Master of the Bluegrass Banjo Dies at 84

J.D. Crowe, Master of the Bluegrass Banjo, Dies at 84-

“J.D. Crowe, a banjo player who helped define the instrument for generations of bluegrass fans, died Friday, his family announced on Facebook.“

The following written content by Chris Willman

J.D. Crowe, a banjo player who helped define the instrument for generations of bluegrass fans, died Friday, his family announced on Facebook.

“This morning at around 3 a.m,, our dad, JD Crowe, went home. Prayers needed for all during this difficult time,” family members said in a post on his fan club page.

Testimonials began to come in from the legions of musicians who considered Crowe an influence or hero, including Billy Strings, one of the current popularizers of bluegrass music.

“Woke up this morning to hear the sad news about J.D. Crowe. What can I say? He was an absolute legend,” Strings wrote. “He will be remembered as one of the greatest to ever play bluegrass music. He had tone, taste and TIMING like no other. The space in between the notes he played and the way he rolled them out just kept the band driving, running on all cylinders like a V8 engine. He was just the best bluegrass banjo player out there, man.”

“We lost one of the greatest banjo players ever to pick up the five early this morning,” tweeted Bela Flek. “Farewell and thank you, JD Crowe.”

The Lexington, Kentucky native’s Christmas Eve death made it a blue Christmas for aficionados of bluegrass who remember that another legend of the genre, guitarist Tony Rice, a former member of Crowe’s New South, died on Christmas day a year ago. Crowe’s death also follows closely on the heels of the passing of another banjo legend, friend and compatriot Sonny Osborne of the Osborne Brothers, who died in October of this year.

A cause of death was not immediately given, but Crowe was reported to have been suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). A week ago, the website Bluegrass Today reported that his son, David, said he was in a rehab center after a brief hospitalization but was expected to be home for Christmas.

Crowe embarked on a farewell tour in 2012 but had continued to perform at shows and festivals until COPD reportedly forced him to give up performing for good in 2019.

Crowe started out with Jimmy Martin, joining that legend’s band, the Sunny Mountain Boys, in 1956 when he was 19. In 1961, Crowe formed the Kentucky Mountain Boys, which included Doyle Lawson and Larry Rice. In 1971, the group’s name changed to J.D. Crowe & the New South, as they became one of the key bands in the history of bluegrass, especially after recording the 1975 album officially called “The New South” and unofficially known among the cognoscenti as “0044,” after its Rounder Records catalog title. The band at that time included a future who’s who of bluegrass: Rice on guitar, Ricky Skaggs on mandolin, Bobby Sloane on bass and Jerry Douglas on guitar. Read more from Variety.