Steep Canyon Rangers Go National
Asheville bluegrass band continues its rise to the top
by Carol Mallett Rifkin, take5 Correspondent

March 21, 2008 

The Steep Canyon Rangers have transcended from a college act to national status, hitting number two on the bluegrass charts with their new CD “Lovin’ Pretty Women” in February and making appearances at the Grand Ole Opry. They are home this weekend for a show at one of their favorite Asheville venues, the Orange Peel. Mandolin player Mike Guggino has been a member of the group from the start and spoke recently about their first 10 years as a band.

Question: How long have you been with Steep Canyon?

Answer: I’m 30 and have been a member for 10 years. I bought my first mandolin at age 19 and joined the band the next year. I went to Brevard college as a guitar major and switched to UNCA in history and music. I grew up with (fellow Ranger) Woody (Platt) in Brevard. He came home from Chapel Hill in the summer playing bluegrass. It was funny, we’d always played basketball and soccer and then we were playing bluegrass. He came home in the fall with Graham (Sharp) and Charles (Humphrey) and another guy. We picked in a cabin in Table Rock, and that was how the band formed. I was driving down when I could the next two years to Chapel Hill, playing gigs. 

Q: They moved up here after graduating from Chapel Hill?

A: Yeah. Lizzie (Hamilton) was in the band at the time with Woody and I, we were all from here and were real fond of the area. Graham is from Greensboro and Charles is from Greenville, N.C. After Lizzie left the band, we all moved into a house together in Asheville, it was pretty intense. It was kind of like music school. I’d get up in the morning and Charles would be in his room playing bass. Graham would be in his room playing banjo, Woody would be playing guitar. The music got really tight, it was pretty cool.

Q: You all had a grip on the business of modern bluegrass.

A: That’s true; Woody had a lot to do with our business drive. From early on he had really good thoughts on how a band should be run. I’d like to think we made a lot of good decisions from the beginning. We know it’s real important to have that along with the music.

Q: You all have crossed that line into national bluegrass.

A: Absolutely. That probably just took shape after winning the IBMA Emerging Artist award in 2006, that put us on the map. Now with satellite radio playing all over the country, everywhere we go in the U.S., people have heard about us from the satellite bluegrass shows, especially XM radio. Bluegrass Unlimited and all the bluegrass magazines have helped too.

Q: Satellite radio has really impacted the genre of bluegrass with the 24-hour shows.

A: It brings a small American folk genre to anyone everywhere. It’s easy for people who have heard of bluegrass but not listened much to become a fan. It’s powerful. If you listen to bluegrass, you listen to that station all the time.

Q: What’s big and new this year?

A: We are proud to say we now play the Grand Ole Opry regularly, four or five times a year. It’s this unattainable thing we used to look at, playing the Opry, and now we get to do it a lot. It’s flattering and cool and strange..

Carol Mallett Rifkin writes about entertainment for the Take5 email carol@buddycaroljamie.com