Who should I be listening to?

[Holy Moly]

I'm new to mandolin and come from an early blues and jazz background, neither genres are renowned for their mandolin players. Aside from Bill Monroe, Dave Apollon and Adam Steffey, which mandolin players should I be paying particular attention to?

[Jacob Hagerty]

if you like the blues check out Rich Delgrosso.

[Atlanta Mando Mike]

Jethro Burns, Chris Thile, David Grisman, Sam Bush, Mike Marshall, Matt Flinner, John Reischman, Doyle Lawson, Ricky Skaggs...

That's just a few of the greats

[chasray]

You really do need to investigate what David Grisman has done. Check out dawgnet.com

[SincereCorgi]

Sleepy John Estes with Yank Rachell are great, very pure early country blues mandolin/guitar. There's also a good collection on Document called "Rags, Breakdowns, Stomps & Blues" that has tons of great early mandolin cuts.

Other than that... I think it's all going to be covered pretty well. One thing that doesn't get mentioned is that much of these players' best work is usually with other bands or artists. Sam Bush, for instance, has some great discs, but he has a ton of great playing as a sideman on other people's records.

[DataNick]

Mike Compton...

[Mike Bunting]

You like blues, listen to Mike Compton.

[Holy Moly]

Sleepy John Estes with Yank Rachell are great, very pure early country blues mandolin/guitar.

That's very true. I hadn't even thought of those records actually.

[Steve Ostrander]

Jethro Burns, Chris Thile, David Grisman, Sam Bush, Mike Marshall, Matt Flinner, John Reischman, Doyle Lawson, Ricky Skaggs...

+1 to that list, but I would add Ronnie McCoury.

[Jim Garber]

For both blues and old time jazz on mandolin and fiddle, check out Howard Armstrong. You can watch a full-length film about him on Youtube. The first section is here:

[Holy Moly]

I should have said that I'm interested in listening to players that play what I guess would be called Old Time music more than blues/dixieland/western swing etc mandolin players.


Although I can't really think of any Dixieland records with mandolin on...

[mandroid]

listen to everyone ..

the players of other instruments are using the same notes as a mandolin fingerboard has..

Jazz fiddle licks http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuff_Smith.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Venuti

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St%C3%A9phane_Grappelli .. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svend_Asmussen

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_...ong_(musician) and with his friends as Martin, Bogan and Armstrong..

dont worry that Dixieland had no Mandolin. you can take the Tenor banjo's part.

they are also tuned in 5ths though a 4th lower CGDA .. & a longer neck..

there are mandolin banjos to keep up with the horn players , levels.

[Holy Moly]

That's true. I have a pretty big record collection but it's always good to have a listen to what players of a specific instrument are doing as well isn't it? I've got a pretty good list to work my way through there, thanks all.

[mandroid]

I drop the "Always" , myself.. do as you wish

[Mike Bunting]

Old time? Mike Compton

[jaycat]

You like blues, listen to Mike Compton.

It shows a lot of class when musicians get all dressed up for a performance.

[bayAreaDude]

Depends on what music you want to play. If you have no interest in BG, there's a lot of people you could skip without trouble. If you want to play jazz, I'd go with Don Stiernberg, Jethro Burns, and Grisman.

[Randy Smith]

[QUOTE=SincereCorgi;1316717]Sleepy John Estes with Yank Rachell are great, very pure early country blues mandolin/guitar. There's also a good collection on Document called "Rags, Breakdowns, Stomps & Blues" that has tons of great early mandolin cuts.

R,B,S&B" is on Document Records and is **excellent** for early (pre-Chicago) blues. If you want to hear a great Chicago stylist, listen to Johnny Young. *Mandolin Blues* features Young, Rachell, Carl Martin. Ted Bogan, And Willie Hatcher. Each mandolinist has separate cuts.

[Caleb]

Some great players that don't get mentioned nearly enough here are:

Kym Warner of the Greencards.
Ashley Broder
Caleb Klauder (and no, Klauder is not my last name)
Butch Baldassari
Simon Mayor

[Charles E.]

Just head on over to the MP3 section of the Café find what you like.
That is how I discovered The Ragtime Skeedaddlers.

[Mike Bunting]

It shows a lot of class when musicians get all dressed up for a performance.

Really?

[JeffD]

listen to everyone ..

the players of other instruments ...

That's true. I have a pretty big record collection but it's always good to have a listen to what players of a specific instrument are doing as well isn't it? .

Here is my view. It is instructive now and again to listen to how other mandolinners have done it and are doing it, but I much rather listen to everything else, and try it on the mandolin myself. I don't want to be overly influenced by any other mandolin players take. I don't mind being inspired, but not influenced.

I think there is a tendency towards sameness in a lot of bluegrass mandolinners. Not the best mind you but just folks you hear, all of us chasing after the same handful of geniuses, chasing the same sound.

Even if I could emulate some great mandolin master - I would always be known as "almost as good as"... Who needs it.

I am my favorite mandolin player, because I am the only one I ever get to be.

[crisscross]

Jason Annick plays an electric mando, but me too "I don't mind being inspired, but not influenced."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PgHe...JXsIqh9eE2Ds0r
He inspired me to get a Kentucky E-Mando. What I do on it comes more from my own imagination though:
https://soundcloud.com/tele1310/ive-found-a-new-baby

[lorrainehornig]

I'm currently into Nickel Creek...the Dotted Line CD.