The Author

Friday 19th Nov.1999
THIS WAS THE PENULTIMATE GIG of a fortnight’s tour of Britain by a unique American band. Never before on a single stage have I seen such a diverse line-up of musical instruments! Tony Ellis plays banjo and fiddle and is accompanied by his wife Louise Adkins an keyboards, Debbie Norris on Celtic harp, Gary Puckett on acoustic guitar and Tad Jordan on fiddle. An unlikely combination of instruments- but it works!

Tony hails from North Carolina but is now based in Ohio. He is a true bluegrass veteran, having played with some of the best in the business over the last forty years, including Bill Monroe.

The band he has assembled describe themselves as “purveyors of traditional and original Appalachian music” - “bluegrass played mountain style” in the words of one observer. It is certainly not the sort of music you normally hear on a stage, being more associated with back-porch picking than a concert venue.

Harp, two fiddles, guitar and keyboards - Glasgrass? *see footnote

What comes across is the unpretentious enthusiasm of a dedicated group of friends who clearly enjoy making music together. Apart from the occasional vocal from Tony on numbers such as Jesse James and the Carter Family song Storms are on the Ocean, their repertoire consists of instrumentals played in a number of different formats. On some tunes banjo and harp predominated (and combined surprisingly veil), while others features twin fiddles or banjo/guitar leads.

But what really caught the ear was the slow banjo picking by Tony. We are so used to the bluegrass banjo being played at breakneck speed that it came as quite a shock to hear the length or some of the notes that Tony produces. He referred at breakfast the next morning (we stayed at the same guest house) to his desire to “give the banjo’s voice a chance to be heard”, and this was evident in the subtlety of his playing.

Tony performed several banjo solos, including Farewell My Home(the title track of his Flying Fish album) and Wild Fox in which he replicated the action of a fox on the run. These were among many original compositions which Tony played.

Other standout numbers included the banjo-led Hangman’s Song with its gruesome lyric and the traditional Ash Grove, to which Tony attributed a Welsh origin. Tony switched to fiddle for Beaver Creek and back to banjo far several numbers from his Copper Creek album Tragic Romance. Each tune was preceded by an explanation of its origins and Tony provided a interesting insight into the history of the music. This was a most unusual night’s entertainment at an excellent listening venue.

Tony has a separate bluegrass band back home which he hopes to bring over on his next visit - a mouth-watering prospect.

Chris Haggett, Warrington. Write to Chris

| Tony Ellis CD Review | 1998 Gig report |

* 'Glas' is the Welsh word for 'Blue' (Welsh harp... groan!)

1st Jan 2000