Blue Day
Rick Crenshaw - mandolin
Steve Craig - bass
Tony Branham - guitar
Blue Day was originally formed in 1935. The group developed a new, energetic, breakthrough acoustic sound which was quickly imitated by other young artists in the area who were also starting out at that time, such as Bill Monroe and the Stanley Brothers. The band toured heavily for four years promoting their pioneering music. The war forced the band to break up to go and fight the Nazis. After raising families, the band reformed in the Sixties under the moniker "Hippiegrass". It is suspected that their music during this time was outstanding, but, frankly, no one can remember. After that, with their legal problems mounting and band members being forced to leave the country, and with the demise of 8 track tapes and the advent of Disco, the band broke up again. Now, after paying their debt to society and their rough and rowdy ways behind them, the group just recently got back together as the original "Blue Day". They are practicing hard and having fun. Here's some info about the members:Ed Richter, born and raised in Memphis, TN, was introduced to the guitar as a young teenager and played in various groups throughout high school and college. After completing a tour of duty with a US Army band as a trombone player, he had a life changing experience when he heard J.D. Crowe play the banjo, and after that was hopelessly hooked on the five string sound. He has held the banjo spot in a number of bluegrass bands, beginning in the early 1980’s with the Shelby County Boys, followed by Hickory Withe and Goin’ Home, along with others. In addition to bluegrass banjo, he plays guitar in a contemporary worship band at church, and has played in the pit orchestra for a number of musical theater productions in the Memphis area, including shows at Theater Memphis, the Desoto Civic Center, the Harrell Theater in Collierville, and the MainStage Theater at the University of Memphis. Ed plays banjo with Blue Day and sings baritone.
Rick Crenshaw purchased an old guitar at a Beale Street pawn shop back in 1970. His early influences were Woody Guthrie, Donovan, Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young, and Arlo Guthrie. A high school English teacher introduced Rick to the Delta Blues and a few years of picking that style ensued. Marriage, work, and three children led to putting the guitar down for a few years. Around 1999, his fifteen year old son wanted to learn guitar and inspired Rick to purchase his first quality guitar. It wasn’t long before an old guitar playing friend from high school reintroduced Rick to Doc Watson and encouraged Rick to learn the flatpicked guitar style. Soon they were joining bluegrass jams and learning the fantastic sounds of this original American music style. Influences included classics like those performed by Flatt & Scruggs, the Stanley Brothers, Bill Monroe, and later Tony Rice, Doyle Lawson, and the Bluegrass Album bands. Later Del McCoury, the Seldom Scene, Hot Rize, and Blue Highway became favorites. Around 2002, Rick picked up the mandolin and has been playing it almost exclusively since. Local bluegrass musicians have helped him find his voice and taught him how to sing tenor. Singing now rivals his enjoyment of picking. Rick is really enjoying the music choices of Blue Day and some of the more contemporary styles of the songs chosen by this band.
Steve Craig began playing upright bass in 2001 after being a bluegrass listener for 10 years. He was going to local jams and noticed that there was a shortage of bass players. His early musical influences where Country and Southern Rock. He was a big Keith Whitley fan and when he heard Allison Kraus singing “When You Say Nothing at All”, he was hooked on Bluegrass. He soon joined the groups Brush Arbor and Ghost River. Whenever there was a local jam, Steve was there. He played guitar with Cypress Creek for a short time. In 2007, he played with the group Deep Hollow. Currently, he plays bass and sings lead and backing vocals with SingleTree and BlueDay. Look for Steve at Festivals and jams. He just can’t get enough pickin.
Tony Branham was born in Nashville and grew up in the middle of country music. He began playing guitar at an early age when his grandfather taught him some chords and his first “pickin’ song”, Wildwood Flower. He also hung out at the local music store and absorbed what he could from the great pickers that came by. His first band "Sierra" opened for Janie Fricke and Merle Haggard during a Houston music festival. After moving to Memphis, he played with "Delta Breeze", a rock, blues and country band that gigged around the Memphis bar scene for several years. The band’s core remained and it was reincarnated as “i2i”. The early influence of his grandfather led him to return to his bluegrass and country roots. He started playing bluegrass and writing songs just a few years ago. Tony plays guitar, sings and writes original material for the band.
Contact Info: Steve 901-674-4195
Tony 901-218-9774
www.myspace.com/thebandblueday
Email : bluedayband@gmail.com