Throughout the past eight decades of bluegrass music, each era of the genre has been marked with a certain kind of standout act; not in terms of popularity or radio airplay, but based on the amount of other world-class musicians hanging out at this one group’s shows on their off nights. From the Stanley Brothers and Flatt & Scruggs to the Bluegrass Album Band and Nashville Bluegrass Band, there’s always one band of players’ players out there dropping the jaws of their contemporaries. For the past five years, the guilty party has been found on Monday nights at Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge in Madison, Tennessee; East Nash Grass.
Dobro legend Jerry Douglas calls East Nash Grass a “band of ringers,” saying, “The sound they make when they play together rivals that of any of their main gigs.” Every member is an accomplished professional in their own right on the road with national touring acts, and each would be a featured musician in any band. With James Kee on guitar, Cory Walker on banjo, Harry Clark on mandolin, Gaven Largent on dobro, Maddie Denton on fiddle, and Jeff Picker on bass, East Nash Grass is a band of all-stars, without question. But unlike many all-star bands that come together for one album or concert, East Nash Grass is a band in the true sense. Each member contributes their energy and their creative work to the group; the sum of which is miraculously greater than its parts.
Today, The Bluegrass Situation shared “Magic City Grey” from their upcoming album Last Chance To Win—coming out on August 18th. "When our buddy Christian Ward and Cory’s brother Jarrod Walker wrote this one, we couldn’t help but think of our beautiful home of Madison,” says Denton about the sweetly sung, mid tempo tune. Accented by a short but sweet Largent solo, “Magic City Grey” might be about the Magic City of Birmingham, Alabama, but it was written in Madison. “Madison is Magic City to us, and we love the song,” says Denton of the first tune the band cut during the Last Chance To Win recording sessions.
Fans can hear “Magic City Grey” today at this link and pre-order or pre-save Last Chance To Win ahead of its August release right here. East Nash Grass is hitting the road this summer, with dates including a stop at their hometown bucket-list venue, the Ryman Auditorium. Find a full list of tour dates below or at eastnashgrass.com/tour.
Last Chance To Win Tracklist:
1. Last Chance to Win
2. I Almost Told Her
3. East Due West Blues
4. Papa’s on the Housetop
5. Jenna McGaugh
6. How Could I Love Her So Much
7. When You Come Home
8. Starlet Iris
9. Magic City Grey
10. Love Slippin’ Away
11. Railroadin’ & Gamblin’
Catch East Nash Grass On Tour:
June 17 - Grass Valley, CA - Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival
June 18 - Grass Valley, CA - Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival
June 21 - Morehead, KY - Rudy Fest
June 22 - Nashville, TN - Bluegrass Nights at the Ryman
June 30 - Smithville, TN - Smithville Fiddler’s Jamboree
July 1 - Smithville, TN - Smithville Fiddler’s Jamboree
July 21 - Paragould, AR - Big Grass Bluegrass Festival
August 11 - Goshen, CT - Podunk Bluegrass Festival
August 31 - Brunswick, ME - Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival
Sept 1 - Brunswick, ME - Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival
September 9 - Hendersonville, TN - Folk n’ Bluegrass Festival
September 15 - Flagstaff, AZ - Pickin’ In The Pines
September 16 - Flagstaff, AZ - Pickin’ In The Pines
October 27 - Nashville, TN - 3rd & Lindsley
October 28 - Chattanooga, TN - Barrelhouse Ballroom
November 3 - Hope, AR - Hempstead Hall - U of A Hope
For more information, please visit eastnashgrass.com/tour.
