Bluegrass Jam Along Bluegrass Jam Along

My guest this week is Chris Pandolfi, banjo player with The Infamous Stringdusters and also the host of my favourite podcast, Inside the Musician's Brain.

We chat about the podcast and the lessons Chris  learned from it, as well as how the lessons we learn through music can be applied to life (and vice versa). There's so much in here, from talking about music as a journey and how the players who inspire us are on that same journey as us, to learning to be present and in the moment and how to notice and let go of tension when we play.

It was an really inspiring conversation and I hope you love it as much as I did.

Here's Chris's podcast - Inside the Musician's Brain

For info on what's going on with The Stringdusters, check out The Infamous Stringdusters website

You can also get updates and check out what Chris is up to via his Instagram account

Happy picking!
Matt

My guest on the podcast this week is guitarist and Peghead Nation founder Scott Nygaard.

We chat about playing with Chris Thile and Tim O'Brien, including how Scott got the gig with Tim after a chance meeting. We also talk about how Peghead Nation was founded, the IBMA Distinguished Achievement Award they're receiving next month and how the site has developed over the years.

We also cover various other topics, including improvising, Scott's musical influences, the importance of going back to the sources of fiddle tunes and Scott's forthcoming record, which was heavily influenced by recovering from a serious bike accident last year.

I really enjoyed our chat and hope you do too.

You can find out more at Scott's website and see the full range of courses and sign up (which I highly recommend) at Pehgead Nation

Happy picking.
Matt

My guest this week is Cameron Knowler.

Cameron is a multi-instrumentalist who specialises in bluegrass, old time and jazz. I was first introduced to Cameron by Bob Minner, who I interviewed back in March 2022 (episode #177).

Cameron also writes regularly for Acoustic Guitar magazine and has written a fascinating book called 'Guitars Have Feelings Too - A Method for Rural Guitarists', which looks in depth at the relationship between old-time and bluegrass guitar and how both styles have developed progressively (as well as what we can learn as guitarists by looking back towards the source of many of the fiddle tunes we play).

The ideas in the book, and how they relate to playing acoustic music, form the main part of the interview. I found this one fascinating and hope you do too!

You'll find more info at Cameron's website as well as his YouTube channel and Instagram account.

This week we've got something I haven't done in a while - a mini jam episode. That means we're playing 3 tunes back to back instead of focussing on just one. The idea is it feels a bit more like playing at a jam session. I know some of you use these tracks to work up to attending a jam so hopefully this will help with that!

I've gone for the 3 most popular tunes from the first year and a bit of the podcast. They are:
Cherokee Shuffle in A (starts at 1:30)Whiskey Before Breakfast in D (starts at 9:32)Turkey in the Straw in G (starts at 16:49)
We're doing all three at 75bpm and each tune follows our regular 'jam along' format. That means I play backup and you play lead, then we swap, then we repeat the whole thing another 3 times. The whole jam lasts around 25 minutes.
If you want chord charts for these tunes,  head to bluegrassjamalong.com, where you'll also find details of how to get in touch. I'd love to hear any feedback on these mini jams so do let me know what you think.
Thanks,
Matt

Hi everyone.

This is another Food For Thought episode and it centres around the idea of perfection.  Chris Eldridge said something recently that made me think about letting go of the idea of playing perfectly - I had an experience at a jam this week that really made me understand what he meant.

Have a listen and feel free to head over to Bluegrass Jamalong's Instagram or Facebook and tell us what you think!

If you haven't read the Brainjo book I mentioned in this episode, I'd really recommend it. Here's the interview I did with Josh Turknett, who wrote it, to give you a sense of what it's about.


Happy picking.

This week we're jamming along to the classic tune Big Sciota and I've got  three brand new backing track episodes for you. This is the jam along track where I play backup, then the tune and we swap over.  It's four times through in the key of G at 85 bpm.


backing track starts at 00:32
Don't forget to check out the other three episodes when you're done.

If you want a chord chart (or just want to find out more or get in touch), just head to bluegrassjamalong.com