The world of rock and roll is renowned for its misunderstood lyrics. Creedence Clearwater Revival’s line “There’s a bad moon on the rise” being heard as: “There’s a bathroom on the right” is one of the more infamous lines that
Opinion / Humor
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Chris Jones’ Bluegrass Today Quiz
I took a look at the calendar this morning (I do this at least once a month), and it occurred to me that I’ve been writing these weekly columns for Bluegrass Today for almost a year now, One of the first
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Sage advice for award recipients
Well, it’s all over but the tux-rental (or overalls-rental, depending on your awards show dressing style). The 2012 IBMA Awards nominees have been announced, and the countdown to the awards show has begun (note: if you’re actually counting down to
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Bluegrass jamming rules to live by (or not)
The Night Drivers and I just concluded the Minnesota Bluegrass and Old Time Music Association’s annual pre-festival Bluegrass Jam Camp, which we loved doing. It’s a really good, and well-run program in a beautiful setting. We’ve taught at numerous music camps
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Rumors of my death…
The past year has been a year of bluegrass mourning, as we’ve said goodbye to some of the music’s great pioneers and innovators. The deaths of celebrated figures have become more of a public concern in the internet era, and
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Blue Yodel #39 – Ten Tips for Writing a Bad Song
As a songwriter, I get a lot of people who come up and ask how I write such horrendous tripe and pass it off as music. Where does the gift of garble come from? And is there money in it? The
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Bluegrass horoscopes for fun and profit with Chris Jones
I’ve become very disillusioned with the zodiac, I have to admit. First there were the overly general daily horoscopes: “Make sound financial decisions today. Expect news from a friend, family member, or other human being you may or may not
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Blue Yodel #38 – Ask Mr. Blue Grass Smarty Pants
Guest Trivia Master – Bill Evans This month’s guest is banjo maven Bill Evans, who again received second-place in the Most Famous Bill Evans in the World contest at the People Named Bill Evans conference held annually in Evansville, Indiana. (There is
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Great opening lines for your favorite pickers
After last week’s column, I was inundated with requests for more uninteresting stories from the world of bluegrass, or any other worlds that may contain tales of the boring and predictable. I had no idea there was this unfulfilled need out
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Blue Yodel #37 – Desert Island Discs
I hate lists. I have a to-do list that always seems to have the same ten items on it. It’s not so much a to-do list as a never-do list. What I do: I’ll do something, then write it down on