Bluegrass legend to play at Rebekah Park Saturday

Jun. 10—GREENSBURG — Bluegrass legend Larry Sparks and his band the Lonesome Ramblers will be playing at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 11, at the Rebekah Park Amphitheater.

After winning the International Bluegrass Association Album of the Year and Recorded Event of the Year in 2003 for his album "40," Sparks went on to win Male Vocalist of the Year in 2004 and 2005. Saturday evening, Sparks will be playing selections from his over 60 published albums of bluegrass and gospel, and would love to meet his fans.

Sparks lives with his wife of 47 years, Pam, in a two-story home just a stones throw from Lake Santee. The house was built in 1876, and Sparks moved to the area "because he liked the house."

Sparks has Appalachian roots and has played guitar since he was 5 years old. Although he had played in country music and rock bands while he was in high school, his bluegrass career began when he joined the Stanley Brothers in 1964.

With Ralph Stanley, Sparks recorded the original versions of modern bluegrass standards including "I Only Exist," "Sharecropper's Son," and "Going Up Home To Live in Green Pastures."

In late 1969, Sparks formed his own band, the Lonesome Ramblers, and has been touring with them since.

Sparks has performed at world famous venues like the Grand Ole Opry and on the Austin City Limits and Song of the Mountains television shows on PBS. He has performed through the years with bluegrass and country greats like Alison Krauss, Vince Gill, Ralph Stanley, Ricky Skaggs and Tom T. Hall.

Sparks is a member of the International Bluegrass Music Hall Of Fame, the Bill Monroe Bluegrass Hall of Fame and The George D. Hays Hall of Fame.

On stage, Sparks is larger than life, lively, and likes to joke with his bandmates and audience, but when you meet him face to face, drinking coffee at the wooden table in his kitchen, you realize that he's just like everyone else. He's real, no gimmicks, and he'll tell you that.

"I wasn't the only musician in the family, but I'm the only one that did anything with it," he tells his fans, who are very important to him. "It's just a God-given talent. I don't know how it happened, it just happened."

His tour bus sits in his driveway and he's spent a great deal of his 74 years touring, being booked by an agent in Kentucky and playing on the road most every week.

Along with his motto "Keep it real," he has a simple answer for his fame: "Time. That and promotion. That's all it took," he said laughing. And he's played his favorite guitar, a 1954 flat-top V28 Martin, for 50 years.

Sparks has three sons, one who works at Wood-Mizer, one who is a diesel mechanic, and one who passed away just a few years back. When he talks about them, his usually quiet demeanor becomes quieter still.

"When your parents die, it's sad — you always love your mama and daddy — but when your kids die, that's something you never get over. It's not easy to face," he said.

For Saturday's concert in Rebekah Park, he looks at that like he looks at life. He keeps it simple and plays from the heart.

"Nothing fancy, all real, just me," he said.

For the evening, he'll have a table of merchandise available for purchase. As for autographs, he doesn't shun his fans.

To learn more about Sparks, his music and his life, go to www.bluegrasshall.org/inductees/larry-sparks/, or visit www.larrysparks.com/about.php.

Contact Bill Rethlake at 812-651-0876 or email bill.rethlake@greensburgdailynews.com