Our UK correspondent, Richard F. Thompson, put together this report on an important event we missed last fall.

In November the legendary folk/bluegrass singer, songwriter and activist Hazel Dickens was honored as one of the inaugural inductees into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame at a ceremony at The Cultural Center in Charleston, West Virginia.

Belatedly, I submit this tribute and report of the evening’s activities ……….

Considered one of the most influential and powerful artists, male or female, in the world of Americana music, Ms. Dickens was presented with her award by her longtime admirer, Alison Krauss.

Born in the coal-mining region of West Virginia (Mercer County), Ms. Dickens moved to the Baltimore area while in her late teens. There she found friendship and musical compatibility with local area musicians like Mike Seeger and Alice Gerrard. Dickens, Gerrard and Seeger along with Tracy Schwarz and Lamar Grier recorded an album released an LP under the name of the Strange Creek Singers. Later, Hazel and Alice worked together as a duo. They recorded four ground-breaking albums before they went their separate ways in 1976.

Subsequently, Ms. Dickens has released several solo albums that have presented what has been described as “her uniquely personal amalgam of old-time string band sounds, bluegrass, protest songs, and classic country.”

Her music is renowned for the way in which she has spoken up for the impoverished, like the coalminers of her own and nearby states. Songs such as Working Girl Blues, Black Lung, and Don’t Put Her Down, You Helped Put Her There speak typically of her feelings for the cause of those who have suffered or are suffering hardship in their lives, like many of the Dickens’ family members themselves.

Her music was featured in the Oscar-winning documentary Harlan County, U.S.A., which depicted the tensions surrounding a coal miners’ strike in rural Kentucky. Her poignant songs, such as Mama’s Hand, Few Old Memories, West Virginia, My Home and You’ll Get No More Of Me, have been widely recorded by other artists.

In 1993 Ms. Dickens was presented with the International Bluegrass Music Association [IBMA] Award of Merit. Three years later she won the IBMA Song Of The Year award after Lynn Morris recorded a superb version of Mama’s Hand.

In 2001 Hazel Dickens was awarded a Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts, the highest official honor bestowed on traditional musicians by the U.S. Government. (more…)

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…)

This installment of Sunday Morning Revelations comes from our UK correspondent, Richard F Thompson. We will offer reviews of Gospel bluegrass releases on Sunday’s from time to time.

Thank You Lord is Hickory Hill’s first all-Gospel recording. It actually dates back to 2000 when the band comprised John Early (guitar and vocals), Don Eaves (banjo and vocals), the late Jimmy Godwin (guitar, fiddle and vocals), Ronny Singley (mandolin and vocals) and Bob Stegall (bass and vocals).

At that time they were just coming of age as one of Texas’s most popular acoustic groups. Their abilities had been recognised within their home state and across the USA, with SPBGMA nominations for providing an entertaining show while performing in a ‘contemporary’ style. Also, the band had showcased at the IBMA 1996 World Of Bluegrass event in Owensboro, Kentucky.

This CD is not your standard selection from Gospel music’s tried and trusted catalogue, although that assertion might be called into question with the presence of Connie Gately’s Shouting On The Hills Of Glory and a medley based on Larry Sparks’ Thank You Lord that the group heard done by The Whites at a Kerrville bluegrass festival.

In the short time that he was a member of Hickory Hill, Godwin was a prolific songwriter who had a marked influence on the band’s repertoire. For this set he contributed no less than five songs, demonstrating a deep affinity with the scriptures and an ability to compose good original songs to fit the need.

One such song is The Rock, co-written with Early and inspired by Psalms 61 and 62, done as a quartet with a call and response feature. Two others are the songs of salvation - one for a Hobo who was both Lost And Found - one of four duets, and The Salvation Of John Harlow, the recitation, with organ backing, that brings this set to a conclusion.

The two other Godwin songs illustrate a love of the little country church house. Red Roses are a feature of one such place of worship, while Old Time Feeling, the first Gospel song that Godwin wrote, notes the one place where Jesus Christ has an abiding presence. (more…)

This initial installment of Sunday Morning Revelations comes from our UK correspondent, Richard F Thompson. We will offer reviews of Gospel bluegrass releases on Sunday’s from time to time.

Everybody is familiar with Mickey Harris and his ‘day job’ as the excellent bass player with Rhonda Vincent & the Rage. Not so many will be aware that he a recording artist in his own right. This all gospel set Kneel And Pray [MJH Records 0003], actually released last year, is Harris’ third released in his own name.

Harris sets off at a fast lick with the title track and then shows that he is equally comfortable singing at a more relaxed tempo on Gates Of Glory. On the former his boss sings tenor to Harris’ lead and baritone while on the latter Alecia Nugent provides the high baritone part in another lovely trio number.

Peace Of God is an excellent original song performed as a duet with Jamie Dailey providing the tenor part. This number and the following track, a solo version of Walter Bailes’ Oh Mum epitomises everything that is good about this album; sincere, precise vocals and exquisite instrumental support.

For a while I was wondering who Harris sounded like vocally, then I happened across the Marty Robbins song Master’s Call and I got the answer. Harris has all the range that Robbins possessed and, come to think of it, he can match Charlie Sizemore for empathy and intensity also. There’s a hint of Raul Malo as well. Clearly, Harris feels everything that he sings.

There are so many highlights on this CD that it is difficult to list them without forgetting an exceptional track or making the review a simple track listing. Suffice to say, there’s some exceptional gospel performances, ranging from a traditional quartets - A Beautiful Life and When I Wake Up - to an old and a new song from the pen of Tom T Hall, and classics from two extremes, the repertoires of Don Williams, Lord I Hope This Day Is Good, and Roy Acuff, The Great Speckled Bird.

This superb 13 track set concludes with an excellent a cappella version of Just A Little Talk With Jesus, with Harris doubling up on bass vocals as well as lead, supported by Louise Tomberlain and Sophie Tipton Haislip, Mickey’s grandmother and aunt respectively.

Harris is supported by a core band of himself, playing bass, Wayne Benson (mandolin), Hunter Berry (fiddle), Kenny Ingram (banjo) and Josh Williams (guitar, mandolin and resonator guitar), providing straight-ahead bluegrass backing or a stripped down combination of guitar, mandolin and bass.

Much thought has been put into the selection of the songs featured and the recording, engineering and production - at Top Dog Studios - is top notch also. The music is as sharp as the suit Mickey is pictured wearing on the front cover. More seriously, here his music bears all the hallmarks of one who, with his family, has grown up singing and continues to sing the Lord’s praises.

Kneel And Pray is a must-buy for lovers of traditional bluegrass gospel music. Don’t miss out; grab a copy at the record table or order your copy by contacting Mickey Harris direct.

Starting this Sunday (12/30), we will launch a new semi-regular feature on The Bluegrass Blog. Our UK correspondent, Richard F. Thompson, will offer comments on new Gospel music releases in a series of posts he calls Sunday Morning Revelation.

The first will examine Kneel And Pray from Mickey Harris, Rhonda Vincent’s bass man in The Rage, and will be posted on Sunday, December 30.

These columns will run as often as Richard’s time and the supply of new releases allow. Artists, labels or publicists who regularly service The Bluegrass Blog can send along new Gospel CDs just as you have always done in the past, and they will be forwarded to Richard.

If you have a project you would like to be considered for inclusion in Sunday Morning Revelation, you can send it to:

Our UK correspondent, Richard F Thompson, shares this news.

Forty years before the ‘O Brother/Down From The Mountain’ tour, an earlier group of like-minded musicians took some Appalachian music on the road. Thankfully, some of the music performed by the small band of minstrels that toured Europe under the title of the American Folk & Country Festival was recorded for posterity.

I believe that there have been taped copies of these shows in circulation, but now Bear Family Records has announced the release of a 2-CD set of recordings from those dates in March 1966. The collection, entitled American Folk & Country Music Festival [Bear Family BCD 16849 BK] comprises 41 tracks, packaged in an LP-size box, along with a 76-page hardcover book that features the usual treasure trove of photos and memorabilia.

Here’s what the Bear Family website has to say about their recent release …….

It was 1966, and the success of the American Folk & Blues festivals in Europe led to the Festival of American Country Music. But this wasn’t slick Nashville music, it was old time, Cajun, bluegrass, and folk music with deep roots in the mountains and swamps of America’s rural South. The artists included The Stanley Brothers (just a few months before Carter Stanley’s death), Roscoe Holcomb, The New Lost City Ramblers, Cyp Landreneau’s Cajun Band, and Cousin Emmy. Together, they offer a fascinating glimpse of early American music played with heart and soul. All the artists were still in peak form and gave European audiences their first taste of this side of American traditional music. It was a historic tour, and decades ahead of its time. In 2000-2002, the performers whose music was heard in ‘O Brother Where Art Thou’ staged a tour called ‘Down From The Mountain.’ The idea was the same as the Festival of American Country Music in 1966, except that the music heard in the Festival of American Country Music was truly down from the mountain (just one artist was on both tours: Ralph Stanley).

The collection is highlighted by detailed reminiscences by Mike Seeger, Tracy Schwarz, and John Cohen of the New Lost City Ramblers, all of whom could appreciate the music both as fans and performers.

One member, John Cohen shares this interesting observation ……

“For bluegrass listeners, the set shows how Carter Stanley sounded and looked at the end of his life, and also makes the firm connection between Roscoe Holcomb and Ralph Stanley. For me, Roscoe’s devotion to the Old Baptist unaccompanied singing reawakened something in Ralph, which emerged so many years later in ‘O Brother Where Art Thou’. Musically and stylistically it’s all there… predicting what eventually happened. Some of Roscoe’s performances are him at his best.”

The book also includes original photos from John Cohen, Klaus-Rüdiger Müller, Lillies Ohlsson, Reinhard Pietsch, and Reinald Schumann.

A full, detailed track listing can be found on the Bear Family web site.

Our UK correspondent, Richard F Thompson, shares this review.

Cedar Hill is renowned for its adherence to the ultra-traditional style of bluegrass and nothing much has changed with the group’s switch from Hay Holler Records to the recently-formed Blue Circle Records label .

The latest release, Poverty Row (Blue Circle BCR-011), serves as a showcase for fiddler Lisa Ray’s crystal clear and emotive lead singing, more Rhonda Vincent than Alison Krauss in character. Ms Ray is featured in that role on no less than eight of the 12 tracks and two of those are instrumentals. Her voice is keening on the driving opening track, plaintive on the title song, another classic from the pens of Miss Dixie and Tom T Hall and melodious on another great Hall-written number, Big Blue Roses that bears all the hallmarks of a top-notch country song of the 1950s, both in its writing and its performance. Ferrell Stowe’s resophonic guitar playing is a significant factor in creating that sound. Apparently, folks have been asking for awhile now to hear more of Lisa’s vocals and nobody can be disappointed by those three opening tracks.

There’s two instrumentals, the quaintly titled Whiskers In The Sink, by Lisa Ray, which has the hallmarks of those swinging fiddle numbers that Kenny Baker led back in the days of his tenure as a Blue Grass Boy, and Soldier’s Joy, with clawhammer banjo from guest Bobby Minner, who with Ronnie Bowman wrote the closing number, Blood Stained Bible, which relates a story about an Army Chaplain involved in the Normandy troop landing.

Rob Collins shows that he has a fine voice on two numbers, the country standard, Love Gone Cold and Call Me Gone, one of two songs that the songwriter Frank Ray calls, “light hearted songs.” (more…)

Our UK correspondent, Richard F Thompson, remembers Benny Williams, and recounts his long, and largely unheralded career in bluegrass and country music.

Benjamin Horace “Benny” Williams: March 28, 1931 - October 11, 2007.

Benny Williams died earlier this month in St Thomas Hospital, Nashville, Tennessee, from natural causes. He was 76 years old.

One of bluegrass music’s unsung ‘Mr Versatiles,’ Williams was born on Dayton Mountain, Bledsoe County on the Cumberland Plateau of Tennessee. For nearly fifty years, he was noted as one of country music’s most accomplished musicians, singers and songwriters. During his career, he worked with such luminaries as Marty Robbins, Grandpa Jones, Jimmy Martin, Kitty Wells and Johnny Wright, Stonewall Jackson and others (see below). He was adept on autoharp, mandolin, guitar, banjo and, most notably, fiddle.

While still a teenager, Williams got his first job as a bluegrass sideman when he went to work with Mac Wiseman on the Old Dominion Barn Dance in Richmond, Virginia. Then, as a 25-year old, Williams was a member of the Tennessee Cut-Ups when Reno and Smiley were fully re-united after a brief break in the mid-1950s. Subsequently, he had a brief stint with the Stanley Brothers firstly, then with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs.

In 1961 Williams joined the Blue Grass Boy, playing guitar. Later he showed his versatility by switching to play the fiddle and he stayed with that instrument for most of the remainder of his time with Bill Monroe, which ended late in 1967.

He leaves a legacy in the form of contributions to many recordings made during the classic country and bluegrass music era.

In August 1956, during a 12-song recording session in Cincinnati, Williams played some cross-picked mandolin breaks - learned independently from Jesse McReynolds - on Never Get To Hold You In My Arms Anymore and mandolin or fiddle on other songs. These recordings are available on the 4-CD box set, Reno & Smiley and the Tennessee Cut-Ups 1951-1959 [King KBSCD 7001]. (more…)

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

Red Henry has been playing mandolin since the 1960s and he soon developed into what a Bluegrass Unlimited reviewer described as “one of the most prolific interpreters of Monroe-style mandolin picking”. This mastery is displayed not only in the playing of Bill Monroe’s many great instrumental pieces, but in the creation of original tunes that possess the characteristic intensity of Monroe’s music.

About six years ago Red’s Bluegrass Mandolin And Other Trouble (Arrandem AR-120) was praised for the stellar mandolin style and the inclusion on the CD of eight of his original tunes that sound like they’re 40 years old and the thoughtful rendition of some old favourites like Sleepy-Eyed John, Rawhide and Bluegrass Breakdown.

For Red’s latest CD, Helton Creek (Arrandem AR-200), the mix is much the same; three original tunes, two of which are each a descendant of one Monroe classic or other - Shawnee Land and the title track; some older numbers, both rare and no-so-rarely heard - Toy Heart, Chubby Anthony’s Stay Out Of Your Way, High On A Mountain, Remember You Love In My Dreams, a Stanley Brothers’ classic, The Flood Of ‘57 and Frank Wakefield’s Alone And Forsaken. Additionally, Red has, with the help of his guests, re-introduced some old fiddle tunes, Yellow Barber, Birdie and Bitter Creek, the story Clermont’s Visit To Georgia (not a word of which is true), the 16th century Divers And Lazarus and Murphy Henry’s unlisted cut Miss Nora’s Blues.

Red tells us a bit about the background to his writing and recording the title track ……..

“Helton Creek is a real place. It’s a small trout-fishing stream in the North Carolina mountains, where mandolin players (mostly members of the Co-Mando email group) gather once or twice each year for a weekend of music. So Helton Creek is significant in the mandolin music scene, and one day a couple of years ago, I thought I’d write a tune about it. (more…)

Our industrious British correspondent, Richard F. Thompson, is back with an expanded overview of a story Brance posted last month.

Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs will be among this year’s five new inductees into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Nashville Songwriters Foundation, Inc. announced on Monday. Flatt and Scruggs first met as part of Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys in 1945. During his time with Monroe, Lester Flatt assisted with the growth of his leader’s song writing and is credited as co-writing Will You Be Loving Another Man and When You Are Lonely. Flatt sang lead on and thus helped to popularize many of the songs that they did. Of course, Scruggs’s banjo playing at this time was wholly ear-catching and new to the vast majority of those who saw and heard the innovative Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys.

In 1948 they left Monroe and started their own act, forming the Foggy Mountain Boys and the duo, recognizing that original material would help to create an individual identity and repertoire, began to write their own songs. Their catalogue is vast and a partial list alone features many songs readily recognizable as ’standards’ ….. God Loves His Children, I’m Going To Make Heaven My Home, We’ll Meet Again Sweetheart, My Cabin In Caroline, Down The Road, So Happy I’ll Be, Don’t Get Above Your Raising, Your Life Is Like A Flower [with assistance from Bea Lilly] and Blue Ridge Cabin Home, [credited to Louise Certain (Scruggs) and Gladys Stacey (Flatt)].

Additionally, Lester Flatt penned many that are credited in his name - or his wife’s name, Gladys Stacey (Flatt) - alone. These include Why Don’t You Tell Me So, I’ll Never Shed Another Tear, Is It Too Late Now?, My Little Girl In Tennessee, I’ll Never Love Another, I’m Head Over Heals In Love, The Old Home Town, I’ll Stay Around, Get In Line Brothers, Brother, I’m Getting Ready To Go, Be Ready For Tomorrow May Never Come and You Can Feel It In Your Soul.

Earl Scruggs wrote and arranged a considerable number of instrumental pieces, including Foggy Mountain Breakdown, Earl’s Breakdown, Flint Hill Special, Dear Old Dixie, Foggy Mountain Chimes and Randy Lynn Rag, along with Shucking The Corn and all the traditional tunes that are featured on one of the band’s most successful albums, the all-instrumental Foggy Mountain Banjo. (more…)

Our intrepid British corespondent, Richard Thompson, has put together a terrific piece marking the 50th anniversary of the Country Gentlemen. For those of us in the United States, it’s a fine thing to contemplate over the 4th of July holiday. It’s a long post, and we encourage you to read the whole thing.

The story of the formation of the Country Gentlemen is well told. An automobile crash involving Buzz Busby and his Bayou Boys left only Bill Emerson fit to play a personal appearance that had been scheduled for July 4.

Emerson called a couple of friends and they formed a quartet to fulfil the date at the Admiral Grill in Baileys Crossroads, Virginia. The band’s original members were Charlie Waller on guitar and lead vocals, John Duffey on mandolin and tenor vocals, Bill Emerson on banjo and baritone vocals, and Larry Lahey on bass. Thus, it is claimed, modern bluegrass was born.

The Country Gentlemen are universally acclaimed as one of the most important progressive bluegrass bands. They brilliantly created a unique blend of folk and bluegrass that did much to make bluegrass music very popular in the Washington DC area.

After a few early personnel changes, the line-up of co-founders Charlie Waller (guitar) and John Duffey (mandolin) with Eddie Adcock (banjo) and Tom Gray (bass) that played from 1960 through to 1964 came together. This combination has often been referred to retrospectively as ‘The Classic’ Country Gentlemen. This quartet was very popular during the early 1960s; one of the highlights of the period being their appearance at Carnegie Hall in September 1961.

In November 1965 their song Bringing Mary Home climbed to #43 on Billboard magazine’s country music charts; their best placed release. Ed Ferris had by this time replaced Tom Gray on bass.

Another highly rated combination was that which comprised Waller, Emerson, Doyle Lawson (mandolin) and Bill Yates (bass); a quartet that was together briefly in the early 1970s.

Just as Bill Monroe had a renowned training school for traditional bluegrass musicians, the Country Gentlemen have numerous young musicians on its membership roster. These musicians can rightly be referred to as a Who’s Who of the contemporary bluegrass world. In addition to those already mentioned are:

Honorary Country Gentlemen - those who played on recording sessions for the Country Gentlemen - include Wayne Yates, Mike Auldridge, Ronnie Bucke (Freeland) and Spider Gilliam. (more…)

Our intrepid British correspondent digs even deeper into the vaults for an update on the mistaken personnel credits listed on the new Gentlemen reissue.

Further to our recent discussions regarding the Country Gentlemen Folkways CD, Going Back To The Blue Ridge Mountains, I approached Walt Saunders, currently most notable for his Notes & Queries column for Bluegrass Unlimited magazine. He reminded me of the souvenir book compiled to mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Country Gentlemen, 1957-1982.

In this book there is a very good Country Gentlemen discography put together by Les McIntyre, an historian and commentator also associated with Bluegrass Unlimited as a contributing writer.

McIntyre lists the musicians on the LP as Charlie Waller, John Duffey, Eddie Adcock and Ed Ferris. He adds this remark,

“Actually this album first came out in Japan in 1967 under the title The Country Gentlemen In Concert (London SLH 86). It was the fourth album in the Folkways catalogue of Country Gentlemen recordings. The songs are all from a live performance in Syracuse, New York, shortly before Bringing Mary Home was recorded.”

Saunders agrees with my assessment that the recordings are from the latter half of 1964 or sometime in early 1965.

With grateful thanks to Walt Saunders for his assistance.

This post comes from our semi-regular correspondent, Richard F. Thompson. He writes from England, where he is also a longstanding contributor to British Bluegrass News, a quarterly print publication where he also briefly served as editor.

Although the actual signing took place a few months ago, Rounder Records has recently announced the signing of revered bluegrass singer, band leader and attorney Charlie Sizemore.

At the same time, Rounder has announced the August 14th release of Sizemore’s first album for the label, Good News (ROU 0591). The 14-track CD is the first new studio album from Sizemore in five years. As of today (6/19), there are no audio samples on the Rounder site, but one track from the new CD, I’ve Fallen And I Can’t Get Up, can be previewed on Charlie’s MySpace page.

A powerful songwriter whose songs have been recorded by Ralph Stanley, Jimmy Martin, Doyle Lawson and Dry Branch Fire Squad to name a few, Charlie Sizemore contributes four new original songs to Good News. Among them the tongue-in-cheek Alison’s Band, reflecting Sizemore’s dry sense of humour that fans have to come to love. Other highlights include songs by Dixie and Tom T. Hall, Harley Allen, and veteran songwriter Hank Cochran. While Sizemore considers the record a bit “rough around the edges,” this is only in the sense that the record was recorded pretty much straight-ahead and live in the studio. With Good News Sizemore and co-producer Buddy Cannon shared the common goal of wanting to make a record that feels like and sounds like the records Charlie heard and liked while he was growing up.

Sizemore’s vocals are as restrainedly powerful and as unique as ever, and he considers co-producer Buddy Cannon to be his equal as the moving force behind the record and its making. Though it was done “live and quick,” Silver Bugle is a song the idea for which, Sizemore has carried around with him for the last fifteen years. (more…)

This post comes from our semi-regular correspondent, Richard F. Thompson. He writes from England, where he is also a longstanding contributor to British Bluegrass News, a quarterly print publication where he also briefly served as editor.

Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder are to play some dates in the UK at the end of July through to early August. This tour will be immediately preceded with a show in the Republic of Ireland.

The anchor date for this forthcoming tour is Skaggs’s appearance at the BBC Radio 2-sponsored Cambridge Folk Festival, in the Cherry Hinton Hall Grounds, Cambridge, on July 29.

The other dates are as follows …

While in Europe the twelve-times Grammy Award winner and eight-times IBMA Instrumental Group Of The Year Award winners will play a date in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, on July 27 at Music In The Park in Stromovka Park, Prague.

The venues vary from a 17th century Irish castle, 45 miles from Dublin, to a new 2,350 capacity purpose-built music venue in Greenwich, London, and the grounds of a late Tudor style hall, to a civic hall named after the 10th century founder of a Black Country city.

Ricky Skaggs is a familiar visitor to the UK, as he reminds interviewer Alan Cackett in the July edition of Maverick magazine:

“We came over with Reba McIntire about eight years ago, and that was fun. We have ploughed some pretty deep ground in the UK in the mid-1980s.” Those early tours opened up a new market and have really paid off for him. Skaggs adds, “I love playing in the UK, so much of the music originated in the Celtic regions. I feel like it is part of returning home with some of its music and we have tried to get over there as often as we can.”

“It is going to be a tight ten days of work, but it is going to be a really good tour. It should be fun to play for our friends and neighbours!”

The all-star line-up of Kentucky Thunder includes Andy Leftwich (fiddle), Cody Kilby (lead guitar), Mark Fain (bass), Darrin Vincent (baritone vocals, rhythm guitar), Paul Brewster (tenor vocals, rhythm guitar) and Jim Mills (banjo).

Skaggs’s latest albums are the eponymous collaboration with Bruce Hornsby (Sony/Legacy) and Instrumentals (Skaggs Family).

Earlier this week, our eagle-eyed British correspondent, Richard Thompson, wrote a piece about the erroneous performance credits in the recent Folkways CD reissue of the Country Gentlemen’s live album from 1973, Going Back To The Blue Ridge Mountains. Richard noted that the CD notes show indicate that the recording was from the “classic Country Gentlemen,” with Tom Gray on bass, when it fact the recording was from a later edition of the band, with Ed Ferris on upright.

We wondered at the time whether any readers might have a copy of the original LP, and could let us know how the band is listed there. No luck there, but Richard found the original Bluegrass Unlimited review of Going Back To The Blue Ridge Mountains, and BU editor Sharon McGraw has graciously agreed to allow us to repost it here.

It shows that Ferris is on bass, and I think that modern readers will get a kick out od reading the 1973 review, written by George B. McCeney.

THE COUNTRY GENTLEMEN VOL. 4 - GOING BACK TO THE BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS
FOLKWAYS FTS 31031
(Rechanneled stereo)

Going Back To The Blue Ridge Mountains/Going To the races/Dark As A Dungeon/Copper Kettle/Billy In The Low Ground/I Saw The Light/Tom Dooley #2/Brown Mountain Light/Electricity/Daybreak In Dixie/Mary Dear/Sad And Lonesome/Cripple Creek/Don’t This Road Look Rough And Rocky/Muleskinner Blues

Charlie Waller-guitar; John Duffey-mandolin; Eddie Adcock-banjo; Ed Ferris-bass

Today in a time when numerous bluegrass bands are launching out in various directions to establish their uniqueness, it is interesting to reconsider what the Country Gentlemen were during the mid 1960’s, almost ten years ago. This latest Folkways album, and probably the last in a series, gives us some idea. From simply perusing the titles of the songs presented here, one might surmise, if he did not already know the Country Gentlemen, that they were a very traditional bluegrass group. And of course in some respects he would be right, at least as far as the selection of material is concerned. But it is the treatment of the material that sets off the Country Gentlemen from other groups of their day. (Now as well as then.) The instrumental work of John Duffey on “Billy In The Low Ground” or Eddie Adcock on “Azzuro Campana (Blue Bell) could hardly be characterised as “traditional” even though the material is in many cases old. What the Country Gentlemen managed to do rather successfully ten years ago was to take strong traditional material, draw out the essence of its appeal, and then present it to a new bluegrass audience in a form that they could understand. In short they managed to capture the best of both worlds, excellent material presented through flawless instrumental and vocal execution. This “live performance” (there must be a more definitive expression) from sometime in 1964 or 1965 at a folk club attests to what the Country Gentlemen were able to achieve, an accomplishment almost now forgotten in the rush of folk-rock crush at some recent festivals. the Country Gentlemen had a great deal to tell us about the spread of good bluegrass, but it might be distilled down to playing the best material better than anyone else. (Folkways Records, 701 7th Avenue, New York, New York 10036) GBMcC

Review by George B. McCeney Reprinted by permission Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine, Inc. All rights reserved. Copyright September 1973. 1-800-BLU-GRAS. www.bluegrassmusic.com

UPDATE 6/17: Richard Thompson asked us to point out that it was Tom Gray who mentioned to him that he was wrongly credited on the CD reissue, and also that Joe Ross had located the BU review and sent him a copy. We send our thanks to them all.

UPDATE II 6/17: We received the following from a reader, Keith Edwards, who has a copy of the original LP:

I have the original Folkways album that has been discussed for release on CD. The album does not list the band members per se but has the following written on the bottom right hand corner:

“THE COUNTRY GENTLEMEN: Winner of the bulk of the 1972 Muleskinne News Bluegrass Awards, including: Band of the Year, Best Bluegras Singer (Charlie Waller), Best Vocal Group, Best Album of the Year. Folkways presents the original group with Charlie Waller, John Duffey, & Tom Gray (now members of the Seldom Scene), Eddie Adcock (now member of 2nd Generation), and Pete Roberts.”

To me, this explains the error in credits on the CD as information was probably used from the back of the original album cover to create the credits for the reissue.

This post comes from our semi-regular correspondent, Richard F. Thompson. He writes from England, where he is also a longstanding contributor to British Bluegrass News, a quarterly print publication where he also briefly served as editor.

Smithsonian Folkways has released Going Back To The Blue Ridge Mountains (SFW 40175) on CD, a collection of 16 songs recorded by the Country Gentlemen and originally released in 1973.

This set comprises Going Back To The Blue Ridge Mountains, Going To The Races, Azzuro Campana (Blue Belle), Dark As A Dungeon, Copper Kettle, Billy In The Low Ground, I Saw The Light, Tom Dooley #2, Brown Mountain Light, Electricity, Daybreak In Dixie, Mary Dear, Sad And Lonesome Day, Cripple Creek, Don’t This Road Look Rough And Rocky, and Muleskinner Blues.

Like its 2001 predecessor, The Country Gentlemen On The Road (And More) (SFW 40133) album, this new CD consists of live recordings. However, while the notes indicate otherwise, these performances are from later shows than those on the earlier collection and do not actually feature the ‘classic’ Country Gentlemen. They were recorded in 1964 after Ed Ferris replaced Tom Gray on bass.

Tom Gray says in a light-hearted tone, “I should be grateful for the good press, but honestly it’s not deserved.”

The most recent Newsletter from Martha and Eddie Adcock makes reference to there being “some unfortunate issues with the content of the booklet.” However, Eddie adds, “just get this CD, give it a spin, and enjoy the fabulous music!”

A biased plea maybe, but not having heard these recordings, I cannot give a dispassionate comment.

The liner notes, including song notes, in the accompanying 25 page booklet were written by Jon Hartley Fox, and the mastering was by Pete Reiniger.

Editor’s note: If any of our readers have a copy of the original 1973 LP release, we would be curious to know what those liner notes say about the composition of the band on the live recording.

This post comes from our semi-regular correspondent, Richard Thompson. He writes from England, where he is also a longstanding contributor to British Bluegrass News, a quarterly print publication where he also briefly served as editor.

Bluegrass singer/songwriter Joe Ross contacted me a few days ago to remind me of the significance of today; the 80th anniversary of Charles Lindbergh’s historic trans-Atlantic flight.

On May 20 1927, pioneering aviator Charles Lindbergh Jr. took off in the Spirit of St. Louis from Roosevelt Field, near New York City, at 7:52 A.M. He landed at Le Bourget Field, near Paris, on May 21 at 10:21 P.M. Paris time (5:21 P.M. New York time). Thousands of cheering people had gathered to meet him. He had flown more than 3,600 miles (5,790 kilometers) in 33 1⁄2 hours.

Lindbergh’s heroic flight thrilled people throughout the world and he was honoured with awards, celebrations, and parades. President Calvin Coolidge gave Lindbergh the Congressional Medal of Honour and the Distinguished Flying Cross for his efforts in the field of aviation.

Joe recently wrote and recorded a song, The Spirit Of St Louis, for his latest CD, a 12 track collection released earlier this year (Zephyr 0430), in which he relates the story of this important event in aeronautical history.

Here he shares some information about the way the song came to be ……

“The seed was planted for The Spirit of St. Louis when I read a newspaper article in 1987 (upon the 60th anniversary of Lindy’s flight). To accurately write such a historical account involves considerable research to get the facts right. One DJ told me that airplay of the song resulted in considerable calls from listeners who both enjoyed and learned from the song. A caller mentioned that he was very impressed by the accuracy of the account.

After drafting an initial version of the song, I also rented the 1957 movie with Jimmy Stewart called The Spirit of St. Louis. It ran for over two hours. It had been directed by Billy Wilder but wasn’t particularly thought of as a hit because of too many dull and trite scenes, and too many sequences showing Lindy flying solo on his 3600-mile, 33.5-hour journey.

That’s one reason I wanted my song to be up-tempo and move right along, as well as being in a minor key to create a certain feel of tension, adventure and discovery.” (more…)

This post comes from our semi-regular correspondent, Richard Thompson. He writes from England, where he is also a longstanding contributor to British Bluegrass News, a quarterly print publication where he also briefly served as editor.

Recently we reported on the then forthcoming birthday party held to commemorate Wade Mainer’s landmark birthday. Subsequently, a first-hand report has appeared in in a local Michigan newspaper, The Flint Journal.

In addition a couple of the many people who attended Wade Mainer’s 100th birthday party have been good enough to share with me their recollections of the event.

Firstly, musicologist Dick Spottswood remembers the day thus:

“Wade’s party on April 21 was a memorable affair. Spring is just becoming visible in central Michigan, and Saturday’s warm sunshine was a welcome relief from recent winter excesses. Friends and family came from across the country to be there, providing an extra dimension to an already joyful occasion.

Many good regional bands showed up to pay tribute to Wade and Julia from the stage at the Fenton, Michigan Community Center, aided by out of town performers Tracy Schwarz, Ginny Hawker, and David Holt. Letters and awards poured in from the National Endowment for the Arts, Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm, and Senators Levin and Stabinow, among numerous others. Unfortunately many people were turned away for lack of space, but those who got in were privileged to see Wade, Julia with their friend and colleague Virgil Shouse supporting them on bass. The Mainers were cheerfully energized and held forth for an hour as we heard great music and watched the years temporarily fade away. Both were in terrific voice; their singing and Wade’s banjo playing provided a time machine that transported us all back through the decades. I’m glad the fire marshals were feeling lenient, because the hall couldn’t have accommodated any more standees.

Even I got into the act when people learned that I’d prepared the article Wade Mainer: The First Hundred Years for the current (April) issue of Bluegrass Unlimited and the booklet that accompanies Wade’s recent Gusto 2 CD release I’m Not Looking Backward that includes all the Mainer King material from 1946 through 1961, re-mastered from original tapes and acetate discs. Standing near the stage, I was signing autographs while the Mainers were holding forth, and it was fun to feel like a minor celebrity for a little while.

Predictably the Mainers are being besieged with offers to perform, and they have to figure out which ones they can handle. Either way they’re pleased that demand for their artistry continues and that their own good health and spirits will allow them to keep active. Stay tuned for further developments, and another hundred years!” (more…)

Here’s another post from our all-the-more regular correspondent, Richard Thompson. He writes from England, where he is also a longstanding contributor to British Bluegrass News, a quarterly print publication where he also briefly served as editor.

Old time music pioneer Wade Mainer celebrates his 100th birthday today, Saturday, April 21, 2007. The celebration will take place at 4pm at the Fenton Community Center, Fenton, MI. Several guests, including Wade’s wife Julia, David Holt and Dick Spottswood among others, will attend.

Born April 21, 1907 in Buncombe County, North Carolina, on a farm a few miles from Ashville, Wade Mainer has been an influential figure for well over six decades, helping considerably in the development of modern bluegrass music. Among his innovations was a distinctive two-finger banjo picking style, emulated by young musicians like Ralph Stanley, Wiley Birchfield, Hoke Jenkins and Shannon Grayson, and crossing the traditional clawhammer with the modern three-finger picking style used by performers such as Earl Scruggs. Their respective versions of “Old Reuben” stand testimony to the similarity in styles.

As he grew up on a tiny mountain farm near Weaverville, North Carolina, Mainer listened to old mountain songs and was greatly influenced by the fiddling of Roscoe Banks, his brother-in-law. As a young man, he moved to Concord to work in a cotton mill. Later he and his brother J.E. [Joseph Emmett] formed Mainer Mountaineers with the Lay brothers Howard and Lester and began performing on radio. In 1935 the band comprised the two Mainer brothers and guitarists Zeke Morris and Daddy John Love. By this time Wade had become a smooth radio-friendly singer, with a distinct banjo sound that was identifiably his own.

That same year the Mainers were offered a chance to make records for the Bluebird label, their first session taking place in Atlanta on August 6, 1935, where they recorded several best-sellers, “This World Is Not My Home”, “New Curly Headed Baby”, “Lights in the Valley” and Wade’s memorable new arrangement of a nineteenth century tragic ballad, “Maple On the Hill”.

Wade remained with the band until 1937 when he and fellow band-mate Zeke Morris left to work as a duet, before expanding into a five-piece band with fiddler Steve Ledford and nephews Robert and Maurice Banks. The quintet did a further recording session for RCA.

In 1937, Mainer married singer Julia Brown, who performed under the name Hillbilly Lilly. Later they had five children.

Subsequently Mainer established a new band, the Sons of the Mountaineers. Members of the group included guitarists Jay Hugh Hall and Clyde Moody as well as the aforementioned Steve Ledford. Other members over the years included Jack and Curly Shelton and Tiny Dodson, among others. They performed on various radio stations, including WIS in Columbia, South Carolina, and WPTF Raleigh. They also recorded many songs for Bluebird, among them was “Sparkling Blue Eyes”, which was a good-sized hit in 1939. (more…)