In this first biography of legendary banjoist J. D. Crowe, Marty Godbey charts the life and career of one of bluegrass's most important innovators. Born and raised in Lexington, Kentucky, Crowe picked up the banjo when he was thirteen years old, inspired by a Flatt & Scruggs performance at the Kentucky Barn Dance. Godbey relates the long, distinguished career that followed, as Crowe performed and recorded both solo and as part of such varied ensembles as Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys, the all-acoustic Kentucky Mountain Boys, and the revolutionary New South, who created an adventurously eclectic brand of bluegrass by merging rock and country music influences with traditional forms. Over the decades, this highly influential group launched the careers of many other fresh talents such as Keith Whitley, Ricky Skaggs, Tony Rice, Jerry Douglas, and Doyle Lawson. With a selective discography and drawing from more than twenty interviews with Crowe and dozens more with the players who know him best, Crowe on the Banjo: The Music Life of J. D. Crowe is the definitive music biography of a true bluegrass original. | Cover Title Page Copyright Contents Preface Acknowledgments 1. I Never Heard a Sound Like That 2. I Just Wanted to Pick 3. The Road to Detroit: We Rehearsed 4. Louisiana to Wheeling and Home Again 5. Why Don't You Come Down to Martin's? 6. The Red Slipper Lounge Illustrations follow page 112. 7. Rounder 0044 and the Convergence of 1975 8. The New South: Bluegrass, Country, and More 9. Burn Out, Time Out, and Second Wind 10. The New New South Coda: Tone, Touch, Timing, and Taste Notes Selected Listening Additional Reading Interviews Index | Received the Best Historical Research in Country, Folk or Ethnic Music Award from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC), 2012. Received the Print Media Person of the Year Award from the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA), 2012. — the Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC)
Received the Best Historical Research in Country, Folk or Ethnic Music Award from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC), 2012. Received the Print Media Person of the Year Award from the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA), 2012. — the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA)
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A prolific writer and photographer, the late Marty Godbey published extensively on history, architecture, food, travel and bluegrass music. She lived in Lexington, Kentucky, where she watched J. D. Crowe play locally for more than 40 years.