In Session 5 of “The Banjo Style of J.D. Crowe” explores J.D.’s banjo playing as part of the classic 1975 New South band with Tony Rice, Ricky Skaggs, and Jerry Douglas. The one album recorded by this band is commonly known as “Rounder 0044,” which is the catalog number of the release. In the song material, precision of playing and singing, and particularly the instrumental virtuosity of Tony Rice and J.D. Crowe, the New South set a new paradigm for bluegrass music that’s been a model for almost every other professional bluegrass group over the last 48 years. You’ll learn J.D.’s solos on “The Old Home Place,” “Freeborn Man,” and “Some Old Day.”

For this session, Bill is joined by folklorist and former Executive Director of the International Bluegrass Music Museum Tom Adler. Tom is a long-time Lexington, Kentucky, resident who wrote one of the first doctoral dissertations on bluegrass music and he’s a fine banjo picker too. He has interviewed J.D. on numerous occasions and in preparation for this session, please read Tom’s tribute to J.D. in the March 2022 edition of Bluegrass Unlimited, which provides a great overview of his life and career (see PDF below).  

Rounder 0044 Here is the YouTube Music link to the remastered version of the full album J.D. Crowe and the New South (Rounder 0044).  

Kentucky Educational Television video of the New South This 21-minute video of the 1975 New South band is essential viewing (and not just to see the mid-70’s era polyester shirts!). 

Rounder 0044 Band Live at McCabe’s, Santa Monica, CA, August 1975 

This is J.D. at the height of his creative powers and the interplay between Tony and J.D., along with the vocals, is simply stunning. The extreme stereo mix allows you to hear J.D.’s banjo very clearly. We’ll explore two performances in Session 5 today from this concert. 

“The Old Home Place”

“The Old Home Place” is the first track on the Rounder 0044 album. Originally written by Mitch Jayne and Dean Webb of the Dillards, the New South’s version is the one that is most remembered today. We’ll look at J.D.’s kickoff solo and his backup to the first two verses of this song, played out of a G position with the capo at the 3rd fret. And here’s the “Old Home Place” on video from the KET special, with this YouTube link taking you straight to this song: 

“Free Born Man”

“Free Born Man” was first performed in bluegrass by Jimmy Martin but it’s since become strongly associated with Tony Rice. The performance we’ll analyze is from the McCabe’s Guitar Shop August 1975 live concert and, well, it’s just unreal. This was one of this band’s last performances together, made just before they toured Japan. Here’s the YouTube link once again to the entire performance, with “Free Born Man” beginning at 51:46 (note that the entire video is indexed, allowing you to access any song easily). Here’s an outstanding video performance of “Free Born Man” from a Rounder Records All-Star band consisting of J.D. Crowe (banjo), Tony Rice (guitar), David Grisman (mandolin), and Alison Kruass (fiddle), recorded in 1989 by KET.

“Some Old Day”

“Some Old Day” was written by Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs and it was included on the Rounder 0044 album, but the album track doesn’t have a banjo solo. Never fear as we’ll study J.D.’s solo from the McCabe’s live performance. This solo includes many of the slow song and triplet techniques we explored in Session 4, but it’s easier! “Some Old Day” begins at 15:25.

Part 7 of “A Kentucky Treasure: The J.D. Crowe Story” Part 7 explores the classic 1975 band lineup. Here are links to all of the sections we’ve covered to date:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4: “The Jimmy Martin Years” 

Part 5: “The Joslin Brothers, J.D. Crowe & the Kentucky Mountain Boys” 

Part 6: The Kentucky Mountain Boys, Part 1 

Part 7: The Kentucky Mountain Boys becomes the New South: Tony Rice, Ricky Skaggs, and Jerry Douglas join the band  

“Crowe on the Banjo: The Music Life of J.D. Crowe:”

 In preparation for this session, read through Chapter 7, which covers the 1975 classic New South band.