Talkin' Bluegrass Music: The Bluegrass Yo-Yo

Sunday, April 22, 2012

The Bluegrass Yo-Yo

Bluegrass music is a lot like my old Duncan Yo-Yo here. It's up...and it's down! Sometimes, it even requires a new string or two! It may also contain fake jewels, like this yo-yo. It takes a lot of practice to get really good at spinning a yo-yo and by the same token, it takes a lot of practice to get really good (or even pretty good) at playing bluegrass music.

Recent surges in bluegrass music came with permit slips for the general listening public. Something about the music and the artists gave folks permission to listen and even to like the music. New Grass Revival (John Cowan, Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, and Pat Flynn) took things to unimagined places! They introduced the listening public to a whole new world!

Then, Ricky Skaggs' version of "Uncle Pen" in a video with Bill Monroe doing a little buck dance, showed listeners/viewers the more traditional sound. People started dancing in the subways and living rooms of America. Another surge! Hey, we really can get into this music!

Needless to say, "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" (OBWAT, to keep it short) had the entire country laughing and singing "Man of Constant Sorrow". Longtime fans already knew the drill, but seeing it on the screen reminded them of the Barn Dance, the Opry, the flat-bed trucks where many a band has stood in the hot sun to perform for the folks in this little town, then the next, and the next, and so on. English majors and other readers of serious literature recognized OBWAT as a loose adaptation of "The Odyssey". Dan Tyminski in the guise of George Clooney, and Alison Krauss, among other very talented musicians, made the movie an instant hit, introducing new fans of all ages to bluegrass music.

Here are some fun photos taken along the bluegrass music trail! Enjoy! More to come later!