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Message 4906
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| Subject: | Re: [RESOGUIT-L] Josh Graves, R.I.P. | | Date: | Sunday, October 1, 2006 10:42:31 (-0400) | | From: | Robert Kordas <bnjo @...net>
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Damn it all is right.
Josh had hung in there like a cat with nine lives, with the help of
his wonderfully supportive family and all the thousands of fans that
offered their support in so many ways. Fund raisers, tributes,
visitors, cards & letters, and piles of CD's that other Dobro
players sent in. And the project started by Leroy Mack, Paul Beard,
this list, and a pile of other people resulting in remodelling his
house to make his last years a lot safer & more comfortable. Josh
often remarked that he didn't know he had so many friends.
I'm forwarding this biography that was circulating on our New
England bluegrass list.
Play a bit of "Maiden's Prayer" for him, it was his most requested song.
Bob Kordas
Biography:
Josh Graves (born Burkett Graves) was one of the major forces keeping
the unique sounds of the Dobro alive in both country and bluegrass
music. Born and raised in Tellico Springs, TN, he was only nine when he
heard Cliff Carlisle of the Carlisle Brothers performing a few Jimmie
Rodgers tunes on the Dobro. Though he would spend the early part of his
career as a bassist, Graves loved the sound of the Dobro and would
eventually become one of its greatest supporters and innovators.
In 1942, Graves joined the Pierce Brothers. Later he played with Esco
Hankins and Mac Wiseman before becoming a member of the Wheeling
Jamboree with Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper, where he remained through
the mid-'50s. During a performance with the Coopers at the Grand Ole
Opry, Graves made a big impression upon Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs,
who invited him to join their Foggy Mountain Boys. In the late '50s,
acoustic instruments were out of favor due to the popularity of rock &
roll; the survival of the Dobro as an important instrument in country
can largely be attributed to Graves, who electrified audiences with a
red-hot picking style and then cooled them down with bluesy, sweet
mellowness. An essential part of his technique was a three-finger
banjo-roll move, adapted from Scruggs himself.
Graves remained a primary member of the Foggy Mountain Boys until the
group disbanded in 1969. Afterward, he joined Flatt's Nashville Grass
and did session work on the side. In 1971, he began playing with the
Earl Scruggs Review; three years later, he went solo with the LP Alone
at Last. He also continued session work, playing with artists like
Charlie McCoy, J.J. Cale, Steve Young, and Kris Kristofferson, and
collaborating with other musicians. He continued in a similar vein
through the 1980s and '90s, teaming with such greats as Kenny Baker,
Eddie Adcock, and Jesse McReynolds in 1989 to form the Masters. He also
released a series of masterful dobro recordings, including King of the
Dobro (1996), Sultan of Slide (2000), and the poignant Memories of
Foggy Mountain (2002). The Gibson Corporation also developed a Graves
signature-model dobro, built to his specifications. ~ Johnny Loftus,
All Music Guide
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