Bluegrass was well represented at the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame’s (ACMHF) 28th Annual Awards Celebration that was held on November 28, 2009. Many of the 31 Honorees’ resumes included starts or stints in bluegrass bands and several were pure bluegrass entertainers.
Blue Ridge Bluegrass entertained in the Bluegrass Jam room before their induction as Honorees. From the left: John Watson, Jamie Mason, Josh Earley, Ray Ritchie, Greg Brooks, Roger Watson. Courtesy The SEBA Breakdown.
The Hall of Fame Founders Award went to Bob Wyatt, a founding member of the bluegrass organization in South Carolina and a player at the first ever bluegrass festival in the US. Bluegrass Honorees included the Blue Ridge Grass band, Paul Flood, Jeff Partridge and Zach Steed from the Bullsboro band, and Joey Jordan, who typically had spent the day surrounded by pickers in the hotel lobby doing an endless string of bluegrass tunes. Congratulations to all who were recognized for their enduring contributions to bluegrass music.
The ACMHF Annual Awards Celebration is filled with music and musicians of many types. It is not limited to country music and it is not just an evening of entertainment interspersed with awards. The celebration this year began at 11 AM with 4 live music shows that ran until 4 PM and there was also pickin’ in corners and sitting areas of the hotel, which has been the Holiday Inn Select on Chamblee-Dunwoody Road for a few years. The main ballroom featured country music with electric guitars, bass, drums, steel guitar, saxophone, and singers taking turns and rotating through the afternoon. One of the smaller meeting rooms showcased bluegrass music with many of the ACMHF Honorees and their bands performing tight sets with all the usual suspects – guitar, banjo, mandolin, bass, and high lonesome vocals. Guest pickers were also welcome and invited to sit in with them. Another of the small meeting rooms had cowboy entertainment with cowboy gospel, cowboy and cowgirl singing, storytellers, and you could get your picture taken with a real cowboy. The singer’s showcase was in the Atrium where vocalists entertained with pre-recorded tracks.
Joey Jordan jammed in the hotel Atrium all afternoon before being inducted as an Honoree. Courtesy The SEBA Breakdown.
Mark your calendars for the Saturday after Thanksgiving in 2010 and plan to attend the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame (ACMHF) Annual Awards Celebration. This event should be required for all musicians in Georgia. It sheds light on the contributions that Georgia musicians and the Georgia music industry have made to the development of all forms of music in the US. And it is a fun day for musicians and music fans.
The ACMHF was founded in 1982 by John Carson, who is the grandson of Fiddlin’ John Carson, and his wife Phyllis Cole. It was formed to preserve Georgia’s music heritage and history, to promote Georgia’s music talent, and to honor persons and organizations for their contributions and achievements.