In the late '30s and '40s, Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys were the biggest stars in country music, but when he appeared onstage at the 1963 Newport Folk Festival, he did so after a number of years spent toiling in relative obscurity.The 1963 Newport Folk Festival boasted a roster filled to the brim with up and coming young performers including Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Ian and Sylvia. Thou...
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If there any any Bluegrass Police within the sound of my voice...As we know, bluegrass is one of the few forms of music with a strict set of rules that are actively enforced. This may be because it was invented by one guy (I was trying to make a bluegrass family tree - but it got ridiculous quickly - just put Bill Monroe's Bluegrass Boys at the top and everyone else underneath). Or maybe it is ...
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Bluegrass music (in all its many forms) is undeniably a part of my musical make-up. Growing up in rural western Virginia, the sounds of a banjo, mandolin, or flat-pick guitar were never too far away. Don't get me wrong, I rebelled like hell to listen to bluegrass music when I was young, preferring instead to dive into the modern rock sound (or college rock as it was then called) that was begi...
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Shout for Cody B. It's all about the roots. You are where you come from. It's always with you.Rock it Old, Freakin Old School.
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Bill Monroe (1911-1996) is arguably one of the single most influential figures in the history of American music. Not only did Monroe dominate a single, distinctive musical genre, he may be the only person in history who deserves credit for single handedly creating an entire genre of music. Of course Bluegrass was built of the same musical components as other forms of American music: modal balla...
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Popmatters.com has a review of the DVD "Bill Monroe: Father of Bluegrass Music" which they discribe as "Informative and educational, intriguing and entertaining, part American history lesson, part biography and part concert film…" The good folks over at The 9513 brought to my attention that current Twang Nation favorite Jamey Johnson will be joining Willie Nelson, [...]~~
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