Everyday Creation
Everyday Creation is about purpose, awe and good vibrations. The show's title refers to three types of creation: The ways we express ourselves (for example, with art, music and so many other pursuits fueled by purpose and passion); the parts of life that fill us with awe (birth, death, love, the big picture); and our personal power to create our best possible lives while also making the world a better place. Here, you’ll encounter interviews, essays and some episodes created simply for information and fun. I'm your host Kate Jones, welcoming you to Everyday Creation.
Everyday Creation
Tribute to Roger Sprung, featuring Sheldon Zoldan
Banjo player Roger Sprung was known as the godfather of progressive bluegrass and helped usher in New York’s mid-century folk scene. His style became known as “newgrass.”
This tribute is one of 44 short yet illuminating episodes about significant figures in the music industry who passed away in 2023.
To hear Sprung perform "One Morning in May," an old English folk song, you can go to this video of him at the Clifftop Music Festival in 2014.
The picture in the chapters is the cover of his CD, "Progressive Bluegrass and Other Instrumentals."
Also in the chapters, you can go right to the tribute by skipping my intro; feel free to skip my closing remarks too. Both are there to provide context for those who haven't listened to the other tributes.
My guest Sheldon Zoldan, a longtime writer and newspaper editor, wrote these tributes and recorded them. He also writes Song of the Day, a music-related story sent daily to an email list of subscribers. To get on his subscriber list, email shzoldan@comcast.net with the subject line ADD ME TO SOTD.
Audio engineer/musician Mike Villegas edited all the audio for this series. Hope you enjoy these intriguing glimpses into the lives of the people who made some of the music we love.
This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation, available on YouTube and in podcast directories including Apple, Audible, iHeart and Spotify.
Kate:
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Hello, and welcome to Everyday Creation. This is
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your host, Kate Jones, with one of 44
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tributes
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to significant figures in the music industry
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who passed away in 2023.
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My guest Sheldon Zoldan,
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a longtime writer and newspaper editor,
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wrote these short biographies
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and recorded them.
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Each one is an intriguing
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glimpse into the life and impact of someone
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who contributed
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to the soundtracks of our lives. Here's what
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Sheldon has to say in this tribute.
Sheldon:
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The words New York City
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and banjo
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are the farthest thing from congruent.
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New York City is known for sophistication,
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for Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and the Metropolitan
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Opera.
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The banjo conjures up hillbillies playing bluegrass music
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in the hills of North Carolina and Virginia.
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Roger Sprung changed that perception in New York
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City through his banjo playing.
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He was known as "the godfather
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of progressive bluegrass"
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and helped usher in New York City's
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mid-century folk scene.
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Sprung died in Newton, Connecticut on July 22nd.
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He
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was 92.
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Sprung grew up in New York City. He
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fell in love with folk music when he
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was a teenager
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after seeing folk groups play in Washington Square.
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He taught himself to play the guitar and
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then a 5-string banjo.
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He began traveling in North Carolina and Virginia
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to bluegrass festivals.
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He imported what he learned from those festivals,
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playing at Greenwich Village Clubs.
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His style became known as "newgrass."
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“An argument could be made that Roger Sprung was the first progressive 5-string banjoist,” said Johnny Baier when Sprung was inducted into the American
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Banjo Hall of Fame.
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While his contemporaries
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in bluegrass were experimenting in swing in the
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1940s and '50s,
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Sprung
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was "expanding the acceptable
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banjo repertoire
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to include, in addition to swing,
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ragtime,
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pop and classical styles as well," Baer said.
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Our Song of the Day is an English
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folk song from the 17th or 18th century.
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It's a story about an encounter between a
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lady and a soldier.
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Sprung isn't the only folkie to sing it.
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And a fun fact:
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banjo player and comedian Steve Martin owns one
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of Sprung's 5-string banjos.
Kate:
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This is Kate again. Please go to the
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description for more information and to hear the
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song that Sheldon referenced.
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If you enjoyed this tribute, please check out
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the rest of them. Although some of the
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names are not as familiar as others, the
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biographies
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are equally intriguing.
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Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation.
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Please share this episode with anyone who might
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enjoy it.
