Guitarist Tony Rice’s self-titled 1977 album is being reissued by Craft Recordings to mark what would have been the ground-breaking bluegrass musician’s 75th birthday on 8th June.
Newly remastered from the original tapes and back on vinyl for the first time in over 40 years, the album features an all-star line-up including mandolin virtuoso David Grisman, legendary banjo picker J.D. Crowe, and dobro master Jerry Douglas.
One of the most revered names in modern bluegrass, Tony Rice was an innovative force who shaped the sound of the genre throughout his career, and whose distinctive touch on the guitar influenced countless others. Born in Virginia and raised in Los Angeles, Rice launched his career in Louisville, Kentucky, where he rose to prominence as the lead vocalist and guitarist of J.D. Crowe’s trailblazing group, The New South.
In the mid-’70s, shortly after the release of their self-titled bestseller (featuring fellow bluegrass icons Jerry Douglas and mandolinist and multi-instrumentalist Ricky Skaggs), Rice returned to California to join David Grisman’s esteemed quintet. With Grisman, he broadened his musical palette, incorporating jazz, classical, and other styles while refining his guitar technique through a blend of harmonic intervals, flatpicking, and cross-picking.
It was during this time that Rice released Tony Rice, his third album and the first of many for Rounder Records. The line-up was a veritable dream-team, with Rice’s brother, mandolinist Larry Rice, fiddlers Darol Anger and Richard Greene and bassist Todd Phillips joining Rice, Grisman, Crowe and Douglas.