North Carolina Our State Magazine

North Carolina Our State Magazine has been quite attentive of bluegrass and its constituants over the last few years.  They have included reviews of my book The Mandolin Case, Dr. Temple’s 30 year career as a physician and semi-professional bluegrass musician, some nice coverage of Tommy Edwards of Bluegrass Experience fame, and have kept up with other bluegrass ongoing activities in the state.  Please check their archives for these articles.  I’ve been around the music a long time and find them historically accurate and quite informative.  Thank you to North Carolina Our State Magazine for your insistence on excellent coverage of the Arts in North Carolina, including bluegrass music.

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Bluegrass First Class

        Bluegrass First Class is this weekend. It is in Asheville at the Crown Plaza Resort. Bluegrass has come up in the world. I remember when we used to sleep under the stars or a flat-bed truck trailer if it rained. As the event title implies, both the accommodations and the talent are always first class.

        I’ll be there, so if you spot me come up and shake and howdy. I’m not gonna try to manage a booth this year as my health won’t allow, but I’ll have  a few books should anyone want one. I think the show is already sold out, but if you have a ticket, see you there.

Dr. B

“The Kid and Dr. B” at Riverside Studio

        Darin Aldridge is my “bluegrass young’un.” I have two biological children who I am very close to. Darin has been such a close friend that he is right next to family. He would often drop by the office at lunch to show me a new tune, and taught me a lot of mandolin over the years. I always wanted to do a mandolin duet CD with him, and we are have almost finished with it now.

        We recorded with Greg Luck at Riverside Studios, and bless his heart he took the time to work with old Doc and make it right. There are some pics on Darin Aldridge’s FB page of the day at the studio. We still have to mix and master and line up art work etc, but we are close. Like books, CDs take a lot more time than what folks know.

        The title of the CD is “The Kid and Dr. B- Mandolin Music Memories and Stories.” As far as I know this will be the only mandolin duet CD which also features story-telling and also a bit of generic medical advice; I always was a little different.

        Carmen Claypool from Missouri picked up on the fact that several cuts will serve as a companion CD to “The Mandolin Case.” There has been some talk of a movie. If that ever happened, I hope y’all will lobby for our version of “The Cherokee Shuffle.” Darin and did the mandolin duet and then Darin overdubbed  a guitar track and Luck filled in the bass line. We left several cuts spare by design and for a certain effect we wanted, but filled in this cut in case there was ever a soundtrack. Also I had any say in it the “Lost Indian” cut by Wayne and Kristin Scott Benson with Wayne’s super-talented N.C. student Jacob Moore would also make fine soundtrack material.

        Of course most of this movie talk is only daydreaming by an old Doc having fun, but the CD is a definite, and we hope to release it in a few months. As far as movies, well, a man has to have his dreams, and I think it is time for another good bluegrass movie, don’t y’all?

Dr. B

Another Way to Rent-A-Doc (or other) Books (Free!)

        When I did my book show at the Neuse Regional Library in Kinston N.C. I noticed how young the staff was. They seemed very tech savvy too. Like everyone else in this new cyber world they have to be to stay viable.

        My agent just wrote me about a new way to read “The Mandolin Case.” If your library has the service you can download it to your Kindle just like you’d check out a book at the library. Very cool! Harvey County Library is old-fashioned and hasn’t changed much. It is still right across from the mill; just a few doors down from Bolt’s Drug Store where they made the best Orange-Aide in town. Harvey Library is all dusty shelves and hardback books with broken spines, and thumb smudged pages with a musty smell I still love, but they aren’t into high-tech yet. However, I called a few counties west to my adopted home of Cleveland County. I was not surprised to find out the home of Earl Scruggs and Don Gibson was hip to new ways. They have the art going on over there. The librarian at the Cleveland County library in Shelby, N.C. said if you have a Kindle and an Amazon account and a library card, and you could check out “The Mandolin Case” (and many other titles) for two weeks. If you have a PIN number you can even do so from home. Great news for the shut-ins on these cold winter days! 

        I’m all for it. I’ve always loved libraries. If it hadn’t been for my wife and books, this country boy would have never survived.

        So, if do a lot of your reading on Kindle, call your local library and see if they are on board with the idea. In the long run it would save money to check it out at the local library instead of buying it. (It’s OK with me if you buy it too!) and it is another tool to help keep libraries afloat in a tough new world for them. Check it out!

        Thanks,

Dr. B

Blessed be The Readers

        Here we are near the end of the year. Bless all of you readers and artists out there. I developed a very bad illness (brain tumor; it’s hard to type that) late last spring and you have helped me so much. Prior to the tumor my day revolved around my patients. It was  a constant human interaction and while it was stressful, I enjoyed it. I miss them. All of you, my electronic human connections, have bridged the gap and allowed me to feel useful while I am confined to bed or chair much more than I have ever been used to.

        Also I must add I would have never made it through the year without my wife who now has a 210 pound baby on her hands. She is the best. My children have been most helpful too. Even though they have busy lives, they call often and visit as much as they can, which is pretty regular. God bless them too.

        I continue to peck away on my projects. This year I have all plans to release the children’s mandolin coloring book, my second novel, “Acquisition Syndrome,” and a mandolin duet CD with Darin Aldridge (www.darinandbrookealdridge.com)  Also Wayne Benson and I will start “Practical Theory for Mandolin,” which may take a year or more to complete. It is based on Wayne’s lesson plans. I believe his method via this book (or personal lessons with him) will help the less gifted musician (like me!) play at a higher level. Check out “My Art Projects” page on the right hand side bar of my blog for more details on these projects.

        Again, if you are an Amazon Prime member “The Mandolin Case,” and also “The Bluegrass Brain Cancer Boogie” are available as a free download as part of Amazon’s promotion of their program. Check in with Amazon and see my post of 12 14 2011 for details.

       I hope all you have a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year. As a writer, and a man who thrives on social interaction, I thank you. If you are a writer, musician, blogger, FaceBooker, (At first I though it was called “My Face”) a commenter, reader; really any human being who cares about a life of grace and dignity, I thank you. I am confident I would not have fared as well without you.

        I’ll be back soon.

Dr. B

Where to Get a Free Copy of “The Mandolin Case”

        If you are a member of Amazon Prime you can download a copy of my book, “The Mandolin Case,” for free. The novel was accepted by Amazon as part of their Amazon Prime program.

        I have just started to learn about Kindle Prime but the way I understand it, you pay a yearly fee and then have access to be number of free books, free shipping, and other perks. So, check it out at www.amazon.com.

       If you are a member of Amazon Prime or know folks who are, ask them to take advantage of a free download of “The Mandolin Case.” Even though it is free it still helps me in that Amazon pays the author a fee based on the number of down-loads, and also it is great publicity. Amazon is huge and I was both surprised and tickled they wanted my book on the list. (I’m one of the little guys!) It also helps spread the word about our music. Most of my readers are bluegrass folks but the novel has begun to spill over into other groups of people. Many of them are curious as to why we are so passionate about the music. And too, I am certain the whole program helps Amazon too. They are not naive as to modern business. They are big biz outfit but I gotta admit they have treated my Lit agent, and therefore me, fairly the whole way.

        Y’all have a blessed holiday. I’ll post once or twice more before Christmas and also will be on FB each day, so I’ll be in touch.

Dr. B