Tyler Grant Archives - Bluegrass Today

Track Premiere: Soldier’s Joy from Grant and Kessinger

Tell me if you’ve heard this one… A couple of flat pickers get together to pick a few fiddle tunes and sing some songs.

Doesn’t really sound like big news, does it? I mean, what else would a couple of old guitar slinger pals do when they meet? But when they are a pair of champions like Tyler Grant and Robin Kessinger, it’s sure to be something worthy of repeated listening.

And that’s what you have with Kanawah County Flatpicking, a new set of duets from Tyler and Robin, guitarists separated by tim.e and place, but united in their love for the West Virginia mountain music that has been synonymous with the Kessinger name for generations. The two met at the prestigious Walnut Valley competition in Winfield, Kansas when Tyler was competing and Robin was a judge. They became fast friends, these two three-time winners of the National Flat Pick Guitar Championship, and formed a lasting bond

The flatpickers met up in a studio near Point Pleasant, WV earlier this month for two days of recording, and ended up with 15 tracks of pure old time, six string magic.

On this track, the venerable Soldier’s Joy, the guys trade licks, twin a bit, and generally enjoy the camaraderie that occurs when two artists really enjoy each other’s musical company.

Tyler says it’s exactly what he had in mind for this project.

“Soldier’s Joy is a traditional Appalachian fiddle tune that flatpicking guitarists love to play. Robin and I first worked up this twin guitar arrangement for a performance at Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Kamp in Maryville, TN a few years back. It was this type of duet playing that inspired the Kanawha County Flatpicking project. From this meeting point, Robin and I branched out and dug into some rare Kessinger family material.”

Kanawha County Flatpicking releases tomorrow, August 24, and will be available for download or streaming wherever you find your favorite music.

Earth & Wood – Tyler Grant

Guitarist Tyler Grant, a National Flatpicking Champion and winner of the RockyGrass and Wayne Henderson guitar contests, among others, has spent much of his career in the jam band realm, playing with Drew Emmitt and Bill Nershi of Leftover Salmon and the String Cheese Incident, respectively. He’s also spent time with Abigail Washburn, Casey and Chris Henry, and April Verch. His latest album, Earth & Wood, is touted as a return to acoustic bluegrass for Grant, and is his first all-acoustic album since 2010’s instrumental record Up the Neck.

Grant wrote or co-wrote half of the album’s fourteen songs, proving himself not only a skilled composer but an adept writer, as well. Opening track Last Day on the Job is a smooth, reflective look at leaving a longtime job. It’s no quitting-man’s anthem, but a triumphant celebration of putting in years of hard work. With gentle (yet intricate) instrumentation and clever lines like “I got no badge and I don’t care no more, the only clearance I need is under my 4×4,” it’s a strong track. West Texas Wind, written by Grant with Benny Galloway, has a neat old west, cowboy song feel, telling the story of a rambler traveling through Texas with only his guitar and the wind as companions. Grant’s guitar break after the first chorus is worth a second listen, while dobro from Sally Van Meter and mandolin from Jordan Ramsey flesh out the song’s Texas vibe.

Galloway and Grant also collaborated on One Town One Tune, another rambling song about a musician who’s just trying to get home to the girl he loves while he’s making his way through the country “one town, one tune at a time.” It has a pleasant, rolling melody with an Americana/acoustic country sound. Grant’s Sweet Talking Angel is more classic country, with Van Meter’s dobro of particular note.

As is to be expected from a guitar champion, Grant contributes several instrumentals to the project. The Old Time Country Guitar is, as the title says, influenced by pre-bluegrass country guitar playing, with shades of Maybelle Carter in its mostly peaceful melody. Pick It is a grassy romp, calling on a full band to round out its sound and allowing each musician to interpret the tune in their own manner. It is obviously influenced by traditional bluegrass, but with progressive-leaning banjo and a bit of a jam at the end, it also allows Grant to show off his own musical sensibilities. Tyler Trail is a return to the solo guitar style that has brought Grant much acclaim, played smoothly and with obvious skill and care.

Another highlight here is the easygoing version of Albert Brumley’s I’d Rather Live By the Side of the Road, a Gospel number that highlights the virtues of living simply and living for the Lord. Fans of fluid guitar playing will also enjoy Grant’s renditions of the traditional Shove That Pig’s Foot a Little Further Into the Fire and Byron Berline’s Huckleberry Hornpipe.

On Earth & Wood, Grant definitely demonstrates why he has collected so many guitar contest wins. His picking is strong and confident; he effortlessly interprets traditional favorites and takes on various styles with ease. I particularly enjoyed the old West sound of West Texas Wind. The pickers he has assembled to support him are also talented. In addition to Van Meter and Ramsey, his band includes Adrian Engfer (bass), Patrick Hoeper (fiddle), and Dusty Rider (banjo). Guitar fans and those who enjoy original acoustic music should certainly check this one out.

For more information on Tyler Grant, visit his website at www.tylergrant.com. His new album is available from several online music retailers.

Bluegrass Vocabulary Lesson

The latest issue (March 2011) of Acoustic Guitar magazine is out, and it includes a lengthy article by Tyler Grant entitled: Must-Know Bluegrass Vocabulary – A guide to practical licks every flatpicker should know.

Grant draws an interesting analogy between learning to play a particular style of music, like bluegrass, and learning to speak a new language. His goal with the article is to introduce guitar players to bluegrass vocabulary in such a way that they don’t just memorize some licks, but actually learn to speak the language so as to create their own “stylistically appropriate solos.”

just knowing a large number of words is not enough to get by—if you don’t want to sound like a tourist

The article is three pages long (at least online) and comes complete with tab and video examples for fifteen different exercises. Remember, the goal isn’t just to learn these licks, but to learn to speak the language of bluegrass like a native!

The conclusion of the article includes tab/video for Tyler’s original tune, Witch Creek.

Tyler is a great player, and with this article he’s provided a helpful introduction to the style for guitarists who are just learning to speak bluegrass.

HT: The Bluegrass Ireland Blog

Tyler Grant – Up The Neck

Tyler Grant is certainly well-regarded as a flatpicker. After all, he won the National Flatpicking Championship at Winfield in 2008, having won or placed in several others previously (Wayne Henderson, Rockygrass).

But Grant doesn’t like to be viewed primarily as a flatpicker. He cherishes the role of rhythm guitarist in a band, and has held that spot for the past 5 years with Drew Ennit, first with the Drew Emmit Band and now the Emmit Nershi Band. His debut solo CD, In The Light, was a mostly-vocal project, released in 2006.

He is an especially gifted player, songwriter and composer for the guitar, and his many flatpick fans will be pleased to see that Tyler has released an all-instrumental album, Up The Neck. It showcases the many facets of this talented picker: contest champion, new-age acoustic artist, and bluegrass powerhouse.

For those who follow the contest scene, Grant has included 3 of the arrangements he created for the competition stage, including his wicked versions of classics like Beaumont Rag and I Don’t Love Nobody. My favorite, though, is his graceful rendering of the old time fiddle tune, Forked Deer.

Forked Deer: [http://traffic.libsyn.com/thegrasscast/forked_deer.mp3]

9 of the 14 tracks are Tyler’s original tunes, which range from lilting solo guitar, like the opener (Springtime Flatpicking) to the flatpick/fingerstyle hybrid of A-11 that closes out the disc. Here are a couple more samples from ones that particularly caught my ear.

Funky Boulder is a band number where he pays tribute to the guitar styles of Jerry Reed and Don Rich. Here again, Grant mixes plectrum and fingerpicking in the cool country style.

Funky Boulder: [http://traffic.libsyn.com/thegrasscast/funky_boulder.mp3]

Chris Pandolfi is both the name of track #10, and the banjo player who wears it out. Tyler and Chris are good friends and former roommates, and the song was written in honor of The Infamous Stringdusters’ hot banjo man.

Chris Pandolfi: [http://traffic.libsyn.com/thegrasscast/chris_pandolfi.mp3]

Grant plays with ample fluidity and dexterity throughout, but it is his musicality that makes this album such a treat. His lines are tuneful and melodic, ensuring that Up The Neck is a CD that will appeal to anyone who enjoys adventurous acoustic music.

Oh… and flatpickers will eat it up!

Hear samples from each track at CD Baby.

Peaceful Bend Americana Music Fest

The Peaceful Bend Americana Music Fest took place last weekend, outside St. Louis, MO. Due to other commitments, I wasn’t able to attend the entire weekend, but I was on hand for the opening ceremonies on Thursday evening.

The festival is centered around flatpick guitar playing and instruction. It is held on the grounds of the Peaceful Bend Vineyard. The venue is small and intimate allowing for a great deal of interaction between performers/instructors, and the students/fans.

Thursday night I taped the 3rd in a series of performance DVDs for the festival’s promotors, Flatpicking Guitar Magazine and SimpleFolk Productions. The recording went well and I’m about to be knee deep in editing for a while.

Like the others in the series, the concert featured the guitar work of three outstanding players. This year it is Scott Nygaard, Jack Lawrence, and Robert Bowlin. Once I get the editing done I’m sure we’ll post a short clip or two to give you a taste.

Opening for the trio were the 2008 IBMA and 2009 SPGMA Guitar Player of the Year Josh Williams, and 2008 Walnut Valley International Competition and 2009 Merlefest Flatpicking Champion Tyler Grant.It was a fun night and I’m sure the rest of the weekend was great as well. Here’s a few thought from Tyler Grant.

Josh and I did four numbers on Thursday night to open for the trio’s DVD shoot. The acoustics were very nice in the wine cellar, and it was a comfortable venue to play and to sit back and listen. A little glass of wine made it even more comfortable, and every now and then one of Clyde and Katie’s dogs would wander in making the whole atmosphere feel even more down-home and country. The trio of Bowlin, Lawrence and Nygaard with Wil Maring on upright bass was outstanding. Each guitarist brought his own style to the forefront, while all three met in the middle for some truly beautiful music. It would take an entire post just to go into the details of the show, so I will just advise readers to buy the DVD and hear for themselves. Gorgeous guitar music and some stellar vocal contributions from Jack, Wil and Robert.

You can read all his thoughts on the weekend in the Flatpick-L Archives, here and here.

If you’re interested in photos of the event, be sure to check out this page on the Flatpicking Guitar Ning Network.