Articles

Celebrating 25 Years The Minnesota-based bluegrass band, Monroe Crossing, is celebrating its 25th year in the entertainment business. Three founding members, Matt Thompson-mandolin, Lisa Fuglie-fiddle, and Mark Anderson-bass, were joined by Derek Johnson-guitar in 2011. The group utilizes a cadre of very talented banjo players, all of whom are alumni of the group, most recently…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine April 1995, Volume 29, Number 10 J.D. Crowe has been described as a “musician’s musician” and indeed the subtlety of his playing and his clever innovations are the type of things frequently best appreciated by other musicians. Yet Crowe’s popularity has been far from limited to pickers. The enthusiastic response…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine March 1977, Volume 11, Number 9 Although Jimmie Skinner has not been a bluegrass artist until recently, his contributions to the music have nonetheless been considerable. His unique style of country singing appeals to both bluegrass lovers and traditionalists. Many of Jimmie’s song compositions have found their way into the…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine May 1997, Volume 31, Number 11 “There are three types of history for our music,” said the old man. “There’s mullet history—that’s the kind you tell to people from Minnesota who don’t know what a banjo is. Then there’s book history—that’s where you divide up the music into a different…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine February 1979, Volume 13, Number 8 In the Southern part of the nation, they still talk about that sunny, Sunday afternoon in north Georgia in 1977 when Sonny and Bobby Osborne invited a Florida fiddle player named Chubby Anthony on stage with them to perform a set consisting almost totally…

John Hartford’s legacy, at the time of his death, would have been cemented in music history if he had written only “Gentle on My Mind,” but he made a huge mark playing fiddle and banjo, his tapping feet always moving. Hartford’s songwriting, singing, and playing, even his fascination with steamboats influenced scores of musicians and…