Biography

VARIOUS ARTISTS - TRUE BLUEGRASS MANDOLIN (REB-8009, 2019)

Ever since Bill Monroe debuted on the Grand Ole Opry in 1939 with mandolin in hand, the tiny eight-stringed instrument has been an integral part of bluegrass music. It could be argued that Monroe and his prowess on the instrument saved it from obscurity. Over the years, countless other creative musicians have followed Monroe’s lead and made the mandolin their instrument of choice as well.

Rebel Records celebrates the mandolin with this latest addition to the label’s 8000 series budget line. With a generous 18 tracks, True Bluegrass Mandolin draws on 60 years of recorded history and features many top names and tunes from Rebel’s rich and abundant archive. Also included on the collection are several tracks from Rebel’s sister label, the venerable County Records.

A broad range of styles are showcased and present a little something for everyone. First and second generation performers such as Red Rector, Hershel Sizemore, Frank Wakefield, and Doyle Lawson provide solid links to the roots of bluegrass. Younger musicians including Alan Bibey, Dempsey Young, Jimmy Gaudreau and Larry Rice burst forth with inventive variations for the present and the future. Still others, like Butch Baldassari and Scott Napier, fuse youthful enthusiasm with the fundamentals of the masters.

In addition to the featured players, the supporting cast of pickers reads like a who’s who of bluegrass and includes Blue Highway’s Tim Stafford, fiddle ace Stuart Duncan, Dobro king Jerry Douglas, IBMA Hall of Famers Del McCoury (and band) and Larry Sparks, the Blue Grass Boys, the Lost & Found, the Nashville Bluegrass Band, IIIrd Tyme Out, and more!

Among the highlights are Bill Monroe picking on his own showpiece “Road to Columbus” and tracks by Ricky Skaggs and Frank Wakefield that appear on CD for the first time! In fact, Wakefield’s “Bill Cheatham” is issued here for the first time anywhere.

True Bluegrass Mandolin: nice-priced, well-paced, star-studded, and a new bluegrass classic!