Ricky Skaggs's new CD with Bruce Hornsby represents one of the few times in recent years that the hardcore bluegrass community apparently hasn't embraced a new Skaggs release.

Skaggs, in a recent phone interview, said the "Ricky Skaggs & Bruce Hornsby" CD has been a hit in just about every sector except with the International Bluegrass Music Association.

"They've got a chart that they do in their magazine and we're not even on it," Skaggs said. "We've been No. 1 on the Billboard bluegrass charts for seven or eight weeks now. So I think it's just jealousy on their part. They're not playing it very much. But, hey, that's all right. It just shows their ignorance."

Skaggs, who is performing Sunday at Red Butte Gardens in Salt Lake City, won't have to worry about whether he's in the good graces of bluegrass purists -- especially once word gets out about his next two studio albums.

First up will be the September release of a gospel/bluegrass album with the bluegrass trio the Whites -- a project that seems as if it should have happened well before now, considering Skaggs has been married to that group's singer, Sharon White, for 26 years.

The album, Skaggs said, will feature a mix of old hymns and more recent material.

"Some of these hymns are probably 150, 200 years old. They're just wonderful," Skaggs said. "And we found some new songs as well. It's a great mixture of new and old. We're very excited about it."

Then in January, Skaggs plans to release a studio CD with his longtime backing band, Kentucky Thunder, that should emphatically confirm his love of traditional bluegrass.

The CD will be a tribute to the 1946-47 edition of Bill Monroe's bluegrass group, a unit that featured a young Lester Flatts on guitar and Earl Scruggs on banjo, and defined the bluegrass sound for generations to come.

"Earl had that driving banjo sound and Bill had that fiery mandolin, and Chubby [Wise] that great fiddle playing style, and with Lester's great guitar playing and singing, it was just a wonderful, wonderful sound," Skaggs said.

While those two projects will solidify Skaggs's position as the leading ambassador of bluegrass, it's not as if he hasn't already demonstrated his loyalty to the genre many times over.

A native of Cordell, Ky., Skaggs gained considerable notice in the 1970s, first in Ralph Stanley's bluegrass group and later as a member of Emmylou Harris's Hot Band, before moving to Nashville to launch a solo career with the hope of bringing bluegrass into the country mainstream.

He had to compromise, though, to land his deal with Epic Records. Skaggs had to stick to songs the label deemed as country.

Despite that restriction, Skaggs at least partially achieved his goal, prominently incorporating traditional instrumentation and touches of bluegrass into hit songs such as "Highway 40 Blues," "Uncle Pen" and "Country Boy," as he became one of the genre's leading stars in the early 1980s.

But Skaggs saw his success wane in the early 1990s as country veered toward pop, and in 1997, he formed his own record label, Skaggs Family Records and chose to return to bluegrass full time.

The move back to bluegrass has only enhanced the 12-time Grammy winner's stature as one of bluegrass music's most gifted artists, talented players (Skaggs's instruments include mandolin, guitar, banjo and fiddle) and Kentucky Thunder as one of the hottest live units around.

The "Ricky Skaggs & Bruce Hornsby" CD, while firmly rooted in bluegrass, does take a few liberties with the form, particularly by incorporating piano into the sound.

Skaggs has booked some shows with Hornsby for this summer and fall, but also will do plenty of headlining dates with Kentucky Thunder, including Sunday's show at Red Butte Gardens.

The show, Skaggs said, will feature material from throughout his career, with a little extra emphasis on his 2004 CD, "Brand New Strings," and "Instrumentals," a 2006 CD that earned Skaggs his latest Grammy award.

"That was just a mind blower," Skaggs said of the Grammy for bluegrass album of the year. "I was just hoping it would get a nomination in an instrumental category. ... But God blessed us again. It was really incredible. I think No. 12 was sweeter than No. 1. It was sweeter than the first Grammy."

Ricky Skaggs

When: Sunday at 7 p.m., gates open at 5:30 p.m.

Where: Red Butte Garden, 300 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City

Support act: Red Rock Rondo

Tickets: $29; the box office is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday; also available through Ticketmaster

Info: (801) 587-9939, www.redbuttegarden.org