"That's the banjo player's limo"

by Brian McKim & Traci Skene on September 15th, 2005

From Denver’s Westword.com, an article on banjo virtuoso Pete Wernick:

…Since making his recorded debut in 1971 with a band called Country Cooking, the self-proclaimed Dr. Banjo has distinguished himself in roots-music circles as an inventive solo artist, the co-founder of Hot Rize and, currently, the leader of Pete Wernick’s Live Five, a group that infuses bluegrass with an unexpectedly jazzy vibe. But on Wednesday, September 21, he’ll perform for the largest audience of his career when he guests on Late Night With David Letterman as part of Men With Banjos (Who Know How to Use Them), a quintet that features Earl Scruggs, his all-time musical hero, and comic-turned-movie-star Steve Martin.

The “back story” is fascinating. It’s a classic show biz story with a lesson for all– Cancel the gig in Ireland if Steve Martin’s on the other end of the phone. We’ll either be watching or videotaping when Wernick and the others do “Foggy Mountain Breakdown.” Wernick says, “Three minutes on Letterman, with banjos front and center?” he asks. “That’s a pretty big deal.”

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