Hamilton County Bluegrass Band

Last updated

The Hamilton County Bluegrass Band is a long-running New Zealand bluegrass band. They have been performing since the 1960s. [1]

Contents

History

The Hamilton County Bluegrass Band was founded in Hamilton by Alan Rhodes and Paul Trenwith. Their main influence was the music of Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs from the Blue Grass Boys. Dave Calder, who was studying at the University of Auckland, liked the sound and became their mandolin player. The called themselves Muleskinners and started performing in 1966. Classical violinist Colleen Bain met the group in 1967 and joined the band as its fiddle player. Leonard Cohen and Sandy McMillin, joined to complete the lineup. [2]

After producer Bryan Easte saw them performing at folk festivals and local music venues he invited them on to his television show, “The Country Touch.” [3] This forced them to decide on a name and eventually Hamilton County Bluegrass Band was chosen. Their first album, self titled, was released in 1967, and their first successful single was "Barefoot Nellie"/"I'll Never Hold You in My Arms Again". Four further albums were released in 1968 and 1969, the last featuring Bill Clifton. [2]

Capitalising on their success the Hamilton County Bluegrass Band turned professional in 1968, signing on with His Master's Voice. McMillin was replaced by Lyndsay Bedogni. In 1970 their single "Carolina on My Mind"/"Roll Muddy River" was a finalist in the Loxene Golden Disc Awards. A year later the "Hey Boys"/"Proud Mary" single also made it into the finals. These two singles were included on the Fifth Season album. Leonard Cohen and Lyndsay Bedogni decided to pursue other interests and to leave the band, and Miles Reay (bass) joined. Cohen emigrated to Adelaide, Australia continued playing bluegrass, concentrating on the dobro in bands such as Old South and Crooked Road. In 1970, the band performed at Redwood 70, the first major modern music festival held in New Zealand. [4]

In 1971, Hamilton County Bluegrass Band released Live At The Wynyard Tavern. [2] The band changed to the Columbia label and released two singles, "You"/"Gentle Ways of Loving Me" and "Mercedes Benz"/"Old Times (It's Easy to Forget)". Calder then left for England and Graham Lovejoy became the new mandolin player. [2]

They also were convinced to relocate to Australia and regularly toured with iconic Australian country musician, Slim Dusty. The Hamilton County Bluegrass Band also travelled to the USA in the 1970s. They recorded "For you" and “Kersbrook Cottage” in Sydney under Columbia. [5]

In 1974 the band decided it was time to slow down and moved back to New Zealand. They still appeared on "Country Road" occasionally and released an album titled after the show. In 1975 they recorded one of their signature songs. “Orange Blossom Special.” Paul and Colleen, now husband and wife, left not long after. This effectively ended the band, although a final album called Orange Blossom Special was released in 1978. [2]

Paul and Colleen Trenwith recorded four albums under their names between 1976 and 1986. [2]

In 1993, a 25th Anniversary compilation called 1968 to 1973 was released. The album Encore came out in the late 1990s. In the band were Alan, Colleen, Paul, Dave Calder, and Colleen and Paul's son Jeremy. This line-up played periodically from 1994 to 2001. In 2002 a very best of compilation was released, which contained tracks mainly from the Fifth Season and Kersbrook Cottage albums. [5] The Hamilton Country Bluegrass Band was inducted into New Zealand's country music Hands of Fame in 2015 [6] and in 2016 Paul received the Queens Service Medal for his services to country music. [7]

Hamilton County Bluegrass Band are still producing music and in 2017 their album These Old Hands was a finalist for Best Country Music Album at the Golden Guitar awards. [8]

On 24 January 2021 Colleen Bain (Trenwith) passed away from pancreatic cancer in her hometown in New Zealand. [9]

Original line-up

Awards

Country Music Awards of Australia

The Country Music Awards of Australia (CMAA) (also known as the Golden Guitar Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, celebrating recording excellence in the Australian country music industry. They have been held annually since 1973. [10]

YearNominee / workAwardResult
1973"Ring-a-Ding"Instrumental Track of the YearWon
1974Live At TamworthEP of the YearWon

Related Research Articles

The Datsuns Hard rock band from Cambridge, New Zealand

The Datsuns are a hard rock band from Cambridge, New Zealand, formed in 1998. Founding mainstays are Rudolf "Dolf" de Borst on vocals and bass guitar, Christian Livingstone and Phil Somervell, both on guitar. They have released seven albums, with their debut self-titled album from October 2002 peaking at No. 1 in New Zealand and reaching the top 20 on the United Kingdom's Official Charts. They had relocated to London in 2002. Their second album, Outta Sight/Outta Mind, appeared at No. 7 in New Zealand and top 60 in the UK. Smoke & Mirrors, peaked in the top 20 in New Zealand. Early drummer Matt Osment was replaced by Ben Cole after that album. Their top 40 singles in the UK are "In Love" and "Harmonic Generator". In New Zealand, their highest-charting single, "Stuck Here for Days" (2006), reached the top 30.

Dan Tyminski American bluegrass composer and instrumentalist

Daniel John Tyminski is an American bluegrass composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist. He is a member of Alison Krauss's band Union Station, and has released three solo albums, Carry Me Across the Mountain (2000), on the Doobie Shea Records label, Wheels (2008), on the Rounder Records label, and Southern Gothic (2017). on the Mercury Records label.

The Seldom Scene is an American bluegrass band that formed in 1971 in Bethesda, Maryland. The band's original line-up comprised John Starling on lead vocals and guitar, Mike Auldridge on Dobro and baritone vocals, Ben Eldridge on banjo, Tom Gray on double bass, and John Duffey on mandolin; the latter three also provided backing vocals. Together they released their debut studio album, Act I, in 1972, followed by both Act II and Act III in 1973.

Jan Hellriegel Musical artist

Jan Hellriegel is a singer/songwriter based in Auckland, New Zealand.

New Grass Revival American progressive bluegrass band

New Grass Revival was an American progressive bluegrass band founded in 1971, and composed of Sam Bush, Courtney Johnson, Ebo Walker, Curtis Burch, Butch Robins, John Cowan, Béla Fleck and Pat Flynn. They were active between 1971 and 1989, releasing more than twenty albums as well as six singles. Their highest-charting single is "Callin' Baton Rouge", which peaked at No. 37 on the U.S. country charts in 1989 and was a Top 5 country hit for Garth Brooks five years later.

Bering Strait was a Russian country music band, whose style was sometimes called "redgrass". In 2003, the band was nominated for a Grammy Award and appeared on the TV show 60 Minutes. The group disbanded in 2006. The lineup on their first album was Alexander Arzamastsev (drums), Natasha Borzilova, Sergey "Spooky" Olkhovsky, Sergei Passov, Lydia Salnikova, Sasha Ostrovsky and Ilya Toshinsky.

Peter Rowan American musician

Peter Rowan is an American bluegrass musician and composer. Rowan plays guitar and mandolin, yodels and sings.

Blue Highway is an American contemporary bluegrass band formed in 1994 and based in Tennessee. The band's albums include Wondrous Love (2003), Marbletown (2005), and Original Traditional (2016).

Kentucky Thunder Band that plays with Ricky Skaggs

Kentucky Thunder, or Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, is the band that plays with American country and bluegrass singer Ricky Skaggs. Many members of the band have won numerous awards. Bandleader Ricky Skaggs plays mandolin and is the lead vocalist. The group has won the Instrumental Group of the Year award from the International Bluegrass Music Association multiple times, as well as seven Grammy Awards.

Fly My Pretties Musical artist

Fly My Pretties is a collaboration of musicians originally from Wellington, New Zealand who are known for coming together to record live albums, in various locations in New Zealand. The different musical backgrounds of the members make for an eclectic mix of songs on their releases. Fly My Pretties was the brainchild of Barnaby Weir, front man of the Black Seeds and Mikee Tucker of Loop Recordings Aot(ear)oa. The objective: To meet, exchange ideas, and then perform and record the results in front of a live audience.

Doyle Lawson American bluegrass and gospel musician

Doyle Lawson is an American traditional bluegrass and Southern gospel musician. He is best known as a mandolin player, vocalist, producer, and leader of the 6-man group Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. Lawson was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame in 2012.

The Grascals American bluegrass band

The Grascals are a six-piece American bluegrass band from Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in February 2004, the band has gained a level of fame by playing on the Grand Ole Opry and bluegrass festivals around the country, as well as with Dolly Parton.

Ricky Skaggs American musician, producer, and composer

Rickie Lee Skaggs, known professionally as Ricky Skaggs, is an American neotraditional country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, mandocaster, and banjo.

Punch Brothers American band

Punch Brothers is an American band consisting of Chris Thile (mandolin), Gabe Witcher (fiddle/violin), Noam Pikelny (banjo), Chris Eldridge (guitar), and Paul Kowert (bass). Their style has been described as "bluegrass instrumentation and spontaneity in the structures of modern classical" as well as "American country-classical chamber music".

Steep Canyon Rangers American band

Steep Canyon Rangers is an American bluegrass band based in Asheville and Brevard, North Carolina. Though formed in 2000, the band has become widely known since 2009 for collaborating with actor/banjoist Steve Martin. In 2013, the Steep Canyon Rangers' solo album Nobody Knows You won the Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album. The previous year, their 2012 collaboration with Steve Martin, Rare Bird Alert, was nominated for the same award. Steep Canyon Rangers have recorded 9 solo albums plus two collaborative albums with Steve Martin. SCR performed as a quintet for nearly a decade before intermittent touring began as a sextet with Steve Martin; the band still performs in both configurations. In May 2013, Steve Martin and SCR began performing with Edie Brickell after she and Martin co-wrote and recorded Love Has Come for You.

Dailey & Vincent American bluegrass music group

Dailey & Vincent is an American bluegrass music group composed of Jamie Dailey, Darrin Vincent, Aaron McCune, Wesley Smith (vocals), Patrick McAvinue (fiddle), Shaun Richardson, Bob Mummert (drums), Gaven Largent (banjo), and Blaine Johnson (piano).

Balsam Range is a bluegrass and acoustic music group founded in 2007 in Haywood County, North Carolina. They are the 2014 and 2018 IBMA Entertainer of the Year recipients. Their other accolades include IBMA Vocal Group of the Year, Song of the Year, and Album of the Year. Balsam Range consists of its original five members: on fiddle and lead vocals, Buddy Melton; on mandolin and vocals, Darren Nicholson; on upright bass, resonator guitar, and vocals, Tim Surrett; on guitar and vocals, Caleb Smith; and on banjo, Dr. Marc Pruett.

<i>Wheels</i> (Dan Tyminski album) 2008 studio album by Dan Tyminski

Wheels is the third studio album by American bluegrass musician Dan Tyminski. The album peaked at number 1 on the Top Bluegrass Albums chart. It won the 2009 International Bluegrass Music Award for Album of the Year and was nominated for a Grammy Award.

Gerald Richard "Gerry" Hale is an English-born, Australian-based multi-instrumentalist and vocalist. He has worked as a session musician for the Soft Boys (1978–80) and was a band member of Bouncing Czecks before relocating to Australia in 1987. He has provided violin and mandolin for Colin Hay Band and Broderick Smith Band. Hale formed a bluegrass group, Uncle Bill, in 1996 which has had a variable line up. The group worked with Paul Kelly and together they released an album, Smoke, which peaked at No. 36 on the ARIA Albums Chart. On that album, Hale provided guitar, mandolin, fiddle, dobro, lap steel, vocals and he co-produced it with Kelly.

David Parmley is a bluegrass vocalist, guitarist, and award-winning bandleader. He is best known for being a co-founder of both the Bluegrass Cardinals and Continental Divide.

References

  1. ↑ "NZ Live – Hamilton County Bluegrass Band". Radio New Zealand. 14 February 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "History | Hamilton County Bluegrass Band". server.reelmen.co.nz. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  3. ↑ "Y'all Come – New Zealand country music on television 1968 to 1987 – AudioCulture". www.audioculture.co.nz. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
  4. ↑ Schmidt, Andrew (12 December 2013). "Redwood 70 National Music Convention". AudioCulture. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  5. 1 2 "www.hamiltoncounty.co.nz". www.hamiltoncounty.co.nz. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
  6. ↑ "Bluegrass band inducted into Hands of Fame". Stuff. 31 May 2015. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  7. ↑ "Bluegrass music pioneer Paul Trenwith acknowledged with Queens Service Medal". Stuff. 11 November 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  8. ↑ "Country Music Awards to be presented at 2017 Golden Guitars | Scoop News". www.scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  9. ↑ "The Hamilton County Bluegrass Band - AudioCulture".
  10. ↑ "Past Award Winners" . Retrieved 2 November 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.