Lonesome River Band

It’s hard to think of a genre more committed to sustained creative careers than bluegrass. Case in point: the 41-years-and-counting path of Mountain Home Music Company stalwarts, Lonesome River Band. Though the last remaining original member departed before the turn of the century, the group — a quintet for more than 20 years now — hasn’t so much reinvented itself as refined a profoundly influential signature sound that has a seemingly endless appeal to successive generations of fans and musicians alike. Led by 30-plus year veteran and award-winning banjo man Sammy Shelor, who has presided over one stellar lineup after another, LRB remains among the genre’s most widely admired and powerful draws, both in person and on streaming platforms.