My Trip to IBMA's "World of Bluegrass," 2009 & More!

I left home on Thursday September 24th, a full 4 days before the IBMA "World of Bluegrass" was slated to begin.  My trip to Nashville is my only out of town vacation and since I am a true Bluegrass "NUT" I use these extra few days to fuel my passion for Bluegrass.

On my way to Nashville I realized I would arrive very early in the afternoon and since I had no plans that part of the day I took a side trip to Sparta, Tennessee to visit Lester Flatt's grave site.  On my way into Sparta I saw a very old and time worn sign proclaiming Sparta as the "Home of Lester Flatt."  It would not surprise me that by the next generation or so that the sign will disappear entirely.  I had no idea where to look, as I had never been to Sparta, so I stopped by a McDonalds and spoke to the "old timers" there enjoying coffee if they know where Lester was buried.  Only a few even knew who he was and none of them could tell me where he was buried.  So, what to do?  I found the Court House in the center of town and went in and asked.  An older gentleman there said he didn't know but asked me to wait and he left the room to ask someone else.  When he returned he told me the name of the cemetery and how to get to it.  Lester is buried in a private cemetery owned by a funeral parlor right there on site of the cemetery.  A fellow there pointed to the area where Lester was buried.  This cemetery is of the type where there are no tomb stones, only brass plaques set into the ground.  I had to brush away the grass clippings to even read it and get a decent picture. Notice the tiny guitar between the dates.  As a Bluegrass fan and lover of the great material of Flatt & Scruggs I am embarrassed that there is nothing beyond this simple brass plaque to commemorate Lester is his own hometown.  Perhaps there is someone who do something to erect a more representative monument to the great Lester Flatt as he has meant so much to Bluegrass and always will.

I stayed at the Red Roof Inn just off I-40 in the west end of Nashville that first night and ate dinner at a very nice restaurant called Darfon's Restaurant.  I've been there before and always look forward to a delicious meal there.  That night I drove down to the Station Inn to hear whatever group might be playing there that night.  It so happened that the Josh Williams Band was playing that night.  He was very good, but it seemed he could not get the audience on his side.  Josh's music was very good and entertaining, but I was very weary from my long drive (600 miles), so I could not stay beyond midnight.

On Friday I drove up to Owensboro, Kentucky and renewed my membership with the International Bluegrass Music Museum (IBMM).  Click on the link here and take a little time to explore all that your IBMM has to offer.  One of the most important projects the museum is undertaking is making video interviews with the first and second generation singers and pickers of our music.  A few have passed before this project was undertaken, but now over 250 have been interviewed and preserved for us and out future generations to enjoy and learn from.  Also, every spring they present "ROMP" the "River Of Music Party."  This is a full scale Bluegrass festival over 4 days.  There's much more going on with the IBMM than I can share here, so check out the web site by clicking on the link above.  One more thing; the inductees into the IBMA Hall of Fame are honored at the IBMM where the official Hall of Fame is located.  I toured the museum again (this was my 5th time there!) and enjoyed a couple of hours reveling in our music.  I contacted Gabrielle Gray, the director of the IBMM and enjoyed a pleasant dinner with her at the Moonlite Bar-B-Q (You simply must eat at the Moonlite when you visit Owensboro!).  I stayed overnight in Owensboro and drove back to Nashville on Saturday.  Again I had plenty of time and decided to take a side trip to Rosine, Kentucky, the birth place of Bill Monroe.  The same weekend as "Fan Fest" at IBMA there is a festival on Jerusalem Ridge just above Bill Monroe's restored ancestral home.  I believe that it is called "Bill Monroe Days Bluegrass Festival."  There were several campers already on the ridge and many people around Bill's house. Below are a few pics around the inside of the house.

I also went to the cemetery and took some pictures of Bill's and Uncle Pen's graves.

From there I drove back to Nashville and went back down to the Station Inn to see Ronnie Bowman & The Committee. Ronnie is there every year on the Saturday before IBMA.  I must tell you that I had grown tired of seeing him each year, but now I really don't think my trip to IBMA would be complete without seeing Ronnie Bowman at the Station Inn.

On Sunday I drove down to Bell Buckle, Tennessee to enjoy the "Dare To Be Different" showcase acts presented by Valerie Smith & Becky Buller along with the Bell Buckle Records label.  There was food served as well as several Bluegrass bands on stage.  Seven hundred dollars was raised and presented to the IBMA "Bluegrass in the Schools" program during the Thursday awards luncheon in Nashville later that week.  Here a a few pics taken in the quaint little town of Bell Buckle.

Also, here are a couple of pics taken during the Dare To Be Different showcases.       

Monday morning and the IBMA World of Bluegrass officially began.  I must tell you I don't attend many of the seminars offered at IBMA, but I do so enjoy meeting up with old friends and meeting new people each year.  I spent my Monday morning moving about the hotel and the Nashville Convention Center visiting and generally getting re-acquainted with the IBMA layout.  Finally the exhibit hall opened at 3PM and I spent the next 3 hours going from booth to booth.  While walking around the exhibit hall I happened upon Becky Buller trying out a new Louzee (Brand Name) Banjo and took these three great photos.

I was disappointed this year when I learned the Geoff & Sherry Stelling weren't going to be at IBMA.  Lagging sales due to the worsening economy coupled with some other issues combined to make the trip to IBMA one they simply couldn't justify this year.  I consider them great friends and they were missed by me and many other folks, as well.  With Sherry Stelling not around I was forced to make friends with the wife of another Banjo maker, Janet Deering.

Most of you should be aware that I decided to not present our after hours showcases this year.  I was therefore free to wander about from showcase to showcase each evening and while, at first, I felt a little odd not doing the "Night Owl Concerts" I soon began to enjoy myself.  I must do a lot of thinking and getting advice before deciding to do them next year.  The first three days at IBMA were filled with showcases by day and night and were greatly enjoyed.  A very special treat for me, since I booked them into our Night Owl Concerts sight unseen and unheard was the official IBMA showcase set by Gold Heart.  This family band transplanted themselves into Virginia about five years ago and have since played many small and large venues and were just this year picked up by Rural Rhythm Records.  Congratulations to Gold Heart! I gradually re-set my internal clock and by Wednesday I was able to stay up until 3:30AM with ease and get up at around 9AM the next day.  Thursday was a very special day at the IBMA World of Bluegrass as it is on this day that the "Special Awards Luncheon" and the "IBMA Awards Show" occurred.  First, during the luncheon there were awards given for Bluegrass Broadcaster of the Year, Katy Daley of WAMU Radio; Bluegrass Event of the Year, The Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival in Oak Hill, New York; Best Graphic Design for a Recorded project, Greg Carr & Sally Ratts for The Crow by Steve Martin; Best Liner Notes for a Recorded Project, Steve Martin, writer for The Crow; Print Media Person of the Year, Roger Siminoff for Siminoff's Luthier Glossary, Banjo Newsletter and Bluegrass Breakdown.   To me, the thing that made this luncheon so special was the five distinguished achievement awards that were given to Hylo Brown, Pati Crooker, Dick Spottswood,  Joe Wilson and our very own Jody Rainwater.  The speech for Jody was given by Penny Parsons and was well presented with many photographs.  I have included a few here.  I do not know the original photographer, but rest assured these photos are not mine.

 

There's a lot more to tell you about my trip to IBMA, but this has gone way too long as it is, so I'll end up here and let you digest this before inundating you with more.  Next time I'll cover the awards show with lots of photos! By the way, I just learned how to add invisible captions to my photos.  Simply move the mouse pointer over the photo and the caption will appear.  Until, perhaps this weekend.....

"NUFF SAID!"