Katy Daley is emceeing the International Bluegrass Music Museum’s ROMP 2009 music festival and providing Bluegrass Country with regular on-air and online news updates.
1:37 pm CT, Friday
Fred Bartenstein mentioned to me on the way out to the park this morning that there are three aspects of Bluegrass: the music, the industry and the community.
Interesting, since I’ve been thinking a lot about the community part of bluegrass this week. I am very happy to have been able to spend some time today with my long-time friend, Roland White.
I first met Roland in the 70′s when he was a member of the Country Gazette, but I’ve “known” him a lot longer than that. I remember him when he was a Country Boy on the Andy Griffith television show and as a member of the legendary Kentucky Colonels. Roland and his brother Clarence are being considered as inductees into the Bluegrass Hall of Fame this year — a well deserved honor.
Roland is a fine musician with a long bluegrass history (he worked with Bill Monroe, Lester Flatt, Dreadful Snakes, Nashville Bluegrass Band and now heads up his own group, The Roland White Band). Members of the Country Gazette — Roland and Alan Munde especially — have been very generous with their time and talent throughout my broadcast career. They have played an important part in my personal bluegrass history.
I’m seeing a lot of people at 2009 ROMP who are playing with long-time friends. Many of these musicians share a long musical history. I was privileged to bring Eddie & Martha Adcock and Tom Gray on stage yesterday. Their music was so sweet — it’s the kind of music that can only come from people who have played together and cared about each other for a long, long time.
I know that many of you enjoy the musical aspects of Bluegrass. I hope you will also become a part of the bluegrass community and be blessed, as I have been, with life-long friends.
