Skaggs & Statman ... bring end times to bluegrass

[SternART]

Just saw Crooked Still on Sat. Greg Liszt did some jaw dropping banjo solos, he has invented a style where he uses all his right hand fingers and can put it into hyper drive when he wants to. Triplets are nothing for this guy. He is also Dr. Listz........Phd from MIT, with Yale before that. Obviously a very bright fella, if you ever hear his other band The Deadly Gentlemen, where he raps over BG pickin, and is the front man for the show, you get a better idea of his offbeat sense of humor. Crooked Still played a great set......they are taking traditional music roots music forward, making old standards sound new again. NO guitar or mandolin, but incredibly talented Brittany Haas on violin, national fiddle champ Tristan Clarridge on cello, and Listz on banjo as the soloists. I put them with the Punch Bros. as one of the best young bands taking chances & creating their own voice, based on traditional music.

[Jonathan James]

off topic a bit, but I just heard the Crooked Still version of "Ain't No Grave" being played on the closing credits of the HBO series "True Blood" (vampires & such) last night....

[grassrootphilosopher]

Yeah, Crooked Still do have stellar musicians. They indeed take the music to another level. But, like OldSausage said, I´m stuck here... (I just find other "Bluegrass" more entertaining).

On the other hand I do like the "Bluegrass Inteligencer" or whatever that site is called.

[Mike Romkey]

Pretty funny website. I especially like this headline: Botched Exorcism Leaves Soul of Bruce Molsky in 13-Year-Old Girl.

[SternART]

Or back to Kentucky Thunder:
New Mitchell Report on Performance-Enhancing Drugs Names Mountain Heart, Kentucky Thunder

Van Cleve, Kilby, Leftwich to testify before Congress
Skaggs legacy, eligibility for Hall of Fame in jeopardy

WASHINGTON — The world of bluegrass is reeling from revelations of rampant abuse of performance-enhancing drugs. A Congressional inquiry spearheaded by former Senator George J. Mitchell has yielded a 398-page report, whose allegations stem from a 20-month investigation of most major bluegrass bands.

Pretty funny stuff!!!

[re simmers]

Sam Bush, the McCourys and Jim Mills to testify before congress.........."should bluegrass musicians be tested for steroids?" Ralph Stanley rumored to be named special prosecutor. Surprise witness: Young banjo player from "Deliverance."

No offense intended toward any of those named in this "exclusive" breaking news story.

Bob

I'm sorry. Did I stray from the O.P?

[grassrootphilosopher]

I'm sorry. Did I stray from the O.P?

Forget the OP.

And I also liked the story about Kiefer Sutherlands reputation being destroyed by Seamus Egan. (The thing that would get the lockdown on this thread would be the "article" about why Mountain Heart got inspired to play faster. I liked that [as a thorn in the flesh]). So in every jest there is a grain of truth...