Now a Bluegrass addict.

Peace Cee · #1 03-30-2013, 04:55 PM

I love ALL music for the most part. Well, I just returned from SXSW, and I saw a Bluegrass band called the Austin Steamers. Now, I've always loved country, and when I hear(d) a Bluegrass song I always had an ear for it. However, something about hearing that band sparked something. I bought their cd and went home and amassed all of the BG that I had (O Brother Where Art..., The Avett Bro's, Trampled by Turtles, Ricky Scaggs).
Well, I am addicted. Holy Sh*t!, It's like I found a new home. I can't stop listening to it. It is like Jazz for Mountain folk. The changes, the chops, the harmonies. I freakin love it! I'm like a crack addict. I buy iTunes cards and just download. I don't even know if I'm getting the best stuff. I play in a Funk/Rock band right now. I should be listening to Lettuce, the Brothers Johnson, and the RHCP. But I can't escape my now 5 hour playlist of BG.
Can anyone suggest some bands that I should explore? Gimmie more!!

ulrichsd · #2 03-30-2013, 05:02 PM

Earl Scruggs on banjo. Scruggs and Flatt.

jaywa · #3 03-30-2013, 05:11 PM

There is insane talent on the bluegrass scene.

There are 16 yr old kids playing in Arkansas town squares on Friday nights that are 10 times better than any guitarist I've ever played with. I know cause I've seen them.

AnchorHoy · #4 03-30-2013, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peace Cee

all of the BG that I had (O Brother Where Art..., The Avett Bro's, Trampled by Turtles, Ricky Scaggs)

Kind of an *ahem* expansive definition of Bluegrass there, but I'll take it at face value and run with it

If your list is anything to go by, what you will probably find interesting is what has come to be called "Newgrass" - i.e. various combinations of the traditional 5 acoustic instruments, but with significant departures from the very rigid style that Bill Monroe laid down (and did his best to rigidly enforce)

Best place to start IMHO is with Alison Krauss and Union Station. All outstanding players who mastered the traditional Bluegrass style, but who each went on to expand the boundaries of what might better be described as "modern string-band music"

My Poor Old Heart
Lay My Burden Down
Stay

Dobro player Jerry Douglas has been not only a huge part of AKUS but has also done some very impressive work before and after he got that gig. Here's just two examples: the first one with a short-lived project composed of some other Very Heavy Hitters (each of whom are well worth looking into further) and the second, which is Jerry's own band

Strength In Numbers - One Winter's Night
Jerry Douglas Band - Pushed Too Far

OK there's plenty more out there, and I've gotta stop somewhere, but there is no way I could leave out the Punch Brothers

This Is The Song

That oughta get you started

Jayjaybman · #5 03-30-2013, 07:34 PM

My favorite: IIIrd Tyme Out - Miles Of Texas

http://www.amazon.com/Miles-Of-Texas/dp/B0075CRN9M

Philonius · #6 03-30-2013, 07:43 PM

John Hartford- Aereoplane. Not exactly bluegrass, but one of my all time favorites. The man was a twisted genius.

RonniePudding · #7 03-30-2013, 08:00 PM

Of course, start with Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys.

And as mentioned earlier, Flatt and Scruggs.

Doc Watson. Amazing flat picking and soulful singing. Though not everything he writes/plays is strictly-speaking Bluegrass, most of his work has that feel to it.

Bad Livers. Their music spans genres, but they played some great traditional-sounding stuff too. Check out their albums "Delusions of Banjer", "Horses in the Mines", and "Dust on the Bible". Danny Barnes plays killer banjo, and Mark Rubin is a likewise accomplished bassist.

Texas Meat Purveyors. All their albums are good. Sort of a punk-bluegrass hybrid in their originals, and they do entertaining covers of some songs you wouldn't expect to hear in the Bluegrass style.

Stick_Player · #8 03-30-2013, 08:01 PM

Edgar Meyer, Bela Fleck, and Chris Thile.

Google 'em, youtube 'em.

tilehilder · #9 03-30-2013, 08:12 PM

If you've got 25 mins, this is worth watching. http://youtu.be/vv6odkrGg4s

Thick McRunfast · #10 03-30-2013, 08:50 PM

Five posts before Doc Watson gets mentioned? <smh>

mmbongo · #11 04-01-2013, 06:24 AM

Some amazing modern bluegrass:

Punch Brothers
Mountain Heart
Alison Krauss/Union Station

Alexander · #12 04-01-2013, 07:20 AM

Balsam Range is one of my faves

AllForYourDelig · #13 04-01-2013, 07:23 AM

Awesome! I listen to a lot of jam band/bluegrass bands. Check out cornmeal, greensky bluegrass, and some older String Cheese Incident ( their album "a string cheese incident" is a great start).

Phalex · #14 04-01-2013, 07:23 AM

New Grass Revival was awesome! John Cowan is one of my favorite singing bass players!

bryan gibson · #15 04-01-2013, 07:27 AM

Around these parts, there are tons of smaller "festivals" in the summer months. Stage shows are always good, but the real fun is the jam sessions later. Imagine 5-15 folks standing under a tree and just wailing away. Quality always varies of course, but if you land in the middle of a good one it will blow your mind.

RonniePudding · #16 04-01-2013, 07:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thick McRunfast

Five posts before Doc Watson gets mentioned? <smh>

Yeah, Doc was technically brilliant, and I think he should be considered an icon of American music. He was prolific, so I can't really say with authority which of his albums are best, but I really like "Riding the Midnight Train" and "Lonesome Road".

**Ukiah Bass** · #17 04-01-2013, 07:38 AM

There's a whole forum devoted to Bluegrass over on the "other side."

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f179/

Lady Kayri · #18 04-01-2013, 08:09 AM

Nitty gritty Dirt Band did a series of albums featuring some great bluegrass players called "Will the Circle be Unbroken." three albums worth I think. Some really great stuff. If you like blended music, there is also "Moody Bluegrass" with a lot of Moody Blues music re imagined as bluegrass, which I have enjoyed.

Thick McRunfast · #19 04-01-2013, 04:00 PM

While the line-up isn't exclusively bluegrass, you should check out who is playing MerleFest. I play pretty regularly with a mando player who makes a pilgrimage to the festival every year. And it is a pilgrimage

http://www.merlefest.org/Lineup/

daveman50 · #20 04-02-2013, 11:15 AM

Check out the Bill Monroe/Doc Watson live duo set from the 60's

http://www.amazon.com/Off-The-Record.../dp/B000001DJ5

It's a mix of stuff, including revisiting some of the Monroe Brothers material (Bill M's band with his brother Charlie, before the Blue Grass Boys)

http://www.amazon.com/What-Would-Giv.../dp/B00004TDOK

This is all going further back in time than the OP's starting point, but that's what happens when you get into it - whether it's bluegrass, country, the blues, whatever - you go baaaaaaaack in time and marvel at all the beautiful noise people have made, for so long, and how it's inspired us.