Bluegrass mandolinist Buddy Merriam has lived most of his life far from the Blue Hills of Kentucky. He grew up in the Northeast and has lived and worked on Long Island for much of that time. Starting in the early 1980s and continuing until Monroe’s death in 1996, Merriam met with and studied with Monroe every time the Big Mon came through the area. Merriam learned both the familiar tunes and the rare songs straight from the master himself. He acknowledged that, “I was pretty much a Monroe guy from the beginning.” And that clearly shows with every pick of his mandolin and in every song he writes and plays.“Back Roads Mandolin” is a collection of Merriam’s original instrumental songs performed with the standard Bluegrass ensemble: Buddy Merriam on mandolin, Ernie Sykes on upright bass, Jerry Oland on 5-string banjo, Bob Harris on guitar, and Gary Oleyar on fiddle. Also included are Jeff Schmich on harmony mandolin and Mike Sassano, who fills in ...