Picking the Best Place To "Pick"

[LatinMando]

This topic "popped" into my head when I saw the last one. #I admit that living in Jacksonville, Florida ("Nowhereville" as far as bluegrass/mandolins, repair people, luthiers, shops, etc.), I've thought many times where I'd move to if I could,that would have the very "best" re mandolin, particularly bluegrass, old-time music, etc. #Now, I mean a place where you could find places to go and listen to the best, lots of people into this kind of thing, places to jam, lots of excellent instructors, lots of excellent luthiers and repair-persons, acoustic instrument sotres/shops and otherwise also a great place to live re usual requirements. #

I know some "compromises" would have to be made. Can't have everything on the list!!

Any ideas? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[John Flynn]

I won't go out on a limb and say St. Louis is "the best," but I will offer it as a contender, especially for old-time music. We have:
> Music Folk, a store with lots of mandos and good mando instructors. The co-owner, Andy Ploof, is a great mando player and luthier.
> The Folk School, which conducts group classes in old-time and bluegrass music.
> Fazios Frets and Friends is a store that has an OK mando selection and holds great bluegrass jamming classes.
> A lot of great old-time musicians, including my all-time favorite OT mando player, Curtis Buckhannon, my favorite OT banjo player, Dave Landreth, my two favorite OT guitar players, Barbara Weathers (also a great fiddler) and Dennis Buckhannon. Of my two favorite OT fiddlers, one of them, Geoff Seitz, lives here and the other, Billy Mathews, is up here from the Ozarks a lot.
> A pretty fair number of regular, open jams.

[evanreilly]

Asheville, NC!!!

[odeman]

This website, and Scott, plus Mass Street Music, Mountain Music, Mandofest and Jim Triggs all come from the Lawrence, KS / Kansas City, KS area. 'Not a bad place to pick up some mandolin music.

[peterbc]

Seattle is pretty good, there're some good stores, luthiers, teachers, pickers, etc, and a ton of jams and lots of festivals in the surrounding areas.

[Kirby161]

I dont live there but i can say that both nashville, TN and louiville KY have pretty good bluegrass selection, both in concerts and in players, instructors, and mandos (because the gibby mando factory isint too far off).

[Bobbie Dier]

I second evanreilly, Asheville, NC or anywhere within 100 miles of it.

[keymandoguy]

there is also a First Quality music store in Louisville lots of jams around !

[Clyde Clevenger]

Salem, Oregon is a pretty good place to live for a mandolin picker. Not much going on in Salem, but an hour north is Portland, lots of good pickers there, Greg Clark, Jeff Smith, Peter Schwimmer, just to name three. A little farther south is Newberg and Jake Joliff. A half hour east is Cartwright's music, in my opinion the best mandolin store in the west. An hour south is Eugene, loaded with good pickers. You can find a good quality jam every night of the week within an hour of here. It does rain a little, but the relative humidity stays between 50 and 65 year round. No critters flying, crawling or slithering that can kill you. The last time it got really hot here was August 22nd 1984, 101, but only for one day. Rarely gets over ninety or below 40. It snows about every 10 years just to remind us why we moved here. We are an hour from two big cities, an hour from the coast, an hour from the mountains and 10 minutes from the woods.

[Wadefox]

You would think that the San Francisco Bay Area would be, with the number of great pickers that live around here. Unfortunately, you don't see them performing around here much.

[yoods]

Salem, Oregon is a pretty good place to live for a mandolin picker...It does rain a little, but the relative humidity stays between 50 and 65 year round. #No critters flying, crawling or slithering that can kill you. #The last time it got really hot here was August 22nd 1984, 101, but only for one day. #Rarely gets over ninety or below 40. #It snows about every 10 years just to remind us why we moved here. #We are an hour from two big cities, an hour from the coast, an hour from the mountains and 10 minutes from the woods.
That's why the signs that welcome folks coming to Oregon from out-of-state on the interstates say, We hope you enjoy your VISIT! Meaning, we know we have a great place, so visit, spend your money, and then Go Home, don't move here!

[Mando Medic]

Yoods, What do you want? We have no sales tax, you want to live here too? It's not that we don't want you to move here, we just know you won't. Honestly, 30 years ago during the Governor McCall administration, the signs used to say,
Welcome to Oregon, but don't stay too long", or something to that affect. The signs are now PC.I had to sneak in from Pennsylvania in 73. Kenc

[THP]

Lets see..i have lived many places and they all are right up there. Chapel Hill/raleigh/Durham area NC is the only place I know besides the Charleston WVA area that there are jams every night/day of the week..and monster pickers too. Roanoke VA #down to the MT Airy(sp) NC (via Galax) area is a great place too..and great players.
Colorado, anywhere you go you can probally get a good session going and here in Pa things are on the grow.
Now just getting back from Denmark..there are mandolin players everywhere!!
Anthony
www.hickoryproject.com

[SternART]

Hard to beat the SF Bay Area.......Grisman, Marshall, Thile, Tom Rozum, Laurie Lewis, Darol Anger, Jim Nunnally, Dix Bruce, Dave Balakrishnan among NUMEROUS others live here & I see them each play a couple of times a year. The DGQ plays about 2 or 3 times a year.....the David Grisman BG Experience doesn't tour much if at all, but you can catch them maybe 4 times a year, in small venues or doing benefit charity events for school music programs. I saw Thile & Marshall twice last year....these kinda players frequently jam at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley. Flinner, Grier & Phillips played there recently with Darol Anger sitting in the first set & Mike Marshall the second set. Tim O'brien was just there with Casey Dreisen & John Doyle. Mike Marshall's Choro Famoso, his Brazilian Choro band will be there soon, they have a new CD but only play locally. I see Darol Anger's American Fiddle Ensemble a few times a year etc. There is too much music of all kinds here to see it all, you can go out every night if you are so inclined. Huge Comando contingent here, with mando gatherings a few times a year. Lots of local BG bands & venues....Strawberry & Grass Valley festivals not too far away...a great place to be a mando picker.

[Brad Weiss]

OK THP, tell me where I can find these jams every day of the week in the NC triangle? A couple nights a week you can go to Zepp's (pretty far from the triangle itself) and 2 nights @ month in Durham at High Strung. #Any other spots I'm missing?

[AlanN]

Monday - Lester's place, off 55 in Durham
Tuesday - Maness Pottery Barn, near Carthage
Wednesday - Wilson Fire House
Thursday - Zepp
Friday - True Bluegrass, near Asheboro; Williamson's Parlor, Raleigh
Saturday - Mayes store in Duncan; Bluegrass Shack in Liberty (off 49)

Sunday is a day of rest http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[Flowerpot]

If you want good bluegrass concerts, jam sessions, instructors, luthiers/repair, festivals, you're not going to do any better than the Southeast. Large towns like Roanoke VA, Raleigh/Greensboro/winston-Salem NC, Ashville NC, Bristol/Tri-cities TN won't be beat. Small towns are thick with it too. There, bluegrass is part of the blood, part of the culture. Go to any church potluck, community pig roast, fire dept fundraiser at the town square, and chances are there will be a bluegrass group or jam there. I've been to many jams in the bay area, in Portland, int he midwest, and I gotta say nothing compares with the Southeast. The whole feel of the music is different, more authentic in my opinion. Been there, wish I was back.

[THP]

Brad..Alan summed it up pretty good.
Aww yes...Alan..memories!!
thanks for chiming in with the info..if you see Jimmy tell him hi for me!
And on the weekends its only a hop skip and jump to the roanoke area. And yes there is a certain feel that is there (NC, VA, tri cities, WVA) that you cant get anywhere else.
Anthony

[futrconslr]

Guys, I gotta tell you, I grew up in the Tri-Cities, Tennessee and you are right as far as it being in the blood and hearing it everywhere you go, I live in Nashville now and as far as instruments, teachers and pickers go Nashville is hard to beat. Jams in the Tri-cities feature alot of fiddle tunes etc. If you go to a jam here, you'd better know Monroe cause thats what getting played.

[mandoJeremy]

I would have to agree with evan and imapickin. #Anywhere in Western North Carolina and also the Mt. Airy region, as well as the Triad. #Well, just anywhere in NC. #We are covered in pickers! #Asheville does have a great music scene, not quite as many pickers as there are places for pickers to pick but still a great scene for all types of music.

[LatinMando]

Hi again, Guys (and gals),

I started this interesting "topic" and am really getting a lot out of the vatious responses but, for someone not from the area, could someone tell me what is encompassed by the "Tri-cities?"

Thanks!! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Flowerpot]

Tri-cities TN is Bristol, Kingsport, and Johnson City, all in Tennessee with the exception of Bristol which is in both Tennessee and Virginia. The main downtown street in Bristol, State Street, spans the state line; one side of the street is VA and the other TN. The lucky folks working in the businesses on the Tennessee side have the benefit of no state income tax; in Virginia, no such luck.

[levin4now]

For the triangle pickers - there is the 'raleighareapickers' yahoo group that meets at some park in raleigh every thursday night as well. Raleigh is looking good. BTW, ZEPP'S aint too far out of the way of the Triangle, just depends on traffic and what side of the triangle you live in! If I want to go there, it's 120 miles for me (I'm NOT in the triangle).

[evanreilly]

As a statistic, I beleive that Bill Monroe had more Blue Grass Boys from North Carolina in his band than Boys from any other state. #Quite a few of them are still in the area.
As to Jeremy's comment on too few pickers in the Asheville area, check out the upcoming Shindig on the Green (http://www.folkheritage.org/shindigonthegreen.htm) to see how many pickers come out of the woods and woodwork. #First one for the season will be July 3rd, and the entire downtown area will be a mass of string vibrations of the Old Time and Blue Grass persuasions.
I personally think the combination of large numbers of pickers and venues around Asheville make it the top spot, but, opinions are like F-holes; every mandolin has a few..<G>
I went to a new, small jam last night in Asheville, maybe 10 people. And 5 mandolins!!

[AlanN]

Hey Anthony. Haven't seen Jimmy around lately. This time of year always brings back the memories of Wind Gap. I remember pickin there with your Dad on an old bone he had. Also, you, Scotty Eager, etc.

[pickinNgrinnin]

Lawrence, Kansas. Mandolin Capitol of the Universe http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif