Charles Samuel Bush (born April 13, 1952) is an American

mandolin A mandolin (, ; literally "small mandola") is a Chordophone, stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally Plucked string instrument, plucked with a plectrum, pick. It most commonly has four Course (music), courses of doubled St ...

ist who is considered an originator of

progressive bluegrass Bluegrass music is a Music genre, genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States. The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe, Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Bluegrass has r ...

music. In 2020, he was inducted into the

International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame For a professional in the bluegrass music field, election to the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame is the highest honor the genre can bestow. An invitation can be extended to performers, songwriters, promoters, broadcasters, musicians, a ...

as a member of New Grass Revival. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame a second time in 2023 as a solo artist.

History

Born in

Bowling Green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...

, Kentucky, Bush was exposed to country and bluegrass music at an early age through his father, Charlie's, record collection, and later by the Flatt & Scruggs television show. Buying his first mandolin at the age of 11, his musical interest was further piqued when he attended the inaugural Roanoke, VA Bluegrass Festival in 1965. As a teen, Bush took first place three times in the junior division of the National Oldtime Fiddler's Contest in Weiser, ID. He joined guitarist and vocalist Wayne Stewart, his mentor and music teacher during Sam's teen years, and banjoist Alan Munde (later of Country Gazette) and the three recorded an instrumental album, ''Poor Richard's Almanac'', in 1969. In the spring of 1970, Bush attended the Fiddlers Convention at Union Grove, NC, and was inspired by the rock-flavored

of the New Deal String Band. Later that year, he moved to Louisville and joined the Bluegrass Alliance. In the fall of 1971, the band dissolved and reformed as the New Grass Revival. The New Grass Revival went through numerous personnel changes, with Bush remaining as the sole original member. Bassist and vocalist John Cowan joined in 1974, with

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

ace Béla Fleck and acoustic guitarist Pat Flynn being enlisted in 1981. From 1979 through 1981, the group toured with Leon Russell, opening the shows and backing Russell during his headlining set. Beginning in 1980, Bush and Cowan periodically jammed with the Nashville-based Duckbutter Blues Band, whose other members were blues guitarist Kenny Lee, drummer Jeff Jones, and bassist Byron House. Bush recorded his debut solo album, ''Late as Usual'', four years later. In 1989, Bush and Fleck joined Mark O'Connor,

Jerry Douglas Gerald Calvin Douglas (born May 28, 1956) is an American Dobro and lap steel guitar player and record producer. He is widely regarded as "perhaps the finest Dobro player in contemporary acoustic music, and certainly the most celebrated and prol ...

, and Edgar Meyer in an all-star bluegrass band, Strength in Numbers, at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

. When the New Grass Revival dissolved in 1989, Bush joined

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana (music), Americana genre ...

' Nash Ramblers, touring and recording with Harris for the next five years. In 1995, Bush worked as a sideman with

Lyle Lovett Lyle Pearce Lovett (born November 1, 1957) Lyle Lovett Pageat Allmusic – Lovett's Genre and Styles. Retrieved February 2, 2007 is an American country singer and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded 14 albums and released 25 singles to dat ...

and Bela Fleck's Flecktones. He formed his own band, featuring Cowan and ex-Nash Ramblers Jon Randall and Larry Atamanuick, shortly before recording his second solo album, ''Glamour & Grits'', in 1996. He released his next album, ''Howlin' at the Moon'', in 1998, with many of the same players and special guests, including Harris, Fleck and J. D. Crowe. In the winter of 1997, Bush and the New Grass Revival reunited for an appearance on

Late Night with Conan O'Brien ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the second installment of the ''Late Night (franchise), Late Night'' franchise originally established by David Letterman. Hosted by Conan O'Brie ...

as the backup band for

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American Country music, country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity, particularly in the United States, ...

. On March 28, 1998, Bush's hometown of Bowling Green, KY, honored him with a special "Sam Bush Day" celebration. Following ''Howlin' at the Moon'' in 1998, he released ''Ice Caps: Peaks of Telluride in 2000'', which was a live recording. In 2004, Randall left Bush's band and Brad Davis took over harmony vocals and guitar duties. In 2006, Bush released '' Laps in Seven''. The release was significant because it marked the return of the

to Bush's recordings, played by Scott Vestal. The guitarist, Keith Sewell, performed on the recording, but shortly after took a job with the

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (formerly the Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. The band consists of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar, bass guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and Emily Stra ...

. Bush sought a new guitarist for his recordings and road band and found Stephen Mougin. In 2007, Bush released his first

live concert A concert, often known informally as a gig or show, is a live performance of music in front of an audience. The performance may be carried by a single musician, in which case it is sometimes called a recital, or by a musical ensemble such as an ...

DVD, titled ''On The Road''. 2007 also marked the first time he had been chosen to host the

International Bluegrass Music Association The International Bluegrass Music Association, or IBMA, is a trade association to promote bluegrass music. Formed in 1985, IBMA established its first headquarters in Owensboro, Kentucky. In 1988 they announced plans to create the International ...

Awards. Bush contributed to two bluegrass

tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century a ...

s to the British

Progressive Rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

band

the Moody Blues The Moody Blues were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in May 1964. The band initially consisted of Graeme Edge (drums), Denny Laine (guitar/vocals), Mike Pinder (keyboards/vocals), Ray Thomas (multi-instrumentalist/vocals) and Clint W ...

– 2004's '' Moody Bluegrass: A Nashville Tribute to the Moody Blues'', and 2011's '' Moody Bluegrass TWO...Much Love''. Bush provided the lead vocal for the Ray Thomas song "Nice To Be Here" on the latter album. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

Awards and honors

*Sam Bush was inducted into th
Kentucky Music Hall of Fame
in 2006. *Sam Bush hosted the 22nd annual

Awards September 29, 2011 held at Nashville's historic

Ryman Auditorium Ryman Auditorium (originally Union Gospel Tabernacle and renamed Grand Ole Opry House for a period) is a historic 2,362-seat live-performance venue and museum located at 116 Rep. John Lewis Way North, in the downtown core of Nashville, Tennesse ...

. He also hosted the 2007 IBMA Awards, held at the

Grand Ole Opry House The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a regular live country music, country-music Radio broadcasting, radio broadcast originating from Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, on WSM (AM), WSM, held between two and five nights per week, depending on the ...

. *The Americana Music Association (AMA) presented Sam Bush with the Lifetime Achievement for Instrumentalist award at the 8th Annual Americana Honors & Awards ceremony, presented by the Gibson Foundation at Ryman Auditorium September 17, 2009. *The

(IBMA) has named Sam Bush Mandolin Player of the Year four times, in 1990, 1991, 1992, and 2007. *In March 2010, Legislation passed in Kentucky that officially named Bowling Green the "Birthplace of Newgrass" and Sam Bush the "Father of Newgrass." The Resolution, sponsored by Representative Jim DeCesare, passed the Kentucky Senate 37-0 on March 25. It passed the House on March 3, 99–0. *Sam Bush was the subject of the 2015 documentary Revival: The Sam Bush Stor

which features commentary from Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Bela Fleck, David Grisman, Ricky Skaggs, and The Avett Brothers, among others. Directed by Wayne Franklin and Kris Wheeler, the film was shown at various independent film festivals throughout 2015. *Bush was inducted into the

in 2020 as a member of New Grass Revival. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame for the second time in 2023 for his solo career, making him the sixth performer to have been inducted twice.

Grammy Awards

The

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

s are awarded annually by the

National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. (NARAS), doing business as The Recording Academy, is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is widely kno ...

. Bush has won 3 awards from 14 nominations. , - ,

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

, "Seven By Seven" , rowspan=3, Best Country Instrumental Performance , , - ,

1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

, "Big Foot" , , - , rowspan=2,

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

, "Scotland" , , - , '' At the Ryman'' with

, Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal , , - ,

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, "The Sinister Minister" ,

Best Pop Instrumental Performance The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as th ...

, , - , rowspan=2,

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, "Reuben's Train" , Best Country Instrumental Performance , , - , ''Home Sweet Home'' with Doc and Merle Watson , rowspan=2, Best Bluegrass Album , , - , rowspan=2,

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, ''Bluegrass Mandolin Extravaganza'' with David Grisman, Ricky Skaggs, Jesse McReynolds, and Frank Wakefield , , - , ''Meyer: Short Trip Home (In the Nickn of Time; BP; Concert Duo, The Prequel, Etc.)'' with Joshua Bell, Mike Marshall and Edgar Meyer , Best Classical Crossover Album , , - ,

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, '' O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' with various artists , Album of the Year , , - ,

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, "Puppies N'Knapsacks" , rowspan=2, Best Country Instrumental Performance , , - ,

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, "Who's Your Uncle?" , , - ,

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, '' Circles Around Me'' , rowspan=2, Best Bluegrass Album , , - ,

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, ''Radio John: The Songs of John Hartford'' ,

Performance

As well as being an accomplished bluegrass vocalist, Bush also is an accomplished instrumentalist on mandolin and

fiddle A fiddle is a Bow (music), bowed String instrument, string musical instrument, most often a violin or a bass. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including European classical music, classical music. Althou ...

winning title of National Fiddle champion at fifteen years of age. He was a founding member of the New Grass Revival and has been called a modern-day

Bill Monroe William Smith Monroe ( ; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre takes its n ...

, or as Sam would tell . . Sam, affectionately "Sammy", or "Mr. Entertainment", also recalls meeting Mr. Monroe as a young teen. After demonstrating his mandolin technique Monroe offered the advice: "stick to the fiddle". Sam Bush and Byron House

Sam is one of the main attractions at the annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival in

Telluride, Colorado Telluride is the county seat and most populous town of San Miguel County, Colorado, San Miguel County in the southwestern portion of the U.S. state of Colorado. The town is a former silver mining camp on the San Miguel River (Colorado), San M ...

and plays the eight p.m. set on Saturday night as well as many guest appearances throughout the weekend. He is affectionately known as "The King of Telluride" for his perennial appearances there (and

the "Queen of Telluride"). Sam did tour with Harris' band, The Nash Ramblers. Additional collaborations include recording and live performances with many virtuoso musicians and artists such as

Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. He won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. His ...

Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is an American singer who has performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin music. Ronstadt has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three A ...

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...

Ann Savoy Ann Savoy ( ; ; born January 20, 1952) is a musician, author, and record producer. Biography Savoy was born in St. Louis, Missouri and raised in Richmond, Virginia. She resides with her husband Marc Savoy and family in Eunice, Southern Louis ...

, Tony Rice, Peter Rowan, Russ Barenberg, David Grisman, Mark O'Connor, Edgar Meyer, and importantly; "Strength in Numbers", a band consisting of Bela Fleck, Mark O'Connor, Edgar Meyer,

, and Sam Bush. Strength in Numbers was a collaboration born from jam sessions at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. The music on their CD release entitled "The Telluride Sessions" was all instrumental and recorded live, showcasing the individual talent of each player and their ability to improvise. During recent years (2000–2008) there have been many variations of the Strength in Numbers band, also known as "Bluegrass Sessions", always including Jerry Douglas, (

Dobro Dobro () is an American brand of resonator guitars owned by Gibson and manufactured by its subsidiary Epiphone. The term "dobro" is also used as a generic term for any wood-bodied, single-cone resonator guitar. The Dobro was originally a gui ...

), and usually bassist Byron House, also from Bowling Green, KY. Other musicians include Gabe Witcher (

), Bryan Sutton (guitar), Tim O'Brien (

, guitar, vocals) and Darol Anger (

). Sam Bush Band tours extensively, appearing at many small venues and large festivals such as the Strawberry Music Festival (

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It is observed on the last Monday of May. It i ...

and Labor Day), Rockygrass (late July), and every spring at the Americana Festival, Merlefest in Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Sam Bush is known as one of the liveliest performers at these festivals, and makes many guest appearances with the other artists.

Discography

Solo albums

DVDs

* ''On the Road'' (2007) Sugar Hill

Specialty projects

* '' Norman Blake/Tut Taylor/Sam Bush/Butch Robins/Vassar Clements/David Holland/Jethro Burns'' - HDS 1975 * ''Down South'' - Doc & Merle Watson - Sugar Hill 1984 * ''Riding The Midnight Train'' -

- Sugar Hill 1986 * ''Drive'' – Béla Fleck –

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts, by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by A ...

1988 * '' The Telluride Sessions'' by supergroup Strength in Numbers – MCA 1989 * '' Short Trip Home'' –

Sony Classical Sony Classical is an American record label founded in 1924 as Columbia Masterworks Records, a subsidiary of Columbia Records. In 1980, the Columbia Masterworks label was renamed as CBS Masterworks Records. The CBS Records Group was acquired ...

1999 :( Edgar Meyer & Joshua Bell with Sam Bush and Mike Marshall) * ''Bluegrass Mandolin Extravaganza'' –

Acoustic Disc David Jay Grisman (born March 23, 1945) is an American mandolinist. His music combines bluegrass, folk, and jazz in a genre he calls "Dawg music". He founded the record label Acoustic Disc, which issues his recordings and those of other acousti ...

1999 :(w/ David Grisman, Ronnie McCoury, Jesse McReynolds, Ricky Skaggs, others) * ''The Bluegrass Sessions'' – Béla Fleck –

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

1999 * ''Soulgrass'' – Bluegrass and Jazz Fusion 2005 * '' Goin' Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino'' 2007, performing " Rising Sun" with Marc Broussard

New Grass Revival

* '' New Grass Revival'' (

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

, 1972) * '' Fly Through the Country'' (

Flying Fish The Exocoetidae are a family (biology), family of Saltwater fish, marine Actinopterygii, ray-finned fish in the order (biology), order Beloniformes, known colloquially as flying fish or flying cod. About 64 species are grouped in seven genus, ge ...

, 1975) * '' When the Storm Is Over'' (Flying Fish, 1977) * '' Too Late to Turn Back Now'' (Flying Fish, 1977) * '' Barren County'' (Flying Fish, 1979) * ''Leon Russell & New Grass Revival'' (Paradise, 1981) * ''

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

'' (Flying Fish, 1981) * '' On the Boulevard'' ( Sugar Hill, 1984) * '' Live in Toulouse'' (Sugar Hill, 1984) * '' New Grass Revival'' ( Capitol, 1986) * '' Hold to a Dream'' (Capitol, 1988) * '' Friday Night in America'' (Capitol, 1989) * ''When the Storm Is Over/Fly Through the Country'' (Flying Fish, 1992)

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bush, Sam 1952 births Living people Musicians from Bowling Green, Kentucky American bluegrass guitarists American male guitarists New Grass Revival members Grammy Award winners American music educators American bluegrass fiddlers American bluegrass mandolinists Singers from Kentucky Bluegrass musicians from Kentucky Guitarists from Kentucky 20th-century American guitarists Country musicians from Kentucky 20th-century American male musicians Flying Fish Records artists Singers from Nashville, Tennessee Lyle Lovett and His Large Band members