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Bytown Bluegrass are a very active band in the Ottawa region. Not exactly prolific in terms of recording music, they have released three albums over the years. The first, Bytown Bluegrass, came out in 1980. The stellar follow-up, Ralph Carlson and Bytown Bluegrass hit shelves in 1985. They have a third, called Volume III, which was released in 2006. All three are available on CD through their website. I contacted Ray Adams, and would like to thank him for letting us post a few samples on this site.

Ray Adams, Glen Adams, and Don Hill started the group in 1973, and they quickly became one of the best bluegrass bands in Canada. For their first album, the band was Ray, Glen, and Don, along with Chris and Dave Whittles. For their second album, they brought Ralph Carlson into the fold (which made a lot of sense, since Ray and Glen guested on his 1977 LP, Grass and Stuff. By the time of the second LP, the Whittle brothers had left and had been replaced by Don ONeill and Boby Lalonde.

In 2009, the band is still performing, though the lineup has evolved over the years. To check out their current lineup and for performance information, check out http://www.bytownbluegrass.ca/.
-Kevin McGowan