In the past couple of years he has toured with Patty Loveless, played on an all-star-cast Rounder project called Moody Bluegrass: A Nashville Tribute to he Moody Blues and recorded a bluegrass gospel project with Charlie Daniels. Additionally, FGM Records is getting ready to release Tim’s new solo CD and he is featured in a new FGM Records concert DVD with Brad Davis and Cody Kilby.

If you own the Flatpicking Favorites: Hot and Spicy CD and have listened to Cody Kilby and Tim May tear up “Lonesome Fiddle Blues,” you’ll know why Tim is now getting called to play so many prominent gigs in Nashville. As they say here in southwest Virginia, “The boy can pick!”

If you have listened to Crucial Smith’s music, either live or on CD, you may have assumed, like I did, that Tim grew up listening to and playing rock music as well as bluegrass and country. In the realm of bluegrass, the band was pretty progressive. When I sat down with Tim to conduct the nterview for this article, I found out that this was not the case. Tim May grew up in Mississippi playing the banjo in a family bluegrass band. Tim’s grandfather loved bluegrass and owned Bill Monroe records. His older brother, three years his senior, began learning how to play the banjo and guitar, but when he turned his full attention towards the guitar, Tim bought is brother’s banjo from him. Tim dove into learning how to play the banjo and a short time later the May family—with older brother Ben on guitar, Tim on banjo, Dad on vocals, and younger brother Riley on bass—formed a band. While Tim continued to play the banjo with the family band, he said, “I heard Tony Rice and Dan Crary playing the guitar and I had to learn how to do that!”

When asked about learning how to flatpick, Tim said, “I’ve got to be one of the last guys that completely learned how to flatpick by slowing down records. Back then I would desperately try to find some kind of tab, but I couldn’t find anything. Dan Crary was a really big influence, so I would find Dan Crary records and Tony Rice records, slow them down and try to learn what they were doing. I also listened to Mark O’Connor later, when I was in college, and that was an eye-opening thing. People think now that since Pat Flynn has been such a big influence that I had done the same thing with him. I tried, but I couldn’t figure out what he was doing. I mean, I would listen to that stuff, but he was so unique, I didn’t get it. Now I can see it, but back when I was learning how to flatpick, my brain could not wrap around what Pat Flynn was doing. So before I met Pat he wasn’t much of an influence because I couldn’t figure it out.”

Although he developed some flatpicking skills and built up a repertoire by slowing down recordings and figuring out what the professional players were doing, Tim says that he felt as if he was not progressing at an adequate pace because he could not improvise. He says, “For ten years I felt as if I was going nowhere. In Mississippi there was absolutely no one to show me what was going on. If I wanted to play music with people, other than my brother, I had to teach them how to play in order to have someone to pick with. And I found out later, I was doing it all wrong!”

When asked to clarify “doing it wrong,” Tim said, “I was playing the notes like I heard them on the records, but my picking was way off. For instance, I felt that if you hit the G-string with a down stroke that you were not supposed to hit the D-string with an upstroke. It seemed odd to me and I thought, ‘Well, surely they are not doing that.’ So I would start a solo on an upstroke. It wasn’t until I got to college and met a guy named Dave LaRouche, who showed me what was going on, that I started to straighten out my pick direction. I said, ‘I didn’t know you were supposed to do that!’ I felt like there were about ten years early on where I gained what I should have gotten in two. The only shining light is that in learning how to play in isolation like that I developed my own thing more. It was so aggravating trying to find stuff that I just started jamming and coming up with my own stuff. My brother was the same way; we were kind of operating in the dark.”

While he was still in high school Tim heard a guitar player named Kent Wells who was playing in the band Time of Day at Harding University in Arkansas. Tim was interested in attending the college and the band recruited for the school by playing gigs at various high schools and then talking to the students about attending Harding. Tim’s goal was to audition for the band when he was ready to go to college, so he bought the band’s album. Tim said, “I listened to their album and there was this flatpicking monster on there! I said to myself, ‘The competition is just out of control! Is this the way it is in every small college in America?’ The guy [Kent Wells] was incredible. His playing on the album pushed me. If he had been a lesser guitar player, I know that I would have said, ‘Well, I can do that,’ and it wouldn’t have pushed me as much. But since I wanted to be in that band, I thought I needed to be at least as good as he was, so I worked hard at it. At the time, I had no idea how exceptional he really was. But it was good for me.”

Tim did not end up going to Harding, but he did follow his dream of playing in a college recruitment band by auditioning for and getting a spot in a band called Wind Song at David Lipscomb College in Nashville. Regarding the decision to try out for the band at Lipscomb instead of Harding, Tim recalled, “I knew that I wanted to end up in Nashville and play music anyway, so it made sense to try out for the Lipscomb band.” When asked about the band’s function, Tim said, “What those bands did was go out and play at high schools and recruit for the college. It was a Christian college, so we mostly played at Christian schools. We would play for kids and say, ‘We are David Lipscomb, come to school here.’” For Tim, the attraction of playing in this kind of band was that the school paid each band member’s tuition. When asked about the band’s repertoire, Tim said, “At that time (mid-1980s) country music was not very popular. It was out. So we would play a little bluegrass set and some country, but mostly it was pop and rock. It was a completely different musical format then you would have had even a couple of years after I graduated. Country hit big after I left.”

Tim looks back at the experience playing with Wind Song favorably. He says, “It was a good experience because it introduced me to playing some different styles that I absolutely would not have approached in a million years otherwise. The guys in the band were electric players and were more schooled than I was, so they could show me what to do and guide me on the pop and rock stuff. It introduced me to pop culture and let me know what people were listening to outside of bluegrass. Previous to college I had never trained myself as anything but a bluegrass player.”

Tim continued, “Kyle Wood played electric guitar in the band and he was a big Randy Rhoades fan. I listened to that stuff and I became a fan too. If you grow up and you don’t listen to that stuff you don’t think of guys like Ozzy Osbourne being legitimate musicians, you just think of them as crazy rockers. You don’t realize the musicianship of people like Randy Rhoades or Eddie Van Halen. I began to discover that in college. They are some of the greatest guitar players that the world has seen. Kyle would get me in a room and say, ‘You’ve got to listen to this!’ He’d hold me hostage and take my musical education out of Mississippi. But then I’d declare a ‘Flatt & Scruggs night’ and I’d force Kyle and Dave to sit in a room and listen to Flatt & Scruggs at Carnegie Hall.” [laughs]

Kyle Wood had grown up playing rock and roll music and had never really listened to bluegrass. When Tim invited him into the world of bluegrass Kyle was amazed that someone could play a guitar non-stop in the flatpick style. “He was astounded at that,” Tim said. Although he had spent his whole life playing electric guitar, one day Kyle told Tim, “I’m going to get a mandolin.” Tim said, “He went home over Christmas break one year and came back playing all of these fiddle tunes on mandolin. He had never played mandolin before. That is where it all started.”

It was during those college years that Tim says he made a great leap forward in his ability to improvise. Today Tim is a great improvisational player, but he said that it wasn’t until he got to college that he began to learn how to improvise. When asked how he accomplished that, Tim said, “Basically Kyle and I jammed three to six hours a day for six years. I tell people all the time, ‘You can sit around talking about improvising all day long, but if you can get somebody to sit in a straight back chair across from you and just wail on it—don’t worry about it, and just see what comes flying out—that is the way to do it.’ If you go to France and you want to learn the language, you start speaking French. You don’t break into English. You do it and screw it up until you eventually get it. I think if you explore the guitar for just massive amounts of time, you also develop your own style. Even though I loved Tony Rice and Dan Crary, I basically stopped trying to figure out what they were doing. By the time I was in college I stopped learning other people’s solos. I would listen to them because I loved their music, but I stopped pursuing their styles.”
While he was in college, in addition to playing with Wind Song, Tim also played the banjo with country star Eddie Rabbitt. Tim recalls, “He had this song out called ‘Tennessee Born and Bred’ and he wanted me to play the banjo part as it was played on the recording. I told his manager, the guy who hired us, that I could handle it. The manager said, ‘It was Bela Fleck on the record.’ But I still thought, ‘How hard can it be? It’s on an Eddie Rabbitt album.’ It turns out that while they were in the studio Eddie told Bela to play the craziest thing that he could think of. He told Bela that! So it is this crazy banjo lick that is like the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life! It was the kind of thing where the band stops and there is this banjo thing. To this day I still don’t know how Bela really did it, but I figured out my own way of doing it.” Tim’s Wind Song bandmate, Kyle Wood, was also in the Eddie Rabbitt band on mandolin.

Although Tim and Kyle were busy playing in two bands while attending college at Lipscomb, they also had plans of forming their own band and, working towards that goal, had recorded a demo. Kyle and Tim’s mixing of rock and roll with bluegrass was certainly not something that was new. A number of progressive bluegrass bands had found this formula starting back in the seventies and none had been more successful at it than the Newgrass Revival. Interestingly, former Newgrass Revival guitarist Pat Flynn had enrolled at Lipscomb after Newgrass broke up and was attending classes at the same time as Tim and Kyle. Kyle found out Pat Flynn’s class schedule, waited outside a classroom door and ambushed him, handing Pat a tape when he walked out of class. Instead of saying, “Hey, I came to college to get away from this!”, Pat not only listened to the tape, but also called and said, “I’d love to work with you guys.” Tim said, “So, we started writing and he produced us.”

With Tim and Kyle as the core, an old buddy of Kyle’s, Chris Joslin, came in to play banjo and Dobro and Dave Holladay joined them on bass, thus forming Crucial Smith. While many reviewers, DJs, and fans compared them to Newgrass Revival, Tim says that he feels like their material and arrangements were more along the lines of what J.D. Crowe and the Seldom Scene had done in the seventies. He said, “When I wrote a song, that is who I thought of. But the way we played it with that particular group of guys came across as being like Newgrass. But we never said, ‘let’s get that sound,’ it just happened that way. Of course Pat had some influence too.”

Regarding Tim May’s guitar playing, Pat Flynn has said, “It has been a distinct honor and pleasure to know and play music with Tim May. Tim’s ideas are at a depth and range that is rare and he expresses these ideas with a rich tone and confident touch. Tim always says that I influenced him, but the truth is that I learned something every time I played with him.”

During the fifteen years Crucial Smith was together, the band recorded three CDs. Two were studio projects produced by Pat Flynn, and the third was a live recording that also featured Tim’s wife, Gretchen, on fiddle. Although the band enjoyed some success, Tim says, “It got the point where we felt like we needed to take things in a different direction to see what would happen. We are still all good buddies. But after that long it just seemed like it was time to do something different.”

Soon after Crucial Smith broke up, Tim got the call to play with Patty Loveless. He stayed on the road with Patty for about a year to help her promote her Mountain Soul album. He also toured with her when she went out to promote her Christmas album. Additionally, Tim announced the formation of his new band, Tim May and Plaidgrass. Although some members of Crucial Smith are with him in Plaidgrass, Tim says, “It is a different direction musically. A lot of the songs that I have written are still there, but we play a lot more of the Celtic instrumental music.” Tim continues “Before Gretchen came to Crucial Smith I felt like our instrumentals were weak. We wrote so much vocal stuff that it was like we didn’t have the energy to write creative instrumental stuff. It was a shame because we all considered ourselves pickers as much as anything. When Gretchen came in the band, she brought in all of these great Celtic songs and Contra dance songs…just great stuff. So we began to play that and now Tim May and Plaidgrass has a heavier mix of instrumental stuff than we used to do with Crucial Smith.”

In addition to playing music, Tim is also skilled at woodworking and specializes in finish work. Tim’s father, who was an instrument builder and woodworker, taught him this craft from an early age. Tim says, “I was always real interested in finishing for some reason, so I ended up working with my dad at historic sites, like Civil War houses. I learned a lot about historical preservation and restoration. That is what my dad did, and still does. He restores historical homes. I always leaned more towards the finishing, so I learned to do French polish. That is the way I kept myself alive during the years I was with Crucial Smith: I would do a lot of finish work pertaining to historical preservation. I did, and still do, a lot of French polish work on old furniture. I enjoy it. I also still build furniture and instruments. I’ve built a couple of guitars, three mandolins, and a couple of resonator guitars.”

About three years ago Tim started working at The Violin Shop in Nashville doing violin repair. He met Dave Harvey at the shop and started picking with Dave on a regular basis. In addition to jamming together, Dave and Tim also pick with the Gibson Mandolin Club, which consists of Dave Harvey on mandolin, Tim, Brian Christianson (a fiddle player who also works at the violin shop), and Jon Weisberger on bass. “We do a lot of swing material in that band,” Tim says, “and I’m having a great time learning that stuff. We all play Gibson instruments, so I play a Gibson L-7 when I pick with them.” As a result of jamming with this group, Tim is now learning how to play Gypsy jazz music. “I feel like I’m going back to the way I was when I was fourteen, trying to figure out what is going on with the Gypsy stuff.” For several years Tim has also played on the river barge The River Explorer with Dan Knowles. He has also played on the Grand Ole Opry with Dan.

Although he does not teach many private lessons on guitar, Tim enjoys teaching at workshops and seminars. “I enjoy teaching people who come to that kind of thing. I just did the Nashville Guitar College and I really enjoyed it because these guys are all on fire! But to take someone day-in and day-out…I’ve rarely had students who have had enough interest to keep it interesting for me. And I don’t claim to be much of a teacher because nobody ever taught me. I guess in some ways that can be an advantage because I’ve had to take a close look at what was going on because I didn’t have a systematic way of teaching,” Tim says.

Tim said that one of the things that aided his development in putting together a systematic way of teaching guitar was learning the Nashville number system. He says, “It was then that I began to understand the mathematics of music. I learned what a ‘9’ is and I discovered that it really wasn’t this big mystery. I would listen to country radio for a few hours a day and chart songs. When I charted them, I’d look up what it was that I didn’t know. I finally learned the system that way. Then I began to study and talk to a lot of people about theory in general…scales…the way chords were put together…then I was able to figure out what I was doing. Figuring out the numbers and how they relate to chords was a big thing. I think that helps with improvising too. If you can know the relationships of chords and how to play over them it helps. It has made a big difference in my playing to know what is going on.”

One of the projects that Tim has recently been involved in, Moody Bluegrass: A Nashville Tribute to the Moody Blues, was the brainchild of Randey Faulkner. Randey’s dream was to put together an album that was the bluegrass version of the Moody Blues music and he approached Dave Harvey to produce it. Dave called on Tim to write up all of the charts for the songs and then Tim (guitar), Andy Hall (Dobro), Dave Harvey (mandolin), and Andy Todd (bass) went into the studio and cut all of the basic tracks. After that was accomplished, Dave Harvey brought in a “who’s who” of bluegrass’ greatest to overdub different parts and sing the vocals. Participants included Harley Allen, John Cowan, Stuart Duncan, Charlie Cushman, Tim O’Brien, Alison Krauss, Daniel Carwile, Patty Mitchell, Jan Harvey, Alison Brown, Larry Cordle, Fred Carpenter, Bob Mummert, Jill Snider, Barry Crabtree, Sam Bush, John Randall, Lionel Cartwright, Russell Smith, Tom Shinness, and Keith Little. The project also includes the vocal quartet of Odessa Settles, Ira Wayne Settles, Calvin Settles, and Todd Suttle. Quite a line up! Tim said, “It is something that I am very proud of. It is very listenable and the vocal performances are just amazing.” Rounder Records released Moody Bluegrass in the fall of 2004.

Another new project that Tim has been involved with recently is a bluegrass gospel recording by Charlie Daniels. Scott Rouse produced the project and brought Tim in along with Ronnie and Robbie McCoury, Jason Carter, Mike Bubb, and Andy Hall as the core band. Mac Wiseman and Charlie Daniels sang the songs live with the band and then a few other special guests, such as Earl Scruggs, Ricky Skaggs, and the Whites were brought in ater. Tim said, “It was one of the most fun albums that I have ever done. Charlie was just like a quarterback in there saying, ‘OK, you do this, and you do that’ and within ten minutes he has an arrangement that is just killer. Every song was like that.” The song list includes bluegrass gospel standards.

A few years earlier, Nashville producer Scott Rouse had been introduced to Tim when Scott was working on the music for a comedy video he was producing. The video stars Nashville comedian Shane Caldwell as Van Heffer, an effeminate Elvis impersonator who sings Ozzy Osbourne songs bluegrass style. Kyle Wood was brought in to play mandolin and he asked Tim to play the guitar. The soundtrack includes an Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath hit list, including songs like “Iron Man” and “Crazy Train” played by a bluegrass band and sung bluegrass style. Regarding his introduction to Tim’s guitar playing, Scott Rouse said, “Van Heffer wouldn’t have been as killer without Tim’s playing. He is awesome. I used him on the Charlie Daniels Band bluegrass gospel album and he is one of those guys you can totally use to your advantage as a producer because he’ll do exactly what you ask him to do. Then if you say, ‘Why don’t you lean into the solo a little on this one?’ he’ll haul off and lay it in there like a cop on a car thief. His studio manner is excellent and everybody loves him. Tim’s my first call on all my bluegrass sessions.”

As if performing with Patty Loveless on the road and playing on some pretty high profile sessions wasn’t enough, Tim has also found time to record his own solo project. Tim said, “We had been working on a Crucial Smith album when we decided to go our separate ways. There were a couple of songs I’d written that we already had ‘in the can.’ I thought, ‘Well, that’s a good start.’ So I took those and added a few things here and there.” The album includes the members of Crucial Smith, plus Tony Ray (banjo), Fred Carpenter (fiddle), Brian Christianson (fiddle), Al Goll (Dobro), and Todd Cook (bass). We feature one of the tunes from Tim’s solo recording, “Limehouse Blues,” on this issue’s audio CD companion and have transcribed it on the following pages.

Look for the Tim May’s solo record from FGM Records in March 2005 and watch for Tim May and Plaidgrass at your local festival. Also, watch for the Tim May, Brad Davis, and Cody Kilby live concert DVD, which will be available from FGM Records in April or May of 2005. Everywhere you turn you will be seeing Tim May this year, which is a good thing because once you hear him pick, you are going to want to hear more!

Tim’s Guitars: For many years Tim May played a 1980 Martin D-35. It is the guitar he recorded all of the Crucial Smith projects with and he used it when touring with the band. On one such tour he handed the guitar to an airline employee to gate-check the instrument. He never saw the guitar again. After than guitar was lost/stolen, Tim bought a new 2001 Martin D-28. He played that guitar for a short while, and then bought a 1966 Martin D-21, which is his current guitar of choice.

For more information about Tim, visit: http://www.TimMayMusic.net.

Today, Uwe astonishes audiences with his blend of guitar styles. His rich, resonant, and mellow baritone voice has an uplifting affect on all who hear him sing. Diverse influences range from Doc Watson, Jerry Garcia, and Eric Clapton, to Beethoven, Bach, and Brahms. Uwe’s unique style, a blend of flat picking and finger picking, is an experience to behold.

For more information about Uwe, visit: http://www.KrugerBrothers.com.

Recording Sessions: 1/9/1994

Before and After: A multi-instrumentalist, Bowlin won the 1979 National Guitar Championship. He has created audio lessons in twin guitar and twin mandolin playing for Musicians’ Workshop, and has recorded as a sideman with many bluegrass and country artists. He has been a member of the Osborne Brothers’ and Kathy Mattea’s bands, and currently plays lead guitar and fiddle with the group Shady Mix.

For more information about Robert, visit: http://RobertBowlin.com

Wil Maring and virtuose guitarist and fiddler Robert Bowlin have been recently combining talents to create beautiful original acoustic music which straddles the fence between bluegrass, folk and country music. Wil’s beautiful airy vocal style and heartfelt lyrics have raised the eyebrows of the acoustic music world in recent years with the release of her three solo cds and four band cds with her band Shady Mix. Robert, a two-time National Fingerpicking and Flatpicking Guitar contest winner, has been a band member with legendary artists like Bill Monroe, Maura O Connell, Kathy Mattea, the Osborne Brothers, and many more. Their music will leave audiences spellbound long after the show is over. For bigger venues, Wil sometimes appears with whole band, Shady Mix, which includes instrumental lineup of upright bass, fiddle, mandolin, and sometimes banjo.

As Dave Higgs, respected host of Nashville Public Radio’s nationally syndicated bluegrass program describes the performance: “Absolutely, hands-down some of the most mesmerizing, exciting, interesting and enjoyable acoustic music I have ever heard. Wil’s songs are just in a league of their own, and the picking…. the interplay between (the musicians) is simply astonishing. Not clones — but an inspired group with a different message. I love it!”

WHAT FOLKS ARE SAYING:

“Wil Maring, one of the most underrated writers in bluegrass, returns with a new collection of songs about familiar topics like home, family, the road, and relationships. Her approach is refreshingly intimate and subtle, rendering the songs simultaneously contemporary and timeless, in a way that rewards repeated listening. The singing matches the grace of the songwriting, and her top notch regular band, with great guests like Rob Ickes and Stuart Duncan, couches everything in shimmering, spacious sound. Plus there’s a great cover of a Steve Winwood song – how’s that for contemporary bluegrass?”
- Bruce Bergathon “Acousticity” WGLT, Bloomington, IL

“This is the best stuff I’ve heard at TAXI since I can’t remember when. The songs are beautifully written and memorable, the lyrical imagery is vivid and intense, the level of musicianship is stunning. Oh, and did I forget to mention the singing?! Well, the singing is pretty damn great too. I believe every word. I am forever under the singer’s spell. Music of this caliber deserves to be celebrated. Superb. Can’t wait to hear more.”
- TAXI rep., the biggest independent A and R company

“With “The Calling” she has established herself as one of the genre’s premier songwriters. Her songs are always thoughtful, tastefully arranged, arrestingly executed, melodically interesting and pack a 20-megaton emotional wallop. And, as though that wasn’t enough to send everyone into perpetual euphoria, she has developed an original sound as well–propelled by her beautiful, one-of-a-kind voice that is lilting and gorgeous yet tempered with a tough-edginess that makes for a simply exquisite combination. I especially enjoyed the ominous “Black Snake of the Sky,” the inspiring “Keeper of the Farm,” the hauntingly poetic “Going Down,” the introspectful “Window Seat” and the killer cover of “Back in the Highlife Again.”
- Dave Higgs, syndicated Bluegrass Breakdown, WPLN Nashville, TN

“Wil Maring is a dynamic songwriter, guitarist and singer. She has created a homespun quality and sound while performing deep rooted bluegrass music mixed in with the sound of folk. There is clarity and brilliance in her masterpieces. She has a passion in her voice while performing songs dear to her heart such as “Keeper of the Farm”. The song is poetic in nature with a down-home feeling. The lyrics contain visions of the past that will take you down an old path leading to a family farm that is filled with history. It is a heartfelt song in its overall interpretation of its presence, and in a land of memory dear to her heart called family. Overall she brings forth great music that will last a lifetime.”
- Peggy Leyva-Conley, former Editor/Columnist, Delta Snake Blues Magazine San Jose, California

“When you are finished reading this review, please, please go to her website and have a listen to her voice. I can’t even begin to describe what it is about it that attracts me so. Is it the easy back-porch alto, the slight twang, the way it just sounds real? Maring’s lovely vocals are surrounded by her Shady Mix bandmates as well as acoustic luminaries such as Stuart Duncan and Rob Ickes. The soft bluegrass arrangements are perfect for the contemporary rural themes of the songs. ……Whether you focus on the heartfelt poetry of the lyrics or the gently intricate playing, Maring and company welcome you to a very genuine place in the country. Essential!”
- Michael Devlin, Music Matters Reviews

“Don’ get much better than this…. Nothing else to add except to urge you buy this excellent album.”
- Maverick Country Music Magazine, United Kingdom

“Congratulations, Wil, on another great record! Strong songwriting, excellent production, and stellar players – this one will be getting lots of spins!”
- Bud Johnson, host of syndicated Acoustic Accents, Tok, Alaska

“Wil…Got home from the post office awhile ago, laid down with headphones and listened to your tunes….whew!! I just finished taking it all in. So many different grooves and perfect backup to your lyrics and voice. This project is just plain right, that’s all I can say at the moment. You must be proud to be able to produce such an awesome album. Any of the writers we know should be so lucky as to come up with lyrics and melodies like yours! What a great trip your CD is…no kidding! ”
- Kevin Lynch, WWUH, West Hartford, CT

For more information about Wil, visit: http://www.myspace.com/wilmaring.

A native of Syracuse, New York, Trischka’s interest in banjo was sparked by the Kingston Trio’s “Charlie and the MTA” in 1963. Two years later, he joined the Down City Ramblers, where he remained through 1971. That year, Trischka made his recording debut on 15 Bluegrass Instrumentals with the band Country Cooking; at the same time, he was also a member of Country Granola. In 1973, he began a two-year stint with Breakfast Special. Between 1974 and 1975, he recorded two solo albums, Bluegrass Light and Heartlands. After one more solo album in 1976, Banjoland, he went on to become musical leader for the Broadway show The Robber Bridegroom. Trischka toured with the show in 1978, the year he also played with the Monroe Doctrine.

Beginning in 1978, he also played with artists such as Peter Rowan, Richard Greene, and Stacy Phillips. In the early 1980s, he began recording with his new group Skyline, which recorded its first album in 1983. Subsequent albums included Robot Plane Flies over Arkansas (solo, 1983), Stranded in the Moonlight (with Skyline, 1984) and Hill Country (solo, 1985). In 1984, he performed in his first feature film, Foxfire. Three years later, he worked on the soundtrack for Driving Miss Daisy. Trischka produced the Belgian group Gold Rush’s No More Angels in 1988. The following year, Skyline recorded its final album, Fire of Grace. He also recorded the theme song for Books on the Air, a popular National Public Radio Show, and continued his affiliation with the network by appearing on Garrison Keillor’s Prairie Home Companion, Mountain Stage, From Our Front Porch, and other radio shows. Trischka’s solo recordings include 1993′s World Turning, 1995′s Glory Shone Around: A Christmas Collection and 1999′s Bend. New Deal followed in 2003. The new studio album was a bluesy adaptation of bluegrass standards that featured, among other things, a vocal cameo by Loudon Wainwright.

Double Banjo Bluegrass Spectacular, featuring an appearance by comedian Steve Martin, Earl Scruggs and many other luminaries, came out four years later. For this recording he went back to Bluegrass and reinvigorated the double banjo tradition of that style along the way and brought along some fine companions. In October 2007, Tony was given an IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) award for Banjo Player of the Year 2007. Double Banjo Bluegrass Spectacular received IBMA awards for Recorded Event of the Year, Instrumental Album of the Year and a Grammy Nomination.

With his fearless musical curiosity as the guiding force, Tony Trischka’s latest critically acclaimed release, Territory roams widely through the banjo’s creative terrain. Nine selections partner Tony with fellow banjoists Pete Seeger, Mike Seeger, Bill Evans, Bill Keith, Bruce Molsky, and twelve all-Trischka solo tracks explore a panorama of tunings, banjo sounds, and traditions; tapping the creative potential of America’s signature musical instrument.

Throughout his upcoming tours, Tony will be presenting both his Solo works from Territory and will continue to present an “astonishing” (Boston Herald) group of musicians to perform his Double Banjo Bluegrass Spectacular.

Biographical info:
Courtesy Rounder Records
Courtesy Smithsonian Folkways
Courtesy Hi-Gain Management
Sandra Brennan – courtesy All Music Guide

“…the godfather of what’s sometimes called new acoustic music.”
- New York Times

“…most influential banjo player of the latter part of the 20th century, certainly in terms of his profound influence on succeeding generations of modern players.”
- Banjo Newsletter

“Urban bluegrass whiz.”
- Time Magazine

“Explosive banjo playing.”
- Boston Globe

“One of the most impressive banjoists alive.”
- Billboard

“Keep playing them new notes.”
- Bill Monroe

TONY TRISCHKA HAS PLAYED WITH:

The Boston Pops Orchestra
Barry Bostwick*
Sam Bush*
David Bromberg
William S. Burroughs*
Buddy Cage*
Larry Campbell*
Keith Carradine
Vassar Clements*
Ornette Coleman
John Denver*
Hazel Dickens*
Jerry Douglas*
Bill Evans (saxophonist with Miles Davis)*
Bela Fleck*
The Flecktones
John Goodman
Richard Greene*
Merv Griffin Orchestra
Nancy Griffith
David Grisman*
Thomas Hampson*
John Hartford
Levon Helm
Chris Hillman
Garth Hudson
Ferlin Huskey
David Johansen (aka Buster Poindexter)*
Jorma Kaukonen
Jeannie Kendall
Alison Krauss*
Malachy McCourt
Roger McGuinn
Steve Martin*
John Medeski
Natalie Merchant*
Edgar Meyer
Jane Monheit
Bill Monroe
National Radio Orchestra of Korea
Mark O’Connor*
Odetta
Charles Osgood*
Van Dyke Parks*
Tom Paxton
Robert Randolph
The Roche Sisters*
Peter Rowan*
Earl Scruggs*
Mike Seeger*
Pete Seeger*
Ricky Skaggs
Phoebe Snow
Bruce Springsteen
Ralph Stanley*
Tanya Tucker
Jay Ungar and Molly Mason*
Violent Femmes*
Loudon Wainwright*
Doc Watson
Waverly Consort*
The Whites*
Wichita Percussion Ensemble
Tom Wopat
*denotes recordings

Television Appearances

Live at the Quick, with Bela Fleck, 2004-2006
ABC “Views”, with Bela Fleck – Summer 1997
“ABC World News Tonight” with Peter Jennings – Summer1996
“CBS Sunday Morning” with Charles Osgood – feature story (including Bela Fleck), 1995
“Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?” (PBS), 1992
British Television Production of “Voice of America: History of the Banjo” , 1989
CBS “Hallmark Hall of Fame” production of “Foxfire” with Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn and John Denver, 1987
Ralph Emory’s “Frets” Awards Show, The Nashville Network, 1987
Nashville Network’s “Fire on the Mountain,” 1986, 1984
Merv Griffin Show, 1976
Performances

Double Banjo Bluegrass Spectacular Tour – Currently touring with guitarist/vocalist michael daves, fiddler brittany haas, bassist skip ward & double banjo seat filled by noam pikelny, gordon stone, and others.
Tony Trischka Band – Kennedy Center (2000), Seaside Jazz Festival (2002), plus tours throughout the United States, Canada, and Germany, 1997-present
Solo tours throughout the United States and Korea, Japan, Finland, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Italy, Croatia, 1986-present
World Turning – Metropolitan Museum of Art (NYC) 1997, Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Winterhawk Bluegrass Festival, Black Mountain Folk Festival, and countless concerts and club dates, 1993-2002
National Public Radio – “Next Big Thing”, 2005, “World Café”, 2004, 2001, “Morning Edition”, “Fresh Air”, Mountain Stage”, 2001, 1995 and 1994; The Connection (2001), “Prairie Home Companion”, 1996, 1982
With Skyline – appearances in 40 states, five tours throughout Europe; two tours of Japan, 1981-Present
Performances With Others

Duo performances with Bela Fleck – tours of U.S., and New Zealand, 1992-2006
With John Modeskey and Robert Randolph, 2001
Leftover Salmon, Flecktones, Vassar Clements, and Violent Femmes, 1999-2001
Old and in the Way reunion at Rocky Grass Festival (CO), 1997
Waverly Consort – 1998 Spring tour, NPR’s Performance Today, Summer 1996; Metropolitan Museum of Art (NYC), 1995.
With Peter Rowan and Richard Greene – Telluride,CO, 1996, Japan and Hawaii, 1978
Guest soloist with National Radio Orchestra of Korea, in Seoul: “The Slavery Documents”, 1991
Guest soloist with Wichita Percussion Ensemble: “The Void Beneath the Coffee Table” a three movement banjo concerto composed by Paul Elwood for Tony Trischka, 1986
“Foxfire” with Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn, and Keith Carradine, Los Angeles and Denver, 1985-1986
“The Robber Bridegroom” – Ford’s Theater, Washington, D.C., 1978; bus and truck tour, 1978; musical leader of Broadway production, 1976-1977
With David Bromberg and Ferlin Husky – Avery Fisher Hall, NYC, 1973
Instructional Materials

Mel Bay

Fiddle Tunes for Banjo, to be published in 2006
Alfred Publishing

Banjo for Beginners, 2001
Hal Leonard Publications

The Tony Trischka Collection, 1999
AcuTab Publications

Masters of the 5 String Banjo (with Peter Wernick) 2000 (re-pubublication)
Glory Shone Around, 1995
Books for Oak Publications

The Complete Banjo Player, to be published 2006/2007
Masters of the Five String Banjo (with Peter Wernick), 1987 (first publication)
Hot Licks for Bluegrass Banjo, 1983
Bill Keith, 1979
Teach Yourself Bluegrass Banjo, 1977
The Banjo Songbook, 1975
Melodic Banjo, 1973
Independently Published Books

Tablature for Hill Country
Tablature for Robot Plane Flies Over Arkansas
Homespun Tapes

BOOK

Bluegrass Repertoire, to be published 2006
Tablature to Solo Banjo Works, with Bela Fleck, 1998
VIDEO and DVD

Classic Bluegrass Banjo Solos, and Practicing Tips, 2002, 2003
Bluegrass Banjo: Tunes and Tips, 1990
AUDIO

Easy Banjo Solos, 1988
Hot Licks for Bluegrass Banjo, 1986
Advanced Banjo (with Bill Keith), 1979

Phase One – Want a Revolution?
Nechville is leading the “Banjo Revolution” into new territory with his unique designs for acoustic and electric banjos. Tom will have several instruments on display for you to jam with and Tom will perform some music accompanied by local players. You’ll see inside the Nechville mechanism and learn what makes Helical-Mounting so special.

Phase Two – Conventional Banjo Setup
Go beyond standard banjo setup conventions and learn what really makes the banjo sound its best.

Tom will uncover secrets about traditional banjos and divulge solutions to common banjo problems.

Tom may invite one or more attendees to receive a free set-up during the class. He will cover the essentials of set up and explain how his designs simplify the process of setup and maintenance.

Phase Three – Banjo Dynamics
For serious players and builders who require ultimate performance from their banjo, Tom enters into the new territory of alternative materials for tone chamber construction. He also explains what he has learned about the effect of wood and alternate materials on banjo tone.

Tom Nechville has been in business since 1989, manufacturing professional banjos and related accessories. His patented Helimount frame, adjustable neck attachment, beveled armrest, and compensated Enterprise bridges are setting the professional standard for players worldwide. His book, The Dynamics of Banjo Sound is a definitive guide for banjo set up.

Nechville Musical Products is always innovating to meet the changing needs of modern musicians. Nechville’s refined acoustic and electric banjo designs have helped direct a new worldwide spotlight on the banjo.

Web Links Nechville Musical Products: www.nechville.com Banjo Revolution: www.banjorev.com Dynamics of Banjo Sound Workshop: www.nechville.com/workshop.html Products for Sale Exclusive inventory of Fine Banjos, Armrests, Straps, Pickups, Enterprise Bridges, Parts, and Dynamics of Banjo sound Book.

Contact- e-mail, tom@nechville.com Phone 952-888-9710 or Cell 612-275-6602

For more information about Tom, visit: http://Nechville.com

Terry is currently working on a solo CD with many surprises.

For more information about Terry visit:

http://www.myspace.com/kneedeepinbluegrass.

www.texasgypsies.com

A brilliant musician on mandolin, fiddle, and guitar, he is also a world-class songwriter. Shawn’s songwriting is strongly represented in the Blue Highway repertoire; four of the 12 songs on Blue Highway’s latest release, Through the Window of a Train, were penned by him, including the powerful “Sycamore Hollow”, deemed “a standout” by Billboard magazine, and “Where Did the Morning Go”, hailed by critics as an album highlight and described as “hypnotic” by the Smoky Mountain News. “Born With A Hammer in my Hand,” co-written with Tim Stafford, was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2000 IBMA Awards. (Click on the Lyrics links on the Music page for details of Lane’s contributions to the Blue Highway discography.) His compositions have also been recorded by Ricky Skaggs, Ronnie Bowman, Mountain Heart, Blue Ridge and others. Check out his great solo record, All for Today, released by Rebel in 2003. Shawn Lane ‘s signature instrument is the Dearstone Shawn Lane Model Mandolin.

For more information about Shawn, visit: BlueHighwayBand.com.