Earl Scruggs

In the height of lockdown in 2020, banjo extraordinaire Tony Trischka received a mysterious package in his mailbox that would significantly change his next few years. Its contents: one USB drive full of rare recordings of Earl Scruggs jamming with John Hartford, mostly taken from private gatherings at Earl’s house during the 80s and 90s. Naturally, Trischka began pouring over the more than 200 songs, transcribing the all-new solos, tones, and tricks from the man he’d been studying for over half a century.

For over 150 years, Epiphone has been a leading innovator in instrument design. By leveraging its iconic past and leaning into the future, Epiphone has set the stage for the next era of sound for present and future generations. Epiphone is proud to announce their legendary bluegrass instruments are back. High quality and accessible, these Inspired by Gibson and Inspired by Gibson Custom models are part of the Epiphone Bluegrass Collection, which recreate some of the most popular banjo and mandolin models of all time and are sure to be popular with players of all genres.

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“I first met Molly Tuttle at Shasta Camp in northern California,” recalls banjo master and ringleader of the upcoming Earl Jam: A Tribute To Earl Scruggs, Tony Trischka. “There were three banjo teachers, myself and two others, and there was only one banjo student, Molly Tuttle.” It wasn’t long before Trischka invited Tuttle to be part of his Of A Winter’s Night holiday show where the group recorded an album by the same name at Levon Helm’s Barn in Woodstock, New York.

CMH RECORDS (Country. Music. Heritage.) maintains a rich history of classic country and bluegrass albums and is honoring several of these legacy releases by remastering them and making them available in new formats for the first time ever. The latest in this series of releases, Lester Flatt & The Nashville GrassHeaven’s Bluegrass Band, is out on CD and digital formats March 15. This album, recorded over 30 years into the artist’s career, is the ensemble’s first of five for CMH.

When banjo extraordinaire Tony Trischka opened his mail one afternoon during the height of the Covid lockdown, he certainly wasn’t expecting to get a visit from his old pal, the late great Earl Scruggs. Of course, it wasn’t Earl at the door, but a mysterious thumb drive full of rare recordings of Scruggs jamming with John Hartford, mostly taken from private gatherings at Earl’s house during the 80s and 90s.

Earl Scruggs, born on January 6, 1924, would have celebrated his 100th birthday today. His influence on Bluegrass and Americana music is profound and multifaceted, transforming the landscape of American roots music.

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With its 10th anniversary approaching, the Earl Scruggs Center is proud to announce the return of its annual Remembering Earl benefit concert, taking place Saturday, January 13, 2024 at Malcolm Brown Auditorium in Shelby, NC.

When it came time for the Infamous Stringdusters to record their new album, A Tribute to Flatt & Scruggs, the band gathered in the studio and pressed record; all at once, all together, just like the bluegrass pioneers whose music they were picking. Hot on the heels of yet another GRAMMY nomination—this time for their latest LP, Toward The Fray—the Stringdusters are revisiting the forefathers of the genre in a way not too distant from their GRAMMY-nominated A Tribute to Bill Monroe.

Collaborative musical encounters between distinct artists have been woven into the fabric of bluegrass at least as far back as the in-studio meeting of Flatt & Scruggs with Doc Watson. So it was almost inevitable that, at some point, the idea would surface of bringing together musicians from the groups that make up the rosters of sister labels Mountain Home Music Company and Organic Records.

Ronnie Reno’s Man-Do-Lin Productions record label is releasing 2 albums for digital downloads and streaming with many more titles to be released this year. The second group of titles to be released on Reno’s Man-Do-Lin Productions label are Lester Flatt – Legends of Bluegrass (1971) and Ronnie Reno & The Reno Tradition – Front Porch Gospel.

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