Five albums

[Roda]

Hey folks.

Do you want to share your top five bluegrass albums with me? I want to get into more bluegrass. And im an album guy haha.

All best,

Simon

[MontanaMatt]

Not sure I have only five favorites..
Here are five in my current listening rotation
New Classics for Bluegrass Mandolin-Butch Baldassari
The Little Grasscals:Bluegrass
Helton Creek-Red Henry
Stomp-Mike Compton
My Style-Herschel Sizemore

Enjoy!
Happy Pickin

[Roda]

Cheers! Will check them out!

[Denny Gies]

1.Murder on Music Row..........Larry Cordle
2.The Bluegrass Album Band
3.Anything Flatt and Scruggs
4.Bluegrass Mandolin Extravaganza
5.Idle Time..........Nashville Bluegrass Band
6,Three Chords and the Truth.....James King
7.Anything Stanley Brothers
8.Rock My Soul.............Doyle Lawson and Qiucksilver
9.Bridging Tradition.......Lonesome River Band
10,Lessons In Stone........Longview
So sue me, you got 10.

[Mandoplumb]

Calling my children home. Country Gentlemen
Model church. J D Crowe
Anything by Bill Monroe
Anything by early country gentlemen
Anything by Flatt and Scruggs

[jaycat]

A couple of albums that many of us grew up on are:

The Dillards, Wheatstraw Suite, &
NGDB, Will The Circle Be Unbroken.

[Timbofood]

I’m a more traditional guy, I will reiterate my stock statement “You have to know where you came from to know where you are going!”
To that end, I offer more Roots choices.

Bill Monroe- All you can find but, Bluegrass Instrumentals (some amazing sidemen and Mr. Monroe playing “The” F-5 and an F-4 on a few cuts) ROOTS!
Lester and Earl- All you can find.
Red Allen, Frank Wakefield and the Kentuckians (best recording of “New Camptown Races” ever!) Roots! (Folkways recording)
Red Smiley and Don Reno (with Ronnie on his Loar) Roots
The Stanley Brothers (any) ROOTS!
Larry Sparks and the Lonesome Ramblers- Footsteps of Tradition (broadly speaking,second generation but, more style? I don’t think so.) that is a powerful album!
A little different from some of the above but, you asked for an opinion!
Sorry, I’m leaving you with a pretty open door here, I’ve spent most of my life trying to make these decisions!

[RobP]

In general (with 1 exception), my faves tend to be more modern:

1. Manzanita. This is my desert-island album
2. The Monroe/Doc Watson Smithsonian double CD
3. Grisman Life of Sorrow album
4. Anything by John Reischman and the Jaybirds
5. Della Mae - I Built This Heart

Cheers

Rob

[tmsweeney]

1. Kenny Baker plays Bill Monroe - this is pretty much required listening
2. Tony Rice The Bluegrass Album
3. Norman Blake Nashville Blues
4. Doc and Merle Watson Down South
5. David Grisman Home is where the Heart is

for more hard core - Flatt and Scruggs, Jim and Jesse, Jimmy Martin, Ralph Stanley

[MikeZito]

I put no real thought into this list . . . just simply typed out the first five albums that came to mind:

Del McCoury Band: The Cold Hard Facts
Red Allen & The Kentuckians: Bluegrass Country
Rhonda Vincent: Good Thing Going
Jim & Jesse: Bluegrass Special
The Hillmen: The Hillmen

[Jess L.]

Well I can't think of 5 (been a long time since I ventured away from oldtime to briefly dabble in bluegrass) but if I had to choose say only three bluegrass albums, it would be the ones below (confirming what others above have said about anything Flatt & Scruggs, and anything Jim & Jesse). In particular, I like these:

1. Flatt & Scruggs 1961 instrumental album "Foggy Mountain Banjo", even though this particular album had once-shocking drums apparently by Buddy Harman. Nowadays the drum thing doesn't bother me a bit, although when that album first came out I thought it was odd. Here's a YouTube page which has all 20 of the album's tunes on one video:


(or direct link). The entire album and also individual tracks are also available on Amazon.


2. The Stanley Brothers album "Angel Band: The Classic Mercury Recordings". Here's the title track, "Angel Band", very nice harmonies:


(or direct link. Also the entire album, as well as individual tracks, are available on Amazon.)

(The lyrics to some of those songs make me appreciate instrumental versions all the more - a little bit of doom and gloom goes a long way eh.)

3. But, as to gloom (which is unfortunately necessary at times), I also like the sound of some of the Jim & Jesse stuff, such as their version of John Prine's song "Paradise" which is sort of modern (1970s) by my elderly way of thinking of things, but again it has really nice harmonies:


(this song seems to be available on all sorts of album compilations, including this Amazon album of Jim & Jesse music.)


------------
NFI

[Roda]

Wow! What a response. Now I have a lot to listen to! Thank you all!

[Denny Gies]

Good luck, Roda.

[Timbofood]

This is just ONE DAY IN, in a week, there will be enough to keep you going for several years!

[onassis]

A couple of albums that many of us grew up on are:

The Dillards, Wheatstraw Suite, &
NGDB, Will The Circle Be Unbroken.

Thanks for mentioning these! The early Dillards and Country Gazette albums have been getting a lot of heavy play around my house lately.

[Ken Lucas]

Bill Monroe - Master of Bluegrass
David Grisman - Bluegrass Reunion
Kenny Baker Plays Bill Monroe
Red Allen & Frank Wakefield - Bluegrass (Folkways)
Bluegrass Album Band Vol 1

[Jim Hilburn]

To get a sense of how bluegrass has evolved you might start with some of the afore mentioned Monroe albums or even a Monroe Greatest Hits. Then something like the Stanleys or Osbornes. Seldom Scene is a good next step or maybe the Bluegrass Cardinals. Then Grisman and Newgrass or maybe Tony Rice, like Manzanita. Oh, and early Ricky Skaggs.
Then something more modern like... a million choices. Third Tyme Out, Grascals, Blue Highway, Del. On and on.
Oh, Yeah Flatt and Scruggs. Goes without saying.

[Homer Savard]

Old and in the Way
Plus what everyone else said!
Enjoy

[Rush Burkhardt]

I wimped out, Roda! There were many, many, great albums mentioned! I was fortunate to be introduced to and become addicted to BG in the mid-60's. I was fortunate to see most of the 1st Gen. Bluegrass Bands. This topic is a favorite for me! I'm afraid, when looking at my music library, there was no way for me to pick 5 albums. Instead of picking albums, I believe these are the artists to whom you would do well to listen for a picture of Bluegrass! [Almost any of their albums (the earlier the better) would help you get the picture!]

1st: Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, Jimmy Martin, The Stanley Bros.,The Country Gentlemen,
Then: Del McCoury, The Bluegrass Album Band, The Seldom Scene, The Newgrass Revival

Today, despite the various directions Our Music has taken, there is an almost never-ending supply of great music! Some of it might not please me if I was wanting to hear "classic" BG. But, for just plain exceptional music, it's there!

So, Roda, whether you go album-by-album, band-by-band, or song-by-song, enjoy the journey! I sure have and am still doing so!

Rush