Author: Richard Thompson

When, in June 1979, Chicago-born Mark Hembree approached Bill Monroe about taking over as the permanent replacement for Randy Davis, Hembree had hair "to the middle of my back," not an ideal candidate it would appear. However, a trim of

The Memorial Service for Phil Leadbetter will take place on Wednesday, October 20, 2021, with visitation at New Beverly Baptist Church in Knoxville, TN between 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., and the service will follow.   Face coverings are optional.  NB. This is a change

On September 16, 1946, Bill Monroe recorded for the first time with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs.   These two evening sessions, 75 years ago today, were the first involving the aggregation acclaimed as the 'original bluegrass band,' comprising Bill Monroe

The memorial service for Bill Emerson (William Hundley Emerson, Jr.) will take place at Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church in Vienna, Virginia at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 18, 2021. Visitation will be held in the adjoining Chapel from

Robert Phillip 'Bob' Everhart, multi-instrumentalist, singer, entertainer, old-time country, bluegrass, and folk artist, passed away during the evening of August 20, 2021, due to heart complications. He was 85 years of age. Bob Everhart, founder and president of the National Traditional Country

On Sunday, August 15, 2021, Margaret Archer Bailey passed away peacefully at home at the age of 67.  Margaret Bailey is best known for her clear, crystalline vocals as the principal lead singer in the internationally recognized Cluster Pluckers, from the

Dennis Caplinger - photo by Dennis Andersen Dennis Caplinger, described by close friend since high school days and former band mate John Moore as "a MONSTER banjo player," passed away on Saturday morning, August 14, 2021. He was 57 years of age. He

On this day … On August 17, 1926, Cecil Surratt was born in Premier, near Coalwood in McDowell County, West Virginia. He was one of eight children. There were about ten generations of guitar pickers on his father's side.  So, it wasn't

The pandemic has had and is still having a considerable effect on people’s lives and lifestyle with many performance arts, including bluegrass music, severely restricted with no audiences for well over a year.  As the impact of COVID-19 appears to be

Knowledgeable Swedish bluegrass record collector, scholar, activist, and musician, Urban Haglund, passed away on Sunday morning, July 26, 2021, after a heart attack. He was 73 years old.  Born October 10, 1947, in Borlänge, north-west of Sweden's capital Stockholm, Haglund had