Content provided in partnership with

NEW KINGS OF BLUEGRASS: KING WILKIE, CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA

Southern Living, Apr 2006 by Patterson, Nick

King Wilkie plays bluegrass with charisma, confidence, and the certainty that they're following in some mighty big footsteps.

They named themselves not after legendary bluegrass master Bill Monroe but after his favorite horse. If that seems humble, it fits the respectful, down-to-earth demeanor of the young Charlottesville-based band, who put their hearts and considerable talents into every show, no matter how big or small the audience.

Most Popular Articles in Home & Garden: Coolest room on the block: have a bedroom that's way drab and boring? Hang ...; Reuse, recycle, remodel: environmentally friendly materials and techniques ...; Keeping it simple: interior designer Michael Lee finds an overdesigned ...; House of the Year: this craftsman-inspired home is factory-built--proving ...; Dreaming of cabin life: smart ideas for small spaces, plus the hottest spots ...; More »

In tonight's gig at Smith's Olde Bar, a dark, smoky Atlanta rock club with sparse patronage on a Sunday evening, King Wilkie entertains a small group of fans in a way some bands reserve for a crowd of 2,000. Guitarist John McDonald and mandolin player Reid Burgess smile through friendly, lowkey banter with the audience between songs. Anticipating the show, lead guitarist and songwriter Ted Pitney says, "Sometimes a tiny intimate club or room is really great because you're super connected, you know?"

The band, which also includes banjo picker Abe Spear, fiddler Nick Reeb, and bass fiddle player Jake Hopping, makes connections playing songs about loneliness and heartbreak, tragedy and bravado. They run through pieces they wrote-including "Wrecking Ball," "Angeline," and the rest of their 2005 six-song EP Tierra del Fuego.

King Wilkie chooses bluegrass when other performers in their twenties might be following the well-worn path of alternative rock. Reid and Ted love this essentially Southern music enough to let it pull them out of Ohio, across the Mason-Dixon, to where bluegrass first grew.

"A friend of mine played me a Bill Monroe record when I was 19 or 20, and I was blown away," Reid says. "I became really obsessive." Then he got lost at a festival and wound up in close proximity to John Hartford. "It was a real southern Ohio traditional bluegrass festival," he recalls. "It was just so small you could actually go up and meet the musicians."

They've met plenty since forming the band and releasing three albums: True Songs; their critically acclaimed follow-up, Rebel Records' Broke; and then Tierra del Fuego. Now some hail King Wilkie as the young lions of the genre. Others suggest the band may help save the time-honored traditions of bluegrass. Not so fast, Reid says.

"I don't think you have to worry about the music becoming extinct," he explains. Bluegrass lives in the playlists of dozens of traditional bands-and the hearts of untold thousands of fans. "It's just so much bigger than us."

-NICK PATTERSON

KING WILKIE'S PICKS: If you want to hear where bluegrass all began, the Charlottesville band recommends The Essential Bill Monroe & The Monroe Brothers, The Essential Bill Monroe & His BlueGrass Boys, and Appalachian Stomp: Bluegrass Classics. In addition to King Wilkie, some other musicians keeping the tradition alive include banjo virtuoso Alison Brown and singer Gillian Welch.

NEW KINGS OF BLUEGRASS: KING WILKIE, CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA

Southern Living, Apr 2006 by Patterson, Nick

Find Research Guides for:

Find Featured Titles for: Sports

Most Popular Articles in Home & Garden

Most Popular Publications in Home & Garden