California
 | Formed |
| Active Decades | |
| 19001020304050607080902000 | |
When it comes to ultra-smooth, virtuosic bluegrass, there are few bands in the class of California. Led by fiddler Byron Berline and flatpicking guitarist Dan Crary, the quintet radiates with instrumental brilliance.
The genesis of California goes back more than two decades when Berline formed a new band, Sundance, after the breakup of his influential bluegrass band Country Gazette, which included Crary and banjo player John Hickman. Although they recorded an impressive debut album on MCA, they were together for only two years. In 1977, Berline accepted an offer of a two week tour of Japan and recruited Crary and Hickman for a bluegrass trio -- Berline, Crary and Hickman, or BCH. They remained together in that form throughout the 1980s. In 1988, they were joined by bassist and vocalist Steve Spurgin and recorded an album, Now They Are Four. With the addition mandolinist and vocalist John Moore in 1990, they expanded to a five-piece band and renamed themselves California. Their first year together, the band was dubbed Instrumental Group of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association.
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The genesis of California goes back more than two decades when Berline formed a new band, Sundance, after the breakup of his influential bluegrass band Country Gazette, which included Crary and banjo player John Hickman. Although they recorded an impressive debut album on MCA, they were together for only two years. In 1977, Berline accepted an offer of a two week tour of Japan and recruited Crary and Hickman for a bluegrass trio -- Berline, Crary and Hickman, or BCH. They remained together in that form throughout the 1980s. In 1988, they were joined by bassist and vocalist Steve Spurgin and recorded an album, Now They Are Four. With the addition mandolinist and vocalist John Moore in 1990, they expanded to a five-piece band and renamed themselves California. Their first year together, the band was dubbed Instrumental Group of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association.
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