Herb Pederson

This past year was a grand year for bluegrass. A couple of the peak shows I caught were Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen playing acoustic gigs in the Midwest. With pen in hand I pestered these two guys a few times to get an interview, which, incidentally, is shortly coming as an exclusive to this web site. Both men were happy to oblige me with wonderful stories. The history in music these gentlemen have had the last 40-some years is phenomenal.

Herb Pedersen has made music with Hillman in Desert Rose Band. He is a member of the Laurel Canyon Ramblers. He did a stint in the Dillards. He also played with Vern and Ray as well as the Pine Valley Boys. The albums he has played on are a who’s who in the music business: Linda Ronstadt, Gram Parsons, Sonny Landreth, John Prine, Jimmy Webb, Emmylou Harris, John Denver, Doc Watson…when do you want me to stop?

Herb, being the amiable guy he is, was invited by yours truly to send us a Christmas memory. He sent a fantastic one, especially on short notice. The following is the message I received for Herb.

“Hey Rickey! Happy Holidays to you and yours. “Well, ONE of my favorites is when I lived in Nashville back in the 60’s, I was about 23, and it was around Christmas time.

“I had just come back from a road trip with Flatt & The Foggy Mt. Boys, and I got a call from Dean Webb, asking if I’d like to join The Dillards, after an audition with them out in L.A.

“I was looking for a way back to California, and this seemed a perfect way to pay for it. Vern & Ray & I were scheduled to play The Ash Grove in L.A. right around then, so it all worked out great.

“I joined The Dillards in 1967, just before “Wheatstraw Suite” came out on Elektra. Merry Christmas to me. Boy oh boy!”

Herb

What a fantastic musician, a wonderful man and a great bluegrass Christmas memory!

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Editor’s note: We’ve met and visited with a lot of wonderful people in the bluegrass world in the past few years, and especially in the last six months that we’ve been involved in our Web site. We asked a handful of some memorable people we’ve visited with over the past year and invited them to share a bluegrass Christmas memory. Today’s memory is from the one of the great voices of bluegrass music, Steve Gulley of Grasstowne.

My father, Don, and I were booked to play a Christmas party along with the rest of the Pinnacle Boys in Knoxville, Tenn., back in the ’80s.That sounds pretty harmless right? Wrong!

When we got there, we found out we would be performing on a hay wagon out in the middle of this guy’s farm in below-freezing weather. Yes - outside! It was freezing cold with a dusting of snow on the ground.

We were provided salamander-type shotgun heaters next to the stage and, after every set, we managed to scorch nearly all the hair off the back of our hands just trying to get some feeling in them again. It was a memorable event to say the least.

I guess the crowd must have liked what they heard pretty well, because after about three sets of music, the fellow who booked us came up to us and offered a big bonus if we’d play another set.

So, being the true professional bluegrassers that we were, we got up on the trailer and gave the people what they wanted. I’ve never been so cold in my life, but I had a wonderful time and it remains one of my best musical Christmas memories.

You just can’t stop a bunch of dedicated bluegrassers!

Steve Gulley

Grasstowne

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Editor’s note: We’ve met and visited with a lot of wonderful people in the bluegrass world in the past few years, and especially in the last six months that we’ve been involved in our Web site. We asked a handful of some memorable people we’ve visited with over the past year and invited them to share a bluegrass Christmas memory. Today’s memory is from the immensely talented singer/songwriter Donna Hughes whose debut album for Rounder Records, “Gaining Wisdom” was released to critical acclaim.

Donna Hughes photo by David McClister

My Dad was the best Dad in the world. He was always there for me in every way. If it weren’t for my Dad, I could have never gotten this far in music. I lost him to cancer December 11, 2005.

That Christmas Eve, my first ever without my Dad, and the most painful thing ever, I went over to my parents house, and sat in their hammock. My Mom & Dad were almost married 35 years. When my Daddy died, it was 20 days shy of their 35th wedding anniversary. Just two years before, Alison Krauss wished them a Happy Anniversary at a sold out crowd in Greensboro, NC (since she had recorded one of my songs,) and my Daddy was the proudest Dad in the world.

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On that 1st Christmas Eve without my Dad, as I sat in the hammock at their house, a huge red cardinal came and sat on a branch just a few feet away. He was unusually large, and unusually close. I just felt it was my Dad sending that bird to say hello. We always had humor in our lives, and I could just hear him making a joke about that being such a fat bird.

Anyway, I wrote a song about this experience. On the night of December 11, 2006, one year exactly after he passed into Heaven, I saw a shooting star. It was also described in the song.

The song is called “Saying Hello.”

The misty fog stretched across the highway
The gentle breeze circling the leaves
The pretty cloud shaped just like a heart
That’s Daddy saying hello to me

That time I saw, a bright shooting star
The colored butterflies that glide along the road
The nickel on the ground made the year I left for college
Reminding me he’s waiting for me to come home

He’s all around me now
He’s up there smiling down
He isn’t hurting now
I’m gonna make him proud
The flowers in the spring
Red birds on a snowy tree
In my heart I do believe
It’s really Daddy…… saying hello to me

The silver rain that danced across my windshield
That crazy bird singing loudly in the tree
His favorite song playing on the radio
That’s Daddy saying hello to me

The wind is moving my porch swing today
He must be looking at the tears on my face
His favorite team is playing baseball on tv
I miss my Daddy
Saying hello to me

The leaves are dancing on the sidewalk today
He must be telling me it’s gonna be ok
I saw a little boy with blue eyes smiling
Just like Daddy…………….
I miss my Daddy………………..
Saying Hello to me

I just feel that when we lose someone, they always watch over us, and if we look around, they are still really there. So that’s the most valuable memory I have concerning Christmas, is realizing at this time of year that my Dad is still very much with me. My Uncle said something at my Dad’s funeral that stuck with me…..he said “You can sit and cry in the darkness, or you can walk in the light that you have.”

Have a great Christmas!

Donna Hughes
www.DonnaHughes.com

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Editor’s note: We’ve met and visited with a lot of wonderful people in the bluegrass world in the past few years, and especially in the last six months that we’ve been involved in our Web site. We asked a handful of some memorable people we’ve visited with over the past year and invited them to share a bluegrass Christmas memory. Although we didn’t meet Darin Vincent on the circuit this year, we’re looking forward to crossing his path, along with his new singing partner Jamie Dailey, in the months ahead. In the meantime, both heard about our holiday project and were gracious enough to offer a holiday reflection. You can Read Jamie Dailey’s here.

Darrin Vincent

I remember as a child waking up early, before dawn, knowing that Santa had come. We’d tear open the gifts and leave paper strewn all over the living room. Then we would all get dressed and head over to my grandparents’ house to have more Christmas. I remember having breakfast there. My Grandma Helen (Thompson) could really cook, and I loved her gravy and bacon.

The other memory I have is the Vincent family Christmas, where we would all gather at Grandma Erma’s house two doors down, and have a big dinner and open up presents. There we would draw names, and I always wanted the western outfit, with guns, holsters, caps that made a noise, hat, vest, chaps–the whole thing. And Aunt Irene always had the best-looking wrapping paper. Those times were precious.

Today I love being home with my wife Julie and our three children, seeing them get excited about the tree, the decorations and the lights, and participating in our church plays every year.

It’s also a sad time for me and my wife, because Julie’s father passed away on December 22 when she was just 16. She still misses her daddy, and every Christmas it’s hard for her. I’m grateful my parents are still with me, even though I don’t see them as often as I should. Greatest of all, we celebrate the birthday of our savior Jesus who is the real reason we have Christmas.

-Darrin Vincent of Dailey & Vincent

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Editor’s note: We’ve met and visited with a lot of wonderful people in the bluegrass world in the past few years, and especially in the last six months that we’ve been involved in our Web site. We asked a handful of some memorable people we’ve visited with over the past year and invited them to share a bluegrass Christmas memory. Although we didn’t meet Jamie Dailey on the circuit this year, we’re looking forward to crossing his path, along with his new singing partner Darrin Vincent, in the months ahead. In the meantime, both heard about our holiday project and were gracious enough to offer a holiday reflection. You can read Darrin Vincent’s Christmas Memories here.

Jamie Dailey

One of my fondest memories of Christmas as a child was decorating our home the day after Thanksgiving. We would start on the outside. We lived on a hill above a beautiful lake, with surrounding hills and a huge bridge off in the distance that crossed the lake that fed into the Cumberland River. My dad and I would put up hundreds of lights all over the hillside and around the plank fence that went around our five acres of land. When it got dark we lit up the house and land, and you could see traffic literally stopping on the bridge across the lake as they looked at our lights. After that we went inside to help my mother put up decorations.

On Christmas day it was time to see what Santa had brought and to see if he had eaten the cookies we had left! Then Mama had Christmas dinner ready around 4:00 or so, something we still do. I loved every minute of it and still do!

I have continued the tradition of decorating and going all out at Christmas time. This year my family and I will celebrate Christmas in my new home in Brentwood, Tennessee. Everyone coming in town to visit is staying all night on Christmas Eve. I can’t wait!

Jamie S. Dailey
Dailey & Vincent

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