Mountain music originated in the Appalachians. Terry Kruger’s CD “Mountain Bluebird”, produced by Dirk Powell, captures the original sounds of old timey Mountain Bluegrass Banjo. Terry started playing bluegrass banjo in the 60s, and never stopped. He learned the old fashioned way by slowing down Earl Scruggs records to “a growl”, and painstakingly copying what he heard. In the early days, there were no web sites, instruction books, teachers of the style, or even tablature. The “listen and try” method of learning Bluegrass Banjo produces an interesting result. Students develop an “offshoot”, or variation of Scruggs style, which to the casual ear sounds like Earl, but uses different combinations of the rolls, phrases and licks. Therein lies the art. The “teach yourself” banjo method produced a lot of bluegrass banjo players in the 50s and 60s, many of whom became famous in the early bands – names like JD Crowe, Allen Shelton, Sonny Osborne, and Ralph Stanley. The interesting thing is , although many of these early players with “offshoot”, or variant Scruggs styles joined the Bluegrass bands of the day, many others stayed home, or “on the farm”. Terry is one of these players, and he has finally taken the time to do a CD. “Mountain Bluebird” is very different than most other banjo instrumental CDs. It offers a sort of alternate “Scruggs” picking. As well, while incorporating Bluegrass banjo rolls, Terry often uses old time mountain tunings, with licks and phrasing that seem to come right out of a cabin on a mountain top . Dirk Powell, who is a brilliant artist and expert in Old Time Mountain music produced and played on “Mountain Bluebird”. Dirk’s Clawhammer banjo fits beautifully with the “Mountain” Bluegrass banjo. Kevin Wimmer, a fabulous Cajun and Bluegrass fiddler, rounds out the little “ensemble”. For variety, the CD also has an acoustic Delta Blues tune, a sort of ragtime tune, and tunes on the fretless banjo. The CD, “Mountain Bluebird” does have some straight Bluegrass tunes, but as many fans pointed out, it also has a gentleness or sensitivity that makes it completely engaging. Many of the tunes have a distinct old-timey feel, even though they were written recently. Read on through the website to learn more about Terry, and “Mountain Bluebird”.
	E: tpkruger@shaw.ca P: 403-851-1498 Home | Bio | History | Buy CD