The Archives

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine August 2018, Volume 53, Number 2 The new $15 million Bluegrass Music Hall Of Fame & Museum is set to open October 18 this year. After a $100 million riverfront rebuild, Owensboro, Ky., is a new city and destination. To borrow an oft-used phrase, in the minds of bluegrass lovers,…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine May 1989, Volume 23, Number 11 Everyone chooses favorites and of all the Gibson banjos termed ‘prewar,’ the wreath pattern RB-3 with flat tone ring stands out as my all-time choice. There is a quality combining the delicate mother-of-pearl inlays, serviceable mahogany wood and nickel-plating, that is significant considering the…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine June 1990, Volume 24, Number 12 One of the most cherished traditions in country and bluegrass music is that of the performing family group. In addition to numerous brother and sister acts we have had the Carter Family, the Pickard Family, the Phipps Family, the McLain Family, the Lewis Family,…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine August 2012, Volume 47, Number 2 It may sound like a setup for a really bad banjo joke, but five-strings can bring people together. And, in at least one case, help forge a bluegrass power couple. Terry Baucom has established himself among the great banjo pickers of the last four…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine March 1994, Volume 28, Number 9 [Portions reprinted with permission from The SEBA BREAKDOWN, Sept., 1992, Volume 9, No. 9] “It’s time to write a song. The ice on the river.  Is growing much thinner, and soon will give way. Way down below, the river still flows.  The song never…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine November 1990, Volume 25, Number 5 When I first saw Jody he was sixteen, riveting everyone at a folk concert with his singing. I remember thinking at the time, “He sounds good enough to be a PROFESSIONAL.” In the years to come I got to know him and share his…