The Tradition

40 Years Late…and Right On Time This is a noteworthy year in the history of bluegrass music because it is the year that we lost the last of our first-generation heroes.  While a few of those bluegrass trailblazers, like the most recent to leave us—Bobby Osborne and Jesse McReynolds—lived past their 90th birthday, there were…

Wilma Lee Cooper, Sam Bush and David Grisman Interviews with Todd Phillips, Zeb Snyder and Old Newspaper Clippings Bring Their Stories to Life Sam Bush Just a couple of years ago, in 2020, Sam Bush was first inducted into the IBMA Hall of Fame as a member of the New Grass Revival. On September 28,…

Bluegrass Hall of Fame member Carlton Haney has received (and deserved) much acclaim for his production of a bluegrass festival in 1965 at Cantrell’s Horse Farm in Fincastle, Virginia, universally hailed as the first multi-day bluegrass festival and the model for all that followed. The only problem with this much-repeated narrative is that “Bluegrass Spectaculars,”…

“High on a mountain, wind blowing free  Thinking about the days that used to be High on a mountain, standing all alone Wondering where the years of my life have flown” 1 These iconic lyrics by Ola Belle Reed are a right of passage for any bluegrass singer or band.  “I’ve endured, I’ve endured, How…

Remembering my Friend, Bobby Osborne 1992 I first met Bobby in 1992 while attending the Old Joe Clark Bluegrass Festival in Renfro Valley, Kentucky. This was my first time attending a bluegrass festival and I was carrying around my first guitar for all the artists to sign. I had upgraded to a better instrument so…

Mourning the Loss of a Legend  Photo By Scott Simontacchi The world of bluegrass music mourns the loss of one of its iconic figures with the death of Bobby Osborne. He passed away on June 27 at the age of 91 just four days after his friend—and another legend of the genre—Jesse McReynolds, died. For…