Posted by kent powell on August 25, 19102 at 13:12:56:
In Reply to: "That ain't Bluegrass!" posted by barry on July 08, 19102 at 14:57:28:
I've been reading through this discussion thread, and all I can say is "who cares". When it comes down to it, anything outside of Bill Monroe's band is an imitation. That's not to say that the music isn't good, only that everyone else has been trying to imitate Monroe in one way or another. When Flatt and Scruggs left Monroe, they started their own band and replaced the mandolin with a resonater guitar. Arguably, they could be seen as another string band and not bluegrass. Frankly, I get tired of the arguement as what is BG and what isn't. Music is music, and whether or not it's good is in the ear of the beholder. As Pete Wernick says, "If it sounds good, it must be good!" Finally, Nickel Creek is not another bunch of talented musicians. They are are truly gifted, and non more so than Chris Theile (sp?). I saw this kid playing with Richard Greene's group in Owensboro in 1993. I beleive he was approximately 12 or 13 at that time. He had more soul than most of the other musicians that I saw that whole week. He is gifted as only a hand few are (Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Mark O'Conner,etc).