| Subject: | [RESOGUIT-L] My Friend Gary..... | | Date: | Sunday, October 1, 2006 10:10:16 (-0400) | | From: | llobro <llobro @......net>
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I received this e-mail today from my friend Quiverdart and thought I would pass
it on ( with his permission ).
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Howdy, Lloyd.
Well, Ol Unc passed away yesterday. I am surprised he lasted as long as he did
what with having both legs amputated & both giving him trouble afterwards. He was 81 years old. Man, he accomplished a lot in 81 years.
There will never be anybody else do what he did ... that only comes along once.
I think he got it about right, though.
People say that Bill Monroe was "The Father of Bluegrass." I reckon so, but
arguably Uncle Josh was the Daddy Of Bluegrass. Mr. Monroe is like the
"Biological" Father, but Uncle Josh is the one that raised it up.
Bluegrass was struggling along until Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs formed their
own band (The Foggy Mountain Boys), and even Lester and Earl did not hit their
stride until they got Uncle Josh on board. The results literally changed history.
Sure... Bluegrass would likely still be around. Maybe even a few Dobro pickers
could be found. But neither area would be what it is today without Uncle Josh.
Everybody knows what Earl Scruggs did with his three finger Banjo style he
perfected. Absolutely give credit where it is due! But, in all likelihood,
nowhere near as many people would have even ever heard of Earl without Uncle Josh
backing him up with that one-of-a-kind Dobro sound all those years.
Everybody knows what a great picker Jerry Douglas is...but does anyone ever
consider where he might have been if Uncle Josh had not paved the way? Maybe a
great Mandolin picker, or a really good brick layer? Who knows? The same is
likely true for all the new "Dobro Warriors" that grace the stages and recordings
in such numbers these days.
You can't know where you are going unless you realize where you came from.
Any Dobro picker worth his salt recognizes that shadow they are standing in.
It belongs to lil old Uncle Josh "Buck" Graves, The Daddy of Bluegrass Dobro as
we know it.
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My Friend Gary....
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