Dirty Linen

Epic rain and mud reminiscent of the original Woodstock failed to dampen the high spirits of the 26th annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival. Set high in the "Colorado Alps" with snow-covered peaks surrounding the meadow stage and a giant waterfall visible above the crowd, this festival has a special magic. In fact, the sky cleared by the second day, the temperature warmed, and the party was grand, indeed, throughout the weekend for musicians and audience alike.

Telluride featured a huge stage decorated with mountain flowers and a flying pig, topnotch sound quality and production, and a feast of fine foods and libations. (Boulder Beer and fruit smoothies!) Festivalgoers also got a beautiful resort-mining town with memorable free music workshops in its parks and downright friendly local folks making them feel very welcome. The intown campsites were jolly, if crowded, and there was plenty of alternative camping in nearby National Forest Service and private facilities.

Tradition and innovation joined in counterpoint and harmony at this Telluride Bluegrass Festival. Performances included appearances by living institutions of the art of bluegrass, such as Earl Scruggs and Del McCoury, defining and preserving the roots of tradition, as well as bluegrass renaissance stars like Ricky Skaggs, Tim O'Brien, Peter Rowan, Tony Rice, Jerry Douglas, et al.

There were current practitioners of the styles that flowed into Bill Monroe's creation, the sources of bluegrass itself: Altan, from Ireland's wild west; Stacey Earle, with Southern mountain soul. Giants of country, like Emmylou Harris and Willie Nelson, and the blues and gospel of Davell Crawford were also represented.

What was striking about this festival was how well the traditional styles blended with innovation, that innovation itself drawing on diverse streams of alternative tradition. Béla Fleck led this dynamic blending process. The man was all over the festival, and he was deservedly cheered at every appearance. First, with the Flecktones, playing bluegrass-rooted jazz and space music, supported by Victor Wooten (bass), Jeff Coffin (sax), and Future Man on his personalized drum-guitar.

Fleck paused the Flecktones set to comment that, "Things were getting boring, so we decided to bring in a guy who came even further than Future Man to be here!" Then he introduced an incredible musician, Kongar-ol Ondar from the Central Asian country of Tuva, who stopped the show, in full traditional garb, by singing three-part harmony with himself while picking a unique steppe-land banjo and then integrating his almost-unearthly sounds with the Flecktones' groove. "The groovin' Tuvan," indeed!

Tuvan music became the rage of the festival, with one workshop devoted to its fascinating intricacies. Still, that was not Béla Fleck's only international contribution to the weekend. On Sunday morning, he shook the audience awake with an extended banjo and tabla sunrise jam with Indian master musician Sandip Burman. Fleck commented, "I play with all the bluegrass and jazz players I can, and I love it, but Sandip is the only musician who really, really pushes me now — very often I don't even know what time signature we are in. I am always playing catch up with him, and it is great, great fun!"

Truly, everybody onstage at this festival gave it their all. As Ricky Skaggs said, "They didn't just get the scraps here at Telluride — we cut right down to the bone! That's why I like playing here!"

This is an excerpt from Dirty Linen #84 (October/November '99)
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