Jody Stecher
Born this day · June 1, 1946
Jody Stecher is a Brooklyn-born, Bay Area multi-instrumentalist and singer whose work moves easily between bluegrass, old-time, traditional folk, and Hindustani classical music — a frequent influence cited by Jerry Garcia and David Grisman, and a longtime duo partner with his wife, Kate Brislin.
- Born June 1, 1946 in Brooklyn, New York; based in the San Francisco Bay Area for decades.
- Multi-instrumentalist on guitar, mandolin, banjo, fiddle, and Indian classical instruments including sursringar and sarod.
- Studied Hindustani classical music for 13 years, including a decade with rudra veena master Z. M. Dagar and three years with Ali Akbar Khan.
- Long-time duo with wife Kate Brislin (married 1987); seven albums together and two Grammy nominations for Best Traditional Folk Album (1993 and 1998).
- Played early bluegrass with David Grisman, Sandy Rothman, Fred Sokolow, and Brantley Kearns; also recorded blues with Mississippi Fred McDowell.
- Often cited as an influence by Jerry Garcia and David Grisman.
- Active recording and touring artist; recent collaborations include albums with Mile Twelve in 2023–2024.
- Acclaimed singer of traditional folk and old-time songs in addition to his instrumental work.
Also born today: Hazel Dickens, Pat Boone
One Way Track
“One Way Track” was written by Ricky Skaggs and recorded by Boone Creek, the band Skaggs led in the late 1970s, as the title song of a 1978 album. Boone Creek was Skaggs’s own group after his apprenticeships with Ralph Stanley, the Country Gentlemen, and J.D. Crowe.
The song works the image of a railroad track that runs only one way. The journey it describes allows no turning back, the lyric measuring a course — in love, or in life — that the singer is set upon for good or ill.
Skaggs later revisited the song with his band Kentucky Thunder. The version heard here is by Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder.