In reviewing my reports on bluegrass festivals while creating on-line versions, I’ve noticed that I often don’t mention the names of the groups I’ve seen. This was in recognition of the fact that most of my readers were not familiar with the genre and don’t share my enthusiasm.

Since the on-line versions may attract some bluegrass fans, I’ve remedied this oversight by adding some names where appropriate. And for those who are not fanatics, this information may guide you if you decide to explore this wonderful music a little more. These and other additions are indicated by red text.

My own bluegrass odyssey goes back many years. Back in the good old days, bluegrass was just another aspect of country music – you’d hear it on The Grand Ole Opry and similar programs, and on country music stations. TV shows such as the Porter Wagoner Show and others would include bluegrass musicians along with the more mainstream country stars of the day.

I always enjoyed bluegrass, and considered it just a part of country music. One thing that really piqued my interest was a TV broadcast that I happened to see some time in the 60s. It featured Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs playing “Salty Dog Blues,” and I was amazed and impressed at the performance. When each player took his solo, he stepped up to the mike and played his part with precision, looking as if it was the easiest thing in the world. This song has been my favorite bluegrass song ever since.

In the late 1990s, I discovered that there was a bluegrass festival in my home town of Mariposa . I decided to go, and took in the afternoon and evening shows, along with my younger daughter and her husband, Jennifer & Rod.

The next year (May 1998) I again went on Saturday, joined this time by my older daughter and her family, Teri, Tim & grandson Mikie.

In 1999 I took Friday off from work, and attended my first full weekend festival. I didn’t take the trailer, but instead went back to dad and mother’s house after the music ended Friday and Saturday nights.

Tim & Teri decided that the next year, they would go with me for the weekend, and for the first time I took my trailer. Both sons, Mikie and Johnny, came along, as well as Moses, a friend of Johnny, and Tim’s parents, Marge & Rocky. This time I took off work so we could go on Thursday.

Everyone enjoyed the festival in their own way...the adults for the music and just getting away from the day to day routine...Mikie just because he enjoys life nearly all the time... JD and Moses hanging out together and doing whatever they could find to do. They went to town most of Saturday; and went out to dinner with dad and mother.

We immediately agreed that we would return next year (2001), but it was not to be. The Mariposa Arts Council decided not to hold the festivals any longer, so I started looking into a festival I had heard of that would be held in Parkfield, in the coast hills west of Fresno. Teri, Mikie and I went to it, and I have not missed one since. (7/27/07 update: I was unable to go to Parkfield this year, but hope to get back in 2008.)

The following year (2002) was the first festival after I retired, so for the first time I did not need to go home on Sunday night. We went on Wednesday as I recall, and came home Monday morning, and enjoyed everything about it. With the extra time available due to not having to go to work, I began to seek out and attend other festivals, and the rest is recorded in my endless series of travel reports.

By my informal count, I have attended 30 festivals, 5 of them for one day only, and the rest for the full three or four days. I’m looking forward to many more.

The official count
(Updated March 5, 2008)

By the way, if your cable or satellite system offers RFD TV, you have access to some great bluegrass and country music (it’s channel 379 on my DirecTV service).

The best show is Reno’s Bluegrass Festival. Don Reno & Red Smiley were among the first generation of bluegrass pioneers. Although lesser known, they were nearly as influential as Bill Monroe or Flatt & Scruggs. Don’s son Ronnie leads the Reno Brothers, and hosts the show. Every episode features one song by the Reno Brothers, followed by interviews and performances by some of the top names in bluegrass. Sometimes there is a clip from Reno & Smiley's TV show of the 1960s. These shows are about ten years old.

(7/27/07 update: The Reno show is no longer available on RFD network, although it is shown on Blue Highways TV, which has virtually no major cable or satellite distribution. Hopefully that will change.)

The other pure bluegrass offering is Cumberland Highlanders. Originating from Bill Monroe’s home town of Rosine, KY, these shows are current, or at least not more than a year old, and feature many regional groups from the southeast. Frankly the production work leaves a lot to be desired, but sometimes you can hear some outstanding music by groups you’ve never heard of. I’ve also seen the Cherryholmes Family and a couple of other familiar groups.

Stan Hitchcock’s Heart to Heart Classics focuses more on mainstream country, but it tends to be the more traditional artists rather than the current crop who are mostly rockers with big hats. These shows also appear to go back about ten years. The format is very informal, with interviews interspersed with purely acoustic performances by the artist, accompanied by Stan on guitar. (7/27/07 update: This show has also moved to Blue Highways TV.)

From the late classic era comes The Porter Wagoner Show. Bluegrass artists are rare, but these shows go back to the 1960s, and you get a chance to see artists who are long gone. In recent weeks I saw a very young Waylon Jennings, an equally young Bobby Bare, and departed giants such as Hank Show and Marty Robbins. Many of the shows also feature Dolly Parton, by herself and harmonizing with Porter. Bluegrass purists may not care for the electric guitar, much less the electric banjo, but the fiddler, the late Mack Magaha, toured for many years with Reno & Smiley, so there is a bluegrass connection here.

If you have any interest in bluegrass, country, or acoustic music in general, these shows are all worth checking out.

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