Jerry Douglas

Jerry Douglas is the undisputed king of the Dobro, and is also the hardest working man in show business. Yet he continues to challenge himself with a seemingly insatiable appetite for work and a burning desire to champion his instrument through his significant and untouchable skills. Anyone within earshot of the recent "Down From The Mountain" tour bore witness to his unquestionable ability to take any lead by the horns and render it his own. But despite the stack of Grammys, the discography of over 1,000 releases, the accomplished solo recordings and the unbridled praise of his peers, Lookout For Hope is more than the latest chapter in this young man's career. It's the crystallisation of Douglas's love of music, grafting roots to jazz and bluegrass to rock. He makes it all his own, with the help of many of those he has helped in his varying roles as session ace, producer and musical friend - James Taylor, Maura O'Connell, Trey Anastasio, Sam Bush and Chris Thile. He also takes an instrument known for its lonely, mournful sound and even unaccompanied manages to lift each composition to a higher, more buoyant plane. Cases in point would be his treatment of the Allman Brothers' "Little Martha" and his own "Monkey Let The Hogs Out" (on Hawaiian Kona guitar), while the all-instrumental "Senia's Lament" is similarly outstanding. Jerry Douglas remains the consummate musician's musician, and Lookout For Hope the immediate cure for any uncertainty.