Killer Mandolin breaks of the 90's!

I was just thinking back in the 90's they just seemed something that was just different back then. It is like there was a different style of mando picking during that decade. I got out some old 3TO , BlueHighway, Alison Krauss.
To me during that decade, particularly 94-99 it was ruled by the Adam Steffy, Wayne Benson, Shawn Lane style of picking.

I must say I am a Monroe Lover to the end but that style and recordings that was done by Steffey, Benson and Lane are just tone perfect with awesome phrasing.

I was listening to 3TO's Broken hearted Lover this morning and I was playing that over and over. Man that tune just makes the hair stand up on your arm. Everything just clicks and makes me wonder why that style has kind of faded a little bit? I guess styles do change over the year.

To me Steffey has changed his style a little bit along with Benson and Lane.

I will always love the tone and phrasing that came from those guys during those years.

Also I love those guys dearly and their new Gibsons are cool and I am a 100 percent Gibson die hard fan but I think the best tone they got was out of their Apitius and Tucker.

And no I am not trying to sell Apitius or Tucker mandolins here. It is just an observation that I noticed after listening to new recordings and comparing them with the old.

Adam, Wayne, Shawn.. Hats off to you guys.

Also Wayne has a new DVD coming out it should be great!

[GTison]

I was kinda thinking bout that too mav. I think with Steffy leaving AKUS, that took away alot of style from her as far as mandolin goes. It also takes away the promenent spot that being in her band brings. Adam looses that spotlight on his playing.

Do you think the instrument really makes that difference? I played that tucker and thought wow how'd he get that sound out of this?! Not that it's a bad one just real different and kinda shallow or something. I always thought that the appitius thing was recording magic. But my friend has one and It does have that great sustain thing going one as well as a great playability.

Bowfinger.. I think the instrument does make some difference. Most of it is the player though. It just seems like part of their style has changed nowadays.

I think the Tucker and Aptius mandolins brought out the deep bassy and deep tone they got out of that style during the 90's

[mandofiddle]

I can't help but think that anyone playing as much as these guys will absolutely have a progression of style. I don't think you can play that much and not have your style change. Whether it changes for the good or bad I think is all in the opinion of the listener. And in some cases I think that in order to reach that "next level" that we're all trying to reach, you may need to take 2 or 3 steps backwards in order to take 4 or 5 steps forward.

[Pete Martin]

If you play for a lot of years, your idea of what you want to hear in your playing changes. Quite often, I'll hear young virtuosos playing everything but the kitchen sink in their teens and twenties. When they get to their thirties and forties, they have a much better idea of what fits. Also, just as in sports, the body cant do in the forties what it did in the twenties.

I love to hear older experienced players play. If they've played a long time, there are no wasted notes, no wasted motion, just great music. There may be a few more physical errors, but it never gets in the way of the musical "flow". Mike Compton, Herschel Sizemore and Tiny Moore come to mind right away. Just music, man!

[AlanN]

Ah, spoken like a fogey! <vbg, from a kindred fogey>

I look at Roland White for a dramatic style change over time. When he was in the KC, he played hard, fast and loud. Then, when he was in the CG, his style became more mellow and lyrical. Now with his own band, it's changed yet again. Not better or worse, just different, more seasoned. Same sort of thing with Wakefield, Grisman. Doyle Lawson is somewhat of an anomaly, as to my ears, he hasn't changed that much.

I agree Alan Doyle hasn't changed that much. I thought that this thread would open up conversation on the motions that mandolin players go thru. How some change and some stay the same. Heck even Monroe changed his style of playing if you like at in the begining to the end. I just thought back in the 90's that style that Wayne and Adam and Shawn had going was just SO cool and made a big statement artistically. Is that a real word "artistically"? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[AlanN]

I heard somewhere that Bibey left (got kicked out of?) 3TO because his emerging style no longer gelled with the band's vision. When Wayne came on board, he was told to "tone it down" and be like Bibey was on the first record.

Heard it through the grapevine...

[JDARTGOD]

and now Wayne's with John Cowan.....HMMMMM

[acumando]

Ron Inscore's playing on the latest Kenny & Amanda Smith cd reminds me of that Steffey/Lane style, monster chops and tone -- I actually like it much better than listening to Steffey on the new Mountain Heart cd which I think is kind of boring.

[Keith Wallen]

I heard somewhere that Bibey left (got kicked out of?) 3TO because his emerging style no longer gelled with the band's vision. When Wayne came on board, he was told to "tone it down" and be like Bibey was on the first record.

Heard it through the grapevine...
I had heard that he left on his on terms by going to Branson so he didn't have to travel. Does anyone know for sure? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

Wayne lives near Nashville . 3TO is based down here in Georgia. Cummings Georgia. Thats like 5 hours from where Wayne Lives to catch a bus. Same way with Mike Hartgrove who had even a longer drive to catch the bus. It was his drive that did it.
That is the rumor down here in Georgia where 3TO rules upon high. Oh yeah Wayne still rules down here also! Wayne is such a great guy and one of the most polite people you will ever meet.

[Fretbear]

How is (Alan) Bibey's name pronounced?

[Bradley]

I believe it is #Bib-E.

I am a huge Steffey fan,and have thought that perhaps he has changed over the years to fit his surroundings.He went from AKUS to the Isaacs,and now to Mountain Heart, each was a big change in style.I think that the AKUS recordings with Adam are her absolute best.I am still curiuos to the new Mheart project that is due out anyday,to which direction they have taken.

To me Adam has a style all is own,Shawn Lane and Wayne though very defined in their sound still have a touch of
Monroe to their playing.Doyle has a new project out that is comprised of live and personal recordings of his many groups over the years.In this you can hear his style which seems to be today the way it was 25 years ago.He is still the master of keeping it straight to the melody.I love to hear him play.

As someone metioned Ronald Inscore earlier,man that newest CD is a definite keeper,and his style is so Steffey like it is Scary.That is probably the best CD I have got in the last 6 months.

[Scotti Adams]

..say what you want boys...bibey's break on "Lower On The Hog" is a classic...now that made my hair stand up just like Doyles break on "Circuit Rider" did those many years ago...Bensons playing has definently been toned down from the Live Wire days...but on those 2 Live at the MAC Cds you can tell he was stepping out...he really turned it on...

[mandopete]

Yup, the pendulum has definately swung in the direction of the more "tradional" sound in bluegrass (I'm assuming we're talking about bluegrass players here) and so we don't have quite as much hot pickng as there was in the 90's when things were much more progressive.

Mandopete .. Exactly what I was getting at.

Scotti .. Yeah Bibey rules to!

[sunburst]

How is (Alan) Bibey's name pronounced?
Bye B

[Atlanta Mando Mike]

First I want to say I am a huge Steffey fan. I think he has the absolute best tone period. The tone he gets on his Grateful CD is ridiculous. However, I kind of look at him like the Tony Rice of the mandolin. I don't mean influence or anything like that. I mean he has so many stock phrases and he plays like he plays. There is almost a formula to what he does and lately it really has been getting more and more prevelant in his recordings. his solo on the last song on Mountain Hearts latest is a prime example. Plus his tone is unaproachable like tony's. He and Shawn Lane have this way of playing notes in a flowing way, ussually right near the end of their solos, that just seem to melt togethor in a way that is really hard to figure out what they played. Steffey and Shawn lane's albums in the 90's really blow me away too, and I miss some of that fire they had before they were so mature and all growd up as players.

[Keith Wallen]

..say what you want boys...bibey's break on "Lower On The Hog" is a classic...now that made my hair stand up just like Doyles break on "Circuit Rider" did those many years ago...Bensons playing has definently been toned down from the Live Wire days...but on those 2 Live at the MAC Cds you can tell he was stepping out...he really turned it on...
I am right there with ya Scotti. When that 3TO cd came out Bibey's work blew me away and made me really start to think about what I was playing.

Atlanta Mando Mike.. Im with you. I think Adams intro into ETYSG is one of the all time best solo's/intro's/outro's of all time.

[GTison]

I usually listen to trad. stuff but I don't see the pendulum swinging. the last fest I went to there were "0" monroe style. Now the others were not really "out there" as far as playing goes. I wonder if what we think of "traditional" has changed; maybe because of Biby and Steffy. I hear lot's of Sam Bush in alot of these players too. Which was radical when it came out but now is very mainstream. And what of Thile's influence on the mandolin playing population?

Yeah Thile is one I consider in the Mike Marshall type of category. He is not traditional sounding but more of progessive/classical/ in my ears.

I just think there was some defining moments in the 90's where a new type of style was born with the way Steffey,Benson,Lane was playing