1935tb-11 - Posted - 03/05/2024:  13:39:34

the more i watch this guy pick bluegrass ,,the more i think it was what he was born to do.
very impressed with his intense ability with vocal and musicianship.

chuckv97 - Posted - 03/05/2024:  14:03:56

I agree,, good thing his Pa helped him get into it. He’s bringing that music to thousands more that ordinarily wouldn’t know much about it. (maybe I can still cash in … ;-)

gbisignani - Posted - 03/05/2024:  14:43:14

I agree ! Every time I watch him play guitar or banjo it makes me incredibly happy !

NotABanjoYoda - Posted - 03/05/2024:  15:32:22

Fuuny thing is he wasnt fast enough for death metal which he gave a shot. So he tried something a bit slower, cleaner and more aticulate. Makes me wonder if theres a starving banjo player that would be worshipped by metal heads if they just switched genres. There has to be a paradox here.

Edited by - NotABanjoYoda on 03/05/2024 15:33:57

PKM - Posted - 03/06/2024:  04:10:38

And his banjo player, Billy Failing is fantastic. the best thing about Failing, is he can do amazingly complex stuff, but is tasteful and knows when to shine. He never over-plays.

eagleisland - Posted - 03/06/2024:  04:32:42

I've seen more than a few comments on various online fora that amount to "He ain't bluegrass."

To which I can only respond "If you say so. Far as I'm concerned, he's plenty close enough."

I'm personally thrilled that young bluegrass artists are making great music and generating large crowds. Between Billy Strings, Molly Tuttle, Sierra Hull and some other young artists, this music we love so much is getting the boost - dare I say the kick in the butt - that it has needed for a very long time.

KCJones - Posted - 03/06/2024:  04:42:39

Billy Strings (and his band) have sold more banjos and acoustic guitars than anyone else in the last 20 years. They're the best thing that's happened to bluegrass since that O Brother Where Art Thou movie came out.



Imagine young people, high schoolers, even. Spending money on bluegrass albums. Going to bluegrass concerts. Kids arguing about whether Tony Rice was better than Doc Watson in the parking lot. Name the last time a string band was selling 10k tickets a night to a primarily under-30 crowd.

I've also seen people (on BHO) accuse him of literally (literally) selling his soul to Satan. Which I think is kinda neat, that's a pretty high compliment for a guitarist. 

Edited by - KCJones on 03/06/2024 04:51:37

dfstd - Posted - 03/06/2024:  05:54:29

We went to a Billy Strings concert last Friday night. It was awesome. He drew a large crowd, and everyone seemed to have a great time. The music was mostly Bluegrass with modern touches. One tune was a long Billy Failing feature, and it was amazing and incredibly powerful. We loved that concert.

KCJones - Posted - 03/06/2024:  06:12:49

What's not to love?

Edited by - KCJones on 03/06/2024 06:14:07

Ira Gitlin - Posted - 03/06/2024:  06:39:13

quote:

---

Originally posted by PKM

And his banjo player, Billy Failing is fantastic. the best thing about Failing, is he can do amazingly complex stuff, but is tasteful and knows when to shine. He never over-plays.

---

Do his bandmates call him "Brad"?



;^)

steve davis - Posted - 03/06/2024:  06:48:59

I like how he learned so much from his Dad.

wrench13 - Posted - 03/06/2024:  07:10:11

Dont know why anyone would object to this artist! I know every single guitar player I know would sell his sell his left nut to play like Billy! Yeah, he gets off the beaten track when hes not playing a hardcore tune but even then its tasteful and interesting. Me likey, a lot.

EricKimball - Posted - 03/06/2024:  07:37:03

quote:

---

Originally posted by KCJones

Billy Strings (and his band) have sold more banjos and acoustic guitars than anyone else in the last 20 years. They're the best thing that's happened to bluegrass since that O Brother Where Art Thou movie came out.



Imagine young people, high schoolers, even. Spending money on bluegrass albums. Going to bluegrass concerts. Kids arguing about whether Tony Rice was better than Doc Watson in the parking lot. Name the last time a string band was selling 10k tickets a night to a primarily under-30 crowd.

I've also seen people (on BHO) accuse him of literally (literally) selling his soul to Satan. Which I think is kinda neat, that's a pretty high compliment for a guitarist. 

---

Wanted to comment on this, I bought my first banjo just a few months ago. The first time I heard banjo and thought "I should do that" was when I heard Nora Brown on the local radio station in Salt Lake City sometime around 2021. I'm 24 now, and exactly like those folks under 30 crowding those concert halls. Still very new and not very well studied on the music, but eager to learn and excited to be here.

Between Nora Brown, Billy Strings, and Rhiannon Giddens there's always something I can easily recommend to friends and people around my age, no matter what kind of music they're into. Billy seems to really draw in the metal and psych rock crowd, a few of the folks I've shown come back in a couple weeks asking "Heard any Scruggs? Watson? Did'ya know that Steve Martin plays the banjo??" Those always get a chuckle out of me. There's a whole set of American musical history and tradition myself (and others) were ignorant to before these artists started coming out and selling these records. Pretty cool, if you ask me.

phb - Posted - 03/06/2024:  08:24:51

There is a lot that Billy Strings plays on stage that isn't bluegrass even in a loose meaning of the word. If Bill Monroe and Elvis Presley had swapped roles in the 1950s and Bill had achieved superstar status while Elvis would have remained relatively unknown, Billy Strings's music is pretty much what the late 1960s would have made out of it.

The Old Timer - Posted - 03/06/2024:  08:46:24

When I first became aware of Mr. String (as Sonny Osborne called him sometimes), I was turned off pretty fast by his "bad boy" (drugs) past, his raggedy-ass looks, his plugged-in instruments, etc.

Yes, I AM old...

Thanks to SiriusXM Bluegrass Junction I've heard a lot of his recordings. I have to give him credit for his selection of band members, they can really pick! Banjo, fiddle and mandolin come across as very strong and very skilled at bluegrass. And his guitar skills too. Plus they play other stuff. I don't care much for Mr. String's voice, but who knows how he will develop?

I greatly respected his band's physical appearance when they appeared at the Ryman, in hats and western suits.

I have come to grudgingly admire Mr. String as a very capable bluegrasser, who has tapped into a new, large, lucrative audience.

I am happy for his success.

I particularly enjoy his new cut Browns Ferry Blues.

He's a lot more "bluegrass" than a lot of the tripe I hear on SiriusXM.

eagleisland - Posted - 03/06/2024:  09:04:51

quote:

---

Originally posted by EricKimball

---

Wanted to comment on this, I bought my first banjo just a few months ago. The first time I heard banjo and thought "I should do that" was when I heard Nora Brown on the local radio station in Salt Lake City sometime around 2021. I'm 24 now, and exactly like those folks under 30 crowding those concert halls. Still very new and not very well studied on the music, but eager to learn and excited to be here.

Between Nora Brown, Billy Strings, and Rhiannon Giddens there's always something I can easily recommend to friends and people around my age, no matter what kind of music they're into. Billy seems to really draw in the metal and psych rock crowd, a few of the folks I've shown come back in a couple weeks asking "Heard any Scruggs? Watson? Did'ya know that Steve Martin plays the banjo??" Those always get a chuckle out of me. There's a whole set of American musical history and tradition myself (and others) were ignorant to before these artists started coming out and selling these records. Pretty cool, if you ask me.

---

NIcely said, Eric. Welcome to the Banjo Hangout - and the wonderful music these infernal machines are capable of creating!

1935tb-11 - Posted - 03/06/2024:  10:10:17

quote:

---

Originally posted by The Old Timer

When I first became aware of Mr. String (as Sonny Osborne called him sometimes), I was turned off pretty fast by his "bad boy" (drugs) past, his raggedy-ass looks, his plugged-in instruments, etc.



Yes, I AM old...



Thanks to SiriusXM Bluegrass Junction I've heard a lot of his recordings. I have to give him credit for his selection of band members, they can really pick! Banjo, fiddle and mandolin come across as very strong and very skilled at bluegrass. And his guitar skills too. Plus they play other stuff. I don't care much for Mr. String's voice, but who knows how he will develop?



I greatly respected his band's physical appearance when they appeared at the Ryman, in hats and western suits.



I have come to grudgingly admire Mr. String as a very capable bluegrasser, who has tapped into a new, large, lucrative audience.



I am happy for his success.



I particularly enjoy his new cut Browns Ferry Blues.



He's a lot more "bluegrass" than a lot of the tripe I hear on SiriusXM.

---

if you remember back about 65 years ago the hardcore bluegrass listeners of that time said the same thing about 2 brothers named osborne ,,,,,   they didn't sound like bill or lester and earl.  so they were not really bluegrass.....  they just sold records and played packed shows

Edited by - 1935tb-11 on 03/06/2024 10:12:20

steve davis - Posted - 03/06/2024:  11:48:20

and Bill Monroe hated the New Grass Revival early on.
It's a good thing bad reviews don't stop creative players from playing.

1935tb-11 - Posted - 03/07/2024:  07:22:14

quote:

---

Originally posted by 1935tb-11

quote:

---

Originally posted by The Old Timer

When I first became aware of Mr. String (as Sonny Osborne called him sometimes), I was turned off pretty fast by his "bad boy" (drugs) past, his raggedy-ass looks, his plugged-in instruments, etc.



Yes, I AM old...



Thanks to SiriusXM Bluegrass Junction I've heard a lot of his recordings. I have to give him credit for his selection of band members, they can really pick! Banjo, fiddle and mandolin come across as very strong and very skilled at bluegrass. And his guitar skills too. Plus they play other stuff. I don't care much for Mr. String's voice, but who knows how he will develop?



I greatly respected his band's physical appearance when they appeared at the Ryman, in hats and western suits.



I have come to grudgingly admire Mr. String as a very capable bluegrasser, who has tapped into a new, large, lucrative audience.



I am happy for his success.



I particularly enjoy his new cut Browns Ferry Blues.



He's a lot more "bluegrass" than a lot of the tripe I hear on SiriusXM.

---

if you remember back about 65 years ago the hardcore bluegrass listeners of that time said the same thing about 2 brothers named osborne ,,,,,   they didn't sound like bill or lester and earl.  so they were not really bluegrass.....  they just sold records and played packed shows

---

i said 65 years ago,, imeant 55 years ago

chuckv97 - Posted - 03/07/2024:  07:44:41

I remember the mid 1970’s when bluegrass festivals were attracting the younger set,, kind of rowdy, irreverent, but enthusiastic (although I wonder how many stayed with the music after they went home). Anyway, Doc Watson was playing his set one evening at Bluegrass Canada , a fstvl near Hamilton, Ontario, when the screeching and hooting and yeehawing got so loud he stopped in the middle of a song and reprimanded the s**tkickers to tone it down, saying he’d played big folk festivals during the 1960’s and you could hear a pin drop, people were so attentive. Fast forward 50 years ,,, let the whoops & screeching continue….

wrench13 - Posted - 03/07/2024:  09:26:02

Ebullient crowds = hootin' and hollerin'. A player who can elicit that reaction has to have something special.

bjcolor - Posted - 04/05/2024:  13:12:41

Not about Banjo specifically (unless you consider JD Crowe in his band)--but about Bluegrass...Jimmy Martin was never admitted into grand ol opry. Why not? Bunch of reasons I expect but talent and originality were not among them! Just unique.

RB3 - Posted - 04/05/2024:  15:45:48

I'm not as excited about him as some people are, but he's gained the respect of a lot of musicians for whom I have great respect and admiration, so I'm glad to see that he's achieving success.

I'm not crazy about the name though; I think Billy Frets would have been a better choice. I think that it's well past the time that we should have a legitimate Bluegrass artist who has a single name like Sting or Slash. I think that's what he should have done when he chose his stage name.

Ira Gitlin - Posted - 04/06/2024:  07:07:26

quote:

---

Originally posted by RB3

I'm not crazy about the name though; I think Billy Frets would have been a better choice. I think that it's well past the time that we should have a legitimate Bluegrass artist who has a single name like Sting or Slash. I think that's what he should have done when he chose his stage name.

---

As I understand it, the name was bestowed on him when he was a little kid. He grew up with it.