Articles

In the early days of the IBMA conference, kids’ involvement was nearly non-existent.  Former IBMA president, Pete Wernick—who put together a kids band to perform at the 1993 IBMA awards show—explains, “In 1993 when the Bluegrass Youth All-Stars appeared on the awards show, that was the first time that kids had ever been on stage…

Dr. Banjo Turns 80 As a kid growing up in the Bronx in the 1950s, Pete Wernick lived within a subway ride of Yankee Stadium. For 75 cents, he could get a seat in the bleachers and spend an afternoon cheering on his heroes — Mantle, Berra, Whitey Ford, et. al. While he did play…

Twenty-five years passed between the first time I saw Bill Monroe play and the day I covered his funeral. In the interim, I had many chances to hear him perform, to meet and interview him, and to study his music. After I became a journalist, I also wrote many articles about Monroe, as well as…

Jim Hurst would be the first to tell you his soon-to-be-released Travels & Time isn’t a pure bluegrass recording. The 13-cut disc that comes out in March features a colorful palette of country, jazz, blues, and bluegrass, taking listeners on a captivating emotional journey. That, of course, is reflective of Hurst’s musical travels. His resume…

Q: I love seeing the old black & white archival photos of bluegrass from the days of old. In the early 1980s, while living in Los Angeles, I met and befriended Marshall Freedland, and we shared our love of bluegrass music and artists. He told me he had a wealth of photos that he took,…

written By Derek Halsey This past December, the news of the death of the great Texas singer and songwriter Joe Ely reminded the world once again of the previously little-known disease called Lewy Body Dementia. The bluegrass scene faced its Lewy Body Dementia moment when the news came out about two-and-a-half years ago that the…