David McPherson “The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern: A Complete History” Dundurn Press (2017) The Horseshoe Tavern is a modest throwback bar which has endured through Toronto’s growth as an international city. Even today, it exists as an island amongst shiny steel and urban growth. It shares its DNA with the countless anachronistic outposts that dot the […]
Category: Book Reviews
Ricky Skaggs (with Eddie Dean) “Kentucky Traveler: My Life In Music ”
Ricky Skaggs (with Eddie Dean) “Kentucky Traveler: My Life In Music ” Dey Street Books, Publisher Ricky Skaggs has lived a life of music and he’s not done yet. Most folks would be proud of having accomplished in their lifetime what he does in a year. Mr. Skaggs decided a few years ago to write […]
Interview: Leigh Gibson
The Gibson Brothers Go To Ground There’s no more solid live bluegrass show than the Gibson Brothers. They play with great technical skill, and with crispness. Their harmonies are just what a brother act should be: sweet, true and never forced. The brothers, Leigh and Eric Gibson, surround themselves with outstanding sidemen with impeccable bluegrass […]
Barbara Martin Stephens “Don’t Give Your Heart To A Rambler”
Barbara Martin Stephens “Don’t Give Your Heart To A Rambler” University of Illinois Press (2017) Bluegrass music fans are gently, but constantly, reminded that theirs is a niche interest. This, however, does not stop the devoted from mining the veins of bluegrass artists, old and new, to create a narrative for a style of music […]
“Foggy Mountain Troubadour” By Penny Parsons
“Foggy Mountain Troubadour” By Penny Parsons (Forward by Eddie Stubbs) University of Illinois Press Curly Seckler was a key contributor to one of the iconic “first generation” bluegrass groups- The Foggy Mountain Boys. The group, formed by Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, after their nasty split from Bill Monroe and His Bluegrass Boys in the […]