Bluegrass Back When

According to Oxford Music Online, bluegrass is "part of the American country music tradition, with its heyday in the 1940s".  It goes on to say that bluegrass is characterized by the fiddle, banjo, mandolin, and a quick tempo too.  In modern times at least, the typical bluegrass band includes those instruments plus a guitar or two, a stand-up base, and sometimes a dobro.  "...The greatest exponent is generally thought to be Bill Monroe", with his song Blue Moon of Kentucky.  I don't believe I've heard the original version but I've definitely heard younger singers put their own spin on this age-old hit.

The roots of American bluegrass extend back to immigrants bringing their dance music and ballads from Great Britain starting in the 1600s up to the African American gospels and blues.  The banjo design even comes from a related instrument from Africa [2].  I'm assuming this would be the cora or kora from West African music after visiting the  Cora Connection website. As settlers spread throughout the colonies, they wrote songs about their new land and their day-to-day lives in the hills (mountain music) or on the farms (country music).  The invention of the phonograph in the 1900s supposedly "brought the music out of the rural Southern Mountains" and spread it throughout the nation [2]. Traditional country music was advanced through the works of people like the Carter family and the Monroe brothers and other duets.  When the Monroe brothers split up, Bill formed his band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys, named after his Bluegrass state of Kentucky.  They first performed in the Grand Ole Opry in 1939.  Their sound became more famous in the mid-40's.  After his banjo player and guitarist left the band at separate times, these two formed their own band.  The banjo player had a unique style with his 3-finger-picking style and one of their new band members actually incorporated the dobro.  This style of music started spreading through television in addition to the already established radio, plus traveling performances.  By the 1950s, people widely recognized the country/mountain music as bluegrass.  The first weekend-long bluegrass festival was held in Virginia in '65 and has been an American tradition since [2].  Kansas has a sizable one every year now in Winfield, and after all the shows are done for the night, every band and any music-playing onlookers get together and jam throughout the wee hours of the morning until everyone has tuckered out.

Another bluegrass icon is Ricky Skaggs from Kentucky, born in 1954.  I don't know how familiar he is to many of you but I think he is an important bluegrass figure.  At age 7 he appeared on stage of a concert produced by Bill Monroe himself.  Although he started out by learning the mandolin given to him from his father at age 5, he quickly picked up the guitar and fiddle by his mid teens.  His first album was released by '75 and in the 1980s, he was the youngest elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame.  He soon split his career between the Grand Ole Opry and an entirely separate bluegrass groove.  Some famous people he has worked with that you'll probably recognize are Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton [3].  Today he adopts many new bands to get their own records heard and helps spread his talent among younger groups.

In 1997, a year after Bill Monroe died, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for his music's influence on this country's popular music.  He was also already a member of the Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor and Country Music Hall of Fame[2].  Today our bluegrass music around the world shows hints of just about every other style of music you can possibly think of.  It is one giant mixture in itself of influences from everywhere combined into one resulting style that is constantly being advanced by new groups who mold bluegrass music to fit their distinctive style.  One example of these groups would be Cadillac Sky; a young and already broken-up band.  Although they no longer perform together, they are still performing musicians.  I saw them live and kept track of their albums; over the several years that they performed together, they helped advance not only bluegrass but even "newgrass", a progressive form of bluegrass that just goes back into the mixing pot with its heavy accents from other styles of music such as rock and roll.  It's all still the same instruments and the same basic style, but talking about the differences in newgrass would lead me in an entirely different direction and historical background that started just after the prominence of bluegrass in the mid-20th century.  I tend to be a fan of both the similar forms of music.

Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Cover

Cadillac Sky Cover

Merle Haggard Cover

Ricky Skaggs Cover