The David Grisman Quintet (1977)

David Grisman's quintet debut launched what he called Dawg music: bluegrass drive fused with Django-style swing and modern jazz harmony. With Tony Rice on guitar, Darol Anger on fiddle, Todd Phillips on second mandolin and Bill Amatneek on bass, the group plays like an acoustic chamber ensemble, all interlocking lines and swing chords, while the pulse stays rooted in bluegrass. Proof that a string band could take on sophisticated instrumental jazz.