edited by Thomas Goldsmith
contributions by L Mayne Smith, Mike Seeger, Joe Wilson, Wayne Erbsen, Doug Hutchens, Jon Weisberger, Bob Artis, Alan Lomax, Ralph Rinzler, Tom Teepen, James Rooney, Richard Harrington, Sam Charters, Michael J Melford, Hunter S Thompson, Charles Wolfe, Doug Tuchman, Peter V Kuykendall, Alice Foster, Fred Bartenstein, Connie Walker, Marty Stuart, John Duffey, Robert Cantwell, Walt V Saunders, John Kaparakis, Peter Rowan, Vassar Clements, David Grisman, Kathy Sawyer, Steve Arkin, Dick Kimmel, Rich Kienzle, John Hartley Fox, Tim Stafford, Bill Vernon, Alan Steiner, Jack Bernhardt, Jim Macnie, Ben Ratliff, Robert K Oermann, Mary Bufwack, Thomas A. Adler, Peter Wernick, Murphy Henry, Pete Wernick, Sandy Rothman, Tom Piazza, Neil Strauss, Baker Maultsby, David Gates, Neil V Rosenberg, Mac Wiseman, Paul F Wells and Jack Tottle
University of Illinois Press, 2004
Paper: 978-0-252-07365-6 | Cloth: 978-0-252-02914-1
Library of Congress Classification ML3520.B54 2004
Dewey Decimal Classification 781.642

ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC
ABOUT THIS BOOK
In The Bluegrass Reader, Thomas Goldsmith joins his insights as a journalist with a lifetime of experience in bluegrass to capture the full story of this beloved American music. Inspired by the question “What articles about bluegrass would you want to have with you on a desert island?” he assembled a delicious, fun-to-read collection that brings together a wide range of the very best in bluegrass writing.

Goldsmith’s substantial introduction describes and traces the development of the music from its origins in Anglo-American folk tradition, overlaid with African American influences, to the breakout popularity of Ralph Stanley, Alison Krauss, and the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack. He introduces each selection offering a wealth of additional information, making The Bluegrass Reader both enjoyable and invaluable for new fans of the music as well as for its lifetime devotees.