"David Grisman, Tony Rice, Vassar Clements helped re-invent...etc."

Gotta politely disagree. While certainly involved in THAT process I'd point to 'The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band', Jim Kweskin's Jugband and John Hartford. Especially the 'Aereo-Plain' LP featuring Hartford, Vassar Clements, Tut Taylor, Norman Blake and Randy Scruggs. Every song on it is a classic in execution and set the 'Gold Standard' for anything that came after it. Newgrass Revival, Ophelia Swing Band(Tim O'Brian in a secondary role to Dan Sadowsky), The David Grisman Quintet all owe their 'acceptance' to the opening up of the 'acoustic genre' to this LP.   The Dirt Band did alot for Vassar Clements' career visibility. The release of 'Hillbilly Jazz' did much for that too, but the LP 'Old And In The Way' gave 'straight bg' an acceptance among 'youth culture' that was previously unheard of. Including Jerry Garcia on that LP was a masterstroke by the record label in terms of sales because of the Deadhead nation, but if you listen to the banjo solos he was CLEARLY outclassed. And the Dirt Band's release of 'Will The Circle Be Unbroken' introduced suburbia to 'southern acoustic' music in a big way.

TR and DG were beneficiaries of that groundswell. Rarefied and gifted, to be sure, but NOT cultural innovators...that's John Hartfoed, Jeff Hanna, Jim Ibbotson, Jim Kweskin and Smothers Brothers' territory.

Not to mention Pentangle, The Incredible String Band, Silly Wizard, Bothy Band, Planxty, etc. on the other side o' the pond.