Crowe on the Banjo: The Music Life of J.D. Crowe

Additional Reading

additional reading To gain insight into J.D. Crowe and his music, it is necessary to understand the musical environment in which he has lived and worked. There is no better reference than Neil V. Rosenberg’s Bluegrass: A History (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1985), which covers bluegrass music from its prehistory until the publication date. Bluegrass Unlimited (P.O. Box 771, Warrenton, VA 20188-0771; http://www .bluegrassmusic.com) began as a newsletter in 1966 and became a national magazine in 1970. It provides a great deal of information in its “General Store” and “Notes & Queries” sections, performance listings, venue references , advertisements, letters, and feature articles, among which are serious studies of historical and current musicians. The BanjoNewsletter (P.O. Box 3418, Annapolis, MD 21403-0418; http://www.banjonews.com), established in 1973, concentrates on everything to do with banjos and those who play them, not limited to bluegrass. Both magazines have featured J.D. Crowe several times. In the twenty-first century the Internet plays a crucial role in the music business, and the value of an online presence was recognized early by J.D. Crowe and the New South. To keep up with the latest news about the band, visit their Web site, http://www.jdcrowe.net/. Several online discussion i-xviii_1-240_Godb.indd 217 8/3/11 9:28 AM 218 Additional Reading groups exist; http://www.banjohangout.org is one of the more popular, and Crowe is a frequent topic. Short-lived magazines with an interest in bluegrass music have appeared from time to time, and many fan-based groups have newsletters that may be of use when there is a dearth of original source material and little public documentation. A caveat here: articles written by fans and nonprofessionals, however well intentioned, often tend to perpetuate inaccurate information from earlier sources and should be carefully checked. There are several related books in the works: a biography of longtime Flatt and Scruggs sideman Curly Sechler is being written by Penny Parsons, and a biography of Eddie Adcock is being written by Martha Herron Adcock. General References AcuTab Transcriptions. Vol. 1, J.D. Crowe. Roanoke: AcuTab Publications, 1976. Tablature transcriptions from Flashback (Rounder 0322) and The New South (Rounder 0044). Artis, Bob. Bluegrass. New York: Hawthorne Books, 1975. Out of print but a wonderful window on bluegrass music in the 1970s. Fleischhauer, Carl, and Neil Rosenberg. Bluegrass Odyssey. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2001. Masterful photographs and text document some aspects of bluegrass music from 1966 to 1986. Mills, Jim. Gibson Mastertone Flathead 5-String Banjos of the 1930’s and 1940’s. Anaheim Hills, Calif.: Centerstream Publishing, 2009. Histories and descriptions of some of the premier Gibson banjos of the period, with anecdotes about their owners , past and present. Skinker, Chris. Jimmy Martin and the Sunny Mountain Boys. Notes accompanying Bear Family “box set” BCD 15705, Bremen, Germany, 1994. A history of Martin ’s career, with information about J.D. Crowe’s early years with Martin and a full discography. Spann, Joseph E. Spann’s Guide to Gibson, 1902–1941. Anaheim Hills, Calif.: Centerstream Publishing, 2011. An analysis of Gibson’s instrument production in the years before WWII. Stafford, Tim, and Caroline Wright. Still Inside: The Tony Rice Story. Kingsport, Tenn.: Word of Mouth Press, 2010. An unusual nonlinear biography, including a narrative by Tony, interviews, and comments by Tony’s friends and fellow musicians. Wolfe, Charles K. Kentucky Country. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1982. A brief overview of the history of country music in Kentucky and Kentucky performers. i-xviii_1-240_Godb.indd 218 8/3/11 9:28 AM ...