Bill Monroe

Additionally, the musical influence of African-American fidder & guitarist Arnold Schultz (a fellow Kentuckian) as well as the North Carolina Ramblers brought about Monroe’s merger of various musical genres. In 1929, Bill moved to Indiana with his brothers Birch & Charlie, and childhood friend William “Old Hickory” Hardin. While the quartet went there to work for an oil refinery, they quickly formed a music group with a friend (Larry Moore). This band became “The Monroe Brothers” and started playing local venues and parties. Eventually, Hardin and Moore left The Monroe Brothers. In 1934, The Monroe brothers started full time work as performing artists. At this time, Birch decided to get out of performing, with only Bill and Charlie remaining. The duo signed a contract with RCA/Victor in 1936, and recorded a total of 60 songs under Victor’s Blackbird label. The duo performed together for four years, until a dispute over a business disagreement. After the breakup of The Monroe Brothers, Bill founded the short-lived “The Kentuckians”, then started “The Blue Grass Boys”. Under the new group, Monroe secured a regular spot on the Grand Ole Opry in 1939. Monroe continued to refine his style and sound during this time, leading a 1945 lineup including Earl Scruggs (of a young banjo prodigy at the time), guitarist Lester Flatt, fiddler Chubby Wise, and bassist Howard Watts. In this carnation, it is considered by many to be the “Original Bluegrass Band”. In a period of two years, 28 songs were recorded and became veritable classics in the bluegrass movement, including “Blue Moon of Kentucky”, “Wicked Path of Sin”, and “Little Cabin on the Hill”. In 1948, Flatt and Scruggs left The Blue Grass Boys and founded the “Foggy Mountain Boys”, which was a highly successful group in its own right. Monroe regrouped The Blue Grass Boys, and signed a contract with Decca records in 1949, and kept strong until the rise of rock-and-roll music in the late 1950’s effectively eliminated live performance opportunities outside The Grand Ole Opry. In the early 1960’s, Monroe was able to come back into prominence on a “folk revival” wave. During this time, he expanded his touring focus outside of the traditional southern country venues, effectively increasing his base of support. Even after the descent of the revival wave, Monroe had reached a large enough audience to keep working, including founding an annual “Bean Blossom” bluegrass festival in 1967. This venue is now the world’s oldest continuously running annual bluegrass festival. Monroe maintained a hectic touring schedule, even into his twilight years. In 1990, he performed onstage for Farm Aid IV at the age of 78. Monroe died on September, 9, 1996 from complications of a stroke six months earlier. Various artists performed under Monroe through his 60 year career, including Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs, David "'Stringbean" Akeman, Clyde Moody, Bill Keith, Peter Rowan, Rowland White, and Richard Greene. Artists that claimed to be influenced by or to be playing the bluegrass genre were often bullied by Bill Monroe. He always considered himself the father and caretaker of bluegrass. He would often say of new bands that did not perform to his standards, "That ain't no part of nothin'." Even those who question the scope of bluegrass refer to Monroe as a "musical giant" and recognize that "there would be no bluegrass without Bill Monroe."