Bill Amatneek Author

08/01/2025

This marks the one-year anniversary of "Discovering Tony Rice" on Amazon. It's been delightful to hear from readers in the US, Canada, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Italy, Spain, France, and Japan who are enjoying this biography. Huge thanks to everyone for the kind words and support!

I’ve created an immersive multi-media presentation about Tony – with music, videos, photos, maps, and rare newspaper clippings – highlighting his journey from birth to his passing in 2020. It covers his key moments, the people and sounds that shaped him, and his most iconic performances and recordings, from his 1968 debut album to rare footage of his final show in 2013.

Join me at 1pm on August 9, 2025, at the Good Old Fashioned Bluegrass Festival in San Benito County (just south of Hollister, CA) for the last presentation of the show this summer. Full details here: https://gofbluegrassfest.com/

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Good Old Fashioned Bluegrass Festival The 31st Annual Good Old Fashioned Bluegrass Festival 2025 will be held August 7-10, 2025. The festival takes place on the second weekend in August at San Benito County Historical Park, just south of Hollister. There is a tree-filled, shady campground for tent c...

06/18/2025

Many thanks to all those who attended my Tony Rice talk at the Father's Day Bluegrass Festival in Grass Valley, Ca. Your rapt attention was much appreciated. I miss the guy very much and loved connecting with other folks who feel the same way.

05/28/2025

Are you going to be at Father's Day Bluegrass Festival?
I’ve created a multimedia presentation on Tony Rice’s life, featuring 75 slides with exclusive maps and rarely seen photos, music, and music videos.
I’ll be presenting it at the Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival at the Nevada County Fairgrounds in Grass Valley, CA, on June 14 at 1pm in the Pavilion.
Researching this project unearthed new material and deepened my understanding of Tony. The presentation has information that has rarely been seen, or never been seen before. This is a fascinating presentation, a jaw-dropper that leaves people
talking about it when they go.
If you're going to Father's Day Festival, please come on by.

05/13/2025

DISCOVERING TONY RICE – A LIFE IN BLUEGRASS
I’ve created a multi-media presentation exploring Tony Rice’s life and career through photos, music, and video. It covers his work with the BLUEGRASS ALLIANCE, J.D. CROWE, the DGQ, the TONY RICE UNIT, and his iconic BLUEGRASS BAND albums. Key moments include his musical roots, the car accident at age eight, his many albums and shows, three marriages, fascination with John Wilkes Booth and Accutron watches, and his emotional 2013 Hall of Fame acceptance speech. Filled with rare photos and news clippings, this presentation reveals previously unknown aspects of Tony’s life and legacy.

I’ll be presenting it at the FATHER'S DAY BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL AT THE NEVADA COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS in Grass Valley on JUNE 14, 1pm in the PAVILION.

12/22/2024

Michael Berick has included “Discovering Tony Rice” in his 2024 book recommendations on The Bluegrass Situation. It joins volumes by Joan Baez, and Lucinda Williams, and books about Jesse Ed Davis, Joni Mitchell, Dolly Parton, and John Hartford.
I am honored and pleased beyond words. Thank you, Mike!

2024 served up a treasure trove of great music books – too many to encapsulate in a concise way. However, it’s still worth a try! So, here is a look at some notable books (in no particular order) that should hold an appeal to the BGS community. This baker’s dozen hopefully provides a diverse a...

12/09/2024

I've extended the Cyber sale of "Discovering Tony Rice" to make it a Christmas sale:
$40 for the signed hardback, $25.50 for the signed paperback.
There are only 5 hardbacks left. So, if you want one, please place an order today: https://vineyardspress.com
Many thanks to all who ordered. This has been a very successful event.
Happy Holidays to all!

12/02/2024

CYBER MONDAY SALE of "Discovering Tony Rice" –
The hardback is $40 (20% off) and
The paperback is $25.50 (15% off)
until Wednesday, December 4 at noon Pacific Time.
There are only 6 hardbacks in stock, so you might want to order today: https://vineyardspress.com
Happy Holidays to all. – Bill

A deep dive into the legendary bluegrass artist via interviews with Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Béla Fleck, Mark Schatz, Peter Rowan, Ron Rice, Harry Sparks, Frank Poindexter and others who tell true life stories about Tony. With 57 color and B&W images, many never seen before. Kind Words About Discov...

10/10/2024

Bluegrass: 1961 to 2024
As a teen in the 1960s, I traveled with friends to Sunset Park in West Grove, PA, and New River Ranch in Rising Sun, MD, where Carlton Haney hosted bluegrass shows. He produced performances by the Country Gentlemen, Jim & Jesse, the Stanley Brothers, Bill Clifton, and the father of it all, Bill Monroe.
Admission was a buck, and a good crowd was 150, most of us in our teens and twenties. The music was raw, unvarnished - no major 7ths allowed – played by men who mostly worked the land or in factories. Big Mon’s rendition of “Uncle Penn” stunned me as I heard the verse banging into the a ca****la “Uncle Penn played the fiddle …”, spilling into a G-run that ran into a fiddle refrain. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeZPAQRl7TA

In 1961 Bluegrass was my age, 16 years, and its future was anything but assured. Carlton would close each show by pumping his fist and calling out to the crowd, “Help keep bluegrass alive!” We stood and cheered back loudly, hopefully.

I just returned from the IBMA’s 2024 “World of Bluegrass” in Raleigh, North Carolina. Thousands of fans swarmed the downtown area, cramming into hotel lounges, bars and restaurants, tapping toes to emerging bands. Young groups with hot musicians entertained fans from teenagers to nonagenarians. The Saturday evening show at Red Hat Amphitheater (5,500 seating capacity), featured Sierra Hull, who only yesterday, it seems, was a newcomer herself. Tix went from $10 for lawn seating to $70 for reserved front rows. The week, a torrent of bluegrass, was shadowed by the torrent of rain Hurricane Helen was dumping from Florida to western North Carolina, just 200 miles away – a human tragedy.

In the 1960s, bluegrass felt like a cult, an insider story that hadn’t traveled far. Today it’s a global phenomenon, thanks to the CBA, IBMA and other bluegrass associations worldwide, and to thousands of bands and musicians playing the high lonesome sound.
Rest easy, Carlton, bluegrass will always be alive.

Best regards to all,
Bill Amatneek
https://VineyardsPress.com

Bill Monroe & The Blue Grass Boys - Uncle Pen (1965).

09/06/2024

Today, Friday, September 6, at 1PM Pacific Time, Doug Jayne will be interviewing me about "Discovering Tony Rice" on his show, "KRCB Music Middays with Doug Jayne."

Doug knows music VERY well and I'm looking forward to this interview.

At the appointed date and time, go to
https://norcalpublicmedia.org/radio/radio and click on "Live Radio."

Northern California Public Media

07/25/2024

Very pleased to be in IBMA nominee for Writer of the Year award.

07/23/2024

I'd heard that Tony took out a Personals ad when Leela left him, addressed to her, but I'd never seen it. After much sleuthing around, I found it in the S.F. Chronicle.

07/22/2024

Please use this page as a place to post your stories and remembrances of Tony Rice. A second edition of "Discovering Tony Rice" is in the works, and I'd love to add new stories about him. A big welcome to my music, belly dance and storytelling friends. I'm hoping all are well.