The Steep Canyon Rangers will make a stop in Glasgow Aug. 31, for an appearance at The Grove, and their banjo player Graham Sharp says it really brings the band full circle.
“We made our first album in Glasgow, 25 years ago and we’ve not been back since,” Sharp said.
“We recorded at David Barrick’s recording studio with one of our musical heroes Curtis Burch. I couldn’t believe we were in there making music with Curtis. He was one of the artists we admired and emulated. It was the best, and it was a big deal,” Sharp said.
From that quarter of a century ago recording of Old Dreams and News Dreams the group went on the proverbial voyage of self discovery, musically speaking.
“I didn’t personally pick up music until the end of my freshman year of college. Me and the other members all picked it up together. We learned on our feet. Jerry Garcia was the main reason I picked up the banjo, I loved the Grateful Dead” Sharp said.
Although the band was steeped in influences like Garcia, Burch, Flatt and Scruggs and Jimmy Martin, one aspect of their signature style is that they have always produced original songs.
They started as a hardcore bluegrass group, and evolved over time.
“The faces have changed. The band has changed along with the song, we followed a pretty natural path. Things kept changing with each album, we’ve gotten into new sounds since adding percussion,” Sharp said.
Along the way, they’ve received several accolades. They were named the Emerging Artist of the Year in 2006 and the IBMA Entertainer of the Year in 2013. They are still recording new albums and original material.
Next week, they release their next album Live and Greenfield Lake. It will be streamed on their website steep canyon.com, and bandcamp.com but will also be produced in more old-school formats as well.
“It will be on CD and on a double vinyl album, pressed at Citizen Vinyl in Asheville,” Sharp said, who is especially proud to be producing a live vinyl recording of this caliber.
Live recordings, in Sharps opinion, offer more of a full experience for the listener and players alike.
“We definitely went to some of our favorite live albums and gleaned what we wanted to do.
“It is a full show. We used the songs from one show we really liked and kept it coherent throughout,” he said. Another interesting and positive aspect of a live recording is that it melds and makes for a more unified experience than the typical studio recording.
“The album is not centered around one lead singer, or key player. We all play solos, and a live album showcases that much better,” he said.
They will have CDs and the doubly vinyl albums with them at their show at the Grove, Aug. 31. The show starts t 7:00 p.m. Tickets to the show are on sale now at thegroveglasgow.com
Tickets cost $35-$55, and tables can be reserved for $50. The cost of a table reservation does not include admissio
