Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05

Dobro Master Jerry Douglas Glides Into Music on the Mountain August 23

Story by David Brewer

On Saturday, August 23, Dobro master Jerry Douglas will bring his solo band to Boone for a performance at the Music on the Mountain festival at the High Country Fairgrounds. Photo by David Brewer People tend to argue passionately when it comes to proclaiming the best instrumentalist of any kind. With tens of thousands of players spread among dozens of genres and styles, there’s virtually no way to settle on one single player.

Unless of course the instrument happens to be the Dobro, in which case Jerry Douglas remains the undisputed champion.

On Saturday, August 23, the Grammy-winning slide monster, along with his crack band, will perform at the inaugural Music on the Mountain festival at the High Country Fairgrounds.

Internationally recognized as the world’s most renowned Dobro player, Douglas undoubtedly ranks amongst the top contemporary maestros in American music. Douglas has garnered twelve Grammy Awards and numerous International Bluegrass Music Association awards, and holds the distinction of being named Musician of the Year by the Country Music Association (2002, 2005, 2007), the Academy of Country Music (11 times) and the Americana Music Association (2002, 2003).

In 2004, the National Endowment for the Arts honored Douglas with a National Heritage Fellowship, acknowledging his artistic excellence and contribution to the nation’s traditional arts—their highest such accolade.

Douglas’s musical brilliance has graced more than 2,000 recordings by such distinguished artists as James Taylor, Paul Simon, Ray Charles, Lyle Lovett, Elvis Costello, Garth Brooks, Charlie Haden, Earl Scruggs, Phish, Emmylou Harris, Bill Frisell, The Chieftains and the eight million-plus selling soundtrack to O Brother, Where Art Thou? Since 1998, Douglas has been an inimitable member of Alison Krauss & Union Station, and during his career has been a featured player in such groundbreaking bands as The Country Gentlemen, J.D. Crowe & The New South, Boone Creek and Strength in Numbers.

While Douglas has been most visible in recent years as a member of Union Station, the in-demand player will take center stage for his Boone performance, employing his band to perform music from his diverse solo releases.

“I enjoy [playing that music]. It’s hard, challenging music,” said Douglas. “You’re on the whole time. You’re not the one waiting for the next song while somebody does some snappy dialogue up front. You’re the one that has to do the snappy dialogue. You can’t be off tuning or messing with your latest effects pedal.”
Members of Douglas’s band include drummer Doug Belote, bassist Todd Parks, violinist Luke Bulla and guitarist Guthrie Trapp, all of whom are featured prominently on his latest studio release, Glide.

Raised in a steel mill town in Ohio, Douglas said environmental matters have weighed heavily on his mind and on the minds of many artists who rely on diesel-guzzling buses to carry them from town to town. The Nashville resident noted that country giant Willie Nelson runs his bus on biodiesel, while roots pop star Sheryl Crow has biodiesel delivered at various tour stops—both expensive but admirable undertakings.

“I know that Boone is really an eco-conscious town and always has been,” said Douglas. “You’re in such a beautiful area and you want to keep it that way.”
A frequent festival headliner, Douglas noted that at this year’s Telluride Bluegrass Festival, artists were given refillable canteens to use throughout the weekend in lieu of using thousands of plastic water bottles.

“I think it’s admirable, the folks that are leading the way with these initiatives,” said Douglas. “I’m really conscious of it and I try to teach my kids about it.”
Music on the Mountain will also feature a performance by Douglas’s frequent cohort, mandolin master Sam Bush. With both players and their bands coming from Nashville, Douglas mentioned that perhaps he and Bush could share a bus—a sort of world-class musician carpool.

“If he wants to go off and play for three hours that night though, I’m leaving him behind,” joked Douglas.

To hear tracks from Douglas’s previous solo discs, click to www.myspace.com/jerrydouglasband.

Want To Go?

Date: Saturday, August 23
Time: 11:00 a.m. to midnight
Location: High Country Fairgrounds
Cost: $35 for college students, staff and faculty in advance/$40 for general admission in advance/$40 for college students, staff and faculty at the gate/$45 for general admission at the gate