Jeff Picker: 'With the Bass in Mind"

Send us Fan MailDarren Beachley was lead singer for Doyle Lawson for almost 4 years. He later formed Legends of the Potomac, with Seldom Scene veterans Mike Auldridge and Tom Gray. An outstanding lead and tenor singer, and dobro player. Wonderful stories about Doyle, Mike Auldridge, The Country Gentlemen, Tony Rice, he knew everyone in his 50 year career in bluegrass.

Send us Fan MailTerry Eldredge has had an illustrious 50+ year career in bluegrass, with everyone from Bill Monroe, Dolly Parton and The Osborne Brothers, to Larry Cordle, The Sidemen and The Grascals. One of bluegrass' best lead and harmony singers.A fascinating life in music, with some major ups and downs, including a near fatal car crash in 2001 and a long battle with alcoholism, he still has that lanky, gum chewing persona, and that high lonesome sound and energy. Recently married to Cindy Baucom, he's got great stories galore!

Send us Fan MailFrom Toronto, banjo star Frank Evans is now touring with Bronwyn, and her high energy band. A virtuoso on old time and bluegrass banjo, he's also a fine singer and composer. He was with the Slocan Ramblers before moving to Nashville, where he lives now.He and his talented friends have made East Nashville the center of most of the great bluegrass being played these days. He talked about growing up around the old time and bluegrass scene in Canada, his former band the Slocan Ramblers, The Nashvuille music world, and his road to success with one of the top bluegrass bands around!

Send us Fan MailWayne Benson has been mandolinist for the legendary bluegrass band Russell Moore and lllrd Tyme Out for 30 years. He has a large following on his YouTube channel, and is married to 5-time IBMA banjo player of the year Kristin Scott Benson, with whom he often performs as a duet.  A fascinating conversation about all things bluegrass!

Send us Fan MailTim Surrett is a North Carolinian through and through. From high school he began a musical career as a bassist, singer and dobro player, that led him to the Grand Ole Opry, Carnegie Hall and the Ryman Auditorium. He's played and recorded with everyone from Tony Rice and Doyle Lawson to JD Crowe and Ralph Stanley, He is a gospel singer of note with The Kingsmen, The Inspirations, Squire Parsons, and many more.He started Mountain Home Music Company, is celebrating twenty years with Balsam Range, with 30 #1 bluegrass songs, he runs a bluegrass festival, was the director of IBMA, is a staff producer for Pisgah Ridge Records and Organic Records, and has a long career as an active studio player. Not much he hasn't seen and done!!

Send us Fan MailEthan Setiawan won both National Mandolin Championship and Rockygrass Mandolin Championship. After attending Berklee, he's become a leading voice of the mandolin, through traditional bluegrass, classical, and jazz.His 2025 release “Encyclopedia Mandolinnica” explored the mandolin through duets and trios with friends, mentors, and heroes includinh John Resichman, Matt Flinner and Jacob Joliff. His current band, Ethan Setiawan & Fine Ground, with BB Bowness on banjo, Julian Pinelli on fiddle, Alex Rubin on guitar, and Brittany Karlson on bass, releases its first album, “Little Storms”, on October 2.He's a force in acoustic music, and a thoughful observer of the music world.

Send us Fan MailGrammy-nominated mandolinist Matt Flinner has made a career out of playing bluegrass and American roots music in new ways. Hailed by Downbeat Magazine as "one of the best mandolin players ever," Flinner has established a reputation as one of the most respected composers and innovators in modern American acoustic music. In a fascinating and wide ranging conversation, we talked about his musical pals from Darrell Scott and David Grier to Joe Walsh and Peter Rowan, his heroes Tim O'Brien, Hot Rize and Miles Davis, as well as lots about bluegrass groove and the mandolin's role.Now living in Vermont, he's been one of our favorite performers and guests at GuitartownCT over the years!

Send us Fan MailZoe Guigueno is a Canadian bassist & singer/songwriter, now living in Eugene, Oregon. Her music has been described as having “the smartness and delivery of early Suzanne Vega with the structure and musicality of Elvis Costello” (Melissa Farrick).Zoe studied jazz bass at Humber College in Toronto. She has been touring internationally for 20 years in a variety of acoustic projects, including Broadway, Steve Martin & Martin Short, The Faux Paws,  the Grand Ol’ Opry, and most famously playing bass for 4 years with Della Mae.She has 2 new projects coming out in spring of 2027, emphasizing her songwriting and singing. We talked about her growing up on a small Canadian island, her musical journey, heroes, playing bluegrass bass, among many topics. 

Send us Fan MailSoraya and Luciya are the heart of The Sullivan Sisters bluegrass band. Raised in North Carolina, living in Chicago, and now both at Berklee School of Music, they were just profiled in Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine. With strong sister harmony, great musical chops, and fine original songs, they are a young five piece band on the rise, with unlimited potential, produced by Stephen Mougin.They talked about growing up listening to classical saxophone, the journey to bluegrass, songwriting, performing as a child duo, bluegrass heroes, and their goals as a band, with an upcoming debut album.You will be hearing a lot from this band, and hopefully in Hamden, CT, soon!

Send us Fan MailJeff Picker is a star bassist in Nashville. Married to 6-time Grammy winnner Sarah Jarosz, he's played with everyone from Ricky Skaggs and East Nash Grass to Nickel Creek and the Grand Ol' Opry house band. After many years in NYC playing jazz, he has a unique perspective on bluegrass, as a sideman, bandleader and studio ace. Really nice guy too, tells it like it is.