The Archives
Spectrum
When the four of them first got together and decided on a name for their new group, they chose Spectrum, to indicate their wide range of musical interests and abilities. The name is apt, as the music they produce together stretches from 1930’s popular music through Texas swing to jazz and country, while working within…
Joe Meadows—Mountain State Fiddler
Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine October 1978, Volume 13, Number 4 Numerous fiddlers have made notable contributions to bluegrass music. Joe Meadows ranks among the more prominent, particularly during the decades of the fifties and the seventies. In between Joe took a long vacation from music but during his two active periods he established himself…
Jim Shumate—Bluegrass Fiddler Supreme
Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine April 1979, Volume 13, Number 10 It’s a long drive from Raleigh, North Carolina to Nashville, Tennessee. Before Interstate 40 was cut through North Carolina, driving west from Raleigh meant winding through such towns as Siler City, Mocksville, Statesville, Hickory, and Old Fort. Bill Monroe is no stranger to that…
The Osborne Brothers— Part Two: Getting It Off
Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine February 1972, Volume 6, Number 8 (Part One: Family and Apprenticeship appeared in Bluegrass Unlimited Volume 6, Number 5, September 1971) (To read part one of this series, click here: https://www.bluegrassunlimited.com/article/the-osborne-brothers/) At the start of 1956, Bob and Sonny Osborne were once more at home in Dayton, Ohio, playing the…
John McEuen—String Wizard & Media Producer Extraordinaire Of The 90’s
Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine September 1994, Volume 29, Number 3 When John McEuen appears at a bluegrass festival today, it’s obvious that he isn’t an entire bluegrass band—although he does move around a lot and play four different instruments. You can tell he’s one of the believers, though. The heart and the influence of…
Good Music, Good Friends: The Country Gentlemen
Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine June 1978, Volume 12, Number 12 On July 4, 1978, the Country Gentlemen will begin their twenty-second year of innovative and trend-setting music. Great changes have come to bluegrass in the last twenty-one years, and it is the Country Gentlemen who are one of the first group of musicians who…