It's all about the "U"! Love us or hate us, you will respect us.

I have always said that I felt like heavy metal and Bluegrass mirrored each other and after tonight I believe that even more.

I got the chance to go and see 12 time Grammy Award winner Ricky Skaggs and The Kentucky Thunder tonight.  I actually bought the ticket back in December and got a front row seat!  Man, what a show.  Ricky and the boys can certainly pick out some Bluegrass.  It was all acoustic.  I knew nary a tune 'cept one, "Highway Forty Blues" but that not matter.  Ever single song  play'd brought me back to the days when I was a kid growin up listenin to some picken goin on in the mountains.  I was a smilin the whole time about.  Yea, my grandpa, a.k.a. Pops, used to take me into the Smoky's for some of them mountain fests and boy do I miss em some um' fierce.  (They are still around I just don't go by myself.  And now I am thinking I should start going since I went to the concert alone.  Who really cares if I was alone or not?  I had a fabulous time and I should go to them.)

Ricky'd stop after a song or two and tell some jokes and sum stories.  Mans got a great sense of humor.  He talked about some good ole country fried chiken cooked in lard with gravy sauce that his mom used to make!  Mmm, mmm, I sure do nuff miss that stuff myself.  Pops used ta make that same real good cookin.  I may need to try to learn to cook that myself.  Anyway, I tell you what, he's gotta a guitar picker like I ain't never seen.  That boy could play.  And the banjo picker?  Whew!  I was exhausted just watching him.  The fiddler?  He looked like he was right out of college but must have been born with a bow in his hand and Charlie Daniels may have to have a fiddle off to see who's best now since there ain't a fiddle'a gold no more.  There was this guy from Knoxville in the band who played along with his guitar and he could sing like George Straight!  When he did his songs he rocked the house and I think he got a bigger applause that Ricky but that may a been since he's a local done good.  Ricky played the mandolin at his right side and it was opposite of where I was sitting so I could not see him jam clearly but I sure could hear what he was a doin'!  He needs no explanation for sure. 

Yeah when the show was over the audience, including myself, was hangin around like a hair in a biscuit!  Then the band came out, they all gathered around a solo mike and sang a Gospel song with Ricky playing the mandolin and the guitar picker a playing.  They then went back into their set and played two more songs.  Someone cried out "acappella" and Ricky kind of blew it off at first but then broke out into a Gospel song and it sent shivers down my spine it was so good.   That reminds me, there was a moment earlier, between songs, when the fiddle player was just a fiddlen and the rest of the band was tuning up, Ricky looked over, watched his fiddler and started to play along.  No song, just a couple of musicians jammin.  Next thing you know we are watching what could possibly be a song in the makin'.  That was absolute magic!  Gosh I missed my calling in life.

Now here is why I think that heavy metal and Bluegrass mirror each other.  The last two concerts I have seen lately were 3 Doors Down and Shinedown.  Both of which are great bands not to mention all of the rest of the rock bands I have blogged about.  Both genres try to play the fast as possible and have a good song at the same time.  But I think that Bluegrass is the honest sister and heavy metal is the evil brother.  But as much as I like heavy metal, Bluegrass is just plain good clean music.  I should probably foller it more cause I jus enjoy its so!