The Seldom Scene

Some bands earn a reputation on the road; the Seldom Scene built theirs from a weekly slot in Bethesda, Maryland, where the group formed in 1971 and largely stayed put. Their progressive take on bluegrass drew on the high tenor of John Duffey and the close blend he shared with John Starling and Mike Auldridge, and their sets reached beyond the genre to cover country, rock and even classical pop. Several early sleeves showed them with only their feet lit or their backs to the camera.

Membership has shifted often. Phil Rosenthal took over from Starling in 1977, and the band moved from Rebel to Sugar Hill around the time of Baptizing. In 1996 John Duffey died of a heart attack, the same year the group released Dream Scene, and Lou Reid returned to take his place on mandolin. Scene It All followed in 2000, and Scenechronized in 2007 earned a Grammy nomination for Best Bluegrass Album. The original members were inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame in 2014.