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Special Consensus Celebrates Golden Anniversary
Just one more year. That mantra still runs through the mind of Special Consensus co-founder Greg Cahill. The banjoist and band leader who started the long-running bluegrass group wanted to play music for a living, but for many years, he had more bills to pay in one hand than dollar bills brought in from the…
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the artists
Modern Banjo Master
The best. Proclaiming someone as the best this or that is a highly subjective and contentious undertaking, almost certain to create heated debate. So, to hedge the bet a bit: if twenty-five-year-old Trevor Holder is not the best banjo player on the scene right now, he’s in the top two or three. And if he’s…
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Mary Meyer
Now Touring with Molly Tuttle Molly Tuttle showed up at the ROMP Festival in June of 2025 with a new band (it was their fifth performance). The configuration of the band she traveled with during the previous few years, Golden Highway, included acoustic guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle, and upright bass. Her new band was a…
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The Art of the Sideman
Bluegrass fans are always impressed by the musicians who can play blistering fast solos with accuracy, clarity and tone. This skill is certainly impressive and a guy like mandolin player Josh Rilko knows how to do it. However, the thing that impresses me the most about Josh’s mandolin playing is his ability to play solos…
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from the archives
Twelve Years: The End of Hot Rize Rocket Ride
Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine June 1990, Volume 24, Number 12 The Hot Rize boys have just been called back to the stage for their third encore at Liberty Hall in Lawrence, Kansas. Roses are delivered to the stage by four young ladies and the entire packed house, including a group of guys in the…
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