Noted mandolinist to make UGA concert hall debut

Released by the UGA Performing Arts Center:

“There’s no more exciting or excitable a picker in acoustic music than Sam Bush. A whirling dervish onstage, he flails like Jimmy Page, conjuring up mesmerizing polyrhythmic chops and trailblazing solos, seasoned with the old-time wisdom of Bill Monroe and the persona of a Muppet.”—No Depression

Grammy-winning mandolinist, singer and songwriter Sam Bush is an Americana legend. For decades he has been a pioneer in the rule-breaking, genre-spanning style called progressive bluegrass, or newgrass. He comes to Hodgson Concert Hall with his band Friday, May 16 at 7:30 p.m. for a look back at his illustrious career.

SAM BUSH

As a teen fiddler Bush was a three-time national champion in the junior division of the National Oldtime Fiddler’s Contest. He recorded an instrumental album, Poor Richard’s Almanac, as a high school senior and in the spring of 1970 attended the Fiddlers Convention in Union Grove, NC. There he heard the New Deal String Band, taking notice of their rock-inspired brand of progressive bluegrass.

In 1971 Bush and colleagues formed New Grass Revival. Bush was the newgrass commando, incorporating a variety of genres into the repertoire. He discovered a sibling similarity with the reggae rhythms of Bob Marley and The Wailers, and, accordingly, developed an ear-turning original style of mandolin playing. The group issued five albums in their first seven years, and in 1979 became Leon Russell’s backing band.

A three-record contract with Capitol Records and a conscious turn to the country market took the Revival to new commercial heights. Bush survived a life-threatening bout with cancer, and returned to the group that’d become more popular than ever. They released chart-climbing singles, made videos, earned Grammy nominations, and, at their zenith, called it quits.

Bush worked the next five years with Emmylou Harris’ Nash Ramblers, then did a stint with Lyle Lovett. He took home three straight IBMA Mandolin Player of the Year awards, 1990-92 (and a fourth in 2007). In 1995 he toured with Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, reigniting his penchant for improvisation. Then, finally, after a quarter-century of making music with New Grass Revival and collaborating with other bands, Sam Bush went solo.

He’s released seven albums and a live DVD over the past two decades. In 2009, the Americana Music Association awarded Bush the lifetime achievement award for an instrumentalist. Punch Brothers, Steep Canyon Rangers, and Greensky Bluegrass are just a few present-day bluegrass vanguards among so many musicians he’s influenced. His performances are annual highlights of the festival circuit, with Bush’s joyous perennial appearances at the town’s famed bluegrass fest earning him the title “King of Telluride.”

“With this band I have now I am free to try anything," Bush says. "Looking back at the last 50 years of playing newgrass, with the elements of jazz improvisation and rock-and-roll, jamming, playing with New Grass Revival, Leon, and Emmylou; it’s a culmination of all of that. I can unapologetically stand onstage and feel I’m representing those songs well.”

TICKETS

Securing tickets for UGA Presents performances couldn’t be easier. There are three ways to choose from:

1. Purchase tickets online 24/7 at pac.uga.edu.

2. Call the Performing Arts Center Box Office at (706) 542-4400, Mon.-Fri., 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

3. Visit the UGA Performing Arts Center Box Office, Mon.-Fri., 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (5 minute parking is available in the drop off circle at the Performing Arts Center for purchasing or picking up tickets.)