Tag Archives: Bill Monroe

Extra! Fiddlin’ John Carson Played Tex’s ‘Christmas Time’ in 1927!

Posted on December 19, 2018 by

Well, sort of. After I played Tex Logan fiddling his composition, ‘Christmas Time’s a-Comin’’ with The Lane Brothers, followed by Bill Monroe’s classic first recording of the song, listener Paul Murphy emailed me with this news (reprinted with his permission): … Continue reading →

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Why I Cancelled Barbara Martin Stephens

Posted on August 30, 2018 by

I’ve been wondering whether I needed to explain this at all, but I did mention it on air, so if anyone is curious, this is what happened: Barbara Martin Stephens lived with Jimmy Martin from 1953 to 1966, and had … Continue reading →

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Hits and Misses 5

Posted on June 9, 2017 by

Continuing this occasional department.  Previous entries: H&M 1; 2; 3; 4 • Tom Ewing: Adventures of a Bluegrass Boy (2016, Patuxent Music) I can’t do more than to quote Tom Ewing himself: Between 1986 and 1996, while I was one … Continue reading →

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No Particular Place to Go

Posted on March 22, 2017 by

Chuck Berry reportedly wrote that title in prison (for transporting a 14-year-old girl across state lines, violating the Mann Act).  The song devolves into an amusing anecdote when the the protagonist cannot get the young lady’s ‘safety belt’ unbuckled, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Country History, Country News, Songwriting | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Another Excellent Joe Val Festival!

Posted on March 3, 2017 by

NOTE: For higher-resolution versions of the photographs, go to Flickr, HERE. (They won’t be super high, because with my Rebel T2i-Tamron 18-270 combination, I still needed to shoot at 3200 ISO, but they will be better than the ones that … Continue reading →

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Bill Monroe Named Our New Trailer!

Posted on August 17, 2016 by

After a brief, but intense, search for a molded fiberglass travel trailer (which if you’re interested in the gory details or in camping trailers, I describe at length in my personal blog, Walking Creek World; click HERE) we bought a … Continue reading →

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Bill Keith, 1939–2015

Posted on October 25, 2015 by

Got home Saturday evening (we were out minding four grandkids) to sit down at the iMac and see this sad news from Jim Rooney: Dear Friends, My long-time dear friend and musical partner Bill Keith left us on Thursday, Oct. … Continue reading →

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Tex Logan (1927–2015) — Part II

Posted on June 2, 2015 by

Part I is HERE. It was Tex Logan‘s association with Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper that led him to Bill Monroe in 1951, and the recording of his song, now a bluegrass and country standard, “Christmas Time’s A-Comin’.”  Richard Thompson, … Continue reading →

Posted in Bluegrass, Country News, Hillbilly History, Neat Pics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

HA’pennings: Kim Robins, “40 Years Late”

Posted on November 21, 2014 by

I’ve been planning to start posting some record reviews and other news, but “The best laid plans. . .” go their own way.  In lieu of those, I’m starting what I hope can be a regular feature, “HA’pennings”: brief notes … Continue reading →

Posted in Bluegrass, Country News, HA'pennings, Hillbilly Journal | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Jim Rooney Has a New Book Out, and Is Coming to HAH to Talk about It!

Posted on September 11, 2014 by

Old friend Jim Rooney will be coming in this Saturday, 13Sep, to talk about his new autobiography.  He’s bringing a CD full of songs he performed, recorded, produced, published, or which influenced him over his long (continuing) career.  We’ll listen … Continue reading →

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