Sam Bush
(b. April 13, 1952 in Bowling Green, Kentucky) is an American bluegrass mandolin player considered an originator of the Newgrass style.
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SAM BUSH TICKETS
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History
Sam Bush was exposed to country and bluegrass music at an early age through his father Charlie's record collection, and later by the
Flatt & Scruggs television show. Buying his first mandolin at the age of 11, his musical interest was further piqued when he attended the inaugural Roanoke, VA Bluegrass Festival in 1965. As a teen Bush took first place three times in the junior division of the National Oldtime Fiddler's Contest in Weiser, ID. He joined guitarist Wayne Stewart and banjoist
Alan Munde (later of Country Gazette) and the three recorded an instrumental album, Poor Richard's Almanac, in 1969.
[1] In the spring of 1970, Bush attended the Fiddlers Convention at
Union Grove, NC, and was inspired by the rock-flavored
progressive bluegrass of the New Deal String Band.
[2] Later that year, he moved to Louisville and joined the Bluegrass Alliance. In the fall of 1971, the band dissolved and reformed as the
New Grass Revival.
[3]
The New Grass Revival went through numerous personnel changes, with Bush remaining as the sole original member. Bassist and
vocalist John Cowan joined in 1974, with
banjo ace
Béla Fleck and acoustic guitarist
Pat Flynn being enlisted in 1981. From 1979 through 1981, the group toured with
Leon Russell, opening the shows and backing Russell during his headlining set.
Beginning in 1980, Bush and Cowan periodically jammed with the Nashville-based Duckbutter Blues Band, whose other members were blues guitarist Kenny Lee, drummer Jeff Jones, and bassist Byron House. Bush recorded his debut solo album,
Late as Usual
, four years later. In 1989, Bush and Fleck joined
Mark O'Connor,
Jerry Douglas, and
Edgar Meyer in an all-star bluegrass band,
Strength in Numbers, at the
Telluride Bluegrass Festival in
Colorado. When the New Grass Revival dissolved in 1989, Bush joined
Emmylou Harris' Nash Ramblers, touring and recording with Harris for the next five years.
In 1995, Bush worked as a sideman with
Lyle Lovett and Bela Fleck's
Flecktones. He formed his own band, featuring Cowan and ex-Nash Ramblers Jon Randall and Larry Atamanuick, shortly before recording his second solo album,
Glamour & Grits
, in 1996. He released his next album,
Howlin' at the Moon
, in 1998, with many of the same players and special guests, including Harris, Fleck and
J. D. Crowe.
In the winter of 1997, Bush and the New Grass Revival reunited for an appearance on
The Conan O'Brien Show as the backup band for
Garth Brooks. On
March 28,
1998, Bush's hometown of
Bowling Green, KY, honored him with a special "Sam Bush Day" celebration.
Following
Howlin' at the Moon
in 1998, he released
Ice Caps: Peaks of Telluride in 2000
, which was a live recording. In 2004, Randall left Bush's band and
Brad Davis (musician) took over harmony vocals and guitar duties.
In 2006, Bush released
Laps in Seven
. The release was significant because it marked the return of the
banjo to Bush's recordings, performed by
Scott Vestal. The
guitarist, Keith Sewell, performed on the recording, but shortly after took a job with the
Dixie Chicks. Bush sought a new
guitarist for his recordings and road band and found
Stephen Mougin.
In 2007, Bush released his first
live concert DVD, titled
On The Road
. 2007 also marked the first time he had been chosen to host the
International Bluegrass Music Association Awards.
Performance
As well as being an accomplished
bluegrass vocalist, Bush also is a capable instrumentalist on
guitar and
fiddle winning title of National Fiddle champion at fifteen years of age. He was a founding member of the
New Grass Revival and has been called a modern day
Bill Monroe, or as Sam would tell . .
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| . . if Bill was the father of bluegrass then I could be the mother because Monroe would say: 'here comes that mother now!'
| ”
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Sam, affectionately "Sammy", or "Mr. Entertainment", also recalls meeting Mr. Monroe as a young teen. After demonstrating his mandolin technique Monroe offered the advice: "stick to the fiddle".
Sam is one of the main attractions at the annual
Telluride Bluegrass Festival in
Telluride, Colorado and plays the eight p.m. set on Saturday night as well as many guest appearances throughout the weekend. He is affectionately known as "The King of Telluride" for his perennial appearances there (and
Emmylou Harris the "Queen of Telluride"). Sam did tour with Harris' band, The Nash Ramblers. Additional collaborations include recording and live performances with many virtuoso musicians and artists such as
Doc Watson,
Linda Ronstadt,
Dolly Parton,
Ann Savoy,
Tony Rice,
Peter Rowan, Russ Barenberg,
David Grisman, Mark O Connor, Edgar Meyer, and importantly; "Strength in Numbers", a band consisting of
Bela Fleck,
Tony Rice, Mark O Connor, Edgar Meyer, Jerry Douglas, and Sam Bush.
Strength in Numbers was a collaboration born from jam sessions at the
Telluride Bluegrass Festival. The music on their
CD release entitled "The Telluride Sessions" was all instrumental and recorded live, showcasing the individual talent of each player and their ability to improvise. During recent years (2000-2008) there have been many variations of the Strength in Numbers band, also known as "Bluegrass Sessions", always including Jerry Douglas, (
Dobro), and usually bassist Byron House, also from
Bowling Green, KY. Other musicians include Gabe Witcher (
fiddle), Brian Sutton (
guitar),
Tim O'Brien (
fiddle,
mandolin,
guitar,
vocals) and Darol Anger, (
fiddle).
Sam Bush Band tours extensively, appearing at many small venues and large festivals such as the
Strawberry Music Festival (
Memorial Day and
Labor Day), Rockygrass (late July), and every spring at the
Americana Festival,
Merlefest in
Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Sam Bush is known as one of the liveliest performers at these festivals, and makes many guest appearances with the other artists.
Distinctions and awards
- Chosen to host the 2007 International Bluegrass Music Association Awards, held at the Grand Old Opry.
- Sam walked away with an award himself for Mandolin Player of the Year IBMA 2007.
- Nominated as "Instrumentalist of the Year" by the Americana Music Association.
- He is affectionately known as "The King of Telluride" for his perennial appearances there (Emmylou Harris as the "Queen of Telluride").
- Known as "King of Newgrass".
Discography
Solo albums
| Year
| Album
| Chart Positions
| Label
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| US Bluegrass
| US Country
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| 1985
| Late as Usual
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| Rounder
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| 1996
| Glamour & Grits
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| Sugar Hill
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| 1998
| Howlin' at the Moon
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| 2000
| Ice Caps: Peaks of Telluride
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| 2003
| Hold On, We're Strummin
(w/ David Grisman)
| 7
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| Acoustic Disc
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| 2004
| King of My World
| 2
| 64
| Sugar Hill
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| 2006
| Laps in Seven
| 2
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| 2009
| Circles Around Me
| TBR
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DVDs
- On the Road
(2007) Sugar Hill ASIN: B000RHRG5S
Specialty projects
- Drive
- Béla Fleck - Rounder Records 1988
- The Telluride Sessions
by supergroup Strength in Numbers - MCA 1989
- Short Trip Home
- Sony Classical 1999
:(
Edgar Meyer &
Joshua Bell with Sam Bush and
Mike Marshall)
- Bluegrass Mandolin Extravaganza
- Acoustic Disc 1999
:(w/
David Grisman,
Ronnie McCoury,
Jesse McReynolds,
Ricky Skaggs, others)
- The Bluegrass Sessions
- Béla Fleck - Warner Bros. 1999
- Soulgrass
- Bluegrass and Jazz Fusion 2005
New Grass Revival
- New Grass Revival
(1972) Hollywood
- Fly Through the Country
(1975) Flying Fish
- When the Storm Is Over
(1977) Flying Fish
- Too Late to Turn Back Now
(1977) Flying Fish ASIN: B000000ME2
- Barren County
(1979) Flying Fish ASIN: B000000MEL
- Leon Russell & New Grass Revival
(1981) Paradise
- Commonwealth
(1981) Flying Fish ASIN: B000000MGE
- On the Boulevard
(1984) Sugar Hill ASIN: B000000EZL
- Live in Toulouse
(1984) Sugar Hill ASIN: B000000F0O
- New Grass Revival
(1986) Capitol
- Hold to a Dream
(1988) Capitol
- Friday Night in America
(1989) Capitol
- When the Storm Is Over/Fly Through the Country
(1992) Flying Fish ASIN: B000000MDQ
- The Best of New Grass Revival
(1994) Capitol ASIN: B000002TNY
- Grass Roots: The Best of New Grass Revival
(2005) Capitol ASIN: B0009ML1RK
Collaboration
Bush appears on numerous
country and
bluegrass albums, including those by:
Video
- "The River's Gonna Run - Sam Bush"
- "Sam Bush & Pat Flynn of New Grass Revival - Beaumont Rag"
- "The New Grass Revival (Live) - Metric Lips"
See also
- Bluegrass music
- Country music
- Mandolin
- Grammy Awards
- New Grass Revival
- Progressive bluegrass
- Telluride Bluegrass Festival
- Merlefest
- International Bluegrass Music Association
- Americana Music Association
- Grand Ole Opry
- Bowling Green, Kentucky
References
- Sam Bush: A King of Acoustic Music
- Sam Bush Biography
- Bluegrass Alliance