Birth name James Dee Crowe Name J. Crowe Years active 1956–2015 | Occupation(s) Musician Movies Bluegrass: Country Soul | |
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Albums J D Crowe & The New South, Live in Japan, Bluegrass Holiday, Blackjack, My Home Ain't In The Hall Of Fa Profiles | ||
BLUEGRASS: "Blackjack" J D Crowe, Grisman, Rice (Mark O'Connor's American Music Shop)
James Dee Crowe (born August 27, 1937, in Lexington, Kentucky) is an American banjo player and bluegrass band leader. He first became known during his four-year stint with Jimmy Martin in the 1950s.
Contents
- BLUEGRASS Blackjack J D Crowe Grisman Rice Mark OConnors American Music Shop
- J D Crowe and Doyle Lawson on Countrys Family Reunion
- Biography
- Discography
- Media appearances
- References
J. D. Crowe and Doyle Lawson on Country's Family Reunion
Biography
Crowe began playing the banjo early on and was offered a job with Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys in mid-1950s. He cut his first recordings with Jimmy Martin on December 1, 1956, and his last on August 17, 1960, recording a total of 33 songs on Decca Records. In the late 1960s, Crowe formed the Kentucky Mountain Boys, principally performing in the Lexington region. By the early 1970s, Crowe changed the band's name to The New South and included material from rock and country music sources. Crowe's New South band is widely considered one of the most influential bluegrass groups since the 1970s. Many influential musicians have been a part of the band over the years, including Keith Whitley, Ricky Skaggs, Tony Rice, Jerry Douglas, Doyle Lawson, Don Rigsby, Ron Stewart, Larry Rice, and Bobby Slone.
Kentucky Educational Television in 2008 aired a biography of J.D. Crowe "A Kentucky Treasure: The J.D. Crowe Story" produced by H. Russell Farmer.
Crowe received the Bluegrass Star Award, presented by the Bluegrass Heritage Foundation of Dallas, Texas, on October 15, 2011. The award is bestowed upon bluegrass artists who do an exemplary job of advancing traditional bluegrass music and bringing it to new audiences while preserving its character and heritage.
Discography
Media appearances
Crowe took part in a brief banjo jam session on the episode "Sawmill Slasher" of the Animal Planet television series Call of the Wildman which aired August 5, 2012.
On September 6, 2014, Crowe came out of retirement and performed with Wildfire at the historic Lincoln Theatre in Marion, Virginia, for the Song of the Mountains PBS program.
He has also been featured on Tim Farmer's television show, Homemade Jam in Episode 101.
On September 21, 2015, Crowe was the featured guest on the radio series "An Intimate Evening With Eddie Stubbs" for WSM (AM) at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, TN.