Respect for his heroes

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Even if you don’t care much for bluegrass, you can’t help but admire Ricky Skaggs’ enthusiasm for the music and its formative years.

At the slightest prodding, he’ll launch into a discussion of Earl Scruggs’ banjo picking, the Stanley Brothers’ harmonies or Bill Monroe’s slapping beat and how it laid the groundwork for early rock ‘n’ roll.

The bluegrass star’s latest CD, “Honoring the Fathers of Bluegrass: Tribute to 1946 and 1947,” salutes Monroe and his “Original Bluegrass Band” (Scruggs, guitarist Lester Flatt, fiddler Chubby Wise and bassist Howard Watts), a lineup that largely defined bluegrass as it’s known today.

“There was just this new sound that emerged with those five guys,” Skaggs said. “The music got more fiery.”

Together, they created a fresh vocabulary of licks, backup fills, vocal arrangements and rhythms. But many credit Scruggs’ three-finger playing with really kicking things into high gear. Before Scruggs, most banjo players used two fingers. That third finger gave bluegrass its distinct drive.

“What Monroe was playing prior to Earl coming into the band was good music, but it had more of an old-time flavor,” Skaggs said.

On the new disc, Skaggs and his group Kentucky Thunder interpret a dozen tunes from that era of Monroe’s career, from staples such as “Toy Heart” to the more obscure “Why Did You Wander.”

A 13-time Grammy winner, Skaggs plays mandolin like his musical hero, Monroe. He stayed true to the originals and called on Scruggs, the only surviving member of Monroe’s trailblazing lineup, and another Monroe alum, Del McCoury, to join them for a couple of songs.

“Every time I’m with Earl I learn something I didn’t know. One little note or word or question may spark an answer I hadn’t heard before,” Skaggs said.

The classic lineup began to unravel in early 1948 as Flatt and Scruggs struck out on their own. But the foundation was laid for artists such as the Stanley Brothers, Jim and Jesse, the Osborne Brothers and many others.

Monroe, who was a friend and a mentor to Skaggs, continued to perform and record until his death in 1996. He’s regarded as the father of bluegrass and is one of only a handful of artists enshrined in both the country and the rock halls of fame.

Besides honoring the early pioneers, Skaggs’ new album helps educate younger fans about the genre’s roots.

“I feel like some of the followers of the fathers of this music need to tell the stories of the fathers,” Skaggs said.