Dobro

I went to Bethel Woods (site of the Woodstock Festival in 1969) tonight with friends to see Allison Krauss and Union Station.  Allison's voice just knocks me out.  If angels can sing, I'm sure they sound like Allison.  Turns out, not only is she beautiful and talented, she is also funny and clever, as her introductions of her band members showed.  She's been performing with the guys in Union Station for 17 - 24 years.  I'd say they've got a good thing going.

So the "newest" member of the band, at 17 years, is Jerry Douglas, famed musician, producer, and dobro player.  Aside from his solo work, Jerry Douglas has played on over 1600 albums.  Wow.  Seeing him live has been on my bucket list, so last night was a much-anticipated event.  (Interesting to note that Willie Nelson and Friends was the headliner, and clearly, most people were there to see Willie.  Now Willie is an endearing American icon, and I've seen him a few times, but his presentations these days leave much to be desired, in my opinion.  I mean, he's 81 and still getting out there!  Gotta love it!  But I was there last night for AK & US.)

A dobro is an acoustic guitar with a metal resonator built into its body. This resonator serves as an amplifier. In contrast to acoustic guitars, the placement of the resonator takes the place of the sound hole.

 Aside from its unique sound, one would be able to pick out the dobro player in the band from a distance due to the way the instrument is held.  Kind of sideways.  Flat.

Here, let me show you:


While I'm sure it is easier to play the dobro in a seated position, Douglas can play just as masterfully standing up.  During the set, he performed two solo songs, one of Chick Corea's, and the other, a version of Paul Simon's American Tune, which was breathtakingly beautiful.  Last year, a rendition of Paul Simon's The Boxer as performed by Mumford and Sons got a lot of attention, partly due to Jerry Douglas' dobro on the recording.

Tonight's show was wonderful.  I could listen to that dobro for hours, not to mention the rest of the performance.  True musicians on that stage.  Sweet.