Skaggs

[Stubs]

Going to see Mr. Skaggs Friday with the wife and granddaughter. She just loves his singing especially when he says "hearrrrrr" in hwy 40 blues. It is a surprise gift to her for her tenth birthday.
I on the other hand will watch his picking to see if I can pick up any pointers to help my feeble attempts at calling what do playing.
I'll grab my Chinese Loar Saturday morning and go sit by the bonfire and promptly hurl the Loar into the fire.
Next will be a series of special meetings with mando-loon physco docs to determine just how long I'll spend in the round room with rubber walls to recover.

[BrianWilliam]

Bonfires in the morning? That sounds fun. Whiskey too?

[Stubs]

That my friend is a given.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Maybe i'm fortunate,but every top player of banjo or mandolin simply makes me want to practice even more than i do already !!.
Watching/hearing any top musician inspires the dickens out of me every time,
Ivan

[Steve Ostrander]

Don't burn your Loar, take it and try to get Ricky to autograph it!!

[JeffD]

I'll grab my Chinese Loar Saturday morning and go sit by the bonfire and promptly hurl the Loar into the fire.
Next will be a series of special meetings with mando-loon physco docs to determine just how long I'll spend in the round room with rubber walls to recover.

Don't be discouraged by the playing of our musical heroes. They don't own your music or your playing of it.

My thoughts. And my further thoughts. And more stuff I thought about.

All that said - to sit with Ricky Skaggs is an absolute thrill. I am not sure I wouldn't embarrass myself as a total loser fan boy.

[Stubs]

Yes he is a wonderful gift to us all who love to play the mando.
I have no illusions of being in that league, my interest is to just be able to contribute to a jam and enjoy playing.
I do jest about my Loar. It's the best I can afford and currently it's better than me.
I would not dare carry my Loar in and seek his signature. That would be imposing and not kewl. I'll send my granddaughter with it, who could refuse a little girl???

[Denny Gies]

Stubs, take two aspirin and call me in the morning. Have fun.

[Willie Poole]

Hope you aren`t disappointed like I was at the first show I ever saw Ricky do, he preached more then he played, preaching is OK, at church but not at a bluegrass show, just my opinion...

willie

[allenhopkins]

As I recall -- and this may be as long ago as when Skaggs was with Boone Creek -- someone in his band referred to him as "The Mouth of the South." True? And has he changed?

[JH Murray]

I saw Ricky Skaggs with Ry Cooder last year. Backed up by Buck White on piano and Sharon White on vocals. It was an evening of pure delight. They all obviously enjoy what they do. I will never aspire to play as well as Mr. Skaggs. I do aspire to enjoy playing my mandolin as much as he enjoys playing his. And for that I'm thankful.

[Torpedotom]

I honestly think that lots of rank beginners enjoy playing their instruments or playing "at" their instruments as much or more than people of Mr. Skaggs caliber.

[Spruce]

As I recall -- and this may be as long ago as when Skaggs was with Boone Creek -- someone in his band referred to him as "The Mouth of the South." True? And has he changed?

Dunno, as I haven't seen him since '78 when he ruined the only live performance of the Manzanita Band with his chatter...
I've been told I need to go to Al-Anon, but Ricky needs to go to On-and-On (and On-and-On-and-On)...

[Stubs]

Well I see this humorous intended post became a personal opinion attack on Mr. Skaggs. I would have to say I don’t know Mr. Skaggs personally and the one concert I attended of his I was pleased with what I heard and saw.
Like our folks before us said” If you have nothing good to say, just don’t say anything”. Unfortunately unlike the past where if you said something bad about someone, you better be able to back it up or get punched square in the mouth. It is fashionable to make disparaging remarks and expect to receive support for such. I’m not in his fan club, but he is a great musician and in my mind did a lot to keep Bluegrass alive in a time when it was fading off into the sunset.
But that is merely my prospective and you mileage may vary. I intend to go and enjoy what he presents and enjoy watching the Granddaughter listen and watch a great band.
Those who have an aversion to his concerts just don’t go. That will cost you nothing.

[Drew Egerton]

I've had mixed feelings on Ricky since he left a bunch of us standing at the CD table waiting to shake and howdy before the manager told us to leave. Have always loved his music.

With those mixed feelings, I hesitated to borrow his autobiography from a friend and read it, but I did.
It was a fantastic read. I am not much of a reader honestly and only read books that really really interest me.
I read the entire book in a weekend. I will say it was "preachier" than I would have preferred, but I knew that going in. Overall, very good!

[Spruce]

I hesitated to borrow his autobiography from a friend and read it, but I did.
It was a fantastic read. I am not much of a reader honestly and only read books that really really interest me.
I read the entire book in a weekend. I will say it was "preachier" than I would have preferred, but I knew that going in. Overall, very good!

Thanks for that...I love reading music biographies...
You might want to give "Road Mangler Deluxe" by Phil Kauffman a go...he gives Ricky a page or two, and it's very insightful...

[allenhopkins]

Well I see this humorous intended post became a personal opinion attack on Mr. Skaggs....Like our folks before us said” If you have nothing good to say, just don’t say anything”...if you said something bad about someone, you better be able to back it up or get punched square in the mouth. It is fashionable to make disparaging remarks and expect to receive support for such...that is merely my prospective and you mileage may vary...

No disparagement intended of Ricky Skaggs' musical skills; he is a fine musician, and has had an important role in "popularizing" bluegrass and bluegrass-influenced music. Plus, he used to have an awesome haircut.

However, many who attend his performances express a desire for a bit more music, and a bit less talk. Not everyone will agree with this perspective, but in many threads discussing his music (and there are a buncha them), the topic comes up.

Whether this is an "attack" depends on your perspective. On the other hand, a forum like this is largely dedicated to "personal opinion" -- which we expect we can express without being "punched square in the mouth," either physically or verbally.

I like Ricky Skaggs' music, and listen to his recordings frequently, especially the early ones with the late Keith Whitley; Second Generation Bluegrass is a favorite. He doesn't get to western New York much, so I don't see him in concert. But it has been a running commentary, going back to his earlier bands like Boone Creek and Seldom Scene, that he does tend to talk a lot onstage; the "Mouth of the South" nickname came from one of his bandmates, I believe. That's the sub-topic that came up in this thread.

All of us tend to defend the musicians we really like and respect, and I'm no exception. But I think I can accept their flaws as well -- Bill Monroe's hot temper, Jimmy Martin's frequent "Rodney Dangerfield/no respect" complaining, etc. etc. Ricky Skaggs can be a great musician, and also talk too much onstage, and saying that is just an honest opinion and evaluation. Calling it a "personal attack" makes it sound a lot worse than it is.

And I'm outta here, before getting this thread closed...

[JeffD]

What the critics call flaws the fans call features. Ricky is freaking amazing.

[Spruce]

What the critics call flaws the fans call features. Ricky is freaking amazing.

Yep...
Ya'll might enjoy this...
Emmylou and Ricky came out to our little island in 1979, and I managed to snag a recording of it...
Ricky's playing a Loar...

[Bill Foss]

I saw Ricky Skaggs with Ry Cooder last year. Backed up by Buck White on piano and Sharon White on vocals. It was an evening of pure delight. They all obviously enjoy what they do. I will never aspire to play as well as Mr. Skaggs. I do aspire to enjoy playing my mandolin as much as he enjoys playing his. And for that I'm thankful.

I've seen Ry live and Ricky live, but I did not see them together when they were touring recently (although I've seen videos of some of the recent performances). Having followed their careers I think it's safe to say they are probably on different ends of the political spectrum. Which brings me to my point. It seems they put any political/religious differences aside and to come together to make great music. What a wonderful thing!

[Stubs]

Huuuummm I fail to see where any of my statements were directed toward anyone at all.
But if you were offended let me apologize.
I mearly was stating a fact of the past and did not realize someone would take it as a personal issue.
I hope you enjoy your safe room. I'll be retiring to mine with Loar in hand.

[FLATROCK HILL]

Huuuummm I fail to see where any of my statements were directed toward anyone at all.
But if you were offended let me apologize.
I mearly was stating a fact of the past and did not realize someone would take it as a personal issue.
I hope you enjoy your safe room. I'll be retiring to mine with Loar in hand.

Hi Stubs, I sincerely hope that you, your wife and granddaughter have a wonderful time at the Skaggs concert. Wish I were going too.
As far as offending anyone, I certainly see nothing you said as offensive. Well, on second thought, you may have ruffled some feathers by referring to your mandolin as a 'Loar' without including 'The' in front of it.

Clark

[DataNick]

Stubs,

No need to feel like you've done anything wrong. There are certain individuals on the cafe who are lightning rods for extreme reaction: Bill Monroe, Chris Thile, Ricky Skaggs; and to a lesser extent Sam Bush, Sierra Hull, etc.

Personally I love Ricky Skaggs as he's one of my mandolin heroes. I've heard stories, but we all hear something about someone, and all of us as human beings are flawed, so I don't let "stories" affect me as a rule, and prefer to focus on a person's musical language and contributions.

One thing that puzzles me about these forums is that when a person starts a thread celebrating whatever is important to them, that those who don't share that sentiment feel a need to chime in with negativity. I've always thought that if for example you're celebrating Chris Thile, why do I need to come into your thread and douse your sentiment with a splash of cold, negativity; but alas it happens!

The event you're going to sounds like a fun-filled experience, and if I were in your shoes, I'd try to get Mr. Skaggs to sign my mando; in a creative place mind you...LOL!

Best Regards!

[Ivan Kelsall]

I'm another who loves Ricky Skaggs when he's in 'Bluegrass mode''. He's a terrific musician in every respect. I've learned several of his mandolin instrumentals & tried my hand at several others = not there yet !.I've never seen him live over here,but i do believe that he likes to talk. He played one of our Bluegrass festivals over here several years back & i believe that he spent a lot of his time on stage talking. That wouldn't bother me too much apart from more talk = less playing.

Many years back,Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver played the long defunct Edale Bluegrass festival over here. Doyle spent a LOT of time talking & sermonising which didn't go down too well i'm afraid. Nobody need to 'push' their faith etc. on stage & Doyle's reply to a friend of mine on asking him a question,was far from Christian. Other than that, Doyle & his band were pretty darned awesome !!!.

I think that we must accept that 'some' folks have traits that don't go down too well with the rest of us,but we overlook those & enjoy their musicianship - at least,i would ( i hope),
Ivan

[taptuned]

I was fortunate enough to see Ricky and his band Kentucky Thunder 4 or 5 years ago here on the east coast of Canada.

The complete show was professional from start to finish. I would not hesitate to see another of his performances.