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Music
Del McCoury taking bluegrass to Bonnaroo and beyond
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By Don Thrasher,
Contributing writer
7:04 PM Thursday, January 21, 2010
Del McCoury is one of the true stars of bluegrass, but he refuses to be pigeonholed.
The 70-year-old native of York, Pa., has managed to take his music to a wider audience by embracing contemporary songs and interesting performance opportunities. And he’s achieved all this while sticking to what he does best: good-old fashioned hillbilly music.
McCoury, who will perform at a Cityfolk-sponsored concert at The Masonic Center in Dayton on Saturday, Jan. 23, took time recently for a brief Q&A.
Q: How is everything?
A: “Things are great. I feel good and still feel like singing, but I’m 70 now. You never know when I might retire. You know how it is when you get old, you have no guarantees.”
Q: What’s it like playing bluegrass at Bonnaroo?
A: It’s great. We were the first bluegrass band to play Bonnaroo. I didn’t know if anybody there would want to listen to bluegrass and there was a big crowd for us. It kind of surprised me.”
Q: You’ve covered contemporary songs, but you’ve remained true to your bluegrass roots. What keeps you devoted to that sound?
A: “I couldn’t ever bring myself to change. I like the makeup of the early bands I’ve heard, especially Bill Monroe, because there was just something about that combination that really clicked. He set such a great standard in the ’40s.”
Q: You spent time in Monroe’s band as a young man. What did you take away from that experience?
A: “Bill was not a teacher, but if you listened or watched, you could learn from him. We all did. He wouldn’t say, ‘You play this guitar like this. You sing this part like this.’ There was none of that. He just left you out there on a limb to do something and any minute that limb is going to break off. That was the way he did it. When I came in, he really never said anything. All he wanted was for you to get up on that stage and work hard like he did. That was all he looked for.”
Q: You’ve got dates coming up with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. How has it been trying to blend bluegrass and jazz?”
A: “I tell you, there are so many similarities between the two genres of music. The old guy that plays the clarinet in that band and Jason (Carter), my fiddle player, will trade licks on those instruments and it’s so much alike. Both bands are really enthused about playing together.”
Contact contributing arts and music writer Don Thrasher at donaldthrasher8@aol.com
How to go
Who: Cityfolk presents the Del McCoury Band
Where: Masonic Center, 525 W. Riverview Ave., Dayton
When: 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 23
Cost: $17-$32
More info: (937) 496-3863 or www.cityfolk.org
Artist info: www.delmccouryband.com
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