan and Tony Rice Teach Songs, Guitar and Musicianship, the DVD runs 110 minutes with Rowan Rice teaching a half dozen songs from the repertoire of their live shows.

Rowan shows ideas designed to help an rhythm guitarist accompany a vocalist, while Rice describes more advanced concepts. Songs taught include You Were There For Me, Dustbowl Children, Let the Harvest Go to Seed, Angel Island, Come Back to Old Santa Fe and Panama Red. The DVD also features a performance of Rowan’s classic song, Midnight Moonlight.

It is scheduled for release on January 4. Find more details on the Homespun Video site.

David Grier has released his latest album of solo flatpicked guitar.

Live At The Linda was recorded in concert at the Linda Norris Auditorium in Albany, NY in September of 2006. It showcases David in his element - performing his unique improvised guitar style before an appreciative audience.

The 13 tunes are drawn from David’s own compositions, traditional fiddle music (Red Haired Boy, Red Wing, Bonaparte’s Retreat), bluegrass instrumentals (Randy Lynn Rag, Old Ebeneezer Scrooge) and pop hits (Killing Me Softly, Yesterday).

There are no audio samples up yet online, but David says that you’ll be able to find them on his web site soon.

The folks at Flatpicking Guitar Magazine have posted an online clip from the most recent DVD release, Guitarmageddon. It features Josh Williams, Andy Falco and Chris Eldridge tearing up Cherokee Shuffle on stage at the Station Inn in Nashville.

As you might expect, the boys pick it solid throughout, and surely do so throughout this one hour production.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6s8Mmc69CP8

The Guitarmageddon DVD was shot and edited by our own Brance Gillian.

The instrument company Recording King has recently opened a custom shop and is accepting orders for handcrafted banjos and acoustic guitars, in both the U.S. and Japan.

You start with a standard Recording King model and order changes in components, finishes, or specifications.

Cliff Fitch, a well-respected banjo luthier, will be heading up the U.S. custom shop. Fitch has more than a decade of experience building custom banjos and doing repairs and restorations. In October, at IBMA, Fitch introduced the Recording King Professional model banjo.

The Asian custom shop will be run by Scott Zimmerman, who is known for his banjo bridges and the Desert Rose banjos.

Custom shop orders can be placed in the U.S. by contacting Cliff Fitch by phone at (817) 714-1115, or by email at fitchbanjos@att.net.

Orders for the Asian custom shop can be placed by contacting Scott Zimmerman at scott@sugiguitars.com.

Flatpicking Guitar Records has two new CD releases which you may want to consider when contemplating gifts for your favorite flatpicker - or flatpicking fan.

Plaidgrass is a band whose foundation concept is a mixture of Celtic music instrumentation with a bluegrass sensibility. The group is fronted by the husband/wife team of fiddler Gretchen Priest and guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Tim May. They are joined by Tom Saffell on 8-string banjo, Al Goll on resonator guitar, Brian Christianson on mandolin and fiddle, and Dan Miller on bass.

You can find audio samples on the band’s MySpace page, and several video clips on YouTube.

Also new from FGR is Robert Bowlin’s Six String Soliloquy, a set of solo acoustic guitar pieces primarily written by the artist.

Bluegrass historians remember Bowlin as a fiddler, having the distinction of being the last to work as a member of Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys. Early reaction to his new CD suggests that his lasting mark will come instead as a flatpicker, with the wide range of emotions and his virtuosity as a guitarist being widely heralded.

You can see the full track listing on the Flatpicking Guitar site, and hear several audio samples on Robert’s MySpace page.

Flatpicking Guitar Magazine has released their latest concert DVD, following the familiar theme of grouping popular flatpickers they have set with previous releases.

Guitarmageddon, co-produced with SimpleFolk Productions, showcases three young flatpicking firebrands who have been making their presence felt in bluegrass this past few years. Chris Eldridge, Andy Falco and Josh Williams are featured in this one hour DVD performing live at Nashville’s storied Station Inn in a variety of settings.

The three each offer solo arrangements, are paired as duos, pick as a trio, and are joined by Cody Kilby on banjo and Mike Bub on bass for some rockin’ bluegrass numbers. Each of the three guitarists are interviewed, as is J.T. Gray, current owner of the Station Inn.

A total of 15 songs are included, among them favorites like Cherokee Shuffle, East Tennessee Blues, Jesse James, Nine Pound Hammer, and Salt Creek.

There doesn’t seem to be a video sample up online yet, but they may be posted soon on Flatpicking Guitar’s YouTube channel.

You can find more details in the Flatpicking Guitar online store.

We don’t think about it often, but these instruments we use to create bluegrass music existed before Monroe. The banjo has arguably undergone some evolution in the last 100 years, but the mandolin, fiddle, guitar, and bass haven’t changed that much.

Before there was Banjo Newsletter, Flatpicking Guitar Magazine, Bluegrass Unlimited, Bluegrass Now or Fretboard Journal, there was S.S. Stewart’s Banjo & Guitar and Mandolin Journal.

Publication began in 1882. The Journal covered items of interest to music lovers, including: concert dates, concert reviews, sheet music and instruction, articles, photos, and a large number of advertisements. Issues of this classic publication can occasionally be found for sale on auction sites such as ebay.

While collectors will still bid on the actual items, the rest of us no longer need to open our wallets to enjoy reading the Journal. The University of Rochester Research Department has gone to a great deal of effort to scan all the issues in the school’s library and make them available online as PDF files. Over 40 issues are available on the school’s website.

The PDF files are of moderate size. The average is probably 1-1.5 MB, some approach 3MB.

This publication is from the pre-bluegrass musical era, but still very interesting to read if you some free time.

Hat Tip: Fretboard Journal Blog