It's no secret that I love bluegrass music. I grew up in appalachia and have listened to it since childhood. But it wasn't until a friend took me to see Alison Krauss at The Station Inn in Nashville that I became totally hooked on the genre. She was only 16 at the time and I had the unbelievably good fortune to be seated next to Alison's parents (she had to be chaperoned becuase it was a bar). She wasn't well known at the time and there were maybe only 50-60 people there, but it was one of the most fantastic musical performances I'd ever seen. I'd never heard such a beautiful voice and I was completely awestruck by her talent. Her band, Union Station was great too.
I think though that I was just as impressed by her parents and how proud and supportive they were of her. They simply reeked of pride. I think too that they made me realize how important family is in bluegrass circles. It pretty much defines the genre.
I met a very hard working bluegrass family band last year that lives just a few miles away from here. I went to see them play at a local grange hall and I ended up having a unique and genuinely fantastic time. It was super cool mostly because it was very much a family affair as there were 10 year olds to 80 year olds all in attendance and all enjoyed the show with equal enthusiasm. You just don't see that very often.
But when Chittlin', the young 14 year old singer of this particular band sang, I got chills that reminded me of the first time I saw Alison Krauss. She's very shy in person and a little bit awkward, but on stage she has a fabulous presence that I can't quite explain but she can captivate you and I'm not sure that she's even aware of the fact that she does it. As a singer, she's strong and forceful.
I absolutely adore this little girl, but her power comes from her family. Mother (Valerie), father (David) and brother (Bass Boy) and she seems to be fully aware of that at least. It's fairly obvious that they've had a difficult row to hoe in making their mark as a bluegrass family band and my hat goes off to David and Valerie for putting together and holding together such a great combination of family and music. To me, they represent the very epitome of what bluegrass means and I have huge respect for them and what they've accomplished together.
It may be too late for David and Valerie, but I think Chittlin' and Bass Boy are going to be forces to reckon with in the coming years in the bluegrass world and I'm betting that that'll be enough for Mom and Dad. They done good.
Here's Chittlin's new music video called "Ready for the Times", with a little help from Mom and Dad and brother. For those of you with a slow pipe, give it lot's of time to load. It's a high quality video, and oh so well worth the wait.
