JP Price bluegrass mandolin vocals

Webmaster: How did you become interested in bluegrass music?

J.P.: I played folk music back in college, but to tell the truth, I was beginning to lose interest. Then one day, one of the crossover guys in my folk group, Pat Rossiter, invited me to join a bluegrass band called The Blue Ridge Ramblers. I learned to play upright bass on-the-job. I eventually tried all the bluegrass instruments including guitar and banjo. One of the bands that I was in needed a mandolin player, so I decided to try my hand at it and it stuck. Later, I co-founded an area bluegrass band called Grass Food & Lodging that used to play around here in the late ‘70s.

Webmaster: What do you like about bluegrass music?

J.P.: It’s always had a very positive, upbeat sound, despite a lot of depressing lyrics. The sound of the banjo is extremely contagious. I enjoy playing mandolin because the notes fall so neatly under my fingers, and it’s intuitively tuned to favor lead work. Once you know the idiom, you can "plug and play" licks in any key. It's fun!

Webmaster: Who are your role models in mandolin music?

J.P.: Well, certainly Jethro Burns, my teacher for a brief time in the Grass Food & Lodging years. For classic Bluegrass, I listened a lot to Doyle Lawson. Lately, I've been listening to Tiny Moore.

Webmaster: What other music do you enjoy?

J.P.: I listen a lot to classic jazz. I go to New Orleans pretty frequently. I have friends, who live and play down there so when I visit, we always run the standards. I've played JazzFest with them. It was the “Kid’s Stage, but “so what? – it was JazzFest, and fun to be there!.

Webmaster: Tell us about your mandolin.

J.P.: Back when I was in Grass Food & Lodging, I had more time than money, so I built a mandolin from scratch – no kit. I took a lot of time researching the process, reading and talking to people who who know a lot about them. It turned out pretty well. My patience (and every one else’s) was rewarded with a great tone. I've played it ever since.

Webmaster: How did you get involved with The Front Porch Boys?

J.P.: I met Clark through Jon Stoll, who I knew since his viola work on the Grass Food & Lodging album. I think The Front Porch Boys, through Clark and Tom’s influence, have captured the most authentic bluegrass sound of any regional band I’ve heard in a long while. It's not newgrass, not another northern interpretation, not pop, nor crossover, it's just what it’s supposed to be – straight up traditional bluegrass.