Del McCoury Band

Throughout the nineties, the Del McCoury Band has embodied the best qualities of bluegrass. They have received exposure in the mainstream media for collaboration with the alternative rock group Phish. Another big fan of the Del McCoury Band is Steve Earle, with whom the band recorded 1999's 'The Mountain.' "When Steve came up with the idea, I thought about it and figured it would help both of us as well as the music. He has admired bluegrass ever since he came to town." Another factor cited by Del that piqued his interest in Earle's project was the wealth of new material, a meaningful subject in Del's opinion. "Back when Bill Monroe first started playing, he didn't have songs of his own. But once he started to write his own songs and later when Lester Flatt joined the group writing songs, bluegrass had its own style. We have to get new songs into the bluegrass genre to keep it fresh and up to date. You have to keep things growing." After a highly successful relationship with Rounder Records, the Del McCoury Band recently signed with Ricky Skaggs' Ceili Records. The first project to test the new relationship, 'The Family,' was also released in 1999 to wide acclaim from fans and critics alike. He is revitalized, re-energized and making the best music of his illustrious career. Today, the Del McCoury Band enjoys the praise of traditional bluegrass lovers and tie-dyed clad 'Del-Heads' alike. Del has proven not to be a relic of bluegrass music's past, but an architect of its future.