We’ve all heard of hunger strikes, where some lone voice refuses to eat in protest, risking their very life to draw attention to some perceived wrong. It has had its noble practitioners over the course of recorded history
Well… the Dixie Bee-Liners aren’t doing anything as drastic as all that, but they have declared a commitment to perform The Stanley Brothers’ Will You Miss Me at every show until George Shuffler is inducted into the Bluegrass Hall of Fame. Shuffler, of course, played the definitive cross-picked guitar solo that served as the song’s instrumental signature, so much so that any cover or adaptation seems profane without it.
DBL co-leader Buddy Woodward tells us that they made the pledge during a live radio show with Dave Carter on on WETS-FM last month, and are bound to abide by their word.
“He deserves it, its way past time, and to paraphrase Flatt & Scruggs, let’s give him his flowers while he’s living.”
The band is about to depart on a brief tour of the northeastern US, dubbed their Nor’easter Tour 2011, where they will unveil the several new members of the group. Woodward plays mandolin and sings, along with singing and songwriting partner Brandi Hart on guitar, Sav Sankaran on bass, Sara Needham on fiddle, Zach Mongan on banjo and Leah Needham on resonator guitar.
Details on their Nor’easter tour dates can be found online.
And here’s a video where Shuffler describes and demonstrates his crosspicking style, taken from his instructional DVD with James Alan Shelton, Clinch Mountain Guitar.
