|
Please note this is an archived topic, so it is locked and unable to be replied to. You may, however, start a new topic and refer to this topic with a link: http://www.banjohangout.org/archive/257566
dmiller - Posted - 03/03/2013: 20:39:08
The Bluegrass Alliance was a group from 1968 until March of 1978. They disbanded for the last and final time 35 years ago this month. Many talented pickers were in that group, and tonight I found a site on MySpace that's a tribute to the band by one of the former band members. The following is copied and pasted from The Bluegrass Alliance Tribute site.
I'm assuming the info (biography of which year and which picker) is correct. If someone has different info, feel free to share. Also - - the original post (written by Bill Millet TBA member) was written all in caps so that's how it copied and pasted and no shouting was involved. 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THIS STARTED WITH FOUNDING MEMBER AND GUITAR VIRTUOSO DAN CRARY, WHO POPULARIZED THE LEAD FLATPICKING STYLE THAT FUTURE APPLIANCE MEMBER TONY RICE WOULD ELEVATE TO A WORLD CLASS LEVEL. OF COURSE, WHAT SAM BUSH BROUGHT TO THE TABLE DURING HIS YEARS WITH THE BAND, CREATED AN ENTIRE NEW DEFINITION OF THE GENRE - NEWGRASS - WHICH REMAINS ONE OF ITS DOMINANT FORCES.
AND VINCE GILL WOULD CLEARLY DEMONSTRATE ON THE RECORDING OF THE KENTUCKY BLUE LP THAT YOU ARE LISTENING TO ON THIS SITE, THAT HE WAS DESTINED TO BE ONE OF THE GREATEST AND MOST SUCCESFUL COUNTRY MUSIC ARTISTS OF ALL TIME. MANDOLINIST TONY WILLIAMSON SET THE STANDARD FOR THE INSTRUMENT THAT IS ON PAR WITH THE WORLDS TOP CLASSICAL AND JAZZ INSTRUMENTALISTS.
THROUGHOUT THE MYRIAD OF CHANGES THAT BESET THE APPLIANCE, FIDDLER LONNIE PEERCE REMAINED A CONSTANT, ALBEIT WITH LIMITED INSTRUMENTAL AND MUSICAL ABILITIES. BUT HE HAD A NOSE FOR TALENT AND COULD ATTRACT AND KEEP HOT, YOUNG ARTISTS BY VIRTUE OF KEEPING THE BAND CONSTANTLY BOOKED AT SHOWS AND FESTIVALS. THAT WAS HIS STRENGTH AND TO HIS CREDIT, IS ONE OF THE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS THAT HELPED MAJOR ARTISTS SUCH AS VINCE GILL, SAM BUSH, TONY RICE AND JOHN COWAN REACH A LEVEL OF ARTISTRY WHOSE INFLUENCE IS STILL FELT TO THIS DAY.
THIS TRIBUTE SITE WILL BECOME MORE ROBUST AS TIME GOES ON, BASED ON INPUT AND DESIRE TO PARTICIPATE BY FORMER MEMBERS OF THE BLUEGRASS ALLIANCE, WHO PLAYED FULL TIME WITH THE BAND DURING THE PERIOD OF 1968 TO 1978.
BILL MILLET | Banjo player for THE BLUEGRASS ALLIANCE
(1974-1976) billmillet.com" href="http://www.msplinks.com/MDVodHRwOi8vd3d3LmJpbGxtaWxsZXQuY29t?t=8J70q1yyPyl9VrM_7RpnRmrhcz3rju1FBzVSBb7v61HBCSRDll895fG1eHBdcWYjhInxGgVJcCXttyS1hZ5EKw" rel="nofollow" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); " target="_blank">www.billmillet.com |myspace.com/billmillet
Bluegrass Alliance I (1968 - 1970) •
Dan Crary - guitar • Danny Jones - mandolin • Buddy Spurlock - banjo •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Ebo Walker - bass Albums: 1. "The Bluegrass Alliance"
(American Heritage 1971) 2. "Newgrass" Dan Crary goes solo.
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance II (1970) •
Buddy Spurlock - banjo • Lonnie Peerce - fiddle •
Ebo Walker - bass • Sam Bush - guitar
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance III (1970 - 1971) •
Buddy Spurlock - banjo • Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Ebo Walker - bass •
Sam Bush - mandolin • Tony Rice - guitar
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance III (1971) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Ebo Walker - bass • Sam Bush - mandolin •
Tony Rice - guitar • Courtney Johnson - banjo
Tony Rice joins J.D. Crowe & The New South.
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance III (1971) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Ebo Walker - bass • Sam Bush - mandolin •
Courtney Johnson - banjo • Curtis Burch - guitar/dobro.
Group disbands. Sam Bush, Courtney Johnson, Curtis Burch,
and Ebo Walker form New Grass Revival.
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance IV (1971-1974) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Steve Maxwell - bass • Chuck Nation - mandolin •
Garland Shuping - banjo/lead vocal • Jack Lawrence - guitar.
Albums: 1. "Tall Grass" LP (Bridges 1973)
Group disbands and leave Lonnie Peerce fall 1974.
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance V (1974-1975) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Marshall Billingsley - upright bass •
Glenn Lawson - mandolin/lead vocal • Bill Millet - banjo • Marty Hallum - guitar.
Glenn Lawson leaves to join J.D. Crowe & The New South.
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance VI (1975-1976) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Vince Gill - guitar/lead vocal • Bill Millet - banjo •
Al White - mandolin • Marshall Billingsley - upright bass.
Albums: 1. "KENTUCKY BLUE" LP on American Heritage 1975.
"Kentucky Blue" was recorded in Nashville at Starday Studio during early
Dec. 1975 with Pink Floyd's engineer Sundance. Nashville A-list session
players Buddy Emmons (steel guitar) and Karl Himmel (drums) play on the recording.
Released on LP Jan. 1976 on American Heritage label. Marshall Billingsley leaves
and is replaced by Robert Poole on upright bass. Vince Gill leaves to join
Ricky Skaggs and Jerry Douglass newly formed Boone Creek as bass player.
This situation does not last long.
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance VII (spring 1976) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Thayne Bradford - mandolin/lead vocal • Bill Millet - banjo •
John Jump - guitar • Bob Briedenbach - dobro • Robert Poole - upright bass.
Thayne Bradford leaves and is replaced by Vince Gill.
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance VIII (summer-fall 1976) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Vince Gill - electric mandolin/lead vocal • Bill Millet - banjo •
John Jump - guitar • Bob Briedenbach - dobro • Robert Poole - upright bass.
Vince Gill, plays a Gibson electric mandolin and sings lead vocals in this era of
The Bluegrass Alliance, which is heavily influenced by Western Swing and Outlaw Country.
Band members leave founding member Lonnie Peerce (again) in mass - after
performing at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar in Jackson Hole Wyoming
and the Denver Folklore Center - to form LAZY RIVER.
________________________________________ Bluegrass Alliance
IX (winter 1976 - 1977) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Tony Williamson - mandolin •
Garland Shuping - banjo/lead vocal • Mike Williams - bass •
Keith Sanson - guitar.
________________________________________
Bluegrass Alliance X (1977 - March 1978) •
Lonnie Peerce - fiddle • Danny Jones - mandolin/lead vocal •
Steve Cooley - banjo • Ricky Burch - bass • Dennis White - guitar/vocals.
________________________________________
This last version of The Bluegrass Alliance was the end of the road
for an influential band that helped change the face and sound of
Bluegrass music in the post Woodstock generation.
Edited by - dmiller on 03/03/2013 20:46:53
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Privacy Consent (EU/GDPR Only)
Copyright 2026 Banjo Hangout. All Rights Reserved.
