
The Grim Reaper took it relatively easy this month. The headline deaths were those of bluegrass legend Earl Scruggs and Robert B Sherman, who with his brother wrote Disney standards for films such as 101 Dalmations , The Jungle Book and Mary Poppins . The idea for Let's Go Fly A Kite, from Mary Poppins , apparently was inspired by the Sherman brothers' father, Al Sherman, who was a songwriter and hobby kitemaker. But perhaps the most interesting lifestory to reach its end in March was that of Australian musician and AIDS activist [...]

As you might have read, banjo wizard Earl Scruggs died recently at age 88. Although he is often remembered as part of the Grammy-winning duo Flatt & Scruggs, his career flourished for over four decades after the twosome split in 1969. Along the way he became one of the most admired and influential musicians in the history of American music. Earl Eugene Scruggs grew up in Depression-era North Carolina, and picked up his first banjo - his late father's - while still a child. By the time he'd grown up and was working professionally he had [...]
This is when I remember hearing, for the first time, bluegrass and a banjo.

"She tells me she comes from my mother the mountain, her skin fits her tightly, and her lips do not lie..." Presenting a folkish and countryish six pack for musical climbers. Original big rock candy mountain artwork by the incomparable Joni. Townes Van Zandt - Our Mother The Mountain MP3 Sunforest - Magician In The Mountain MP3 Harry McClintock - The Big Rock Candy Mountain MP3 The Flatlanders - Keeper Of The Mountain MP3 [...]