The Ultimate Road Dog

Photo by Daniel Coston For nearly half a century, fiddling ace Mike Hartgrove of the Lonesome River Band has been traveling highways across America playing bluegrass and country music.  “Mike is a road pro,” says Lonesome River Band leader Sammy Shelor. “The guy has been on the road since he was 17 years old, about like myself. He’s got a lot of good old road stories. He keeps us entertained. I do a lot of night driving, and he’s a great shotgun guy to set up with me and talk to me at night. He’s always got some story to tell.” “If you looked in the dictionary under road pro, there would be a picture of Mike Hartgrove,” says LRB lead singer/guitarist Brandon Rickman. “He’s one of the easiest guys you’ll ever travel with. He goes with the flow. He lightens up.” That’s partly in keeping with Mike’s philosophy that he learned years ago from country legend George Jones’ steel guitar player, Gary Boggs. “The rule of thumb is to leave your pr