Bullsboro has been picking and singing around West Central Georgia (and beyond) since 1971 when Donnie Lee and the late Joe Partridge formed the band then known as the "L & P Express." They soon changed the name to Bullsboro, the original name of the town where they lived, Newnan, Georgia.
Typical of most Bluegrass bands, there have been several musicians who are alumni of Bullsboro. For the last several years the band has been made up of a committed group of musicians with eclectic tastes rooted in a love for the traditional. Founder Donnie Lee plays the bass and sings lead. Donnie was recently inducted into the "Hall of Honor" by the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame. Mike Steed, who joined the band in 1973, plays guitar and sings bass and baritone. Mike's son, Zach Steed, sings lead, tenor, high baritone (if you hold a gun on him) and plays guitar and a smidgen of mandolin. David Steed is also Mike's son and is Donnie Lee's son-in-law. David sings lead, tenor, baritone, high baritone and plays mandolin and guitar. Rounding out the group is Jeff Partridge, the nephew of the band's first banjo player, Joe Partridge. Jeff sings lead, tenor, baritone, high baritone and plays banjo and mandolin.
The music found on this collection includes a couple of original songs, traditional bluegrass, bluesy bluegrass, gospel bluegrass and stuff that nearly defies description except that it is done in a bluegrass style. The material chosen for the album showcases the harmony Bullsboro is noted for as well as the good-time attitude you feel when you see them perform.
The first Bullsboro album was a recording of a live performance in 1978. The one you hold in your hand was recorded at Songhouse Studio, (Newnan, GA), in 2002 during the weeks it was too cold to pick outdoors.
The Bullsboro band has a long list of credentials and bona fides amassed over its more than thirty year history and is one of the most enduring bluegrass bands from the state of Georgia. The band has performed on the same bill with some of the legends and top acts in bluegrass including Lester Flatt, Ralph Stanley, Jim & Jessie, the Lewis Family, The Isaacs, the Osborne Brothers, Ricky Skaggs, Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, The Lonesome River Band, IIIrd Tyme Out, Rhonda Vincent and many others.
Arrangements from the first Bullsboro album were used and acknowledged by major artists such as Alan Jackson and Vern Gosdin. The band has played for large venues and small, festivals and private parties, for a U.S. President and little country churches. Bullsboro has been seen on both regional and national television as well as many radio appearances. They have been known as the "house band" for the world famous Powers Crossroads Country Fair held each Labor Day weekend in Coweta County, Georgia.
With the talent of the younger members, you should be hearing the name Bullsboro for many years to come.
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