"Brother-style" country duet singing
Featured vocalists in two popular and progressive bands, Dudley Connell of The Seldom Scene and Don Rigsby of the Lonesome River Band are two of the finest singers in bluegrass today. In addition to working with their respective high-profile bands, Dudley and Don love to sing in an older style sometimes called "brother-style harmony." It's a form of close harmony singing popularized by legendary old-time and bluegrass duet teams like Grayson & Whitter, the Monroe Brothers, the Delmore Brothers and the Blue Sky Boys. It was the signature sound of country music pioneer Buck Owens (with his partner Don Rich) and early rock and roll legends, the Everly Brothers. As on their recent collaborative album, "Meet Me by the Moonlight," Dudley and Don join forces once again to bring this classic sound to audiences at the National Folk Festival. They accompany themselves on guitar (Dudley) and mandolin (Don), and also sing a cappella.
Dudley Connell got his start in bluegrass in the 1970s fronting the popular Johnson Mountain Boys. In the midst of the progressive bluegrass (or "newgrass") scene in Washington, DC, the group kept a traditional focus; when the Johnson Mountain Boys disbanded (11 albums and more than a decade later), they left behind an influential legacy with which Dudley is still very much associated. Now a member of The Seldom Scene, he also records with the bluegrass supergroup, Longview. In 2000, the International Bluegrass Music Association selected Dudley as its "Male Vocalist of the Year." Don Rigsby discovered bluegrass early in life, singing along with his Ralph Stanley recordings and passing the time with two local members of Stanley's Clinch Mountain Boys - Ricky Skaggs (Don's cousin) and Keith Whitley. However, it wasn't until his college years that Don began to pursue a musical career. He played stints with Charlie Sizemore, the Bluegrass Cardinals, Vern "The Voice" Gosdin and J.D. Crowe and the New South. He's currently a member of the award-winning Lonesome River Band. His solo album won the 1999 Association for Independent Music's "Gospel Album of the Year" award, and like Dudley, he's a member of the supergroup Longview. In 1999, Don also won the Bluegrass Now Fans' Choice Award for "Vocal Tenor of the Year."
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