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Lesser-KnownClassicBluegrass Songs 60 SONGS
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Lesser-Known Classic Bluegrass Songs

The 1970s-80s era beyond the standards

60 songs

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Classic-era bluegrass — the 1970s and 80s, after the original generation but before the modern wave — is rich with material that doesn’t get called at jams but holds up. The Bluegrass Album Band, J.D. Crowe & the New South, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, the Johnson Mountain Boys, Tony Rice, and dozens of bandleaders cut careful records that shaped how the genre sounds now. Sixty songs from this era that didn’t crack the everyday repertoire.

Each song’s page on Picker’s Guide has chord charts, lyrics, recordings, and song history.

  1. 1. 32 Acres The Bluegrass Cardinals (1979) · by Randall Hylton
  2. 2. 500 Miles by Hedy West
  3. 3. A Face in the Crowd Larry Sparks and the Lonesome Ramblers (1975) · by Dean St. Clair, Henry Smith
  4. 4. Across the Rocky Mountains Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby (2007) · by Traditional
  5. 5. Age The Bluegrass Album Band (1985) · by Ingrid Croce, Jim Croce
  6. 6. Ain’t Me Babe Harley Allen and Mike Lilly (1985) · by Bob Dylan
  7. 7. Alberta Doc Watson (1966) · by Dick Rosmini, Pernell Roberts
  8. 8. Angel From Montgomery John Prine (1971) · by John Prine
  9. 9. Angels Rock Me to Sleep The Bluegrass Cardinals (1980) · by Bill Monroe
  10. 10. Another Town Josh Williams (2016) · by Tom T. Hall
  11. 11. Any Old Time Tony Rice (1983) · by Jimmie Rodgers
  12. 12. Baby Blue The Country Gentlemen (1968) · by Bob Dylan
  13. 13. Bad Moon Rising The Seldom Scene (1996) · by John Fogerty
  14. 14. Banjo Picking Girl Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard (1976) · by Lily May Ledford
  15. 15. Behind These Prison Walls Of Love The Country Gentlemen (1961) · by Bill Bolick, Hazel Hope Jarrard
  16. 16. Blue Diamond Mines The Johnson Mountain Boys (1993) · by Jean Ritchie
  17. 17. Boots of Spanish Leather The Seldom Scene (2000) · by Bob Dylan
  18. 18. Born to Be With You J.D. Crowe and the New South (1971) · by Don Robertson
  19. 19. Brand New Tennessee Waltz Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys (1971) · by Jesse Winchester
  20. 20. Bringing Mary Home The Country Gentlemen (1965) · by Chaw Mank, Joe Kingston
  21. 21. California Cotton Fields Merle Haggard and the Strangers (1971) · by Dallas Frazier, Earl Montgomery
  22. 22. Casey Jones Jerry Garcia and David Grisman (1996) · by Traditional
  23. 23. Catfish John Old and in the Way (1996) · by Allen Reynolds, Bob McDill
  24. 24. City of New Orleans The Seldom Scene (1972) · by Steve Goodman
  25. 25. Coal, Black Gold The Country Gentlemen (1981) · by Ron Simons
  26. 26. Come Back Little Pal Bill Harrell and the Virginians (1985) · by Roy Hall
  27. 27. Country Roads The Country Gentlemen (1972) · by Bill Danoff, John Denver
  28. 28. Darling Nellie Across the Sea Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard (1965) · by A.P. Carter
  29. 29. Deep River Blues Doc Watson (1964) · by Alton Delmore
  30. 30. Diamond Joe Sam Bush (2010) · by Butch Hawes
  31. 31. Dink’s Song Furnace Mountain (2007) · by Traditional
  32. 32. Don’t Let Smokey Mountain Smoke Get in Your Eyes The Osborne Brothers (1975) · by Cecil Null
  33. 33. Don’t Lie to Me Adam Steffey (2009) · by Harley “Red” Allen
  34. 34. Dreams The Del McCoury Band (2009) · by Del McCoury
  35. 35. Early Morning Rain Tony Rice (1986) · by Gordon Lightfoot
  36. 36. Everybody’s Talkin’ The Seldom Scene (2019) · by Fred Neil
  37. 37. Faded Love The Country Gentlemen (1995) · by Bob Wills, Johnnie Lee Wills
  38. 38. Farewell Angelina Tim O'Brien (1996) · by Bob Dylan
  39. 39. Free Born Man Jimmy Martin and the Sunny Mountain Boys (1968) · by Keith Allison, Mark Lindsay
  40. 40. Freight Train Boogie Doc Watson (1972) · by Alton Delmore, Rabon Delmore
  41. 41. Georgia Piney Woods The Osborne Brothers (1971) · by Boudleaux Bryant, Felice Bryant
  42. 42. Ginseng Sullivan Norman Blake (1972) · by Norman Blake
  43. 43. Girl at the Crossroads Bar Larry Sparks and the Lonesome Ramblers (1980) · by Bill Bryson
  44. 44. Girl from the North Country Tony Rice (1988) · by Bob Dylan
  45. 45. Goodnight Irene The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (2002) · by John Lomax, Leadbelly
  46. 46. Grapes on the Vine The Rice Brothers (1989) · by Steve Gillette, Charles John Quarto
  47. 47. Great High Mountain Larry Sparks and the Lonesome Ramblers (1980) · by Keith Whitley
  48. 48. Hard Pressed Hot Rize (1985) · by Tim O’Brien
  49. 49. He Said If I Be Lifted Up The Johnson Mountain Boys (1987) · by Charles H. Pace
  50. 50. Hear Jerusalem Moan Hot Rize (1985) · by Traditional
  51. 51. Hello Stranger Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard (1973) · by A.P. Carter
  52. 52. Hickory Wind The Seldom Scene (1982) · by Bob Buchanan, Gram Parsons
  53. 53. Hills and Home Longview (2002) · by John Duffey
  54. 54. I Am the Man Thomas Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys (1971) · by Larry Sparks, Ralph Stanley
  55. 55. I Can’t Find Your Love Anymore Hazel Dickens, Carol Elizabeth Jones and Ginny Hawker (1998) · by Hazel Dickens
  56. 56. I Know What It Means to Be Lonesome Ricky Skaggs (1982) · by James Brockman, James Kendis
  57. 57. I Still Miss Someone Dolly Parton (1999) · by Johnny Cash, Roy Cash Jr.
  58. 58. I’m Not Sayin’ Norman Blake and Tony Rice (1987) · by Gordon Lightfoot
  59. 59. I’ve Lived A Lot in My Time Longview (2002) · by Dick Reynolds, Jack Rhodes
  60. 60. I’ve Never Been So Lonesome Longview (1997) · by Fred Hannah, Sam Humphrey

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