Barry Mazor just wrote in to let us know that he has published an article about Jerry Douglas in today’s Wall Street Journal.

Titled Jerry Douglas, Irreplaceable Instrumentalist, the article spends time focusing on Douglas’ accomplishments, but also on how his mind works musically. Many resophonic guitar player would love to figure out what makes Douglas tick, I’m sure. It seems the songs vocals are an important part of this instrumentalist’s style.

“I’m a singer at heart,” Mr. Douglas admitted during a recent interview in Nashville, “but when I started playing dobro, I stopped singing — because it took that space in my head. At times I’ll feel strongly about hitting a harmony note with Alison’s voice, accenting the line, and it gives the illusion of there being a harmony singer.”

The article goes on to discuss the influence of various musical genres on Douglas’ style, including the bluegrass he played as a young man, jazz, country, and the blues. And quoting everyone from Alison Krauss to Garth Brooks, the article takes a look at the influence Douglas has had on the modern musical landscape.

It’s a well written and fairly easy read. If you’re interested in the dobro, or just good musicianship for that matter, you’ll want to check it out.

The nominees for the 2008 Country Music Awards were announced earlier this week, and there are only two bluegrass-related artists who made the cut.

Jerry Douglas is nominated again for Musician Of The Year, and award he has won three times previously - in ‘02, ‘05 and ‘07.

Alison Krauss received nominations for both Female Vocalist, and with Robert Plant in the Musical Event category for the song Gone, Gone, Gone from their Raising Sand project.

It is quite a testament to her reigning star power that Krauss is nominated by both the CMA and the IBMA as a female vocalist in a year when she has been absent from recording and performing either country or bluegrass music.

The winners will be announced during a live ABC telecast of the awards show at 8:00 p.m. on November 12. The show will be held in Nashville.

A full list of nominees can be found on the CMA web site.

Jerry Douglas, certified master of the resonator guitar, has a new CD due out August 19 on Koch Records. This will be his 12th solo project in a career that spans more than 30 years, and stints with a who’s who of bluegrass and acoustic artists: Country Gentlemen, JD Crowe & The New South, Boone Creek, The Whites, Emmylou Harris, Strength In Numbers and Alison Krauss & Union Station.

His distinctive slide style has been sought to grace recordings by artists as diverse as bluegrass/new acoustic stalwarts Béla Fleck and Tony Rice, to pop singer/songwriters Paul Simon and James Taylor.

Like previous Douglas recordings, Glide defies every attempt at stylistic pigeon-holing, and features a mixing of genres and sounds as varied as his career suggests. You’ll hear bluegrass influence throughout the majority of the CD, even when the tunes aren’t specifically grassy, encompassing elements of Celtic, American folk, country and rock.

We had a chance to get some feedback from Jerry about the new CD, and about a special honor that has come his way.

“I have been named Artist In Residence for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum for this year. I feel very honored by this appointment. Last year’s Artist was Kris Kristofferson. Earl Scruggs and Tom T. Hall have also had this title.

What this means is that I get do four shows during the months of August and September any way I see fit. I am trying to recruit some respected friends who have meant something special to my career down through the years. I also want this to be entertaining for both the folks participating and those coming to see a good show. There are only around 200 seats in the Ford’s Theater in the Museum and I want this to be something special for those there to remember.”

The Artist In Residency shows are scheduled for August 19, August 27, September 16 and September 30. Tickets are currently available for Museum members, and any remaining seats will be offered to the general public on Monday, July 21. More details can be found on the Hall Of Fame web site, or by calling 615-416-2001.

Given the variety of sounds he captured on Glide, I wondered how many different guitars he used in recording this album.

“I used quite a few guitars for Glide. The workhorse being my new signature model Beard in different tunings, I sometimes stacked tracks with other Beard guitars I have. Also used were an old Weissenborn guitar, lapsteels from Jason Dumont at Lapking Guitars and a Fender Tele I’ve had for years made for me as a lapsteel. I also played an old Martin D-18 and Gibson J-200 on some tracks.” (more…)

We picked up a few more details about the new Jerry Douglas signature resonator guitars from Beard Guitars, though there still isn’t any new info on their web site.

There will be two Douglas models - a production model and a limited edition guitar.

The Jerry Douglas signature model will have all solid woods - Honduran ribbon mahogany for the back and sides, sapele (African mahogany) for the top, and mahogany for the neck. The inlay and coverplate will be custom to the Douglas model and will ship for $5250 with arched hardshell case and straplock assembly.

The Limited Edition guitar uses solid pomele sapele - a very highly figured variety - for the back, sides and top. The other components will be the same as the production guitar, other than the installation of a Fishman Aura pickup and the Douglas family crest inlaid on the headstock. Only 50 of these guitars will be made, with a selling price of $7500.

Look for more details soon on the Beard web site.

Beard Guitars has just announced the introduction of their Jerry Douglas signature series model resophonic guitars.

The Douglas models were unveiled today at the Winter NAMM show in CA.

There aren’t many details on the Beard site, but I’m sure we can get more information when they return from NAMM.

CMT.com is reporting that Jerry Douglas told reporters at the CMA Awards in Nashville that he will start work on a new recording with Alison Krauss & Union Station by the middle of next year.

Rounder Records doesn’t have any information yet about when they might complete this next project, or when it may be released.

Jerry will also have a new solo project of his own in April on Koch Records, and plans to tour in support with his band in the Spring.

Congratulations to resonator guitarist Jerry Douglas, who picked up his third Musician of the Year award from the Country Music Association last night in Nashville.

2007 marked Jerry’s 10th nomination for this CMA award, which was known as the Instrumentalist of the Year until 1988.

This morning (11/1), BluegrassCountry.org has interviews on tap with a couple of bluegrass and acoustic music legends.

Sam Bush drops by at 9:00 a.m. to talk with Katy Daley about his current tour with Edgar Meyer and Jerry Douglas, which stops tonight in DC.

Then at 11:00, Lee Michael Demsey will preview his lengthy interview with Jerry Douglas. The full interview will run on Sunday (11/4) at 6:00 p.m., in which Lee and Jerry take a look (and listen) back over Jerry’s long career in music, and take a look at where he is headed next.

Catch it all live via live streaming at www.BluegrassCountry.org.

BBC Four will be airing a new series of the Transatlantic Sessions beginning this month. The show brings together musicians from both sides of the Atlantic, from the US, Ireland and Scotland. The various musicians will perform both solo and in various combinations.

The first episode is set to air on Friday, September 21 and features Jerry Douglas, Eddi Reader with Tim O’Brien, and Julie Fowlis with Donal Lunny.

The series is broadcast with stereo sound in a widescreen format.

For more information, and the broadcast schedule, you can visit the BBC Four website.

The current (8/20) edition of The New Yorker magazine includes, as a part of its weekly Talk Of The Town section at the front of the book, a piece on dobro megastar Jerry Douglas.

Daniel Menaker accompanied Douglas on a shopping trip to Matt Umanov Guitars on Bleecker Street in Manhattan when Jerry was in New York City on August 2 for an Alison Krauss show.

The article primarily celebrates the concept of attention to detail, and demonstrates just how rich is Douglas’ grasp of the many fine points of stringed instruments and how they are played.

Read the full piece on The New Yorker site.

Hat tip: Danny Shameer

John posted Saturday with his review of the Tony Rice/AKUS concert we attended Friday evening. Here are my thoughts on the concert after a weekend of reflection on the show.

As John said in his post, we missed the first couple of tunes, but I did hear part of Early Morning Rain from the lobby. That is one of my favorite Lightfoot tunes that Tony ever recorded, I’m sorry I missed it. But there were plenty more where that one came from. I especially enjoyed Alison’s rendition of Song For A Winter’s Night.

The band sounded great on this material and Tony blended right into the band, not taking center stage until they gave it to him. Even the traditional bluegrass numbers they did from the Album Band repertoire where performed true to the way Rice recorded them, with no guitar solo. Let me tell you, there was no need. Tony’s rhythm was spectacular! I’ve always been a fan of his rhythm playing and he was in fine form Friday evening. Driving, tasteful, spicy, and grin inspiring, not to mention spot on timing, Tony’s rhythm was one of the highlights of the concert for me.

One thing that struck me was the obvious mutual respect on the stage. AKUS was very respectful of Tony, honoring him as a hero. But you tell he reciprocated that respect. Rice heaped praise on both Alison and Tyminski as being two of his favorite singers. Introducing one song, Tony made a comment to that effect and Jerry Douglas said “Thanks Tony” to much laughter from the audience. But seeing Douglas and Rice play together reminded you that these two have recorded and played together a lot down through the years. They have that synergy you sometimes see where it appears they are feeding off each other’s creativity and doing more together than they would either do alone.

The show included the funny stage banter we’ve come to expect from Alison. While introducing the band members, she referred to banjoist Ron Block as the bands “sexy librarian.” She also told a very funny story about a country fan who had a crush on Barry Bales at a show…and thought he was playing the cello!

During the final performance (they did come back for an encore) of Freeborn Man, they projected a slideshow of photos on the screen behind the band. The photos were mostly of Tony, though there were a few of Alison as well, with different bands and musicians he’s recorded and performed with over the years. It was a nice touch to add to what could be considered Tony’s signature song.

Overall, the show was entertaining and the music was excellent. I can’t wait for the recording of this tour to be released. It’s bound to be a classic instantly. I got the feeling toward the end of the show that this was one of those moments my children and grandchildren are likely to ask me about.

No, Clapton is not making a bluegrass record. He is hosting his second Crossroads Guitar Festival. The last one was held three years ago in 2004, and later released on DVD. Now an encore performance is scheduled for July 28, 2007 at Toyota Park in Chicago, IL.

Last time around, in 2004, Jerry Douglas and Dan Tyminski were both on the bill individually. This year’s festival attendees will see the entire AKUS band on stage according to the venue’s website.

Vince Gill has also been confirmed as a performer for this year’s festival.

The Crossroads Guitar Festival website has not yet been updated with info on this year’s festival.

Ticket’s go on sale today, March 31, at 10 AM via TicketMaster.com and will cost $90 each.

Blue Plate Special has a special 90 minute edition of the program on tap for Friday (3/30) on WDVX.

It’s a triple bill featuring live (in studio) performances from The Jerry Douglas Band, Kenny & Amanda Smith and Missy Raines and the New Hip. Each will get a 30 minute spot, and it’s not clear in which order they will appear.

WDVX broadcasts at 89.9 FM from Knoxville, TN and the station’s feed is streamed live online, so you can hear the show from anywhere. Listen in on Friday, eastern US time, from noon to 1:30 p.m.

Dobro-meister Jerry Douglas recorded four projects during his time with Sugar Hill Records, and a couple of others in collaboration with other artists. Now that he is recording for Koch, Sugar Hill has assembled a compilation of Jerry’s time with them, which will be released on March 13 as Jerry Douglas - The Best Of The Sugar Hill Years.

This new CD is part of Sugar Hill’s new Americana Masters Series, which also includes compilations from James McMurtry and Guy Clark, all due for release on 3/13/07.

The Douglas CD will have 15 tracks, and you can find the list of songs on the Sugar Hill site.

Knoxville, TN radio station WDVX plays a blend of music styles that cover the gamut of acoustic styles including bluegrass, gospel, and americana. The station provides an online media player as well as support for Windows Media 96K, and a 128K iTunes feed.

Supported entirely by listener donations, benefit concerts, and local business underwriting, the station is not affiliated with any college, university, religious or political organization. In a new effort at fundraising, the station is auctioning off three great instruments that have been autographed by a number of prominent artists.

The instruments are being auctioned on ebay through the Giving Works program designed for non-profits. All proceeds from the auctions go directly to support the station and it’s programing.

The first instrument on the auction block is an autographed Martin DXM Dreadnought guitar. The instrument has been autographed by Robert Earl Keen, Tim O’Brien, Del McCoury, John Hiatt, Alison Krauss, Dan Tyminski, Jerry Douglas, Jason Carter, Ron Block, Mike Bub and more.

The bidding began this past Friday, February 2nd, and will continue through the auction’s closing date of Sunday February 11th, at 6PM EST.

The instrument comes complete with a hard shell case. The Martin DXM is a mahogany guitar with a modified low oval neck profile, 1 11/16″ nut, 25.4″ scale length, 2 1/8″ bridge string spacing, and Martin’s pattern HPL textured finish.

More photos of the instrument are available on the ebay auction page.

Over the weekend I came across a post on Ron Block’s website stating that overdubs are almost complete on what appears to be a new solo project from Ron.

Overdubs continue in my basement studio. I’m looking to finish all my parts (acoustic and electric guitars, vocals, editing) by the time AKUS goes on the road for the first half of November. In late November I’ll finish up with fiddle and viola (Alison), lap steel/dobro (Jerry Douglas), some mandolin overdubs by Adam Steffey that we weren’t able to get to in August, and harmony vocals by various folks. I’ll also be doing preliminary mixing (mostly just volume rides). I’m looking to have Gary Paczosa mix by the end of December and have the record released by mid to late April.

Some of the people involved in making the recording:

• Barry Bales (bass), Dan Tyminski (guitar, vocals)
• Eric Uglum (production assistance)
• Jerry Douglas (dobro, lap steel)
• Viktor Krauss (bass)
• Gary Paczosa (engineer)
• Adam Steffey (mandolin, mandola)

With a line up like that it should be a recording worth listening to. We’ll keep you informed as we find out more.

One of the events we discussed here on The Bluegrass Blog during IBMA week in Nashville last month was Jerry Douglas’ Keynote Address to the organization on September 25.

As I mentioned in that post:

His address seemed to focus on three basic themes: bluegrass music is in good shape, it is being noticed by the larger music industry, and we ought to be willing to share it with those outside our circle.

IBMA has obtained Jerry’s permission to make the entire address available online, and we heartily commend it to our readers. It is entitled What Does Playing Bluegrass for 30 Years Do for You, and it can be found on the IBMA web site.

We found a reference to Jerry Douglas and Alison Krauss on a widely read blog, known primarily for political comment and discussion. The blog has the unlikely name of Little Green Footballs, and it is consistently ranked as a Higher Being (top 10) by the Truth Laid Bear blog ranking service.

The LGF blogger has a habit of listing the music he is playing in iTunes on the site, and also shows a playlist of songs he has recently played, with the music actually available to sample on the site. Regardless of where you may reside on the political spectrum, it can only be of benefit to our music when it is featured - and promoted - on a popular site like this one with an average daily readership of over 80,000.

lgf: Friday Night Playlist

In the second track of this playlist, Alison Krauss introduces Jerry Douglas as “the greatest dobro player the world has ever known,” and that isn’t hyperbole.

Here are two versions of A Tribute to Peador O’Donnell by Jerry Douglas, the first from his studio album Restless on the Farm, and the second from Alison Krauss & Union Station - Live. (Audio available for a limited time.)

If we could get these popular political sites to argue more about whether electric bass belongs in bluegrass or whether Rhonda Vincent’s attire is appropriate instead of the issues of the day, bluegrass would really take over!

But seriously…

The next episode of the popular PBS live music series, Austin City Limits, will be a rebroadcast of a performance by Alison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas. This program, which was recorded in 2005 and debuted last October, also features Kathleen Edwards.

The show is offered to PBS affiliates to run during the week of April 22-28, and the affiliates choose the time and day to run each episode. As the saying goes, be sure to consult your local listings to find out when the show may air in your area.

There is a sneak preview video clip on the ACL site in Real Media format.

The Arizona Daily Star has a story online about Alison Krauss’ recent grammy win. The article is focused mainly on Jerry Douglas and his contributions to Union Station and dobro playing in general. They have a lot of quotes from Jerry in the article. Here are a couple of my favorites.

I’ve never seen her make that face before. She was really in shock.

I’m an ambassador for an instrument. I feel like when I don’t have to explain what it is, then I’ll feel like I’m successful.

She’s got great ears, and she hears things that no one else hears. And she’s got a great mind for arranging.