Syracuse native and bluegrass banjoist Tony Trischka has just released his new album, Earl Jam. The 15-song album is a tribute to the late Earl Scruggs, a pioneer of modern bluegrass and a friend of Trischka’s.
Tony Trischka, born in 1949, has been a major influence on bluegrass and banjo music throughout his career. With over 15 albums under his belt and countless collaborations with industry legends over the past four decades, Trischka is no newcomer. The fact that he was once labeled “the father of modern bluegrass” by The New York Times speaks for itself.
In 2020, Trischka received some mail with a mysterious thumb drive. To his surprise, the drive contained hours of never-publicly-heard music from friend of Trischka and fellow bluegrass legend Earl Scruggs. Scruggs passed away in 2012 at the age of 88, making the surprise thumb drive particularly valuable and sentimental.
Trischka soon began to transcribe all of the solos, tones, and tricks on the drive and gathered a group of bluegrass veterans like Stuart Duncan and Ronnie McCoury to give Scruggs’ music the highest quality of reproduction. Now a few years later, Trischka’s tribute album to Earl Scruggs, Earl Jam, is complete.
“Whether or not you’re a banjo player, if you play bluegrass, you’re influenced by Earl,” Trischka said about the Scruggs and the album.
Earl Jam is a true classic bluegrass album. All of the lively, chipper and traditional elements that one would expect from a great bluegrass album are present. Guests like Sierra Ferrel, Vince Gill and Molly Tuttle all provide wonderful vocal switch-ups to their respective tracks as well.
One of the highlights has to be the three-minute track featuring Molly Tuttle and Sam Bush, Dooley. The song begins with a hypnotizing rock-steady 9-second-held note by Tuttle and jumps into a soulful tune with crafty work from seasoned bluegrass mandolinist Sam Bush.
With a runtime of only 46 minutes, Earl Jam is the perfect pick-me-up album to take in on a road trip or at a barbecue. But don’t forget the significance behind this record. This may very well be the last original music created by Earl Scruggs that we ever hear, and for that, it should have a special place in the hearts of all bluegrass fans.
Key Tracks: Brown’s Ferry Blues, Dooley, Bury Me Beneath the Willow
Trischka will be playing two shows in New York City on June 13 and December 14, and one show at Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival in Oak Hill on July 20. Tickets and information can be found here.
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