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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZFLATT and SCRUGGSLegendary bluegrass group '48-69: Lester Raymond Flatt (b 28 June 1914, Overton County TN; d 11 May 1979) and Earl Eugene Scruggs (b 6 January 1924, Flint Hill NC; d 28 March 2012, Nashville TN) Flatt worked in textile mills, turned pro late '30s; played with the Happy-Go-Lucky Boys '41-3; with wife Gladys joined Charlie Monroe and his Kentucky Pardners '43; then Bill Monroe's Bluegrass Boys '44 on guitar and as lead singer. Scruggs played banjo on the radio at 15, during WWII worked in a factory, joined Monroe '45. He had evolved a three-finger style and 'the same relationship to the five-string banjo that Paganini has to the violin. By sharply accentuating the melody line, Scruggs makes it stand out clearly in a shower of notes' (Bill C. Malone). They left Monroe as a team '48, formed the Foggy Mountain Boys including the late Cedric Rainwater, later Jake Tullock (aka Cousin Jake) on bass, Jimmy Shumate, later Paul Warren on fiddle; Mac Wiseman was soon added. The group used the steel dobro guitar (as opposed to Monroe's mandolin), played from '55 by Buck Graves (aka Uncle Josh). They signed to Mercury '48, recorded their original version of 'Foggy Mountain Breakdown' (later remade for the film Bonnie And Clyde '68); also 'Pike County Breakdown', Scruggs compositions 'Earl's Breakdown', 'Flint Street Special', 'Randy Lynn Rag' (named after his son); highlights included Flatt's famous high-pitched vocals on 'Roll In My Sweet Baby's Arms' and the Carter Family classic 'Jimmy Brown The Newsboy'. They switched to Columbia '51 and became a top bluegrass group, joining Grand Ole Opry '55, but little known outside country music until the late '50s, when they were discovered at the Newport Folk Festival by fans from every walk of life. They had a country chart hit 'Cabin In The Hills' '59, but mainly worked outside the mainstream of country music; 'Ballad of Jed Clampett' (for the Beverly Hillbillies TV series) was a huge hit (no. 1 country, top 40 pop) and brought a larger following. More country hits followed, with 'Pearl, Pearl, Pearl' '63, 'You Are My Flower' and 'Petticoat Junction' (also a TV theme) '64, 'Nashville Cats', 'California Uptight Band' '67, which had them moving away from pure bluegrass; Flatt was not happy with this and they split '69. Scruggs formed the Earl Scruggs Review with multi-instrumentalist sons Randy, Steve and Gary (who played electric bass, among other things); Flatt remained a bluegrass stalwart with a new group, Nashville Grass. Columbia LPs by Flatt and Scruggs included Carnegie Hall; Scruggs LPs on the same label included Kansas City State, Live! Austin, Today And Forever, since '84 Super Jammin', Top Of The World. Lester Flatt LPs '71-5 included Flatt On Victor, Country Boy, Lester'N'Mac and On The Southbound (the last two with Wiseman), Foggy Mountain Breakdown and Live, all on RCA; also Flatt Gospel '76 on Canaan; collections on CMH (Country Music Heritage) including Greatest Bluegrass Hits, Pickin' Time, Fantastic Pickin', Heaven's Bluegrass; also Lester Raymond Flatt on Flying Fish (Sonet in UK). Historic Flatt and Scruggs tracks are complete in three boxed sets on Bear Family, as well as The Mercury Sessions in two volumes on Rounder. They became the second bluegrass act elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1985. |