Hello friends,

This week I offer an explanation of the first SBGs original release, “The 81 Waltz.” First a little backstory…

You may or may not know that Gunderson Music puts on 4 seasonal livestream simulcasts a year. The first one we did this year was “Spring Disco,” a disco-themed romp through the celebration of Spring and all of its glory, type of deal.

You should also know that in order for these productions to materialize, there needs to be someone in charge who has a grand vision of what it is supposed to be. Here at Gunderson Music, this person is called the producer, and one of the main jobs of the producer is to pick the songs.

Now, the second livestream simulcast we did was “Summer Here, Summer There,” a tribute to summer travel through the lens of traditional bluegrass instrumentation, kind of deal.

The producer of this livestream simulcast was my lovely wife and business associate, Sarah Green. She did a spectacular job of running the show, no complaints here, inspirational, can lead a hard crew with a soft hand. There was only one little bump in the road.

It was both of our opinions that shows constructed within the bluegrass milieu need to have a waltz. What an opportunity it was to play “The Virginia Waltz,” I said. You mean “The Alabama Waltz,” she said, and this went on in perpetuity until the performance.

(Admittedly, my insubordination at the performance is no doubt grounds for immediate termination, as she is the boss, but I honestly thought we were going to play “The Virginia Waltz,” and was simply not prepared for “The Alabama Waltz,” which I am completely unfamiliar with.)

Anywho, compromise comes in many forms. It’s basically a path that both can walk on. Our path of compromise in this situation is Interstate 81, where my young wife and I escaped and encountered new and old worlds at the same time. Banked up at least 25,000 miles in that 300-mile stretch, worth every second. No more beautiful way to get from Virginia to Alabama, or, as she might say, from Alabama to Virginia. Either way, gratitude.

Sarah, I will address my insubordination in short time. However, I do not think this is the appropriate platform.

Hey! Thanks for letting me set the record straight. Hope you enjoy “The 81 Waltz.”

Your Pal,

Sam