Your independent source of bluegrass news.
Roland speaks of his time performing with his brother Clarence, their experiences on The Andy Griffith Show, working with both Bill Monroe and Lester Flatt, touring with the Nashville Bluegrass Band, and his current role as a mandolin educator.
Enjoy.
One of the great things about attending the IBMA workshops is that you never know what direction the discussion may go.
Audience member Mark Newton noted that he and Rural Rhythm Records are planning to record at the next Bean Blossom Festival (June 11-18, 2011) a tribute to the music of Bill Monroe, consisting of label acts and members of the Blue Grass Boys. This is still in the development stage.
At the first show he did (at a supermarket opening) he hid behind Bill with his hat pulled low hoping no one would see him. Whenever Bill moved from his vocal microphone to his mandolin mic, James would follow right behind him. He also recalled the time that while he was a Blue Grass Boy, he bought the Uncle Pen cabin and property and gave it to his dad for his birthday. Bill then lost the title the next day and James had to work to get a new one….
Roland went to the local music store and asked about Bill Monroe, and after looking through the store record catalog, he saw the term “breakdown” and asked what that meant. When he was told that it was an instrumental played real fast, he ordered the 45 of Pike County Breakdown. He then told of finally getting the 45 and how he was amazed how they could get all that music on such a little record!
Once he had the record the next thing he needed was a record player since the family didn’t own one. After a deal with the music store owner his dad picked one up. Roland then told how the family got around the record player and heard Pike County Breakdown for the first time. He said, haltingly, in a choked voice, that it changed his life.
That is a truly great thing about this week at IBMA – the stories that you hear, some you’ve heard before but others that give you a new glimpse of what it was like when this music was still young and the history of Bluegrass Music was just beginning.
I Wasn’t Born To Rock’n Roll was initially released by Ridge Runner Records in 1976, while Roland was working as a member of Country Gazette, who provide accompaniment throughout. Kenny Werz is on guitar, Roger Bush on bass, Alan Munde on banjo (and some guitar), and Dave Ferguson on fiddle. Roland plays mandolin and sings all the leads.
This record showcased Roland’s trademark mandolin and vocal styles – both immediately recognizable for their laid back, laconic approach. It was also among the last recordings of the early Gazette sound, with Roger Bush singing a high baritone vocal on most of the tracks.
Apart from three John Hadley compositions, the songs on I Wasn’t Born To Rock’n Roll will be familiar to serious bluegrass fans, with many coming from the Bill Monroe and Flatt & Scruggs repertoire. A real standout is a track called Marathon, and seven-and-a-half minute medley that includes bits of Love Please Come Home, Nine Pound Hammer, Shackles and Chains, Live And Let Live, Doin’ My Time and Sittin’ On Top Of The World. It’s a little like the Energizer Bunny – it just keeps going, and going…
Roland shared a few remembrances about the recording of this album 34 years ago.
“The album was recorded in 1976 with the members of Country Gazette – Alan Munde, Roger Bush, Kenny Wertz and me. We were traveling and playing a lot in those years. Slim Richey owner of Ridge Runner Records in Fort Worth, TX was recording many artists/groups along with the Gazette. We were going to be in the Fort Worth/Dallas area for a couple weeks, and he asked if I would be interested in doing an album while we were there.
We thought about it a bit thinking we could do the material that we were performing on our live shows. We were well rehearsed on these, except one, The Storms Are On The Ocean. That was a perfect song for Alan’s finger style guitar playing. The album was fun to do.
The Marathon was a lot longer than I meant for it to be. I just kept on singing and we kept on playing. I think we just did one pass at it. We listened to it and other than a couple of quick fixes Slim Richey said it was just right.
I was told by some DJs that they liked the album especially the Marathon because it gave them a chance to use the rest room, or get a soda pop or coffee. Sometimes I wonder if that was the only tune that got any air play!”
I Wasn’t Born To Rock’n Roll is available for pre-order now at amazon.com. The reissue includes original liner notes by Gene Parsons, new reflections from Roland, and one previously unreleased song.
Tomorrow (July 15) will mark the 36th anniversary of the day when Clarence was killed by a drunk driver, cutting short the budding career of a true guitar innovator, not to mention robbing his family and friends of his companionship.
Roland will share stories from their early days with The Kentucky Colonels, and Katy will offer up some of their music. They will also discuss the book he has recently published, The Essential Clarence White, which includes transcriptions for 14 songs he recorded in 1962.
Tune in online at 9:00 a.m. at www.bluegrasscountry.org to hear the show.
They talk about both he and brother Clarence’s music careers and about the new Clarence White instructional book/CD package that Roland has recently published.
Clarence and Roland White are also the subject of an in-depth feature in the current (Spring ’09) issue of the magazine. Written by music journalist Geoffrey Himes, the article includes some of the same stories Roland discusses in this online interview, as well as a wealth of archival photographs.
Longtime fans of the White brothers will have heard some of these stories about how Roland and Clarence discovered bluegrass music living in Maine in the 1950s, but many new fans may not be familiar with them. Roland tells them so lovingly and in such detail…
It’s well worth the time to give this hour-long discussion a listen.
The 102-page spiral-bound book features 14 songs and tunes with variations, in notation and tablature, and comes complete with 2 CDs.
Page two indicates the scope of the book …
“This book presents Clarence White’s early but fully realized acoustic guitar style, as demonstrated in the recordings he made at home in 1962. Our intent is to provide an entry point for intermediate players to understand and begin to play in this style, and to impart the flavor of Clarence’s early musical environment.”
All of the songs/tunes can be found on the CD OF home recordings, 33 Acoustic Guitar Instrumentals, on the Sierra label.
Co-author Diane Bouska had this to say about the choice of tunes ……….
“We used those tunes mainly because Clarence plays several choruses in succession on most of them, so he naturally develops variations and you can hear him very well since there is only the one rhythm guitar on most tunes (and Clarence is alone on some).
Another auxiliary factor is that we had access and rights to use the music, and we could find enough PD among them to be able to put together a book. Another good thing about them is that they’re perhaps not as complicated as some of his later work. We hope, and think, that intermediate players will really be able to get a foothold with these.”
In addition to the instructional material, there is a brief biography with photos, but, purposely, it is limited to Clarence White’s early years. There is only a brief mention of the Byrds, for example.
Disc 1 contains a video clip from the Bob Baxter Guitar Workshop show in 1973 — there are two complete tunes, Soldier’s Joy, and the Crawdad Song.
“These are included not because the songs are in the book but because we wanted people to be able to see Clarence playing, see his technique up close.”
Disc 2 has rhythm tracks along with which students can play at slow or fast tempo. There is a foreword by Marty Stuart and a selected discography by Art Malmin.
The book is available at a cost of $34.95, plus $4.85 for Priority Mail from Roland White’s website, which includes sample pages and sound clips from the book.
The week just prior to the IBMA events will see a workshop offered by FiddleStar Camps. It will run September 25-28 just outside of Nashville and will feature instruction from several renowned bluegrass artists.
This one includes 6 time National Fiddle Champion Megan B. Lynch, Lonesome River Band bassist and harmony singer Mike Anglin, Sam Bush guitarist and singer Stephen Mougin, former Sunny Mountain Boy bassist and harmony singer Kip Martin, and Lonesome River Band mandolin player and high lead singer Andy Ball. There will be formal instrument classes, jams and jam classes, Nashville field trips, band scrambles, many more activities, and tons of fun!!
Full details can be found on the FiddleStar site.
During IBMA week, both Herschel Sizemore and Roland White will offer mandolin workshops at Big Joe’s Guitarworks in Nashville. Roland’s workshop will be on October 2 running from 10:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m., and Herschel’s on October 3 will offer two sessions, 10:00-1:00 and 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Registration to these mandolin workshops is limited to 20 students each, so interested participants are urged to contact Big Joe right away to secure a spot.
Faculty at this year’s event include Frank Wakefield (Greenbriar Boys), Mike Compton (Nashville Bluegrass Band), Roland White (Kentucky Colonels, Blue Grass Boys), Skip Gorman (Rabbit in a Log) and David Long (Little Country Giants). These mandolin experts will be joined for the evening by former Blue Grass Boy guitar player and lead singer, Tom Ewing.
The concert will take place at The Owensboro Symphony Academy, just steps from the IBMM. Tickets for the show can be purchased for $20 at the door, or by calling 888-692-2656.
The International Bluegrass Music Museum in Owensboro, KY is moving forward with plans for it’s second Monroe-Style Mandolin Camp. The museum held this camp last year and it was quite successful.
This year the dates for the camp are September 7-9, 2007.
The focus, of course, is the mandolin style of Bill Monroe. Accordingly, the museum is bringing in some of the best authorities on Monroe’s mandolin playing around. Instructors include: Frank Wakefield, Mike Compton, Roland White, Skip Gorman and David Long.
These prestigious yet accessible ambassadors of Monroe-sytle mandolin will present classes and workshops examining issues related to the development and execution of Monroe’s mandolin style, songwriting, musical influences, and other “Billisms.” Topics include specific eras in the evolution of Monroe’s style, right hand technique, and the blues, fiddle, and church music that helped to shape Monroe’s musical expression.
In addition to the instructional aspects of the camps, the faculty will perform a concert on September 8th with special guest Tom Ewing. Tom Ewing is a former Bluegrass Boy and will play guitar and sing. Tickets for the concert are available for $15 at the door, but Camp registrants get premium seats as part of the registration package.
Registration cost is $500 and includes all classes, mid-day meals each day, 2 nights of hotel rooms, the concert, a group picture and a road trip to Rosine, KY.
Registration is limited to 45 individuals on a first come first serve basis. To make your reservations call the museum at 1-888-692-2656 or visit bluegrass-museum.org.
This Tuesday and Wednesday nights will see quite a gathering of bluegrass talent at Nashville’s legendary Station Inn, assembled to benefit the Autism Society of Middle Tennessee. Their goal is to help raise awareness of this serious neurological condition, as well as donations for the work of the ASMT.
April 10 will feature performances by The Grascals, Ronnie Bowman & Friends, The Infamous Stringdusters, The Steel Drivers, The Roland White Band, and Chris Jones & The Nightdrivers. The following night will see Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time, Jerry Salley & Breakin’ New Ground, The Mark Newton Band, Cordle, Salley and Carl Jackson, The Mashville Brigade and a special surprise appearance by one of bluegrass music’s top acts on stage at The Station Inn.
This benefit was organized by two Nashville veterans, both of whose lives have been touched by youngsters with autism. Journalist and musician Jon Weisberger (who also serves on the IBMA Board) has a son with the disorder, and singer/songwriter Jerry Salley has a neice who suffers from autism.
April is promoted as Autism Awareness Month, and Nashville has long hosted a similar benefit each April at The Bluebird Cafe. Weisberger and Salley approached The Station Inn about hosting a bluegrass event as a benefit, and it was the club that suggested that they take two nights.
Admission is based on a $20 suggested donation, and the shows will begin each night at 8:00 p.m. (CDT).
Readers outside of Nashville can contribute to the Autism Society of Middle Tennessee online.
