Eddie Adcock going back in the shop

Eddie Adcock is a true legend in the bluegrass world, known both for his ground-breaking banjo style and for being the only bionic picker in our business. He established himself quickly in the 1950s as a banjo man with Bill Monroe and others, and as a cyborg in 2008 when he underwent surgery at Vanderbilt University to install an implant in his brain to reverse the effect of debilitating hand tremors that prevented him from playing.

Yesterday he announced that his show with his wife, Martha, in Shepherdsville, KY tomorrow night would have to be cancelled, owing to a malfunction with his deep brain stimulation device. So Eddie is set to visit his neurosurgeons in Nashville next week to have it checked out.

Martha noted in an email message yesterday that he said he was “going into the shop” to have it corrected. Though final word from the doctors has not been delivered, it is strongly suspected that the internal battery in the unit is running down, as the Adcocks were told to expect when it was installed back in ’08.

No further problems are anticipated, and Eddie is expected to be able to return to performing as soon as the battery can be replaced.

If you are not familiar with the hand tremors that led to this groundbreaking surgery, take a look at this report that ABC News ran in October of 2008. It describes the symptoms that led to a diagnosis of brain-based tremor, and the before-and-after impact of the treatment.

Eddie and Martha say that they will reschedule the show in Shepherdsville as soon as they can, and apologize to fans that will be disappointed by the late notice of cancellation. But this really is a situation that couldn’t be anticipated.

Michael Cleveland and Brian Allen will perform in their stead.

Get well soon, Eddie!

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About the Author

John Lawless

John had served as primary author and editor for The Bluegrass Blog from its launch in 2006 until being folded into Bluegrass Today in September of 2011. He continues in that capacity here, managing a strong team of columnists and correspondents.