Bluegrass on my mind

[Singin Jimmy]

About 5 years ago I heard this song on the radio and was hooked.  I was never able to catch them live and was unlucky last summer when my daughter got tickets at the last minute to see them at Meadowbrook.  She knew I wasn't around so she passed on the tickets - oh well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1evjlMpiV4

While I own some "hard core" bluegrass, I'm usually listening around the edges looking for songs with a bluegrass "feel".  So here are a couple of good examples of that.

I think we've had some David Grisman vids before, but Paul turned me on to him some time ago.  He covers a number of Genre's and is an excellent picker - here's an older one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x05z27blg80

OK - one more!  I bought Yo Yo Ma's Appalacian Journey cd at the same time I purchased the Moody Bluegrass cd.  This is the only vocal on it and James Taylor does a great job:
James Taylor, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer & Mark O'Connor
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIalvXTPyA0

[Paul Wargo]

Thanks so much for 3 great performances, especially the hauntingly beautiful "Hard Times Come Again No More".
Is that the banjo equivalent of a 12 string guitar on the Nickelback vid? Very cool
and words can't come close to giving Grisman the credit he deserves for nurturing many of todays greatest pickers.

Good one Jim

[Mark M]

JP, that was a great 3-pack!

I really liked the "Nickleback" bluegrass tune and I think we're on the same wavelenth as far as that genre is concerned. I really do like the hardcore stuff but I look more for music with bluegrassy overtones without being full-blown bluegrass. Bela Fleck come to mind in that regard and these guys are equally awesome.

Paul, I'm quite sure the instrument you asked about is a bouzouki, which is part of the long-neck lute family along with the guitar and many others. I don't believe that it's meant to mimic a banjo but it's the guys playing that makes it seem that way. My guess is that he also plays banjo by his picking style but likes the additional strings on the bouzouki.

What can you say about David Grissman... the guy's a monster on mandolin and has been around a long time... even played with Jerry Garcia!

I absolutely LOVED the JT rendition of "Hard Times Come Again No More". I need to get that one, any more like that by him or anyone else that has that type of melody and feel? Is there a name for that style?

[Singin Jimmy]

Yea Mark, there are that fit the Yo Yo Ma, James Tayolr mold.
That was from an album called Appalachian Journey that I picked up some years ago.  It was put out by Yo Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer & Mark O'Connor.  There are two vocal tunes.  That one with JT and another called Slumber My Darling with Alison Krauss.  I put the Krauss song on a "Lullaby" CD for my Grandson and he loves it.

Ma, Meyer & O'Connor also put out another one that I think I got from emusic called Appalachian Waltz.  I then got a bit more classical when I downloaded Aaron Copeland's "Appalachian Spring" which is a really great score.  

Back to James Taylor, do a search on Yo Yo Ma & James Taylor, they've done some others.  A really good interview and their version of "Here comes the Sun":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAkoYcfDmrk

[JoeMan]

Thanks Jimmy.  Excellent stuff!