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Bluegrass Is My Second Language
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Baghdad Bad Boys It is difficult to imagine what happens when you write a book. As a first time author, John had no idea that much like music, a book takes on a life of its own. It grows and develops as it ages. It touches people that he will never see or get to meet. However, sometimes John does get to meet the people who have come to know him through the book. When that happens, a special bond is created. Friendships are immediate as the reader has already come to know John through 500 plus pages of his life. One such relationship was created when Lt. Col. Greg Rawlings received a copy of Bluegrass Is My Second Language as a gift from his wife. She emailed us and asked John to sign the book for Greg. During several following emails, we learned that Greg was an officer in the US Army. We also learned of his love for music and soon John was traveling to Southern Pines to join with Greg and his friends to play music. Such is the amazing power of Bluegrass. This is why Bluegrass Is My Second Language is in such demand. The people John introduces the reader to are just like Greg. You want to get to know them and join their "circle" as well. Once John and Greg got playing together, Greg started coming up to our music sessions in the triangle and became a full fledged member of the RDU Session Players. We ALWAYS take care of our own, so when Greg was deployed to Iraq, the Session Players donated (via the annual Marathon Jam) over TEN THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS to the Fisher House in the name of Lt Col Greg Rawlings and the XVIII Airborne and then went to work to provide support for Greg as he established what was at first called the RDU Session Players Middle Eastern Bureau but quickly got shortened to (the much cooler name) The Baghdad Bad Boys. (For the record, the Session Players would like to point out that the OFFICIAL name for B3 is: The Baghdad Bad Boys: a division of the RDU Session Players Middle Eastern Bureau!!) Click here for a clip of Greg and the Baghdad Bad Boys as they pick a little in Baghdad. Thank you to each one of them and all who are serving. Also, thanks to the RDU Session Players for contributing money to help send a guitar amp, a five string bass and guitar strings, tuners etc to Iraq. Also, a very BIG thank you to the staff of the Music Loft in Carborro, NC for the help in selecting what to send and especially to owner Jim Dennis for making everything we wanted to send magically available for exactly the amount of money we just happened to have. |
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