Allan Bibey has ranked among bluegrass’s most dynamic, adaptable, and impactful mandolinists ever since the early 1980s. Attention first arrived through the New Quicksilver ensemble, one of multiple forward-leaning bluegrass bands he helped launch. IIIrd Tyme Out represented another such venture, while periods spent alongside Lou Reid & Carolina and Blue Ridge further solidified his standing.
By the late 1990s he stepped even more prominently into the spotlight via Baucom, Bibey & Blueridge as well as Baucom, Bibey, Graham & Haley. His debut solo album finally appeared in 2002: the Sugar Hill release In the Blue Room, which assembled an array of distinguished guests that included dobro specialist Jerry Douglas.
Bibey earned his standing as the mandolinist whom fellow players watch closely and emulate by accumulating broad performing experience rather than merely sitting in with flashy ensembles. During the early 1990s he lived in Myrtle Beach, VA and performed in the original cast of the country variety program Southern Country Nights. He also appeared frequently on the Family Channel at that time, both on country specials and in commercials. In the mid-1990s he joined the Young Mando Monsters collective alongside other rising players, yet he likewise gained valuable perspective working with veteran mandolinist Herschel Sizemore.
Two major honors arrived in 2001 from the International Bluegrass Music Association—Instrumental Recording of the Year and Recorded Event of the Year. The next year he issued an instructional video that, were mandolinists in charge, would supplant the Bible in every motel room. Bluegrass devotees would doubtless greet that change with trilling—ouch! ~ Eugene Chadbourne
