Video Rut--David Grisman Quartet::E.M.B.

For those of you who may have wondered why David Grisman is considered one of the acoustic masters, here's just a small sampling of the "Dawg". I have my first radio station general manager to thank for introducing me to Grisman's 1977 album The David Grisman Quintet (from which this track originally appears). The beautifully worn vinyl record sits tucked in the bluegrass shelves of a small, West Virginia radio station and the cover still looks like gentled age. And the music, which squarely stands at the crossroads of jazz and bluegrass, was the perfect companion to many early morning sign-on shifts where I can honestly say that the West Virginia sunrise never sounded so good.

I don't know how many radio stations still spin old vinyl (I know WTJU 91.1FM still does and I love them for it) but the David Grisman Quintet's eponymous release from 1977 definitely made its way into a number of my morning play lists, the needle holding the broadcast line at 33rpms. There's actually little that compares from this era of string music...not Old & in the Way, not New Grass Revival, and not even John Hartford (despite all his trailblazing through the realms of acoustic music). There are but a few who are cut from the same musical cloth as the Dawg. If I stop to think about it, there really is only one album that I can come up with that truly succeeds at capturing the modern bluegrass aspect of jazz, while also pre-dating the David Grisman Quintet's self-titled debut...and that one album is included on THIS LIST.

I was up until the earliest hours of morning today...you actually might call it a long night. Listening to David Grisman is how my day both ended and began...against the backdrop of early morning light brushing against the tops of the Blue Ridge.

Personnel on this video performance are as follows: David Grisman (mandolin), Mark O'Connor (fiddle), Tony Rice (guitar), and Rob Wasserman (bass)

------------
Purchase: David Grisman Quintet--S/T