The Sound

Covering All—Or at Least Some Of—the Basses Once upon a time the A. P. Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers were revolutionaries.  A traditionalist scholar once complained that—by introducing guitar into songs that had been previously sung unaccompanied—the Carters just ruined them.  Jimmie Rodgers featured jazz players and Hawaiian musicians on some of his recordings, and…

Photo by Joe Worthem It’s been a few years since Volume Five cut the poignant “Tell Me You’re Not Leaving” for Milestones, the band’s seventh record for label Mountain Fever. Far from a traditional bluegrass barn burner—something this band can get around—the slower, reflective song reached #2 on Bluegrass Today charts. Lead singer Glen Harrell…

Photo by Snap Jackson Photography One constant in Bill Evans’ 40-plus-year banjo career is helping others learn to play and listen to music. He began teaching in his hometown, Norfolk, VA in the 1970s, while still in high school, not long after he picked up the five string. Evans remembers sitting in the living room…

Leading Others  to Bluegrass Success Photo by Shelly Swanger Longtime performer turned business owner Andrea Roberts lived an enviable existence as a bluegrass musician the first part of her life. Her impressive resume includes fronting one of the first all-female bluegrass bands Petticoat Junction and playing alongside some of the genre’s most legendary figures including Bill…

Photo By CarsonPhotography Young kids are often asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”  I would guess that a fairly low percentage of adults actually end up fulfilling those childhood dreams.  For musicians it might be different though.  I have interviewed many bluegrass musicians who became enamored with a musical instrument at…

A Master Luthier and Inlay Artist Who Keeps No Secrets Photos By Dale Cahill fter returning from an extended tour in Vietnam and receiving his Doctorate in Psychiatry, Dave Nichols started working at St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center. Shortly thereafter, Nichols set up his first inlay/ luthier shop, Custom Pearl Inlay. Since then, Nichols has perfected his…