Tag: Deering Banjos

Meet This Year’s Steve Martin Banjo Prize Winners

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

On Tuesday, December 17, actor, comedian, and banjoist Steve Martin and the board of his Steve Martin Banjo Prize – now in its fourteenth year – announced this year’s winners of the $25,000 prize. Founded in 2010, the Steve Martin Banjo Prize for Excellence in Banjo has since awarded more than $500,000 in unrestricted prize funds to banjo players across the genre and style spectrum. The inaugural awardee in 2010 was modern banjo luminary Noam Pikelny; in successive years the list of recipients has grown rapidly, including such players, leaders, and composers as Rhiannon Giddens, Terry Baucom, Don Vappie, Jake Blount, Victor Furtado, Eddie Adcock, and many more.

This year, the prize’s two recipients are banjo pickers on the cutting edge of the instrument’s bright future in two distinct styles, Allison de Groot (one of the foremost old-time, clawhammer/frailing banjo players of her generation) and Tray Wellington (a Scruggs-style picker with a striking postmodern, newgrass approach.)

“Exploring had always been part of my personality since I was a kid,” Wellington explained via press release. “Music is the same way for me. Since I started playing banjo at 14, I had ideas for how I could constantly expand my musical vision and make my personality shine through banjo. Every day I am still on that journey and cannot wait to continue this pursuit.”

And exploration is certainly a hallmark of Wellington’s approach to the instrument. His right-hand approach is decidedly traditional, it’s powerful and assertive with limitless drive. While his left hand is mind-bending in its virtuosity, combining influences and textures from envelope pushers like Pikelny and Béla Fleck, he pulls an equal measure of inspiration from outside of bluegrass and roots music, as well.

Take for instance his rendition of Kid Cudi’s “Pursuit of Happiness.” A layperson or bluegrass passerby might not ever expect a Kid Cudi cover performed at a roots music festival, let alone a straight-ahead bluegrass festival, but in almost every instance and context this writer has heard Wellington and band perform the number, the reaction from his audiences is electric. A buzzing excitement ripples through the crowd, murmuring recognition spreading like the most virulent contagion known to man (banjo) always does.

His live performances and through-composed instrumental pieces are out of this world, like his original “Moon in Motion 1” and “Spiral Staircase” from his most recent EP, Detour to the Moon. His 2022 full-length debut, Black Banjo, was critically acclaimed and well-received in bluegrass and beyond, combining new acoustic, jazz, Americana, and ‘grass together in his own particular blend. The project was something of a statement of perspective for Wellington, but that point of view has been anything but static since Black Banjo.

A nominee for multiple IBMA Awards – and 2019 winner of their Momentum Instrumentalist Award – Wellington is certainly right at home on bluegrass festival stages, but his music is expansive, broad, and fully-realized no matter the context. It’s clear he makes his musical and repertoire choices for himself first and foremost and following that, for a forward-thinking, equally broad audience to whom he’s directly bringing his songs and story.

This is the power of a picker like Wellington, to energize and electrify an audience – whether diehard banjo fans or new initiates – with a sound totally his own. It’s exactly how Earl Scruggs became the legendary figure of American music that he is today, by causing thousands of “What the hell is this magic?!” reactions from his listeners and bringing countless scores into the music with that inimitable sound alone.

For her part, de Groot is also a committed borderless musical explorer: “It still feels just as exciting as it did the first day I picked it up,” she relays in a press release. “I feel like I could live 100 lifetimes and explore the banjo.”

Meanwhile, her voice on the instrument would already seem to indicate multiple lifetimes lived on the banjo. A veteran of groups such as Bruce Molsky’s Mountain Drifters, the Goodbye Girls (with Lena Jonsson, Molly Tuttle, and Brittany Karlson), and duo outfits with folks like Nic Gareiss and Tatiana Hargreaves, de Groot has an absolutely idiosyncratic approach to old-time, clawhammer, and frailing styles.

Perhaps her most jaw-dropping achievement – to this banjo player, at least – is how melodic, intricate, and grounded her playing is. De Groot plays with the precision of a three-finger player and with a very similar rhythmic foundation, making it particularly compelling when she leans into melodic intricacies usually left to bluegrass strains of banjo playing. Her execution of Irish tunes on old-time banjo, too, are fantastic and baffling. How does she do it??

There may not be a more lyrical clawhammer banjo player around today, though de Groot has excellent company (Cathy Fink, Brad Kolodner, Victor Furtado, Nick Hornbuckle) in this rarest of niches she inhabits. Don’t get it twisted, though, this is a picker with grit; this frailing has teeth. At the same time, her playing never strays toward iconoclastic banjo pitfalls like showing off or territorialism or horse-measuring contests.

Her style is incisive, deliberate, and bold, and at the same time liberated by her commitment to listening and making music in partnership with her collaborators, whoever they may be and whatever styles they may dabble in. While the prize and the visibility it lends are beyond well-deserved, it’s clear that de Groot’s reputation as a superlative banjo technician is already well known across musical communities – take, for example, her and Hargreaves’ recent collaboration with guitarist and composer Yasmin Williams on “Hummingbird.”

As evidenced by this short primer on each of these fine banjo pickers, Wellington and de Groot are excellent choices to receive the Steve Martin Banjo Prize as selected by the award’s board – which currently includes Steve Martin, Alison Brown, Béla Fleck, Noam Pikelny, Anne Stringfield, Tony Trischka, Pete Wernick, Johnny Baier, Kristin Scott Benson, Roger Brown, Jaime Deering, Dom Flemons, Paul Schiminger, Chris Wadsworth, and Garry West.

Both Wellington and de Groot are young players poised to open minds and open up the instrument in exciting, engaging, and innovative ways – because that’s what the banjo has always been about.

Today, December 17, at 5:30pm ET / 2:30pm PT, viewers can tune into Deering Live to enjoy a livestream celebrating the two winners featuring Alison Brown as co-host and including interviews and performances. Tune in here.

Photo Credit: Allison de Groot by Phil Cook; Tray Wellington courtesy of the Steve Martin Banjo Prize.

This Machine Surrounds… Zombies!?

Posted on by Justin Hiltner

In gruesome celebration of the release of Zombieland: Double Tap and Deering Banjo Company’s second edition of their Goodtime Zombie Killer (available only until October 31!), we thought now would be the perfect time to ask Jamie Deering a few practical questions about how, why, and when a banjo can best be utilized to prevent zombie armageddon — and all sorts of other disasters.

This grotesque, ornate, and patently practical instrument is perfect for all manner of uses, from jamming on “Spooky Mountain Special” to “Over in the Zombieland” to bashing whatever monster may stand between you and your favorite brand of snack cakes.

Let’s go with the “chicken or the egg” paradigm to start us off. Did the films inspire these banjos, or has Deering been sitting on the confidential information that banjos are useful as part of zombie elimination strategies this whole time?  

Jamie Deering: We wish we’d been the one to come up with the idea, but the hilariously creative minds of the Zombieland team get all the credit. As to why Deering took it to the next level, incarnating the Zombie Killer Banjo originally back in 2013, this is thanks to a few years of dads and scouts in [Deering Banjos founder] Greg Deering’s Boy Scout troop reminding him around the campfire that banjos kill zombies — based on the fateful Zombieland grocery store scene. 

After hearing about it enough, Greg decided the rest of the world deserved to be prepared when the apocalypse happens, and no other banjo would do!  

Deering is known for stunning detail work, and this banjo takes it to the next level! What inspired the inlays, the flange details, the resonator look, and all of the little intricacies that make this banjo so special?  

To be sure it was fully effective in subduing the living dead, Greg first changed the traditional smooth edge of the flange pieces to be serrated like a saw blade. As it is well documented, an effective way of ridding oneself of a zombie problem is decapitation.  

 The inlays and flange art serve as a sort of handbook of what it will take to deal with zombies and help one from getting too squeamish when faced with the bloody mess they are destined to confront while saving the world from the undead. 

The pre-blood smattered resonator is a popular feature; if we made it beautiful, out of curly maple, any self-respecting banjo player would lose precious time debating whether their life or their banjo was more important when face to face with a zombie.  

Banjos — and bluegrass, as a whole — have big moments in the spotlight, on screens large and small, every few years. Why do you think these moments have such broad reaching cultural impact?  

It’s banjo and bluegrass! They have a liveliness and bright energy to them. From the beginning bluegrass has been musically sharing a vibrant feeling of life; it takes the good and the bad and celebrates them in ways that make it almost fun to remember when “great aunt Betty” poisoned “cheating uncle Willy.”  When it gets in front of a larger audience there is a draw to it and a desire for that kind of music that makes one feel whole and alive.  

 The banjo also carries a cool factor that most instruments just can’t pull off. Whether it’s Zombieland or O Brother, Where Art Thou? or Kermit the frog, banjos have this natural tendency to pique viewers’ interest. They hear the sound and say, “Whoa, that’s cool!”  

Except Deliverance… that scene is memorable for entirely different reasons.  

 Does Deering have any other exciting, unique, or slightly twisted concepts coming our way? Do you have any favorites from the past that follow in the vein of the Zombie Killers I & II? 

We recently launched the Custom Goodtime Banjo Builder page. It is a brand new interactive page that allows one to create their own Custom Goodtime Banjo! Simply pick the model you want and have a ball customizing it. Choose your stain, hardware color, head type, and more. You can even personalize it with a name on the peghead. It has been a dream of ours for years to be able to offer this! We are stoked to have been able to launch it. It’s like a video game for banjo players while you are deciding on your perfect look. You see the colors change as you adjust it. We have found ourselves playing on it way more than is probably right!  

Finally, we know these machines surround hate and force it to surrender, and just a few weeks ago a man used a banjo to smash the infamous Wall Street “Charging Bull” statue, what is it about the banjo that lends it to these uses of… direct action?  

Surprisingly, we have given this topic some thought since that fateful day on Wall Street. Luckily for the banjo’s reputation with TSA, what the man wielded was not in fact a true banjo. It was a weapon made to symbolically resemble the shape of one. 

 That aside, the banjo is truly the people’s instrument. If you look into the history of the instrument, while it has some dark spots, since the early days it has been an instrument at the core of uniting people in communities no matter one’s background or status, bringing joyful moments and the feeling that things can get better. When one hears banjo music, even when it is a sad song, it uplifts and gives one a renewed sense of belonging and vitality.  

 As a result, it tends to show and evoke deep feelings in people when used in addressing social issues in protest songs, attacking bulls, and the like.  

Woody Harrelson (L) and Jesse Eisenberg in Zombieland (2009).

What does Deering give out to trick-or-treaters on Halloween? I.e., should we all add Deering to our list of stops on beggar’s night!? 

While all the Deering Banjo Elves head home by 5pm every weekday and have the weekends off, during the day on Halloween we will have a variety of sweet, as well as twangy, treats one can come forage. Ghouls and goblins of all kinds are welcome to haunt us that day.  

For those causing mayhem year-round we do offer factory tours contact us to schedule your drop in! 

Photos of the Goodtime Zombie Killer II courtesy of Deering Banjos

Bid on a Banjo to Help Pharis and Jason Romero

Posted on by Editor

On June 6, Juno Award-winning artists and old-time banjo makers Pharis and Jason Romero lost their home and instrument studio to a devastating fire on their property in rural British Columbia. While the Romeros and their two children escaped unscathed, both buildings — plus all of their possessions and a stock of newly finished and priceless antique instruments — were lost in the blaze.

If there's one thing we are about here at the BGS, it is community. And the Romeros are an integral part of that, as both artists and instrument makers — and some of the most talented ones we know. So, along with our friends at Deering Banjos, we're auctioning off a top-of-the-line Deering Deluxe 5-string banjo and a banjo head autographed by Ed Helms and all the guests at the 2016 BGS Bonnaroo Superjam (including Sam Bush, Sara and Sean Watkins, the Steep Canyon Rangers, Lee Ann Womack, and many others) with proceeds going directly to the Romero family. It's a small way in which we can all pitch in and support those in our community when it's most needed.

The Romeros' loss hit very close to home for Jamie Deering. "The Romeros make beautiful banjos, and I love the old-time folk style of music they play," she says. "I can only imagine if something like this had happened to my folks in the early years of Deering Banjos and how devastating it would have been. It is incredibly heartwarming to see the community coming together for the Romero family at this time. The entire Deering family and crew are happy to help in this way and look forward to hearing they are back going strong again."

CLICK HERE for more details on this benefit auction for Pharis, Jason, and their family.

FESTIVAL RECAP: Double Dose of Festival Fever (Newport & Grey Fox)

Posted on by Editor

(PHOTOS COURTESY OF JAMIE DEERING OF DEERING BANJOS):

 

The 2012 Newport Folk Festival, in its 53rd year with arguably the nation’s best artist lineup of the summer, continued its long running streak of ushering underexposed talent onto the national stage. This was true for yesteryear artists like Joan Baez and Bob Dylan, and even artists in recent years, such as David Wax Museum and Brown Bird.

Just as we at grass clippings predicted, a new band to add to the list is Brooklyn secular gospel band Spirit Family Reunion, who has seen a recent explosion in the press (The Wall Street Journal and NPR to name a few) since it was named to the festival’s lineup. Like Baez and Dylan, the Festival marked the start of a new era in the band’s lives. Despite an early timeslot and frazzled late arrival to Fort Adams, the band turned a massive crowd (consisting of college hippies, Brooklyn hipsters, public radio music snobs and everything in between) into rabid fans. The crowd begged for multiple encores with standing ovations and passionate cheers within a set that comprised almost completely of original songs (besides a spicy rendition of “End of the Line,” a song from Woody Guthrie’s Columbia River Collection) and no special guests. It was especially moving for me personally, as I though back to a Saturday afternoon in 2009 when I stumbled upon the band playing at my neighborhood farmers market and selling hand-burned CDs.

But that was just a one way this year’s festival exceeded expectations. There really were too many magic moments to capture, but after a few Newport Storms (beer and weather), here’s what stood out…

  • LA’s own honeyhoney wooed festivarians with a cover of the Hank Williams song “Lost Highway.”
  • Continuing the trend of the young embracing the old (in standard Newport fashion), trendy Swedish folk duo First Aid Kit played a spine-chilling cover of “Diamond & Rust,” a song penned by 1959 Newport unbilled performer Joan Baez. Later the sisters, making their Newport debut at the ages of 21 and 19, closed their set with “King of the World,” which included a special appearance by Conor Oberst.
  • The festival’s Fort stage became a New(port) Orleans big tent revival with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s soulful closing songs, “A Closer Walk With Thee” and “I’ll Fly Away.” Joined by Del McCoury and Ben Sollee, the performance was a powerful picture of the way this music festival joins people. What else could join an environmentally-conscious cellist, a bluegrass legend and multiple Ninth Ward NOLA jazz stars other than a gospel song?
  • Then, Ben Sollee’s solo performance on the Festival’s intimate new indoor stage drew a crowd of his own, with a very special performance of “Prettiest Tree on the Mountain,” featuring Sara Watkins.
  • Both days of the Festival included strong showings from Canadian folk stars City and Colour and Deep Dark Woods.  Deep Dark Woods delivered a beautiful and well-attended set on Sunday that ranked high on my list of favorite performances. A nice festival moment happened when frontman Ryan Boldt broke a string and then finished out the show with a beautiful Gibson guitar offered up by James Maple of New England Americana band GraveRobbers, which made its festival debut this year.
  • It was The Tallest Man on Earth that impressed me the most out of any performance on Saturday or Sunday this year. A packed out crowd watched and chanted song after song as this tiny man sang, played and danced, filling the stage better than a small orchestra.
  • And then there was “The Screaming Eagle of Soul” Charles Bradley, who began his career at 62 and has more soul and better moves than any artist I’ve ever seen, anywhere. Bradley, a teenage runaway who lived on the streets and in subway cars for two years, seemed to be watched by more festival performers than any other.
  • The Head and the Heart delivered an intense performance to a massive crowd, which included a few impressive new songs, showing that the band will hopefully outlive their hugely popular first album.
  • Joe Fletcher chose to close his impressive Newport debut set surrounded by fellow Rhode Island folkers, including several members of The Low Anthem and Dave Lamb of Brown Bird.
  • Iceland’s folk pop band Of Monsters and Men drew one of the largest (and certainly the youngest) crowds of the festival. Yes, the more poppy you get, the bigger the crowds get, but there were tons of baby boom folkers hitting the “hey choruses” during “Little Talks.” The band brought a much needed energy to the festival, strategically timed to perform at the point where the crowd is starting to tire.

SO much more happened on stage, but there was plenty that happened off the stage as well. A crowd gathered as Jonah Tolchin wandered the grounds, playing without shoes and singing traditional folk songs. Also, slightly offstage and as the rain began to pour down, Punch Brothers rewarded those that braved the storm for their main set, with a mini unplugged set in the crowd as the stage hands began to tear down. It was catching moments like those that makes this festival the unique, communal gathering that it is.


Check out our photos from grass clippings photog Richard Kluver or vote for the festival’s best tattoos here.

______________________
 
 
GREY FOX BLUEGRASS FEST — BY KIMBER LUDIKER OF DELLA MAE
 
 
My band Della Mae has performed at Grey Fox Bluegrass for three years now. I feel like every musician has lots of favorite festivals, but there’s always ONE that each of us will connect with on a personal level. For me, that festival is Grey Fox. They have stellar headliners, but a lot of festivals do. The most special thing about this festivals is that they create a platform for unique collaborations. Focusing on the personalities and relationships of artists, Grey Fox promoters Mary Doub and Chuck Wentworth have created a festival with a magnetic vibe that starts with the artists and spreads to the audience–a crowd full of people who appreciate the music and know they’re about to see things they’ve never seen before.

Speaking of those things, the festival’s greatest decision was to host Rushad Eggleston–‘the original Snee Goblin’. Look him up, love him, and go where you can to see him (most definitely at Grey Fox nextyear). He was playing with one of my favorite new bands, The Old Tyme Kozmik trio, alongside Darol Anger and Bruce Molsky. Rushad also closed the dance tent stage on Saturday night with his band Tornado Rider. Aside from his musical genius, Rushad is an athlete. He climbed the speaker tower to take a solo, and performed while being physically carried by his backup singers (okay, full disclosure: Della Mae became stand-in backup singers for Tornado Rider that weekend).

 

Highlights from the eyes of Della Mae: Our main stage set was really fun — afterwards, we signed a guy’s banana suit. We set up a ‘tattooing station’ at our workshop stage and gave out free Della Mae temporary tattoos. Our dance tent stage was probably my favorite set of all-time. We were joined by Greg Liszt and Dominick Leslie from the Deadly Gentlemen, Aoife O’Donovan, Bryan Sutton, Rushad Eggleson (again!), and my brother Dennis Ludiker from the great up-and-coming band MilkDrive. Rushad climbed on Shelby’s bass to take a solo, and Aoife played drums on ‘No Diggity’. What a ridiculous night.

Grey Fox is a magical place where you can be watching Del McCoury, see David Grisman picking along backstage, head to the dance tent stage where Del and Jason Carter are sitting in with Red Knuckles & The Trailblazers (Celia got to sing a song with them as well, and the rest of the Della Mae ladies got to be backup dancers!!), only to head back to main stage where the Punch Brothers are melting faces off of an eager audience. To top it off, you wander back to your camp, only to find Bryan Sutton, Grant Gordy, and Courtney Hartman picking on their guitars. The best part? All this actually happened over the course of four hours.

 

Other notable sets/moments: Thile & Daves, Tribute to Scruggs & Doc hosted by Tim O’Brien, Jesse McReynolds playing songs of the Grateful Dead, Brittany Haas sitting in with Tony Trischka & Territory, Noam Pikelny & friends performing with Aoife O’Donovan, and all of the jams at the Bluegrass Bus in the campground (one of which lasted until 9am — no joke).

Buy your ticket early for next year. And get your tent ready for one of the best campgrounds (and true festival experiences) around.