BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Earl Jam, scheduled Sunday at Godfrey Daniels, will not be a typical tribute concert, in which a group of musicians clone a more famous artist and run through their greatest hits.
It will be more of an homage, from one bluegrass banjo great to another.
The Earl in the title of veteran banjo player Tony Trischka’s concert and newly released album is Earl Scruggs, who, along with Bill Monroe, created the genre of bluegrass in the 1940s.
“Tony has been a friend of … our venue since 1980, with more than 35 appearances and counting.”Ramona LaBarre, managing director Godfrey Daniels
Trischka, born in Syracuse, New York, in 1949, is credited with modernizing that uniquely American instrument in the 1960s and '70s.
In those days, his role in adventurous New York City bands such as Country Cooking and Breakfast Special earned him a reputation as a rule-breaker, but with a deep respect for traditional music.
In the years since, he’s collaborated with a Who’s Who of musicians with roots in folk and bluegrass, including The Chicks, Bela Fleck and comedian/musician Steve Martin.
Along the way, Trischka, who lives in New Jersey, has passed through the Lehigh Valley many times.
Ramona LaBarre, managing director Godfrey Daniels texted, “Tony has been a friend of … our venue since 1980, with more than 35 appearances and counting.”
'A world of amazement'
In a recent interview with LehighValleyNews.com, Trischka said "Earl Jam," his recording project, and the live performance that it spawned has its roots in the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I got a hold of a thumb drive of over 200 songs of Earl Scruggs jamming with John Hartford, who wrote [the Glen Campbell hit] 'Gentle On My Mind,'" Trischka said.
"Someone just sent it to me and I started delving into it and found just a world of amazement. Tunes that we've never heard Earl Scruggs play.”
Trischka set out, with a bluegrass scholar’s determination, to learn note-for-note the unknown recordings by Scruggs, who died in 2012.Tony Trischka
Trischka set out, with a bluegrass scholar’s determination, to learn note-for-note the unknown recordings by Scruggs, who died in 2012.
The songs and tunes culled from those informal performances that made it into Trischka’s new album as a diverse as familiar chestnuts such as "Amazing Grace" and Lennon and McCartney’s "Lady Madonna."
In performance, Trischka, backed by a crack band of bluegrass players including Michael Daves on guitar and vocals, said he plans to intersperse songs and tunes that he’s learned from those rare home recordings of Scruggs and Hartford with stories from the life of Earl Scruggs.
Which amounts to a musical history of bluegrass.
“But it's not pedantic… let's be clear about that,” he said.
How could it be? It’s a musical celebration of one of America’s best-loved music makers, Earl Scruggs.
Tony Trischka’s EarlJam: A Tribute to Earl Scruggs, featuring Michael Daves, Jared Engel, and Duncan Wickel, 7 p.m. Sunday, June 30, Godfrey Daniels, 7 E. 4th St., Bethlehem. Sold out.
