FREE SAN DIEGO ROUBADOUR Alternative country, Americana, roots, folk, Tblues, gospel, jazz, and bluegrass music news August 2005 www.sandiegotroubadour.com Vol. 4, No. 11 what’s inside Welcome Mat ………3 Mission Statement Contributors Crossroads Cafe Full Circle.. …………4 Stuart Duncan Recordially, Lou Curtiss Summergrass ………7 Ramblin’... …………11 Bluegrass Corner Zen of Recording Hosing Down Radio Daze Of Note. ……………13 Nashville Bluegrass Band Eric Uglum The Brothers Barton Virtual Strangers Hit & Run Bluegrass ‘Round About ....... …14 August Music Calendar The Local Seen ……15 Photo Page AUGUST 2005 SAN DIEGO TROUBADOUR welcome mat Y ERRATA Z SAN DIEGO NOT YOUR AVERAGE MUSIC STORY: Conversations on the Road to Salvation ROUBADOUR and Rock ‘n’ Roll with Michael Tiernan Alternative country, Americana, roots, folk, Tblues, gospel, jazz, and bluegrass music news In last month’s article, the woman in the adjacent photo was identified incorrectly. That’s not the pope’s assistant there with Michael Tiernan. That’s HIS MOM, Joanne Tiernan! The pub - MISSION CONTRIBUTORS lisher regrets the error. To promote, encourage, and provide an alternative voice for the great local FOUNDERS music that is generally overlooked by Ellen and Lyle Duplessie the mass media; namely the genres of Liz Abbott alternative country, Americana, roots, Kent Johnson folk, blues, gospel, jazz, and bluegrass. To entertain, educate, and bring togeth - PUBLISHERS er players, writers, and lovers of these Liz Abbott forms; to explore their foundations; and Kent Johnson to expand the audience for these types EDITORIAL/GRAPHICS of music. Liz Abbott For advertising rates, call 619/298- Chuck Schiele 8488 or e-mail [email protected]. ADVERTISING San Diego Troubadour Liz Abbott P.O. Box 164 Kent Johnson La Jolla, CA 92038 E-mail: [email protected]. DISTRIBUTION Lois Bach SAN DIEGO TROUBADOUR, the local Greg Gohde source for alternative country, Kevin Irvin Americana, roots, folk, blues, gospel, Mark Jackson jazz, and bluegrass music news, is pub - Jenna Duplessie Pabalate lished monthly and is free of charge. Bill Richardson Letters to the editor must be signed and Chuck Schiele may be edited for content. It is not, Indian Joe Stewart however, guaranteed that they will PHOTOGRAPHY appear. Steve Covault All opinions expressed in SAN DIEGO TROUBADOUR, unless otherwise stat - WEB MASTER ed, are solely the opinion of the writer Will Edwards and do not represent the opinions of the WRITERS staff or management. All rights Lou Curtiss reserved. Jim McInnes ©2005 San Diego Troubadour. Raul Sandelin Sven-Erik Seaholm José Sinatra The San Diego Troubadour is Mike Tatar dedicated to the memory of Ellen and Yvonne Tatar Lyle Duplessie , whose vision inspired Betty Wheeler the creation of this newspaper. D. Dwight Worden Cover Design: Chuck Schiele www.sandiegotroubadour.com 3 AUGUST 2005 SAN DIEGO TROUBADOUR full circle Stuart Duncan Comes Home to Summergrass by Yvonne Tatar Stuart Duncan, the most influential to play the part with me. He wants to and virtuosic bluegrass fiddler alive, play the harmony lines.’ Apparently, I has crystallized a style, rendering it was already a bluegrass tenor player at ummergrass San Diego – transparent, deep, and faceted with a very early age. I couldn’t stop playing Southern California’s most excit - such brilliance that he has spawned a the harmonies,” he recalls. ing new bluegrass music festival S legion of imitators. As a young fiddler, A year later Duncan found himself returns for a third great year on August his abilities impressed the bluegrass in a band. “There was a band based out 26, 27, and 28 at the nostalgic Antique world, but his subsequent incorporation of Vista and Oceanside and, since all of Gas & Steam Engine Museum in Vista. of all the great fiddlers’ styles into a our fathers were Marines at Camp While always providing everything personal meta-style is only surpassed by Pendleton, it was called the Pendleton Stuart Duncan his clarity of phrasing, dynamics, from world-class entertainment to Pickers. I was eight years old and the Having gained respect in both the Doyle, the great left-handed Irish gui - groove, and intonation. noteworthy local talent, Summergrass ages in the band ran from eight to 15 bluegrass and country genres, Duncan tarist, along with many other great is pulling out all the stops this year in — Fiddler Magazine, Fall 2002 years.” has been the winner of the musicians. I believe it is available Duncan’s parents were local musi - bringing in the Grammy award-win - Reminiscing about his early years in International Bluegrass Music now.” cians who also volunteered for the ning Nashville Bluegrass Band as festi - San Diego, Duncan remembers his Association’s Fiddler of the Year for “I’ve been doing a monthly show local folk club in Escondido. As a val headliners. This stellar band is musical beginnings in North County. seven consecutive years, awarded the with the Hot Club of Nashville at the youngster, he frequently saw many uniquely fitting for Summergrass. His father was a Marine, the family 1999 Academy of Country Music Station Inn. It has a revolving cast of great groups perform for the club, such lived in Vista, and he began playing Fiddle Player of the Year, and has been guitarists but the core guys are Richard Fiddler great Stuart Duncan is a local as the Dillards and fiddle legend Byron music at age seven. included in Music Row magazine’s Top Smith from England on guitar and boy who grew up in the San Diego area Berline. Being self-taught, Duncan received Ten All Stars three times. “After the Charlie Chadwick on bass. John before moving to Nashville and “Byron was the biggest influence on very little training on the fiddle as a seventh IBMA award for Fiddler of the Jorgenson (another former Southern becoming one of the most well-respect - me in those early years. I kind of fol - child. “There was a classical teacher in Year, I was retired to the Hall of Shame, Californian) and Pat Bergeson are there ed musicians in bluegrass today. lowed him around. He was my begin - Vista that I went to for a couple of along with Jerry Douglas,” Duncan a lot, too. We occasionally have swing Duncan’s powerful influence and ning inspiration. After that, it was all weeks. At one point, she called my jokes. (Like himself, Douglas received mandolin players hop up on stage. It’s widely acclaimed musical prowess is the bluegrass legends, traditional and mom and said, ‘You know, Stuart just IBMA’s Player of the Year award, on exciting and on my road to knowing succinctly captured by Fiddler contemporary. Thanks to my father, I doesn’t have the discipline to continue dobro, for many years.) more about music in general. I’m just Magazine : also had a large record collection to with violin lessons. He almost refuses Besides playing with the Nashville seizing the opportunity to sharpen my delve into. Jazz, Django-era swing, Bluegrass Band, Duncan is busy work - claws.” Dixieland, and Irish were all in the ing on a few other projects. He has just “I’m growing, learning new ways. mix. Everything from Doc Boggs to finished participating in a CD pro - The more I’m learning, the simpler I’m Frank Zappa.” duced by jazz saxophone maestro Bill playing some things that used to be Duncan played in various other Evans that also included Jerry Douglas, hard. That’s where the real growth is. local bands as time went on. “I teamed Bela Fleck, Vic Wooten, Vinny Calutti, When you figure out a simple way to up with Alison Brown from La Jolla Sam Bush, Mark Egan, Pat Bergeson, do something that’s more musically and we were a young teen banjo and and John Scoffield. “Bill wrote a lot of effective than what you have done fiddle duo. Now she’s in Nashville like the arrangements. This was a major before.” I am. She and her husband head up effort and a departure for me to learn Duncan also has some advice for Compass Records.” the music. The CD should be out young players starting in the music Other bands included the High soon.” business today. He advises them to Window Boys with Walden Dahl and He is also busy working on his sec - have a back up plan to fall back on if Gold Rush with John Hickman. “Alison ond solo project. “It’s been 12 years times get rough. “I knew I could always played the dobro in Gold Rush and I since my first one. I’m not done yet go back home if things got really bad. I played fiddle and mandolin. Later on, I but it’s taking shape and will have a also think learning music theory when also did two East Coast tours with Lost couple of tunes I’ve written. It’s a you’re younger is a good thing. It may Duncan with Allison Krauss Highway.” Rounder release.” No stranger to song - help you land a better paying job soon - writing, he wrote three tunes on his er rather than later.” first solo effort: “Thai Clips,” “The Duncan is married with three chil - Passing,” and “G Forces.” dren: Joshua, age 14; Jonathan, age 10; He has recently finished a tune for and Darcy, age 7. He proudly reveals the Appalachian Pickers Society, which that “Josh is the math genius and is releasing a CD on the Windham Hill future engineer in the family. Jonathan label. “I wrote a tune for the clawham - is active in the Nashville Opera, having mer banjo and the fiddle named already participated in three operas in ‘Overbellow Reel.’ Dennis Crouch and full costume, complete with speaking Mike Compton played on it with me.” parts in French and Italian.