Search - Tony Ellis :: Sounds Like Bluegrass to Me

Sounds Like Bluegrass to Me, writes producer Stephen Wade, is an homage to a style, to a way of playing, and above all, to an awakening. Each of this albums four players has journeyed through bluegrass, mastered the form, and contributed to the idiom. North Carolina banjoist Tony Ellis became enthralled with bluegrass in 1954, when he heard Bill Monroe on a local radio broadcast. He later recorded and toured with Monroe in the early 1960s. In the intervening years, Tony has remained active in music by performing and recording. Since playing with Monroe, Tonys music, much of it original, has included bluegrass, old-time and Celtic themes. His celebrated releases over the last 15 years have appeared on the Flying Fish, Arhoolie and County labels. With Sounds Like Bluegrass to Me, Tony recreates the music that first inspired him more than 40 years ago. A hand-picked set of the musics front-line performers assist. Dudley Connell offers one of the most expressive lead voices in bluegrass. With the Johnson Mountain Boys, he was at the fore-front in the 1980s revival of traditional bluegrass. Today, he enjoys popularity as the lead singer of the Seldom Scene. Tom Gray rates as one of the most celebrated bass players in bluegrass. Taking his cues from early recordings that contained the bass work of the legendary George Shuffler, Tom excels with a driving, walking bass style. He won acclaim for this playing with extended stints with the Country Gentlemen and the Seldom Scene. Fiddler Les Woodie is counted among the tier of first generation bluegrass performers. A highlight of his career is his work with the Stanley Brothers, with whom he recorded for Columbia in the early 1950s. His fiddle intro to the mountain ! ballad I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow remains a classic to this day. Sounds Like Bluegrass to Me not only draws songs from bluegrass early days, it captures the unmistakable feel of this classic form. During a playback of tracks in the studio, a casual observation by Dudley Connell succinctly described the proceedings when he observed, It sounds like bluegrass to me. The CD is accompanied by a 20-page booklet which discusses the recording, the musicians and song histories. BAND_MEMBERS: Tony Ellis, Dudley Connell, Tom Gray, Lester Woodie