New Blood for Bluegrass:-)
Drove over to Ledbetter's Squat Saturday last to have Spade Graves
check the
new paint job on the Yugo (it was peeling off in big grey sheets).
Spade
told me to "tell it to the Navy." So I went to his ex-partner in car
painting and bluegrass, Little Bobby Littlebob. Little Bobby (LB) told
me you get what you pay for and that he would totally strip and repaint
my motor classic (red this time) for $445.00. (He's also redoing the
body on my old rusty National Steel Dobro for a price to be determined.
Anyways, LB was the original bass player for TBGBFH (The Blue Grass
Band
From Hell). And because he is a small man, he would play the bass
without that spike thing sticking out the bottom.
Anyways, we hadn't spoken for a while due to the GPS (Great Paint
Schism) and of course the conversation got around to bluegrass.
I was telling him about the Bluegrass List and how a lot of folks are
concerned about the future of Bluegrass.
He said, "Oh Hell, hard times was back in the 50's and 60's. Like Shade
Gap, Pennsylvania, somewhere around 1969 where the bands outnumbered
the
spectators. And these bands were like Monroe, Osborns, Reno, Jim and
Jesse, Jimmy Martin, Lester Flatt, Doc Watson, maybe Ralph Stanley
(can't remember when Carter died), possibly the Country Gentlemen,
Cliff
Waldron and Bill Emerson and a whole raft more. Probably the Goins, as
they was everywhere then, with that 'Wiggle Worm Wiggle' thing.
Tickets
was cheap. The park was super. You could walk right up and talk with
Bill or any of 'em. Except for Lester, who hid out in the bus. The
thing
was this was the same weekend as that fool Woodstock nonsense. More
talent in the men's room at Shade Gap than at that hippie swamp. Don't
make no sense.
"Then and there I decided Robert Jr. was going to play the bluegrass
music. He was about 11 years then and said he hated bluegrass and loved
acid rock. So I picked up his dinner plate (pork chops, I think) and
his fork and held them over the garbage pail and said 'Well son, I wish
you the best. Good luck. Write us if you get a gig."
"Well, LLB (Little Little Bobby) reckoned he would play the bluegrass
bass like his old man. But being small for his age, he had to use a
cello. Worked out pretty well. He got a band of kids together - banjo,
guitar, and they got right good at it. Me and Spade helped him write
some tunes. And they actually cut a couple of LP's. They sold about as
good as TBGBFH. So he never got to give up his paper route. But to
this
day, he still brings his cello (he never grew that much) to jams and
such and plays the occasional gig with local groups."
At this point, LB had to answer the phone and that was that.
Thursday, when I got the Yugo back home (nice job) there were two LP's
in the way back:
Little Little Bobby Littlebob and The Soggy Bottom Boys Sing
Bluegrass Songs for Kids Volume I : Kiddin' The Bluegrass
These are the songs from that album:
I Can't Quit Raisenettes
Momma Lied
Working on a Bill Ding
Don't Pamper Me
Astronaut's Farewell
The Little Boy with the Rubber Snake
Loony Tune Ramble
A Rowdy Cub Scout's Prayer
We're Really Glad the Old Folks Aren't at Home
Pretty Polly Pockets
Lego Of My Heart
Uncle's Play Pen
The Goosey Gander Stomp
and...
the other album: Little Little Bobby Littlebob and The Soggy Bottom
Boys
Sing Bluegrass Songs for Kids Volume II: Under The Haystack
Too Short to Stand Up in the Men's Room
Rollin' on Plastic Wheels
Rubber Barbie
Eight More Miles to Toys 'R Us
Angels in the Snow
300,000 So Called Uncles in Georgia
Please Don't Sell Daddy Any More Guitar Picks
I Saw Mommy Kissing Bill Monroe
Barbie Allen and Little Willie Ken
Beautiful Four Eyes
Tonka Toy Heart
Hey Diddle Diddle Waltz
Well, I hope somebody's learned something from this. I'm still
trying to sort it out, but I'm pretty sure it has something to
with pork chops.
Rich "Too Rich" Olson
