For more years than he would probably care to remember, George Shuffler has been a legendary figure in bluegrass. In addition to being an excellent musician of the highest order, George is acknowledged as an innovator who developed stylistic innovations for bluegrass music. His contributions to bluegrass have been acknowledged over the years with “best bass player” awards from Muleskinner News Magazine, a certificate of honor from the International Bluegrass Music Association and the declaration of George Shuffler day in his hometown of Valdese, North Carolina.

George started making his mark as soon as he began his professional work in the early 1950s. Recordings made with the Stanley Brothers revealed a forceful, driving base style that had yet to be heard in bluegrass to that point. He is probably as well-known, or better, for his distinctive style of cross-picking guitar playing. Even though George has been absent from the Stanley band for nearly 30 years, his style of guitar has stayed. “I’m proud for that,” he said recently. “All of the [guitar pickers] that come in [to Ralph’s band], they try to do it right, and I appreciate that, that he’s kept it in there.”

Several years ago, George answered a lot of requests when he released a tape of his cross-picking guitar work. “Aged To Perfection” is yet another answer to numerous requests for “More!” For this most recent musical outing, George has selected a batch of tunes that have been with him for many years. Some, such as Down In The Willow Garden and Sweet Sunny South, seem to have a strong foothold in his region of western North Carolina. Others are bluegrass favorites such as Bill Monroe’s It’s Mighty Dark To Travel or Reno & Smiley’s Love Come Home. Miller’s Cave was a country hit for Hank Snow in the early 1960s; George used to feature it when he worked with the Stanley Brothers. George’s love for gospel music is reflected in the two traditional pieces What a Friend We Have in Jesus and I Am a Pilgrim. He even gets a chance to sneak in one of his own tunes, Give The World a Sunny Smile. Traditional folk tunes are sampled with his renditions of Nine Pound Hammer, Little Joe and My Home’s Across The Blue Ridge Mountains. Lastly, more modern folk music gets a workout with Elizabeth Cotten’s Freight Train.

Whatever the source for material on this recording, one thing is for sure: George serves them all up with a healthy dose of his imaginative guitar picking. As an added bonus, we are also treated to some fine bass playing. George recorded many songs this way with the Stanley Brothers in the 1960s – he would play the guitar and then go back and add the bass. He’s still at it!! And, as good as ever, too!! It was George’s daughter who came up with the title for this project. When listening to a tape of selections her dad had recorded, she quipped, “You know what you are Dad? Aged to perfection.” We couldn’t agree more.