Josh Graves
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Josh Graves (September 27, 1927 Tellico Plains, Monroe County, Tennessee – September 30, 2006), born Burkett Howard Graves, was an American bluegrass musician. Also known by the nicknames "Buck," and "Uncle Josh," he is credited with introducing the dobro into bluegrass music shortly after joining Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys in 1955. He was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor in 1977.
[edit] Career
- 1942 Joined the Pierce Brothers playing in Gatlinburg
- Played with Esco Hankins and Mac Wiseman
- Joined the Wheeling Jamboree with Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper
- 1955-1969 Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys
- 1969-1971 Lester Flatt's Nashville Grass.
- 1971-1974 Earl Scruggs Review.
- 1974 started solo career.
- 1984-2006 performed and recorded with Kenny Baker, as a duet and also as part of the Masters, a group which also included Jesse McReynolds and Eddie Adcock.
[edit] Musical style
Graves originally joined the Foggy Mountain Boys as a bass player but he got together with Earl Scruggs to develop a new style of dobro-picking based on Earl's three-finger syncopated banjo style. After only one month on bass, Graves switched to the dobro and it soon became a defining feature of the bluegrass sound. Graves played fast and loud but also created extremely sensitive melodic backing to bluesy ballads and slower gospel numbers. Josh Graves is credited as being a major influence on many leading resophonic guitar players, including Jerry Douglas, Mike Auldridge, and Phil Leadbetter among them.
