11/27/02
The virtuosity of David Grier
Flat-picking wizard comes to Asheville
By Jay Hardwig
When
bluegrass fans describe David Grier, they usually start with the word
flat-picking. What comes next is a matter of personal choice —
phenom, wizard and virtuoso have all been used — and is often
said with respect bordering on awe. Grier is known not just for fiery
fingerwork but for his ability to mix tradition and innovation. He comes by the tradition honestly — his father, Lamar Grier, was one of Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys in the 1960s, and the younger Grier learned at the feet and fingers of such bluegrass luminaries as Monroe and Clarence White. As an innovator, Grier has been tagged everything from progressive to new grass to just plain restless, and is known for exploring rock, jazz, and traditional folk music in his recordings with Grass is Greener, Psychograss, and Phillips, Grier, & Flinner. While Clarence White and Tony Rice are clear influences, Grier also credits Hendrix, Clapton, Ry Cooder, and Django Reinhardt as inspiration.
Psychograss in particular is known for its eclectic approach to traditional music; Grier calls the occasional supergroup “my chance to color outside the lines.” In the past 15 years, the guitarist has picked up more awards that you can shake a stick at, even if you’re a pretty handy stick-shaker: He’s a three-time International Bluegrass Music Association Guitar Player of the Year, a seven-time Guitar Player Bluegrass Guitarist of the Year, and earned himself a spot as one of Acoustic Guitar magazine’s 15 Artists of the Decade for the 1990s. His Lone Soldier project is listed in that magazine’s 100 Essential Acoustic Guitar Recordings of All Time.
On his latest album, “I’ve Got the House To Myself,” released on his own Dreadnought Records, Grier colors mostly inside the lines, delivering a plateful of solo instrumentals that find him at his flat-picking finest. Enchanting, melodic, lightning-fast without losing its soul, “House to Myself” mixes originals with a few old chestnuts (“Turkey in the Straw,” “John Henry,” “Arkansas Traveler”) for an album that is both accomplished and serene. David Grier is pretty handy with six strings. Come Wednesday at Jack of the Wood, he’ll have the stage to himself and the chance to color wherever he wants. Should be a pretty picture.