Remembering Jimmy Arnold

Weekly newsletter no. 119 issued by Bluegrass Unlimited magazine (BU) includes - among other good things - a 1983 article by Alan Steiner from its archives, 'Jimmy Arnold: back again and ridin' high'. Jimmy Arnold (1952-92) was a multi-instrumentalist best known for his powerful and individual banjo-playing and the breadth of his musical tastes and influences. Alan Steiner's article includes much of Arnold's own words about his approaches to playing, to music in general, tattooing, and more.

The image above is from the cover of a 2006 compilation album of his Rebel recordings - see John Lawless's report at that time. A brief bio of Jimmy Arnold, together with fourteen photos taken by Akira Otsuka during the recording of Arnold's 1977 guitar album for Rebel, is on Bluegrass Today.

© Richard Hawkins