Ask Sonny Anything | az-lyrics.music369.com

Ask Sonny Anything… can you speak about Kenny Ingram?

Posted on October 15, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny is again unable to answer questions this week, so we are rerunning one of his classic columns. Let’s hope he will be back with us next week.

Sonny, If you don’t mind, please a few words and thoughts about Kenny Ingram. He was such a wonderful guy and I am sure you have some good thoughts to share. Thanks Chief.

– STLIL

Brother STLIL I would be more than happy to share with you all that I know about Kenny Ingram.

I met him in 1973, I don’t rightly remember the actual place but in one of the many hours we shared talking, and discussing “things” he told me exactly where it was but 50 years has slipped past and I have forgotten. I seem to remember Georgia though. I believe he had just started with Lester Flatt where he remained until Flatt’s passing.

We talked about banjo playing… right hands in particular. I had been around the block a few more times than Kenny, and in the beginning he was full of questions, like how did you do this, why did you do this, when do you do this. It went on like this for a couple years and Kenneth kept gaining, growing in confidence when already he had the fastest right hand I had ever seen. Boy could play some kinda fast for sure. But at the same time he was growing into a good man, and making himself into the great banjo player that we remember.

The last time I saw Kenny was one year ago last Sunday I believe. You have to know this part of the story too. The past few times Kenny came to lunch his actions and attitude were changing. But, I need to mention that he was probably the most private person I ever knew. He worked the last 10 years with Larry Stephenson. Larry and I discussed Kenny’s health more than once. He was changing right before us. We kept asking him if he was OK, and he kept assuring that he was, but dammit we could see.

After the last time we saw him, I tried to talk to Kenny, Larry, and Lincoln also tried. But like me, they got no response. Dammit, maybe I should have tried harder but he was so private that I didn’t want to invade his world, whatever it might be. We live with regrets, that will be one of mine.

—–

Hey Sonny, so glad to see you’re still active in the bluegrass world. I so enjoyed the times I spent watching your group and many others at the Snuffy Jenkins festival at Cliffside, NC, and wondered if you had a special memory from those appearances?

– Lane K.

Lane… come right on in. Your question about the Snuffy Jenkins festival brings back a couple of memories. If I’m thinking of the right place, it’s near Earl’s home. Between shows we had several hours and I went to Earl’s house, where he lived as a kid. Where he learned to play a little bit. I got to meet Junie for the first time. Got to meet Snuffy Jenkins for the first time, and got to see and hold his RB4. I got to sit on the porch where Earl told me several years later, that’s where he learned to play Reubin the right way, and Junie heard it for the first time. It actually got a reaction out of Junie and Earl said: “I knew I had something right there!”

I sat on that porch. I SAT ON THAT PORCH, FOLKS. WHERE “THE MAN” STARTED IT ALL. And I believe it because HE told me where it was. As I’ve said many times before. Me and Brother Bobby went on one hellacious ride together.
s

—–

Hi Sonny, Stan here…occasionally known as Jebbh Mixus from The Mixus Brothers (which we named as an homage to you two)…anyhoo, I have three questions for you as you were so kind to answer one for me about singing a few months ago, and now I’m being selfish… first one is: I was listening to the song you did called One Tear and noticed that the internet’s said it was written by someone named Judy Osborne… did that happen to be any relation to you?

Secondly, I have noticed that the YouTube has many live recordings of ya’ll, and in many of them there are moments during and between songs where I say you were absolutely funny as all get out with your comments and shenanigans… do you think having fun on stage is and was one of the most important parts of having as long of a career as you did??

Lastly, and I appreciate your patience with me, when you toured Sweden and recorded one of your shows there for the public consumption that is now on YouTube, you of course played Ruby but I must say that your solo during that song was one of the most god forsaken amazing displays of banjo playing in the history of mankind… in the video you, after the solo, you shook your head and it seemed like you were playing like a man possessed. Do you remember it and do you think you can pinpoint that period or any period as having the best command of the neck and your creative mind for soloing?? Even if you answer even one of these questions or none, I am much obliged to you for letting us delve into your psyche on playing and unabashed memories of your life so, thank you!

Stan

Stan…good questions. Thank you. First one…Judy is my wife of 62 years. She wrote this poem while she was in the 8th grade. And I’ll let her tell you in her own words.

Sonny was looking for new songs to record. I showed him a poem I had written, he put it to music and Voila!

They began rehearsing the next day at Bobby’s and when they got around to working on One Tear, Sonny called me and asked if I could write another verse. Words came to me as fast as I could write them down. I called him back in just a few minutes.

We ran over it a time or two, and the song came to life. It’s been recorded a dozen times or more. Very good bluegrass tune.

You asked about Sweden and the recordings made of our Stockholm show. I’ve been asked many times when I play certain things am I playing what I have planned to play or does it just happen. It’s just a thing that goes as it goes. I know the fingerboard pretty well so I don’t get lost and from there it just happens.

I’ve heard some things back and wonder what I was thinking, to do stupid things like that. Our shenanigans, as you called it, was not part of our plan but it did come in handy at times. We watched many bluegrass bands through the years and they, for the most part, were dead serious on stage and seemed as though their faces would break if they were to smile. We decided to have a good time and try to see that our audience laughed along with us.
s

—–

Mr. Osborne, Joe Medford was one of the less-heralded first generation bluegrass banjoists, in spite of his ability. He recorded with Mac Wiseman in the early 1950s. Did you ever cross paths with him?

– Bzrdhd

Bzrdhd…Sorry to say I never had the opportunity to meet Joe. Funny thing about him. When he recorded the several tunes with Mac and the several with Charlie Monroe, you would swear at certain points it was Earl, but I heard some other things he did and they were not so… I should say AS good. Wrong phrasing, conflicting background notes. Almost like it was some other guy playing. Strange. I talked with Mac several times about Joe, as to the kind of guy he was, etc. This probably won’t sit to well with some, but Mac said Joe had a tendency to over indulge in adult beverages so from personal experience this would cloud one’s vision…so, maybe that’s the answer.

Great tone out of an RB100..he had that “THING” didn’t he? YES HE DID.
s

—–

Sonny, in my work archiving the decades of recordings and videos my mother left behind, I ran across an Osborne’s set at the Festival of the Bluegrass. On a break between songs, Bobby can be heard off mic giving you a string of jabs about “I don’t know how you ever think you are going to keep a banjo that cheap in tune.” I’m wondering if there is more to that story. This would have been around 1985.

Charles C.

Charles… welcome my brother… Butch Robins and I had just paid $5000 for our banjos… the highest price ever for that time. Butch bought one of the two best RB4 style banjos ever, and I think I got the finest, best sounding banjo Gibson ever made. It is a 1934 flat head Granada original 5 string. The other RB4 that is that good is owned by Dana Cupp. I rarely tune on stage with the exception when KRAKO show his a–! Then there is no tuning.

So Bobby, knowing how much I paid and realizing I did nothing during that show but tune, made his infamous statement. “I don’t know how you ever think you are going to keep a banjo that cheap in tune!”
s

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… did you know Don Stover?

Posted on October 8, 2021 by Azlyrics

Dear Sonny,

Did you ever cross paths with Don Stover? And if so, what did you make of his banjo style? I’m a New England guy, and Don and the Lilly Brothers meant a lot to us during many years they lived and played in the Boston area. I think it’s fair to say, they taught people around here what bluegrass was all about.

Jon

Jon…

Thank you for participating.

The answer is yes, I did cross paths with Don Stover many times. One of the nicest, fun-loving people I ever knew, and truly a great banjo player. He had his own style and moved at his own pace. I don’t know if you knew it or not, but Don chewed tobacco. At the Hillbilly Ranch he had a spittoon set about 2 feet from the stage, and miraculously he could hit that 7 out of 10 times. I though the world of Don and still do.

—–

Hey Sonny,

I’d like a follow on your decision for going electric. But before my questions, I think you should know my interest in bluegrass fell on the back burner as my mediocre pedal steel playing has kept me booked solid for a long time. Anyways, I recall when electric bass was a hard sell in bluegrass but was eventually accepted all around. Somewhere around that time is when I was musically redirected elsewhere.

There was one other memory at a festival around the Warrenton-Culpepper, VA area where Liz Myer was on stage with Danny Gatton. The festival promoter stormed up on stage and yanked Danny’s amp cord out of the socket…oops.. Now to the meat & taters! By amplifying your instruments, was your stage volume significantly increased? Would you mind sharing the learning curve for going electric? Were you pleased with instrument tone? Did you employ a sound man?

I know you made mention how acoustic to electric was a huge contribution to your success. I’m sorry I missed that transition, but well done sir!

Now fast forward to present day, and the reasoning for my questions. I recently started playing banjo on a more regular basis, and have seen many videos of what I believe to be are newer headliner bluegrass groups. I also made time to see a live performance. There seems to be a common denominator with groups that play plugged in, are wirelessly connected, and some players using small clip on mics. First and foremost, I have yet to hear a very expensive flat top sound almost as good as a 1970s ovation guitar. Banjo tone sounds tinny, or nasal, and many times, lost in the mix. Fiddler’s tone also sounds to me, nasal, but mandolin for whatever reason has acceptable tone. Regardless of how these acoustic instruments sound is probably not relevant to the band’s popularity and ticket sales. If it works, who am I to pass judgement? I just don’t understand why a player wouldn’t want his axe to sound as it was designed and built.

Geez, an old 15K$+ Martin sounding like a beat up ovation…oh well…Anyways Sonny, these are just my thoughts and opinions. And as you know, opinions are like exit ramps, they’re everywhere.

Gary Lee Gimble

Gary Gimble. Thank you for your thesis concerning your mediocre steel guitar playing, which you say has you booked solid for a long time. I would like to ask you a question. Booked solid doing what and where? I know just about every great steel guitar player from Buddy Emmons and Buddy Charlton to Hal Rugg and Paul Franklin, but your work with the steel guitar and your name slips my mind. I would still like to know where and when you are booked solid, and if it’s recording sessions…who and what label.

As far as selling the electric bass, we had no problem and sold thousands of records on Decca label and especially after we hired J. D. Brock and Dennis Digby, stylists in their own right. They were the best. And so we had no trouble selling them, because of their talent.

I can’t go into the problems and equations that we had to work out when it came to electrified instruments. Of course the volume on stage increased drastically because.. hello .. we were electric which made it louder naturally.
S

—–

Since so many great banjo players were from North Carolina: Earl Scruggs, Snuffy Jenkins, Terry Baucom, Jim Mills, Steve Dilling, Marc Pruett – how good do you think you would have been if you had been born in North Carolina ???
p.s. I already think you pretty awesome and your Banjo Medley is the background to my sweetest dreams. 🙂

Cindy B. in NC

Well, Cindy…It all depends on how you define “Great” when it comes to banjo players. To me when someone is “Great,” that means they have reached a point that can’t be surpassed, by anyone. Very few have done that. Of course you realize that this is just my opinion. (Opinions are like a certain part of the anatomy of all creation)

To be serious… Doesn’t matter where you are from or where you’re going… the love for the banjo, the amount of work you are driven to put into the banjo, and how well you are able to concentrate, that intensity is what determines the finished product. That Banjo Medley from Stockholm Sweden, I consider the top of my game. Now you have me wondering if I had been born in North Carolina, if I could have played it better or differently…HMMMM…Answer is YES. I would have left out Cumberland Gap, and maybe played El Paso, Spanish Flea, and maybe ended it with America The Most Beautiful…AMEN!

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… tell us about the five string dobro

Posted on October 1, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny LOVE THIS COLUMN! Please give us your thoughts on the 5-string dobro.

My best wishes for your health.

Hey M.C., thank you for participating in our free-for-all. The instrument you are referring to is the dojo. It’s an instrument I started playing in the mid-’60s and recorded one of our best-selling songs, I’m Making Plans, and the 1968 Gospel album, Favorite Hymns. My opinion is a lot more people should have played it with amplification because the volume on it was quite low. The first time we went electric was at the Flame Club in Minneapolis, Minnesota. We peeled the paint right off the walls and did it on purpose too, just because we could! Emmons and Shot Jackson had installed a pickup in my dojo and that’s what I used that first night.
S

—–

Sonny – back in ‘73 or ‘74, you played a date at Philharmonic Hall in New York City put on by my friend, the late Doug Tuchman. I think I remember you breaking two strings on one song! Reno/Harrell and the Country Gents were also on the bill. What are your memories of that gig and trip to NYC?

Eric

Thank you for your question, Eric. Yes, I remember playing there and, as I remember, Doug had promoted the show pretty well but we didn’t have a large crowd. Somehow, I got the impression that he blamed it on Don and Bill Harrell. I never did know why. So Eric, the trip to New York was expensive!
S

—-

Hello Sonny! What was the motivation for your excursion into electrified music, and did you have to endure excessive amounts of criticism from your fans or conversely, did it wind up bringing new listeners into your camp and enlarging your fan base?

Bob W.

Hey Bob.

The motivation was survival. Electric added to our instruments came as a necessity at the Flame Club in Minneapolis, Minnesota. We were booked there for a week, and the first night the folks sat out there and talked instead of listening to us. We decided make or break. They might not like us but they WERE going to at least hear us. Long story short, we blew the paint off the walls the next set. They listened, and heard bluegrass, and liked it.

Later Carlton Haney used us on all his huge Country package shows throughout the South and a few scattered other places. We were competing with The Big Name COUNTRY ACTS WITH THEIR VERY LOUD ELECTRIC instruments. We’re talking 8,000-15,000 crowds and we were dying because folks couldn’t hear us. So we drug out the amps and pickups and blew more paint off the walls, and they loved it. We did too.

Yes, we took a lot of heat from the diehard bluegrass fans but we did what we had to do. Yes, by playing the venues where the large crowds were increased our popularity and fan base, probably equal to Flatt & Scruggs who in the late ’50s and early to mid ’60s was the standard we used. All was not lovely though, at Berryville, VA. At Watermelon Park someone eased their way to the stage and cut my banjo cord. No problem, I had plenty more cords as this was not the first time that had been done. It worked so well for us that other bluegrass acts, J.D. and Adcock come to mind, tried it for a short while. But…WE HAD BOBBY, AND NO ONE ELSE DID AND HE COULDN’T BE DUPLICATED. Our record sales went through the roof and life was good. There are a couple interesting, funny stories about The Flame. You wanta hear it, I’ll get into that at a later date.
s

—–

Back in my high school days, myself and two other class mates played music together and we played together for many years afterwards. Sonny and Bobby were our idols. I played the 5-string and the others guys played flat-top and mandolin, respectively. And when we played, it was played just like the record. We love your music and your style. Thanks for being the greatest of the greats. And still today there is no one like The Osborne Brothers… Thanks for the memories and making Bluegrass Music what it is today…….

Tim P.

Thank you Tim, for the kind words.

Compliments have always been important, always nice to know that our accomplishments are recognized and appreciated. At age 82, and soon to be 88 those words are quite a bit more important to a couple of advanced age, has been hillbillies from so deep in the hills of Southeast Kentucky, why…the Grand Ole Opry didn’t get to us till Wednesday! And sometimes the battery radio would run down…which brings up another question. When the battery ran down, how did my Dad recharge it. We didn’t have electricity to plug in a charger, so…how? You ain’ta gonna believe this….it was so unique for someone to have a radio or record player (talking machine) they would gather on Saturday night (I was just joking about Wednesday) to listen to George D. Hay, Founder of the Grand Ole Opry (The Solemn Ole Judge), Roy Acuff, Ernest Tubb or Bill Monroe, then have discussions about how they looked, judging on their sound. I remember hearing Gabriel Heater’s news cast, (sponsored by WHIZ, THE BEST NICKEL CANDY THERE IS) and Joe Lewis knocking out Billy Conn. AND, Kentucky Wildcat Basketball. Where would we be without memories.

—–

Hi Sonny,

Thank you for starting this column. I think that your music is among the most beautiful ever recorded. It says above that you’re retired. What is your music life like these days? Do you still play? If not, do you hear music in your head and think about arrangements and melodies?

Suzanne

Suzanne, you’re most welcome here.

First and foremost. I did not start this column. Terry Herd and John Lawless are solely responsible. However, I love doing it and I thank them profusely for giving me this great opportunity. First of it’s kind I believe.

I retired in 2005 and, other than some health issues, I have enjoyed retirement and just to not have to rush around needing to be somewhere. I don’t have a schedule. I’m not one of these people that must be doing something, keeping busy. Retirement is supposed to be just what it is, whatever you want to do. That’s my opinion anyhow.

Music? I haven’t played the banjo since rotator cuff surgery in 2003…November 23 in Myrtle Beach was my last time to play the banjo. I do hear and see things in my head that I would like to hear, and have written a few tunes but I think they are too complicated, not meaning “good” just “on paper” complicated to actually play…maybe someday I’ll show them to someone willing to take the chance.

I don’t listen to music, with a few exceptions. I love Tommy Jackson’s fiddle playing….favorite is Fraulein by Bobby Helms. Tommy’s fiddle is just way too good on this song. Recorded in 1956 and stayed on the National charts for a year. I’ve been asked my thoughts on the future of bluegrass music. If you’re asking about the bluegrass that I know, I would say in my opinion it’s spiraling. Lacking in leadership. There are no more Flatt and Scruggs, Monroe, Osborne Brothers, Jimmy Martin, Stanleys, Reno/Smiley, etc. To me these folks provided a standard…something to hear and learn from…

OK, I included the OB…you think that’s conceited…I don’t. Sorry! Think what you will. My opinion. Always. A few… Rhonda, The Grascals, Joe Mullins, Lonesome River, Junior Sisk, Ralph 2, Del, Larry Sparks, Larry Stephenson…are trying to do it right. IN MY OPINION. I left some out. Contrary to popular opinion, I don’t know everything.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… what about metal thumbpicks?

Posted on September 24, 2021 by Azlyrics

Bobby, my dear brother and partner of 52 years…

I’m so happy for you because I see you are #1 on the Bluegrass Today playlist chart this week. White Line Fever was a good choice. I didn’t hardly agree with the musicians they have playing with you…. Not because they’re not good enough but because they didn’t grow up watching you and helping you “bring it” every night. And, Brother, you did that for the 52 years that I was involved, and I wish I could have helped you do this, but my time has passed.

I am so happy to see your name at the top of that list. I guess because I still associate me or my name with yours. So in actuality, in my mind, I feel a little part of it. Now don’t get the wrong impression here…I’m not trying to take any of the accolades away from you. I don’t deserve any…they’re all going to you where they belong. I’m so proud to have played a little part of watching you be the best ever at what you were doing. But you did it!

So, in closing, I will just congratulate you on a wonderful career and I hope it lasts as long as you want it to.

Your loving Brother,

—–

Hey Rob, thank you for your time. You wanted to know what kind of strings I use. They are GHS PF175 medium light gauge – that seems to work well. The gauges 1-5 would go 11, 12, 13, 22, and 11.
S

—–

Hello Sonny,

I was curious to ask you about your days working with your brother in Detroit at WJR. Frog Martin worked there with a skinny boy named JD Crowe if my memory serves me right!

I was wondering if you have any stories to share about the days you guys worked there with Casey Clark.

I grew up in Ypsilanti and my friend Dana Cupp told me that y’all worked in Detroit in the ’50s. He has a 1930 Gibson RB-4 which I understand you helped him acquire. Man what a loud banjer!

Thanks Chief!

Craig Pryce – Livonia, MI

Hey Craig, thank you for joining us. I appreciate it.

Dana does have a loud banjo, but Dana is kinda loud himself! The funny thing, Craig – I don’t remember where I got it, I really don’t – I think the guy that wrote half a dozen Frog Martin songs (Wade Birchfield was his name), his twin brother had that banjo.
S

—–

Hey Sonny, it seems that you have always preferred plastic thumbpicks over all the others including Blue Chip, and the Hoffmeyer Chief metal fingerpicks. What brought you to that conclusion?
Lincoln

Thank you, Lincoln, for jumping right on in there. We, Charlie Sizemore included, metal thumbpicks always kind of turned my stomach. They felt funny and they looked funny, and Don Wesley Reno tried to get me to use one thirty years ago, but he also used a banjo head with a hole in it… I looked at him and said “Donald, both of those innovations will never make it across the creek!” And Don really loved his metal thumbpick, but they always just felt funny on my thumb. And if I’m not badly mistaken, Raymond McClain also uses a thumbpick, and Raymond’s a pretty damn good player, so maybe there’s something to it after all!
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… what did you think of the Earl Scruggs Revue?

Posted on September 17, 2021 by Azlyrics

We just lost one the most prolific songwriters ever in Tom T. Hall.

Did the Osborne Brothers ever play any shows together? And did you all record any of his songs? Thanks for your time!

Sean M

Yes on both counts. We did several shows with Tom and recorded an album with him, which I don’t recall the name. We did some of his songs too, one being Souvenirs, I Washed My Face in the Morning Dew, and Ballad of Forty Dollars. He was a good friend and a great songwriter and will always be remembered as such. And while we were recording he would change clothes into period clothes that would match the songs we were doing. Once, I looked down at my watch and he said, “do you have someplace else to go?” and I took that as an insult and said, “as a matter of fact, I do have a session at 6 and I’d like to not be late!”
S.

—-

Hi Sonny, Hope you are well!!

I happened to be reading Dick Spottswood’s book, Banjo on the Mountain, about Wade Mainer. I noticed your picture in there with him from 2002 at the Grand Ole Opry. I was wondering if you could share your meeting with him. As well, was he a big influence for you in any way? Thank you so much.

Jacob F.

First of all, my picture at the Grand Ole Opry has probably appeared in a thousand media outlets, so my picture with Wade Mainer does not stand out in my memory. I played there every weekend for 43 years, so the number of pictures taken would be endless. And as far as an influence, neither Spottswood nor Mainer had much influence in my playing. I look to guys like Earl Scruggs and Rudy Lyle to be my biggest influence, and I think my playing shows that, and if I were a beginning banjo player right now, my biggest influences would be Lincoln Hensley and Derek Vaden. Those two young guys seem to have it all together with a great right hand and matching left. What more could anybody want?!

I’ve been asked numerous times about setting a banjo up, and who’s good and who’s not. I guess the best guy that I know of in this area would be Lincoln Hensley because he seems to have the touch. When we first started making the Krako banjos, it was made from spare parts I had collected for years. And when I had it put together the action was very high. I took it to a “friend” and asked that he lower the action, and when I got it back, it cost me 100 dollars and he had put a shorter bridge on it instead of making the proper adjustments that he could have made with the coordinating rods or the truss rod. He chose to put a shorter bridge on there, a method of which a five-year-old child could have figured out.
S.

—–

Thanks for doing this column Sonny, I always appreciate your perspective. What are your thoughts on Earl’s music and career after the split with Lester?

James P.

Hey James, thank you for participating in our chaotic thing we got going here. As far as Earl’s music with his boys, and not to hurt anyone’s feelings (Gary Scruggs, Earl’s son, is a close friend), but I was not a big fan of the music and career after the split with Lester. Nor was I a big fan of Lester and Earl’s music directly before the split. I grew up on Flatt and Scruggs, and the music they played there in the ’50s was unmatched then and now. No one has quite captured that sound and I doubt if they ever will. Foggy Mountain Breakdown has been played, folks, and it was played in Cincinnati in 1949, and I doubt it will ever be played like that ever again.
S.

—–

Sonny, what other genres of music do you listen to besides country and bluegrass? Do you enjoy classical and baroque as well?

D.R.

Well, D.R., due to the fact the little that I know about classical guitar and I don’t know what baroque is, other than being broke about a thousand times during the ’50s and calling my dad up at 3 o’clock in the morning and his first words after finding out who was calling was, “how much do you need and where do I need to send it?” And it never mattered how much. He never questioned it or anything – if I would say 500 dollars and send it to Western Union in that town, it would be there the next morning. And the rest of his life, he never asked me what I used it for. When he moved from Ohio to Kentucky – there’s an old saying that “dollars talk and b.s. walks” – there was an old man with a farm for sale and my dad was wanting it. He needed ten grand to make up with what he had so he could get that place. He told me that and I went and got it and gave it to him. It made him so happy. This would be in the mid-late ’60s.
S.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… why did you play a 6 string banjo?

Posted on September 10, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny is again unable to respond to questions this week, so we are re-running another of his most popular columns. Let’s hope he is back at it next week.

Is it true you lifted up your banjo on stage into a ceiling fan in Kahoka, MO and tore off the headstock? Which banjo was that?
– Rhonda in Missouri (yes, that Rhonda)

I don’t think that was in Missouri. Larry Stephenson was there and reminds me it was actually in Canton, Texas when I took the banjo off to play the Guitjo, and the peghead hit the ceiling fan. It didn’t break it but it did leave a permanent scar. I had a 38 pistol in my pocket and I was so angry that I wanted to destroy that fan. I couldn’t get it out of my pocket because the hammer got stuck in the cloth of the pocket. David Crow, who played fiddle with us, realizing what was about to take place, came over to me and reminded me that 2,000 people were watching. All I could think of was that fan could have destroyed a half million dollar banjo… my Granada… But I recovered my senses in time. Chubby Wise was sitting on the front row beside Charles Perry. Charley told me that Chubby leaned over to him and said, “They’s gonna be trouble hyer!”

——–

Sonny, Is it true that you didn’t like for people to dance anywhere onstage or offstage while the Osborne Brothers were playing? If so, why?
– Greg J

Yep, that’s true. When we played I wanted the complete attention of the audience. I didn’t want some drunk clown to run up in front of the crowd and steal their attention. Right? Wrong? It really didn’t matter. That was our time to do our part to pay the promoter for hiring us…. first to draw people, then to be sober, and to look and act like professional people at work… much the same as if you would work in an office. That stage was our office… that was part of our job… respect what you were hired to do. We did that as best we could and expected our audience to do the same. RIGHT…..WRONG……

——–

Sonny, I remember just a little about the day at Berryville when someone cut the power cord on your band’s bass amplifier. Would you tell us all what you did about it that day?
– Mark S.

I remember it well. 5,000 people were there. We had disrupted the bluegrass community by plugging our acoustic instruments into amps and using electric bass…. Not out of defiance, but necessity, simply because of the venues we were playing. Mostly country package shows, competing with loud country bands and sound men who didn’t know how to mic bluegrass music. So, when we went on I realized that MY cord to the banjo was cut…not broken, but cut. I told Joe Green, who was with us on that trip, to go to a cabinet in the motor home and bring me another cord. I had 10 extra cords for this occasion… he was gone two minutes, I plugged in and we continued. I also remember that day because when we were finished with our show, we received a standing ovation… one of only two for the day… the other one was for Ralph Stanley.

——–

Sonny, please tell us about your thinking behind adding a 6th (low) string to one of your banjos and the experience of playing it.
– Charlie S.

I did that because I grew tired of not being able to play the actual melody of a song. If you play in G, the new string was an octave below the third string G. (Funny, I have spellcheck and it said octave was actually spelled with an I. I told it what it could go do… Then I realized I had tried to spell it with an A instead of O….SO…..) You could also tune it to C and have the exact tune… as in Listening to The Rain. It was an interesting concept…hard to play, but rewarding.

——–

Have you ever had to rough up a promoter?
– Alex W.

Nope. Never been in a fight in my life. But… I thought Bobby Crum was gonna shoot me though! We didn’t draw a big crowd for him, and we insulted his MC. She lied to him… told him we made fun of Melvin Goins… the real thing that upset her the most was none of our guys flirted with her, nor did they respond to her drunken passes. Truth… I believe in it… 100%

GOODAY

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… did Bill Monroe like electric bass?

Posted on September 3, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny:

I once joined a bluegrass band to play mandolin and sing tenor. Not longer after I joined, the bass player quit, so I took over that job. Having never played the bass before, I got an electric bass guitar. At that time, both Jim & Jesse and the Osborne Brothers were using electric bass guitars. I figured if electric bass was good enough for these first-generation legends, it was good enough for me. I took some flack for that and was once reprimanded for playing electric bass at a SPBGMA festival. I have a SPBGMA sticker on my Fender bass case to this day. Did the Osborne Brothers ever get any complaints about using an electric bass?

Orin Friesen

Orin, thank you for your time and participation. It is appreciated and I’m happy to hear from you. It’s been a long time and I hope you’re well.

In answer to your question, Bill Monroe wouldn’t hire us at Bean Blossom because we had an electric bass. And my answer to Bill was that we were thinking about having a festival and we wanted to hire him without his mandolin pick. And his answer was the infamous “that ain’t no part of nothin’” and it was! Because our bass amp and electric bass were as much a part of our sound as anything else you could point to.

(I was there the first time Bill Monroe ever said that expression. It was in Alexandria, Virginia, and the crowd was shouting out requests. Someone asked for Take Me Back to Tulsa and Bill turned to Kenny Baker and asked “do you know that number.” He said, “no, I don’t,” and Bill kind of stuttered and said, “well, that ain’t no part of nothin’!”)
S

—–

Sonny, thank you so much for answering my question a few weeks ago (regarding Buck Owens and other country artists attempting bluegrass). As you said, a background in country music doesn’t prepare you to make bluegrass. So my question today is the reverse: do you feel like a bluegrass background is beneficial to an artist attempting to cross over to country (I mean in an artistic sense, not necessarily a commercial one). Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, and Vince Gill are clearly better musicians than the average country singers of their eras, and all of them as well as the late Keith Whitley and even Chris Stapleton today have largely steered clear of the quest for pop crossover success and sold out arena shows that seems to plague many in the country field. Do you attribute some of that to them beginning their careers in the bluegrass world?

On a different note, what are your thoughts on Dave Evans as a banjo player, and do you have any stories about him?

Thanks again and God bless,

Adam

Adam, I appreciate your time and participation.

I’m not sure I can answer these questions appropriately. I can mention several who were born within a bluegrass music environment – Paul Brewster and Larry Sparks – they both could have made it as a country act if they had used the right instrumentation as well as the correct songs. Larry Sparks is my favorite singer. I frankly can’t see Flatt and Scruggs, Don and Red, or anyone else who was a big name in bluegrass making it as a country band. I really can’t. And actually I should include us in that, because we sold a lot of records with steel, piano, drums, electric guitar, and those players were Nashville’s A-Team and so we had the best Nashville had to offer.

I thought we had great songs and we were considered country because in 1971, we won the Country Music Association’s Vocal Group of the Year. And my dad always said, “bragging isn’t bragging if you can back it up.” And it would be impossible to be raised in a more bluegrass home than we were, and we sold strongly to a country audience…21 songs on the national charts. Case closed!

I don’t have any stories about Dave Evans and I don’t have an opinion of him as a banjo player.
S

—–

I was listening to an old record of Wynn Osborne and the Bluegrass Playboys and noticed the tone he pulled on Flint Hill Special and Dear Old Dixie and wondered, if he was playing your Granada on that album. It was great when he filled in with you guys in the ’80s and he could pick up where you left off on stuff.

Wes V

Wes (has to be Vanderpool)… I’m glad to hear from you. And yes, Wynn played my Granada on that whole album and it shows. As a teenager, I thought Wynn would develop into maybe the best banjo player out there. One night at the Opry, Bobby asked me if Wynn could play Foggy Mountain Breakdown on our portion of the show. Wynn was about 13. And I said sure, go ahead. That kid stepped up to the mic with an RB-100 Gibson and played the mortal hell out of Foggy Mountain Breakdown and he never missed a lick. And he accomplished in two and a half minutes what I couldn’t accomplish in a lifetime at the Grand Ole Opry. For some reason, I could never play well in that building or on that show. I never was happy with anything I did on the Opry. Of course, take into consideration the sound coming from the Opry was never what you would call really good and it still isn’t. Of course nowadays, it is not the same Opry that I knew in the ’60s and ’70s. Krako must have been staked out! I bet he did, really.
S

—–

Hello Sonny, thank you for this forum. It brings back a lot of fond memories, which leads me to my question. My first exposure to live bluegrass occurred in the 1970s when I was a banjo-obsessed teenager living in Atlanta. I had not been born into the world of bluegrass and it was something I had to seek out. Before I could drive I would go to Shoal Creek Park in Lavonia, GA with my parents. I was instantly hooked. It was the first time I saw you play, and, well, you know the lineup at that festival in those days. That was also the first time I saw Bill Monroe play, and those late night sets seared my brain forever. I don’t think it’s time that has magnified my memories, but it does seem like that festival had moments that were hard to find later. My question is: Can you share your special memories of the Lavonia festival, and its role in live bluegrass at the time? My view of that festival was as a young spectator, so I would like to hear your behind the scenes experiences. Thank you very much.

Karl R.

Karl, thank you for joining our chaotic free-for-all. Sometimes it does seem like that, but it’s always appreciated.

Shoal Creek Park had to be the hottest venue ever created. I swear, I saw Mac Wiseman just crumble there once when he weighed 400 pounds. While Shoal Creek was a good outlet for bluegrass music, the sound was always good and we always got paid. One sour note that clouds my memory comes from PBS – one Sunday or it might have been Saturday, they were determined to film us and I said no, but their determination showed its ugly face in the form of a remote control television camera. It was set up 30 feet in front of me on stage, and every time I’d look up, that camera was pointed in a different direction with no one behind it operating it. And so right in the middle of the one song, I just stopped and asked our band to have a seat on a bunch of hay bales they had placed on the stage. And I said in the mic “until that camera is pointed down to the ground, I’m not going to play another note.” And the guy who was running the camera went berserk. “I’ve got to get this done!” he said. I said, “Not today you don’t! I told you beforehand no! In this case your determination has failed you miserably, because it was in my contract that I don’t have to allow you to film us.”

We ran into this situation several times but our record contract and our agency contract didn’t allow us to be filmed. And that’s the truth.

I may have retold the previous story, and for that I apologize, but I figure it’s worth retelling, and I figure the guy might remember the two words I told him. The crowd probably remembers too.
S

=====================

Dictation – Sonny Osborne
Typist – Aynsley Porchak
Question coordinator – Lincoln Hensley
Kibitzing – Pepper and Judy Osborne

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… three versions of Earl

Posted on August 27, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny is again unable to respond to questions this week, so we are re-running another of his most popular columns. Let’s hope he is back at it next week.

Sonny, I read your column weekly, and one thing is obvious; you are the great banjo stylist we all know and appreciate – but also a strong business man and solid band leader. My question is a simple one: Is it the key for a professional band to meet popular acclaim?

– Charlie S.

Well Charlie, Popularity is definitely needed if you are a starting, young band. If you have very strong negative publicity it can be like a death knell. But then on the other hand, if you are extremely good at what you do, STRANGELY ENOUGH it tends to reverse itself. Two such cases come to mind. George Jones was a drunk for the most part, and had no regard for a contract… these are true, not heresay. Old George. People got used to him missing dates. NO SHOW JONES was his revered nickname. I witnessed both. But he was such a great singer that people reacted in a positive manner, FOR THE MOST PART. Speaking out of school….THE BEATLES were said to be drugged most of the time and weird the rest, but they were so good, people loved them anyhow. And then we come to one of the most talented people I ever knew whose reputation, attitude, and public actions were his destruction…IRA LOUVIN. Once again I saw it personally.

—–

Sonny, I get really nervous before we go onstage. I’m 17 and have played at least 50 shows and it never gets easier. Any advice?

– Wendy

PREPARATION and Confidence in your ability. LEARN IT RIGHT, AND THEN PRACTICE IT TILL YOU CAN DO IT IN YOUR SLEEP, THEN PRACTICE IT SOME MORE. Wendy, you must have confidence almost to the point of mild conceit, to beat the nervous thing. And then sometimes it won’t go away completely. I’m probably the most confident person in my ability you would ever run across. Confidence in my PAST ability. But a lifelong nervous condition when we played at the Ryman Auditorium never went away. It lasted 43 years.

—–

Sonny, I suspect you have several in mind, but would you name just one person at the top of your list that should be in the Hall of Fame?

– Alex B.

In the country hall, I don’t know enough who are not in already. A few years ago they had a mass induction in which they inducted several that didn’t belong. Which watered down the importance of the honor.

The Bluegrass Hall…I know one guy who should go in this year, who deserves to be there. I had better not mention actual names for fear of jinxing him. If he makes it, I’ll let you know by way of Bluegrass Today.

—–

Sonny, it’s no secret how much you revered Earl Scruggs. Just how much of an impact did his style have on you and how hard was it for you to learn the things he was doing?

Ronnie W.

Ronnie, there were three versions of Earl in my opinion. 1947 to 1955 was my favorite time. He was better then, and even now during that time period no one has mastered the banjo as he did. And I studied his playing, especially his right hand, so that I can honestly say it has influenced my playing. I liked his mannerisms, and the way he carried himself, as well as the banjo. For a period during the early to mid ’60s Earl and I became pretty good friends. I just liked him as a person first, then THE banjo guy. Boy could shoot some pool!!!

—–

Sonny, those wildflowers behind you in the photo are beautiful. Did you plant those and are they near your home?

Mindy B.

Those are at the photographer’s home, where the photos were shot. George Page, Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. Great photographer and even better person.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… who was Krako?

Posted on August 20, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny was not able to answer new questions this week, so we are running a classic edition of his column. We hope to have a new set of responses from him next Friday.

Sonny, years ago you said that there was a team of tiny men who lived in your banjo and were responsible for broken strings, going out of tune, etc., and that the guy in charge of them was named Krayco. What ever happened to Krayco and his team? Are they still around? Have they moved to someone else’s banjo? I notice that Ron Block tunes a lot… maybe they’re with him now?

Ned L.

Ned…due to the fact that I only know one person named Ned, I feel rather safe in assuming that he be thee! (That’s a little CHURCH Talk) Anyhow, You are one of the most talented musicians I have ever known. I wanted you to know that now, for fear that I hadn’t told you that before. So now let’s talk about Krako. He lived in my banjo resonator and every so often I would hear this voice that would say, “Not Tonight. You will play out of tune or not play.” He accounted for broken strings, bridges, tuning problems, just anything that could go wrong would go wrong. I never saw him… not once… but I had long conversations with him after a particularly bad tuning show. I have always detested seeing someone, anyone playing any instrument, stand up on the stage before a paying audience, TUNE…TUNE…Tune… after every song. We just never did that much. We had a Peterson strobe tuner installed on our bus, and everyone would tune with it before going on stage. You asked what happened to him KRAKO…. I had to stop playing the banjo in 2003 because of rotator surgery so I lost contact with The Kraco Team. They were with me so long, though, I had to honor them somehow so I realized, several months ago, that I had enough parts in my garage to build a banjo… so I did. It came out sounding so good, I thought someone should be playing it. Lincoln Hensley has agreed to play it, so Lincoln now plays the only KRAKO banjo in existence. Ronnie Block does not deserve a group like Krako … BUT, Come to think of it, Ron does tune a lot…HMMMMMM!

—–

Sonny, In one of the videos with Mac Wiseman from 1999, you talked about being in some small town in Quebec, Canada in the wintertime and playing a show where the promoter never showed up. Do you remember where in Quebec this show took place and who was playing guitar for you at the time?

Peter D.

During that time, 1955, Bobby and I worked with Charlie Bailey in Wheeling, WV. So he would be the guitar player. It was snowing so hard you could hardly see the building. Kids were playing hockey in the street. So, showtime came and the promoter was not there to open the door, and the building was locked. We were all broke too with a half tank of gas. Tough times. I saw a few people gathering at the door so I started looking or some way to get in… I found an unlocked window and crawled through. Found a light switch and opened the front door. By then a pretty decent crowd had appeared so I got a chair and collected admission… When they stopped coming I had amassed a total of $490… and I started hoping the guy wouldn’t show up because that was enough to get us back to Wheeling, and have some left over. He didn’t show, we kept it all, did a decent show, the folks were pleased, we loaded our equipment up, I locked the front door, turned out the lights, crawled back out and shut the unlocked window and we had a pretty good trip back to Wheeling.

—–

Sonny, How did you guys come to tour with Haggard? What is one experience that stands out most while touring with him? I’m glad to see you’re doing well, I miss seeing you out on the road.

Thanks, Wes V.

We worked a show in Pennsylvania with Merle and I guess he liked what he heard. In 1971 we won The CMA VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR and our presenters were Roy Clark and MERLE HAGGARD…maybe that had something to do with it, I really don’t know that as fact, but I can’ think of any other reasons that he would request us to be his opening act…whatever, we did it for 4 (four) years (1971-1975) and it was a dream to see him every night. We, of course went on first and before Merle went on I would find a chair and place it behind the curtain close to Roy Nichols. I literally loved his Guitar playing, and to see Haggard bringing it every night. He could work a Mic as good as Marty Robins, and Marty was the best I ever saw. One thing that happened…we played The White House with Merle. Nixon, his family, members of Congress, and a whole room full of dignitaries were there and we were all nervous, to say the least…My goodness, two 10th grade dropouts from Thousand Sticks Kentucky being allowed to play in the White House. Well, after we struggled through our 20 minutes we watched Merle sing…On Fighting Side Of Me. He dropped his Guitar pick and I think he changed the last words to: WHEN YOU’RE RUNNING DOWN OUR COUNTRY MAN YOU’RE FIGHTING ON THE WALKING SIDE OF ME. The great ones get scared too. We talked with Nixon some…about 10 minutes, and I found out he had pretty good knowledge of common profanity!

_____

Sonny, There has been much discussion about what is and isn’t bluegrass music. People claim that Sirius/XM’s Bluegrass Station plays music that is not bluegrass and currently on this site there is discussion about the IBMA nominating people/groups for awards that are not bluegrass. Many are afraid that if bluegrass is not properly defined, any music or anybody looking for a home will be thrown into it and bluegrass will end up being diluted/polluted like country music. With that said, would you care to give us your definition of bluegrass or how you determine if something is bluegrass? And keeping that in mind, would you care to give us your opinion of the state of bluegrass today? Thanks.

STLIL

Man, I don’t know how to define bluegrass style music. To begin with it consists of the five main instruments… guitar, bass, fiddle, banjo, and mandolin. Of course you can add to that… Dobro being one, another fiddle or two, lead guitar too is acceptable now… Tony Rice made that a possibility. I tend to agree that more and more pop singers are easing their way into country music and country singers are doing the same with bluegrass. My own preference would go back to the ’40s with Bill, Lester, Earl, Chubby, and Cedric. That’s what I call true bluegrass music… but, then look what we did in the ’60s-’80s strictly to make more money and draw more people. I honestly believe we did a lot to put bluegrass music into different venues, which I believe made it possible, and easier for others to make a better living playing a form of bluegrass music. So, I guess you can’t actually define what is or what isn’t any style music. It’s just whatever a certain individual wants to spend his money to hear. For me it’s ’46 – ’48 Bill Monroe and 1950 – 1954 Lester and Earl. Now that’s not to say I don’t like other groups and different styles music, that’s just what I would prefer my BLUEGRASS to sound like. I don’t personally like the state of bluegrass right now, but we have better players, better singers, all for the most part. So once again we come back to the fact that there really is not a true answer to your statements. Boils down to what YOU prefer.

—–

Sonny, the first time I remember seeing the Osborne Brothers was in 1974 at the Camp Springs, NC bluegrass festival. Somehow it seems to me that y’all were riding in matching white Ford LTD station wagons. I remember buying a promo picture from you for $1, that you were selling out of the back of one of those station wagons. I still have the photo! Did I imagine the station wagons, or did y’all actually travel that way in the early ’70s?

Lynwood L.

Lynwood. That certainly was our means of travel. We had a deal with the Ford dealer in Gallatin where we could get two new station wagons every 20,000 miles. We did this for about 3 years. On my car we had an instrument trailer which hauled our equipment, which included a pretty good sound system. It was built by Bobby’s son Robby, who was a genius at such things. He could do anything. 1974 was our last time we used the Ford wagons. We went from that to a beautiful 1975 Cadillac limo. We put 175,000 miles on that car.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… tell us about singing with Ira Louvin

Posted on August 13, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny,

I’m curious about that session when Ira Louvin sang the low tenor part (is that right?) with you and Bobby on Give This Message to Your Heart. I think it was your fifth session for Decca. Pardon me if you’ve already told the story, but how did it come about that Ira joined? And do you recall whether he was there for the whole session? I like the idea (it’s just the idea…) of him sitting there while you and Bobby recorded duets. It’s a session unlike any other, as you played banjo on only one track and Bobby played mandolin on two.

For the duets, did you sing into one mic or each have your own?

I’m also curious about the beginning of Give This Message to Your Heart. It’s so tight. It couldn’t come much closer to the first bass note. Do you know if they possibly cut tape to remove noise, or anything like that, to create a very tight edit?

By the way, I understand you viewed singing as “part of the job”…but Osborne Brothers vocals wouldn’t be what they are without your voice. To my ear it sounds like you meant every word you ever sang, and I feel that’s a person who really cares about what they’re doing.

Thanks as always for the column, and best regards from an old friend and fan.

Sandy

Sandy, you are a welcome visitor and I appreciate hearing from you.

For the most part, you are very knowledgeable about our career but, in this case, I think you have the record companies mixed up. Give This Message to Your Heart was recorded for MGM. When we secured the MGM contract, three names were on the contract, and when one gentlemen was relieved of his duties he refused to sign a release so Bobby and I could continue recording.

This means that we had to wait one year to record again, and at that time Johnny Dacus was singing with Bobby and me, so when we were leaving to come to Nashville to record, Mr Dacus was nowhere to be found and in fact we didn’t see him again for 2 years.

We came to Nashville and intended to record duets instead of trios. While we were in the Acuff-Rose studio rehearsing for our 6 o’clock session, Ira Louvin walked in. He had been listening to us rehearse and he said, “I have a song that I wrote and this would be perfect for you guys.” He also volunteered to do a third-part harmony and of course we jumped up and down, gleefully.

He asked what time the session was, and we told him 6 o’clock, and he informed us that Charles and he were leaving for South Dakota at 4:00, but however he would change that time if we would do that song first. And how stupid we would have been to refuse! We ran over the song a couple of times in the Acuff-Rose studio and I asked Ira what part he wanted to sing. His reply was, “just sing your normal parts and I’ll do the third.” And this is how we went into the session.

Ira and I sang on one microphone and Bobby on another. We recorded that song one time and Ira, being the talented genius that he was, never missed a note. And that includes the intro, which we did on a number count.

The duets that we did on that same session were recorded on one microphone for both of us.

As far as my singing goes, I never really liked to sing and I did it as part of my job, which I took seriously. I wasn’t aware that my voice had that much to do with our trio sound.

Thank you, Sandy, for reading this column. I appreciate it.
S

—–

Hey Sonny, I always enjoy reading your column every week. You and Bobby made some great music. Here’s my question: What was the best line-up The Osborne Brothers ever had?

Andrew G

Andrew, thank you for your time and your get-to-the-point question.

The best line-up for The Osborne Brothers band would be rather lengthy, but it would include Benny Birchfield, Dale Sledd, Ronnie Reno, Robbie Osborne, Buddy Spicher, Paul Brewster, Blaine Sprouse, Glen Duncan, Gene Wooten, Terry Smith, Terry Eldredge, David Crow, and a few others who appeared after I retired.

Thank you.
S

—–

Hey Sonny,

I’ve been reading the book Earl Scruggs, Banjo icon, and I noticed you were not mentioned in the book’s acknowledgements of contributors. Why is that? You have spoken fondly of yours and Earl’s relationship, and you even own his banjo. Just wondering why you were not interviewed by the authors. Thanks shedding some light.

Dan K.

Dan, thank your for your time.

The book Earl Scruggs, Banjo Icon….I know nothing about. Earl and I were friends on a personal basis, and no, I do not have his banjo. I have one of my own.

I wasn’t interviewed by the authors of that book, and I couldn’t tell you why. I guess they thought me insignificant, which I probably am.
S

—–

I am so grateful to be able to see and hear live music again at festivals. These past 17 months have been hard on the ears and soul.

Two weekends in a row of live music in two different venues and states. First, I do believe I heard and saw bluegrass now and in the future in the hands and hearts of the Tennessee Bluegrass Band members. There were banjo licks that I think would make you smile, and I heard fiddle fills that had me thinking Kenny or Stuart Duncan were on stage.

To my question: the previous week I saw a well-regarded young performer, who is doing well on the charts over the past couple years. Maybe it was the time of day or the sun and heat, but the audience was a bit, shall we say, subdued. What did you and Bobby do when the crowd seemed less enthused than you were about your music? This performer was less than kind, I think, to those listening; but in light of what I heard the band do this past weekend, maybe it is the performer and not the audience?

God Bless you for taking the time and energy for this column. And I hope your autobiography makes it out into the world.

Greg H.

Greg, I’m grateful and thankful for people like you who read this drivel. Thank you for that.

The Tennessee Bluegrass Band is the real deal. The harmony, banjo, fiddle, and mandolin are all superb players so they couldn’t sound bad if they wanted to. And you’ll be hearing a lot more from them in the near future.

The Larry Stephenson Band is another really good group of musicians and the harmony featuring Larry, Derek, and Nick is absolutely on spot.

And of course there are others, but I’m familiar with these two.

When a crowd doesn’t react to your particular sound, you can point to two major contributors…the sound system and the band itself. When we ran into a situation like that, we played for 45 minutes without saying a word and then got our unappreciated carcasses off the stage and made room for other, hopefully more-appreciated, people.
S

—–

Sonny, Just wondered if you could share a little bit about the banjos you have endorsed over the years. Could you share the ideas you had for these banjos?

Also, what was your favorite instrumental to play? Thanks!

Mark K.

Mark, thank you for your time and endurance.

The banjos I have endorsed, total 3. That would be the Rich & Taylor banjo, the Vega, and my own line of Chief banjos which came out in ’98. Plus, Oh my God! I forgot KRAKO.

And my favorite instrument to play forever, was the 1934 Gibson Granada 9584-2, which I still own and probably always will. I acquired it in 1978 from Tom McKinney.
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… what do you think about country singers doing bluegrass?

Posted on August 6, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny,

I always liked your baritone singing a whole lot. I know you started on banjo early on. When did you become interested in singing, and do you remember the first recording you sang on? Also, what were the banjos you used in the ’50s when you were a teenager?

Matt Levine

PS: (I had played dobro with you and Mac Wiseman at a Festival in Delaware when your brother Bobby was having heart surgery)

Hey Matt, the dobro man. So you played the dobro with me and Mac Wiseman at a festival in Delaware? This was whilst my brother was having heart surgery. A trying time indeed. You commented on my baritone singing, and I will have you know right now that I was never interested in singing. It was just something that I had to do…it was my job.

My early banjos consisted of a Kay, an RB-100 Gibson, an RB-150 Gibson, a 1929 RB-3 raised head, and then I got my first flat head in 1956. It was an RB-3. The banjo, which I used on Rocky Top among many others, and the banjo Aaron McDaris owns and plays now.
S

—–

Hi Sonny, hope all is well. I look forward to the column each week.

In 1971, Buck Owens & the Buckaroos released an album of their version of bluegrass, with Ruby as the title track. I’m wondering if you’ve listened to the album and, if so, what your thoughts on it are. Did you ever get to spend any time with Buck or his band?

On a related note, it’s become something of a trend for mainstream country artists to record a bluegrass album in recent decades. Among them, Merle Haggard did one before his passing, and Dolly Parton made a few. But the only classic artist besides Buck who made one during their commercial prime seems to be Tom T. Hall, unless I’m missing somebody. Did any of the other country legends you toured with or played the Opry with ever express an interest to you in trying to pursue bluegrass?

Thanks, Adam S.

Adam..welcome. Thank you for your time.

When I heard the 1971 Buck Owens recording of Ruby, which my brother sang the mortal daylights out of, I was almost embarrassed to listen to the rest of the album. If you didn’t grow up with bluegrass music, it’s hard to be a country singer and then sing bluegrass and make it sound halfway decent. I knew Buck Owens pretty well and his band. We worked with them several times. Nice people. But they should have left bluegrass where it belonged…with the people who grew up with it.

In 1971, it was trendy for country superstars to record a dirty ole bluegrass album. Merle Haggard did one song, The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde, in which probably one of the greatest guitar players who ever lived played the banjo. Hello…that would be Glen Campbell. And this is not to degrade Glen any at all…but he should play the guitar, on which he might have been the best ever.

Same with the Buck Owens record. I guess they thought it was just the sound of the banjo, and not the quality of the playing, that made it a bluegrass album.

You mentioned Dolly Parton and Tom T. Hall. They grew up listening to and learning bluegrass music…that was their roots. Several other major artists contacted me to play the banjo on their “bluegrass” albums, and almost to the number I don’t think any of them made the release date. And that is saying they were not good.

Luckily, none of the afore-mentioned were to pursue a bluegrass career.
S

—–

Dear Sonny, I have attached a classic clip of the Osborne Brothers that is pure gold. Please share with us the thoughts on this festival and also what had you laughing like a school kid at the end of the video.

Thank you!

Ron Smith Doolittle MO

Ron Smith, Doolittle (more or less) MO.

I remember that festival in 1971 very well. And it seems to me as though it was raining that day in Camp Springs, NC. There was a guy sitting about 20 feet in front of us, and he had a hat on that had collected about a quart of water, which he promptly lowered his head and the water went all over him. That was what was so funny to begin with, and the fact that my brother was in the midst of one of the best renditions of Ruby, and I remember saying to Ronnie Reno that “he’s still got it.”

That band consisted of Ronnie Reno, Dennis Digby playing bass, and Robby Osborne playing a full set of drums. And if you look closely, you’ll see where we were all dressed for work. Our equipment consisted of two twin reverb amps and a big Fender bass amp. That was enjoyable music at that time.
S

—–

Sonny, thank you so much for this wonderful column. I haven’t missed a single one since you started this some two years ago. You’ve said many wonderful things about your brother Bobby, how you two never fought, how much you respected his wonderful voice and more, so my question is simply, what did Bobby think of your singing and playing? What was the nicest compliment he ever gave you?

Please keep this going, you don’t know how much it means to bluegrass fans like me.

Randy T. in Oklahoma

Randy in Oklahoma. Thank you. I’m glad you could join us.

It has been about two years ago that we started doing this column, and I still enjoy it. At this time I want to thank my wife Judy for typing, although not being able to completely read my mind, I still answer the questions.

You know, some people have a very hard time saying, ‘excuse me,’ or, ‘I’m sorry,’ or just plain giving compliments. Although I always thought that my brother respected what I did with the banjo, I can’t remember Bobby ever saying to me, “‘that was a good show you played tonight’.’ I’ve always thought, and I’ve been open about it, that Bobby was the best ever at what he did, and in our prime, I still believe that.

The closest thing to a compliment was a tape recording from Clay City, KY in which he said, “Earl Scruggs took the banjo to one level and my brother came along and took it to another level.” Gary Reece, who played the banjo for Bobby and his band for several years, told me that when he first went to work with Bobby, he told him that he knew all of the Osborne Brothers material but he couldn’t play it like I did. Bobby’s answer was, “Nobody can.” I took that as probably the nicest compliment he ever gave me. Without sounding conceited or big-headed, I hope this answers your question.

I’m told that this column is the most-read column on Bluegrass Today. And do I take that as a compliment? Hell yeah. And I want to thank, from the bottom of my heart, each of you who read these lines of wit every week. I want you to know that it’s appreciated.

It really doesn’t matter how great a country or pop singer you are, you will never be able to compare yourself with Bobby, Bill, Lester, Larry Sparks, Doyle, Russell, Tony, and on and on and on….(There’s a song title in that, somewhere). Lord willing, and we don’t all burn up, and the creek’s don’t rise…..me and her will see you next week.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… did your wife ever travel with you and Bobby?

Posted on July 30, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny, I’ve been enjoying your column since it began, and I finally decided to toss in my two cents worth.

Last week you said that you played better standing up than you did sitting down. I’ve noticed the same about my own playing, though in my case it’s probably more correct to say that I play worse sitting down than I do standing up.

I have two questions for you.

First: Whose idea was this column? Did BluegrassToday approach you, or did you approach them?

Second: Back in the early 1990s or thereabouts, you played a festival up here in Minnesota. At the time I had a portable (just barely) VCR recorder/camera and had been taping a few performances. A friend of mine warned me not to record when The Osborne Brothers were on stage, because at another event where a spectator was recording your set, you had called out the person and demanded to know, ‘Who gave you permission to do that?’ Do you recall such an incident? And if so, did the person cease and desist, or was there an argument? (I took the warning to heart and left my recorder in the truck during your sets.)

Thanks much!

Randy G.

—–

Randy. Thank you for joining us… and a couple of interesting questions.

First of all, standing and playing probably releases something in your brain that makes you hear things that nobody else hears. And standing gives you a more creative spirit. I guess.

This column was a product of Terry Herd. He asked me a question and asked me to answer it, which I did. He said, ‘Would you like to do a column entitled Ask Sonny Anything?’ I said yes and here we are.

I remember playing the festival in Minnesota, but that incident didn’t happen at that festival. Our recording contract with Decca had a clause that did not allow us to knowingly let someone record us, and so we decided to enter that into our contract which was sent to promoters. Which simply gave us the right to refuse, and the promoter had to agree to it.

The worst incident of this nature happened in Lavonia, GA at Shoal Creek Park. We had a large crowd, and had already told PBS that they could not film us. So when we went on I noticed a huge TV camera set up about 20 feet in front of the stage. It was aimed right at us and the red light was blinking. We stopped playing and sat down on some bales of hay on the stage and I said that as long as that camera was out there and working, we wouldn’t play.

The PBS guy went berserk, and I told him, ‘I can’t help you because I can’t give you permission to record us. We can’t go on until you point that camera straight into the ground and turn it off.’ We finished our show then, and had a good time.

Chances are, Randy, if you would have asked…there was a 50/50 chance that we would have said yes. But we had to protect ourselves.
S.

=============

Sonny, when you were recording with Bill Monroe, was Ernie Newton playing the drum on his bass? Did you like that sound?

Cliff in Portsmouth, OH

—–

Cliff in Portsmouth, OH.

When I was recording with Bill Monroe, everyone saw the drumhead mounted on Ernie Newton’s bass, and naturally we asked him to demonstrate, which he did, and Bill promptly said, “That ain’t no part of nuthin’,” and at that time Paul Cohen agreed.
S

============

Sonny, that is really interesting that you sat for recording. Probably means they gave you a lowered vocal mic as well as one for the banjo. I’m fairly sure you all were not using headphones, so evidently you were able to hear each other well enough to blend the three voices. Did you maintain this configuration all through your recording career with the Brothers?

I’ve watched you play standing uncountable times, and I know you were very comfortable that way…able to improvise freely and play anything you wanted to. The idea that you “perhaps would have become a great banjo player” is pretty funny coming from one of the greatest banjo players (and harmony singers) of all time.

A quick note on Bill and baseball: In the brief time I toured with him in 1964, gloves and balls and bats were always up in the racks above the seats. I played catch with him numerous times and, despite his vision (or mine, which also wasn’t that great), found him to be accurate in both pitching and catching.

Sandy R.
—–
Sandy Rothman, it’s always good to hear from you.

We didn’t use headphones until later in our career. Hal Rugg played steel and we couldn’t hear what he was doing, but we could hear the rest of the guys in the studio. So far as our vocal configuration, we did maintain this setup for the most part of our career.

The subject of Bill Monroe and baseball….we traveled in a car for the most part, and I think you are making reference to a bus, therefore there wasn’t room for bats, balls, gloves, etc. On one trip, I remember Bill’s son James (who was 2 years younger than I) brought a couple of gloves and a ball, and James and I tossed them back and forth. But other that what I’ve already explained, that was the extent of the baseball experience with Bill Monroe.

Sandy, it’s always a pleasure to hear from you. We’ve been friends for a very long time.
S

=============

Hey Sonny, sure love your column and y’alls music. I was wondering did Judy travel with ya’ll a lot back in the days, or did she stay home and keep the fares a burnin’. Keep doin what cha doin’ we think a whole lot of ya’ll.

Terry C.

—–

Terry…thank you for your time.

Judy and I were married in 1958, and our son was born in 1960, our daughter in 1962. Up until the children came along, she worked and supported us at Delco Products in Dayton, OH which was a division of General Motors. Had she not done this, we would have starved to death, which would not have been a bad thing on my part, but she weighed 90 lbs.

Consequently, I got a job driving a taxi cab for the Yellow Cab Company, to put biscuits and ‘taters on the table. That’s what I was doing when we were made members of The Grand Ole Opry, and from that point things had a slight upturn, and she had two teenagers to raise at the same time.

I thank the Lord for Judy, and her Dad, George, who donated a lot for us to build a little house on, which we did. It was 750 square feet, and it cost $6500 to build. The humongous house payment was $64 a month, which we were barely able to make.
S

See you next week!!!!

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… did you play baseball with Bill Monroe?

Posted on July 23, 2021 by Azlyrics

Terry Herd decided to go to Oregon. He had to cross them Rocky Mountains to get there and I’m wondering if he got Larry Stephenson to drive him out there in his luxury bus and, if so, my hope is that Larry charged him from 2 to 3 dollars a mile because, boys, I’ll betcha going over them ‘air Rocky Mountains puts an awful strain on them ‘air bus engines, and when them ‘air engines blow up it’s “Katie bar the door!”

=============

You talked about Bill Monroe’s poor vision and bad driving, but I wonder how he managed to be a good baseball player if he couldn’t see well. Were you ever involved with him when he was playing ball with the Blue Grass Boys? Butch Robins says that when he first joined the band Monroe threw a baseball at him, as an intimidation move. Did you ever see anything like that? Did you ever see him play baseball?

Jim L.

Jim L. Thank you for your time. It’s appreciated a great deal.

Bill Monroe had poor vision and was not a good driver. I was there and saw this with my own eyes. As far as Bill being a good baseball player, I don’t know that for sure because I was not involved with him when the Blue Grass Boys had a baseball team. At one point, you said that Bill threw a baseball at Butch Robbins as an intimidation move. I don’t know how that could be an intimidation move…if he had hit Butch with that baseball, it appears to me as though that would be cause for a lawsuit. I never saw anything like that, and I never saw him play baseball although, while riding along from one date to another in the car, Bill would lean over the front seat and tell whoever was listening up there to turn the radio on and see if he could find a baseball game.

I will say this about his love for the game of baseball. When I went to work with him, in 1952, while we were in the city of Detroit, he took us to see the Tigers and Yankees play. I don’t remember who went to the game, but I know I did and Bill did, and if I remember correctly Mickey Mantle was playing center field for the Yankees. We went to Briggs Stadium in Detroit. I never saw Bill play baseball but he did love the game and I think as time passed up into the ’60s, Bill and I grew a fondness for each other and sometimes I miss him terribly.
S

—–

Sonny, you’ve kindly answered questions before about the Osborne Brothers’ studio setups. Were all the sessions, including the great trio vocals and instrumentals, done standing…or seated?

Many thanks,

Sandy

Sandy…so good to hear from you again, although it has been too long.

The Osborne Brothers’ studio setups, including the trio vocals and instrumentals, were done with me sitting facing Bobby who was standing, and the 3rd part on my right would be standing. I didn’t realize it at the time, I wish I had, that I played better standing than I did sitting. Had I known that at the time, I would have stood and perhaps would have become a great banjo player.
S

—–

I’m throughly enjoying this column each week. My question is, would you ever consider making a book of this Ask Sonny Anything column. I’d like to see all these compiled into a book someday.

They’re interesting to read each week, and I’d buy the book. I’ll also buy your autobiography book if it ever gets printed.

Thanks for this fun column.

Raynae R.

This is to Raynae. Thank you for your time and involvement in our chaotic free-for-all.

Would I ever consider making a book of this Ask Me Anything column? It had not occurred to me to do that, and maybe someday in the future somebody will take that idea and run with it. But I doubt that it will be me. So if that ever happens, and I sell one book, I will know that it was you who bought it.

If my autobiography book ever sees the light of day, I will also know that Raynae was the buyer, and that my son and daughter were not. And that’s not saying much for my wife, Judy, is it? Because in my present condition she’s doing all the typing, and any mistake you see was probably on poipose.
S

—–

Sonny, absolutely LOVING this column. Thank you for all you done and continue to do for us fans. Here’s my question: If there were a list of holy sites to visit for bluegrass music, what would be on it? Example: Bill Monroe’s Homeplace, Uncle Pen’s Cabin, etc?

Johnny B.G.

Johnny Be Good, whoever you are I’m sure that’s not your name, and that concept is far from my realm of knowledge which ended in the 3rd month of the 10th grade, and from there on it was Bill Monroe, Jimmy Martin, Charley Cline, and many others, which explains a lot.

When you say holy sites to visit for bluegrass music, I would first of all say:

The Ryman Auditorium which would be the beginning of bluegrass music.
Earl Scruggs homeplace.
The spot where Jimmy Martin’s house sat in Hermitage, TN and was bulldozed down recently.
The studio in Cincinnati, OH where Foggy Mountain Breakdown was recorded.
Castle Studio in Nashville, where Rawhide and Rudy Lyle’s infamous banjo break was created.

That’s all. Seeya later Johnny B. G.
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… could Bill Monroe drive a car?

Posted on July 16, 2021 by Azlyrics

Hi Sonny,

I just watched you and Bobby and Dale Sledd alongside Marty Robbins. The show was called The Drifter, and was filmed in black and white. It was done before Marty had his facial hair. You boys did three songs plus some powerful acting! What are you memories of that show, and when was it done? I only got to see Marty twice, but one of those times was him closing the second show at the Opry… he could really get the crowd going. I’d always try to see you when you’d play Take It Easy Ranch. Thanks for doing the column. I really enjoy it.

…Bob Simmons…St. Inigoes, MD

Bob Simmons from MD. Welcome and thank you, Bob.

He brought back some memories from long ago. One being Take It Easy Ranch. I don’t know what year it would be that we played there, but it was sure a fun place to play. And most assuredly Tom Reeder and his cohorts would show up and a very good time was had by all.

I remember one day, it had to be at least 110 degrees on stage when we came off stage from the first show, early afternoon. Tom Reeder was standing 15 feet from the stage and I was burning up. Tom had a glass of what I presumed to be ice water and he said, “Yes it was,” when I asked him for a drink. I took a large gulping drink, which was about half of his glass, and I didn’t realize until it hit my stomach that it was not ice water. I’m done with that subject for now.

Bob also mentioned Marty Robbins and the TV show called The Drifter. Marty and I were pretty good friends, and I would imagine that’s how we got to do that show. On Saturday nights in the summer at the racetrack here, it was common knowledge that Marty owned the car and also drove it. By 10:00 on Saturday night he came from the racetrack to the Opry, and the only show he would do was the 11:30 spot, which was the last show of the night.

One night I walked out of the dressing room into the hallway and I saw Marty and he was obviously mad. I asked him what was wrong and he said, “I put a brand new 454 Chevrolet engine in my car, and it ran one lap and blew up.” And he looked and he said, “That’s $6000 right there…..lost. But, I’m having fun.”

Marty Robbins was one of the greatest voices country music has ever produced. In my opinion.
S

—–

Dan Boner, Professor at ETSU, along with Larry Sparks, are my two favorite singers.

Dan wanted to know if the stories of Bill Monroe’s eyesight and driving capabilities were true. From what happened when I was there and saw first-hand, Mr Father of Bluegrass was not a good driver. If Charlie Cline or I were driving, and didn’t meet Bill’s specifications, he would order us to pull over and he would show us how to drive. Which we did and one of us got to ride in the back of that ’53 limousine, which was a treat because that’s where the best air-conditioning was.

Bill would get in the driver’s seat, run it forward as far as it would go, and get a 9 o’clock – 3 o’clock death grip on the steering wheel, which was almost against his chest. He would put the car in a zigzag pattern. We passengers, and especially Bessie sitting in the back seat, were going side to side, which was some sight to see. She would be screaming at Bill, “You can’t drive, you can’t see, and you’re going to get us all killed,” and his tenure would be about 3 miles. I guess, in his mind, he had shown each of us how to drive. At the end of Bill’s turn, we had a car full of sick people, and one Pomeranian “Chappy” dog.

Truth is, Lieutenant Professor Dan, Bill Monroe could sing Blue Moon of Kentucky, play the mandolin, but he was not a good driver.

This story is true, and not hearsay. I was there.
S

—–

Hi. A question that Sonny Osborne answered triggered something in my addled brain. I remember an interview either with Boudleaux and Felice Bryant or with Archie Campbell. But they were working on a bunch of songs for Archie to do on a more serious album than he usually was associated with. They decided to take a break from the serious stuff and just write something fun. The result was Rocky Top.

I don’t know if the story is true. Sonny have you heard that story? Is it? I’d love to know! Thanks for a great column.

I’m eager for your book Sonny!

Michael G.

Hey Michael, I appreciate your time and comments. This has to do with Boudleaux and Felice Bryant and the Gatlinburg Inn. They were there, writing an album for Archie Campbell, and as the story goes, they grew weary of the material they had to write for Archie and Felice said to Boudleaux, “Let’s write a fun song. Something like .. ‘once I had a girl on Rocky Top,’” and actually there was no place called Rocky Top.

Boudleaux picked it up from there and 15 minutes to a half hour later, they had written the basics of Rocky Top.

Mikey wants to know if the story is true .. and yes, it is true. True enough to be a game-changer, or career-maker, for The Osborne Brothers. And Mikey says he’s eager to read my book. That is, if it ever makes it to the light of day.
S

—–

Sonny, this column is absolutely unparalleled for this aging bluegrass fan. Thank you so much for doing this!!! My question has to do with the logistics of recording. Did The Brothers lay down (record) one track at a time, or were you able to set up in such a way as to record more “Live” (everyone playing at once) even in the studio. Approximately how many sessions or hours would you spend on a typical album? Would any individual project be recorded in one venue, or did you ever use multiple facilities in order to get things “just right?” I’ll “hang up” and wait for your answer. 🙂

Terry K.

Hey hey, Terry K. Thank you for jumping in here with both feet.

So the question is…did the Osborne Brothers record one track at a time, or did we use the modern technique of one word at a time. Answer is….we did it all live, and many times we had the complete A-team in the studio with us. The A-team being the group of musicians who did more sessions in Nashville than anybody else. Basically, Hal Rugg, Grady Martin, Ray Eddenton, ‘Pig’ Robbins, and then you can add a player or two to go with them, such as a Buddy Spicher, a Buddy Emmons, a Leon Rhodes, a Tommy Jackson or a Willie Ackerman. They were simply the best. And with that group, you could hardly go wrong.

I suppose by this day and time, that has all changed. I’m not familiar with it anymore.
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… were there any songs that got away from the Brothers?

Posted on July 9, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny, I LOVE this column so much. Thank you for sharing so many great stories! I can only imagine the incredible things you’ve seen and done, but I had to wonder about the many hours of boredom on the bus occasionally between gigs, especially after your comment last week. That gives a person time to think up a really good practical joke or two. Can you share one of your best?

Ronnie L.

Hey Ronnie, glad you could make it. Thank you for sharing your time with us. Our bus time was like solitude time. Everybody seemed to be in their own world and there wasn’t a lot of visiting amongst the troops. Sometimes in the afternoons, a card game would break out, but as far as practical jokes, we never went in for that much. No one seemed to like surprises.
S

—–

Hey Sonny, I was wondering if there was ever a great song that got away from the Brothers? You know, one that became a hit for someone else after you passed on it?

Ben T.

Hey Ben, I’m glad you could make it.

The songs that got away from us were few and far between because we had certain writers that we depended on to keep us supplied with good material. And we also had Teddy Wilburn on the lookout for material. One song that I begged for, but Paul Craft wouldn’t give us the go-ahead to do was Keep Me From Blowin’ Away, because he had written that song for Jerry Lee Lewis, and he was determined to get Jerry to do it and he succeeded in doing that. Some time later, Paul told me that he wished he had let us record it instead of Jerry, because Bobby sung it so well, and Jerry waited until the last song on his session to do it and he was pretty much wiped out by then.

Another song that got away from us was She’s No Angel, but Wesley Rose, the publisher, had promised the song to Kitty Wells.

Pete Goble showed me a song at a festival in Michigan, and I immediately wanted it…it was called 1949. He promised me he wouldn’t show the song to anybody else and I promised him that we would record it. Then I heard that song by 2 different artists within a month after that, so obviously Pete had shown that song to every artist at that festival. We never recorded another Pete Goble song. Somewhere in there lies the phrase ‘honor among thieves’ which seems appropriate.

Fact is, as I remember Kitty Wells did record She’s No Angel and I honestly think we had a better record than she did. But we were just a lowly bluegrass act.
S

—–

Sonny,

Last week you said …”Books pertaining to music are so full of lies and authors’ ideas or concept of what really happened, and what should have happened.”

Would this also apply to the book you are hoping to publish? I am just curious.

David R.

David, this is for you. You will notice that you have not read my book yet, and at this moment it is in very capable hands. If it ever sees the light of day, it will be after I have read every word in it, and it won’t be filled with hearsay on my part without telling you that. And not only will I have read every word in it, my wife, daughter, son, Lincoln, Aynsley, and a dozen more will have proof read that book…so we can assure you that it’s full of the truth and warnings of hearsay and the phrase ‘in my opinion.’

Years ago, we didn’t hear that Ralph Mayo had died. We were told directly, by Ralph and Carter Stanley, of his death. So 2 or 3 weeks later, in Kingsport, TN I think, Ralph Mayo showed up at one of our shows. So you see, this is a lie and not hearsay. And I beg you to see the difference.
S

—–

Hey Sonny, absolutely loving the column! I’m wondering if you remember Garr Bowers and if you have and reflections you can share with us?

John G

Hey John.

I met Garr Bowers on one occasion, at the Andy Griffith theater in Mt Airy, NC. He came up to me and introduced himself and we talked for a couple of minutes. I reminded him that the way he played I’m On My Way Back to the Old Home on the Grand Ole Opry with Bill Monroe inspired me to work harder because I wanted to play it like he had. (I was 12 years old at the time that I had heard him.) I never saw him again, but the next time we played in Mt Airy his sister was there and said that Garr had wanted to come that night but he actually didn’t get out much at all.

And that’s all I know about Garr Bowers.
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… what first got you excited to play banjo?

Posted on July 2, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny,

Let me say first off that if it wasn’t for Sonny and The Earl, I would never have picked up a banjo. I’ve been playing now for 23 years, but it only feels like 5. Did time fly by for you when you were on the road playing with Bobby and the band?

Also, One of my best mentor’s, Doug Greene (banjo) from Lake Okeechobee, FL area, and later on moved up to western NC, had a band called The Prospectors with his brother Jerry (guitar). They have both passed on now. They were huge Osborne Brothers fans that have played festivals with The Brothers in the ’70s and ’80s. My question to you is, do you have any recollections of Doug and/or Jerry Greene? They sure spoke highly of you, Bobby, and the band. Thank you so much for your wealth of knowledge and stories on this column. They are priceless!

Scott H.

Hey Scott. Thank you for your time, appreciate it. When I was on the road with the Brothers band, time did not fly by as you say. It still took 14 hours to drive 800 miles, and no matter how it felt it still took that long to get 800 miles from one date to the next. I don’t know how many times I sat there and daydreamed about time travel, and how I could just automatically be in Sacramento, CA but no….I had to go from St Louis, to Kansas City and Denver, and then think … why it’s only another 4 or 5 hours to Sacramento.

I know a guy named Doug Greene, but I’m sure it’s not the one you mentioned, because I don’t think he had a brother named Jerry. I appreciate the fact that they were friends and fans of the Brothers, and I’m sorry that I don’t remember them.
S

—–

Have you considered a podcast, MC-ing festivals, or hosting a radio show? We enjoy this column, and I bet the fans would love to hear you in different settings.

– Brian M.

Brian, thank you for participating in our chaotic free-for-all. I have never considered a podcast, whatever that is, nor would I ever take the job of MC-ing a festival. And hosting a radio show takes a whole lot of planning and to maintain this little column takes all I want out of me at this point.
S

—–

Hi Sonny,

Thanks for taking the time each week to answer questions and share your thoughts and memories from your career.

My question is what role did the song Foggy Mountain Breakdown play in your deciding to learn to play the banjo, or did it at all? I think for many players like me, hearing that song played by Earl, in particular the 1949 recording, spoke us in a way that pulled us in to the instrument and then kept us there. To me, the combination of both speed and maintaining separation of notes in the 1949 recording is always head-shaking stuff.

What are you memories of when you first heard this recording, and then when you would hear it over the years as you became an expert professional player?

Last year I thoroughly enjoyed reading Earl Scruggs and Foggy Mountain Breakdown, The Making of an American Classic by Thomas Goldsmith. Did you happen to read it? It provides a wonderful overview of Earl’s life and career, but also provides a detailed analysis of the 1949 recording of Foggy Mountain Breakdown.

Finally, when you would perform the song, would you usually play the break, third section in the 1949 recording, based on Columbia, The Gem of the Ocean? I really like that break in the song.

Thanks much,
Perry

Perry…Thank you for joining us. I know this sounds a little weird, but Foggy Mountain Breakdown had nothing to do with my learning to play the banjo. The first guy who raised my interest at 11 year old was Larry Richardson, and I asked him to let me see his right hand, and instead of turning where I could see it, he turned his back on me so that I couldn’t see his right hand and that proceeded to piss me right on off.

Later that night, I told my dad, “You know what? I betcha I could learn that if you would buy me a banjo” ….which he did. And I did. I was playing Cripple Creek in no time. Not very good, mind you, but playing it.

My inspiration to play the banjo came from hearing James Bower play I’m On My Way Back to the Old Home on the Grand Ole Opry with Bill Monroe. I just had to learn how to do that. Which I did.

Books pertaining to music are so full of lies and authors’ ideas or concept of what really happened, and what should have happened…to me it’s a waste of time to read that stuff because in most cases I know what happened first-hand. I know Tommy Goldsmith, and he’s a good straight-up guy, but I did not read that book. And I knew Earl on a first-name basis, and we never discussed the making of Foggy Mountain Breakdown. I have heard people say that Earl has said in interviews that a section of it was based on Columbia the Gem of the Ocean, but the Earl never told me that personally, so I take that as hearsay…as they say on Judge Judy’s show. Thank you for your interesting comments.

My best memory of Foggy Mountain Breakdown was in the movie of Boney and Claude, when that car around that curve and the Earl hit that 1st, 3rd, and 5th string I almost went through the chair. It was so damn good.

Thank you Perry.
S

—–

Hey Sonny

I just wanted to let you know that I really enjoy learning more about the history of our family from the questions you are asked. Since I never saw you much after my son won that last baseball game in Goodlettsville, I was wondering if you guys were able to catch any of the other games. I appreciated the support and speaking with you guys during the team’s run. I remember looking out to center field to see if there was any Kentucky blue out there. 🙂

Galen O.

This paragraph does not pertain to music, but to my brother’s great-grandson, Blake Osborne’s Little League baseball heroics. Robby, Bobby’s son, who played drums with the Brothers’ band had a son named Galen, and Galen’s son is Blake….whose Little League team went all the way to the LL World Series championship game, and we suffered through the whole thing with them. We did not go to Williamsport, but thanks to TV we were there in spirit.

Thank you Galen, for bringing this up, and reminding us what an exciting time it was to go to Goodlettsville and watch them play.

Sitting here, dilly-dallying with your questions, we just got word that our 3rd great-grandchild has been born…. a boy. Congratulations are in order. Thank You.
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… did President Nixon care for your bluegrass?

Posted on June 25, 2021 by Azlyrics

Hi Sonny! Thanks over and over for this column. I know back in the day that everyone was really on the road a whole lot with not a lot of down time at home. I was wondering if you guys ever went out to Bill Monroe’s and set around the camp fire listening to the fox hounds, or out to Lester Flatt’s place on Old Hickory Lake and hung out or anything like that? I know that you went to some jam sessions at Earl’s place. Thanks again Chief!

Gary G.

Gary, I appreciate you sharing your time with us. And the answer is no, I never sat around a campfire and listened to the fox hounds at Monroe’s house, however I was to Lester Flatt’s place on Old Hickory Lake once, for less than 10 minutes. And I went to many jam sessions at Earl’s house, but that’s just what they were, people sitting around playing banjos and looking at the Earl.

Most people who were involved in those jam sessions spent most of their time looking at the Earl and his right hand as he played the infamous Granada banjo. None of us learned anything, but it was just that we were in the same room with the Earl…the real one. Those sessions were attended by John Hartford, Benny Martin, Bashful Brother Oswald, and various others, but as I said, we did more looking at Earl than we did anything else.
S

—–

Sonny, in 1973 the Brothers became the first bluegrass act to perform at the White House. It doesn’t seem to me that Richard Nixon was really a fan of bluegrass music though. So how did that come about and how did it go over?

Sam W.

Sam W could be taken for Samuel Wilder and so, if memory serves me correctly, this is several times that I’ve heard from Sam W. I’ll leave it at that for now.

You are correct, we were the first bluegrass group to play inside the White House, and that was 1973, and the occasion was Pat Nixon’s birthday in which Sir Richard, her infamous water-logged husband, decided to give her the Osborne Brothers and Merle Haggard for her birthday. And it was also St Patrick’s Day.

How it came about…our agent in Nashville was contacted and asked if we would do it, and having never flown before, I refused, but then Smiley Wilson, the head of our booking agency, shamed me by telling me that my refusal was also depriving the rest of the guys in our band the opportunity to play inside the White House, which in 99% of the cases, that would be a once-in-a-lifetime deal. So I relented.

As fate would have it, we were on tour with Haggard at the time, and on that particular day we were in Ft Worth, TX. So, filled with fright, we all left Love Field the next morning on our flight to DC. It was quite obvious that Nixon was not overly enthused with bluegrass music, but we shoved it down their throats, much the same as he shoved Watergate down ours. It was a fun thing though, and everybody was scared to death, but we have pictures to prove that we were there.
S

—–

Sonny, the name of this column is “Ask Sonny Anything,” so here goes. Looking back on your life and career, would you characterize yourself as a “lover” or a “fighter?”

Have fun with that one.

Bob M.

So Bob M. welcome to our little get-together. Looking back over my career, I would characterize myself as a banjo player for the Osborne Brothers band.
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… was there ever a banjo that got away?

Posted on June 18, 2021 by Azlyrics

Banjo NewsLetter was mentioned, and I did a column for them in the ’70s. It had the ingenious, and thoughtful, title of Keep on the Sonny Side (very original).

I want to thank Terry Herd and John Lawless for allowing me, an old broke-down ex-banjo player to vent my views and sometimes sick thoughts. They don’t ‘ride herd’ on me and try to influence what I say or don’t say…almost like it is a ‘lawless territory’ from the 1840s, with each of us carrying a Hawken or a Sharps buffalo rifle. “Them wuz dang’rous days in them air Rocky Mountains.”

Thank you for making this what it is.

==========

Hi Sonny. Thank you for providing a portal into the music I love. I read everything you wrote in Banjo NewsLetter and now on this forum. I was glad to know you viewed Al Munde the same way I do. I am left wondering where you stand on most things. I guess my brain isn’t up to the task of de-coding much of what you say. What do you think of the Recording King banjos? I have a Steve Ryan banjo and a ’92 Rich Era Scruggs model, but I like the Chinese import most of all. It is the ’85 model, hearts and flowers, maple, 3 ply maple rim. I don’t like the Chinese aspect but it is a great banjo.

Ben H.

Hey Ben. Thank you for joining us. Banjo NewsLetter was a very long time ago. You mentioned Alan Munde, and he’s a close friend, although I don’t see him often, and a great banjo player by today’s standards. I have no idea what today’s standards consist of, but whatever, Alan Munde is a great banjo player.

You asked me what my thoughts are on the Recording King banjos. Lincoln Hensley, of KRAKO 1, has played the Recording King and seems to like it pretty well, although Dana Cupp had one and I personally didn’t think it sounded really good. I had a 1992 Earl Scruggs model that I couldn’t get much tone out of, although Earl told me that if anything were to happen to his Gibson banjo, he could live with one of those. I found that hard to believe. I have yet to see a Steve Ryan banjo, although in the early days, Steve’s tone rings were highly sought after. The Chinese import banjo is something I won’t discuss, although it might be pretty good. The thing that’s most important here is that you like it.
S

—–

Thank you for answering questions each week. Here’s mine: What recollections do you have of George D. Hay, The Solemn Old Judge? Was he still with the Opry when The Osborne Brothers became members?

Thank you,

Dan K.

Hey Dan. Glad you could make it.

If my memory serves me correctly, George D. Hay better known as The Solemn Old Judge, was still at the Opry when I went there in 1952 as a Blue Grass Boy. The old judge was gone by the time we got there in 1964.
S

—–

Hey Sonny,

Was there ever a banjo that you played, loved, but couldn’t obtain? And what do you think of banjos being made today by makers like Huber, Deering, Gold Tone, and others. Thanks for all the music you provided for us.

Nathan G.

Hey Nathan. Thank you for your time.

The two banjos that I played and loved, one which I purchased in 1978 and it is still safely at home. The other banjo, I bought in 1956, the Rocky Top banjo, an RB3 flathead 5-string. I really wanted to like this banjo, but we just kinda never connected. Aaron McDaris has it now, and genuinely loves it and it is performing well for him.
Those are the only 2 banjos that I ever played that I really wanted, and I bought both of them. I am so engrossed with the KRAKO line of banjos, that it doesn’t leave much wiggle-room for really liking anything else. That is, if I still played, which I don’t, but Derek Vaden, Lincoln Hensley, Lizzie Long, Wes Vanderpool, and Doug Greenleaf all own these banjos and rave about them. Most have posted on the KRAKO website, with the exception of Mickey Flatt KRAKO #2 and Doug Greenleaf KRAKO #5.
S

—–

Hello Sonny. Did you ever work with or cross paths with Cousin Jody? I always found his musicianship very interesting when he was doing all of those Gannaway colorized Opry shows with Lonzo & Oscar. I read where he was Roy Acuff’s first dobro player so it seems there was much more to him than just being a comedy act, kind of like Stringbean.

Thanks for your time.

Cory S

Howdy howdy, Cory. Glad you could join us, thank you for your time.

Cousin Jody, whose real name is Clell Summey. He was born in 1919 and died in 1975. I have no knowledge of him playing the dobro with Roy Acuff, although he might have, but among dozens of other things it is out of my range of knowledge. We worked some dates with Lonzo & Oscar that he was on also. He was a very, very funny man onstage. He had no teeth, and his chin and nose met. A funny man indeed. I never heard him play serious music, it was always comedy, so I can’t vouch for his musicianship beyond comedy.
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… how did The Osborne Brothers find songs?

Posted on June 11, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny, you mentioned your tune, Banjo Boy Chimes (great tune, BTW). I’m curious to know what you think about Alan Munde’s recording of it on his, Banjo Sandwich LP.

David R.

David, thank you for your time, and for joining us in our little weekly free-for-all. Banjo Boy Chimes was written when I was 13 years old, and recorded on the Gateway record label out of Cincinnati, and unfortunately for me I haven’t heard Alan Munde’s recording of it, but I’m very familiar with Alan’s playing. He’s one of the horses that when he backed up to the wagon, he could pull the load. That’s a roundabout way of saying that Alan is one of the really, really good banjo players. I’ve known him for perhaps 40 years and I got to really know him when he was a regular at my Banjo Camp, and I’m honored that he would record my tune.
S

—–

Hey Sonny,

Recently after the passing of Charley Pride, I was going through the old vinyl and found the tune Best Banjo Picker with a passage of Home Sweet Home with your instantly recognizable sound. I then remember thinking I had heard you and Bobby on some other country recordings including , correct me if I’m wrong, Conway Twitty’s cut of Making Plans. Could you share from memory how many sessions you may have been involved with with some of your country contemporaries of the time? Memorable moments?

As an aside, we talked and met some twenty years ago when I reached out to you about my work on a bio of Charlie Moore. You were very gracious in recalling a couple times working with Charlie when he was a DJ in South Carolina, and pointed me to a couple of folks who could be of more help. Shortly after that we met in person at Charlotte, Michigan. I was 20 years old, green as a gourd, and trying to make a dream come true playing professionally. I was there playing with Lynnwood Lunsford, and ol L wood was riding me pretty hard. I sat with you at your record table and we chatted a good long while. I’ll never forget this day as the day that made me certain that I wouldn’t give up on that dream. All of the words exchanged aren’t saved for posterity, but I know I’ll never forget you walking past our record table and stopping, speaking to L wood and saying to me, “Hey T. You can do whatever you want to in music. There’s nothing stopping you but the company you’re keeping. Find better company.”

I laugh when I think about it now, but I never got to thank you for making a green young unknown musician feel like someone, and a dream potentially real. If it hadn’t been for you the world could’ve been spared the misery of my music! Thank you Sonny.

Travers Chandler

Travers Chandler, thank you for your time and contribution. If I were to mention all the people that I’ve recorded with, the list would be very long. It would include Conway Twitty, Chet Atkins, Wade Ray, Homer & Jethro, and Dolly Parton. And that would just be starting the list. Bobby and I recorded Rocky Top with Conway. I played the banjo on Dolly’s 9 to 5 album, and did a jazz fusion album with Gary Burton called Tennessee Firebird. An album with Chester Atkins, and the list keeps going. I’m not going to take time to go further into it here. And of course I did 80, give-or-take, Osborne Brothers albums so I guess you could say I’ve been around the block a time or two.

I remember meeting you in Charlotte, Michigan and I remember the incident with Lynnwood Lunsford, whom I have known for a long time. He is a a good player and if he was riding you pretty hard as you say, maybe you deserved it. And it seems like I do remember telling you that you are definitely judged by the company you keep and you should find better company.

When you say that your music was misery, it sounds like to me that you don’t have a great deal of confidence in your ability. Oh well, it is what it is.
S

—–

Dear Sonny, what do you think about the new bluegrass songs being written today?

Also, back in the day when the Osborne Brothers were looking for songs, what specifics did you look for? Thanks.

Rickey D.

Rickey thank you for joining us. I have to admit to the fact that I’m not familiar with the new bluegrass songs because I don’t listen. Reason being there isn’t anyplace to hear them.

Back when we were looking for songs to record, we looked for songwriters such as Paul Craft, Boudleaux and Felice Bryant, Harlan Howard….. great song writers…. because they’re the ones who come up with the great songs. One exception being Richard Statler…a Texas college student who wrote My Favorite Memory, When You Wind Down, Up This Hill and Down and a couple more.

We owe so much to the Wilburn Brothers, all four, for our career. Each of them was genius at his job for Sure-Fire Music. Teddy, in particular, found 90% of our songs.
S

—–

Did you know Curtis McPeake? I always thought he had a difficult job filling in for Earl. Thanks for doing these columns.

James P

James, welcome in here!

Yes, I did know Curtis McPeake. Curtis had different ideas about-banjo playing than I, and we just never seemed to be on the same page.
S

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… why do you call today’s bluegrass weak country?

Posted on June 4, 2021 by Azlyrics

Hey Sonny, I would love to know if you have any memories/recollections of bass player Ernie Newton who was featured on so many Nashville sessions in the 1940s and ’50s, including many bluegrass recordings with Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, The Stanley Brothers, and of course, with you Sonny.

Tom S.

Tom, thank you for joining us in our weekly free-for-all. You asked if I had any memories of Ernie Newton and, yes, I knew Ernie well. He played bass on the tracks I made with Bill Monroe in 1952. If I’m not mistaken, he was also on our first MGM session and he was the first guy I saw with an apparatus that resembled a drum head mounted on his bass. He could take a snare brush and it sounded a great deal like you had a bass and snare drum. Ernie was perhaps the number one bass player in Nashville until the emergence of Bobby Moore. Ernie was a nice man, a true gentleman, and he was always smiling and he was the same every time you saw him.
S.

—–

Hi, Sonny! I remember you were pretty annoyed when Rite Records released three albums’ worth of your early Kentucky and Gateway singles. No one asked for your input, and you felt all the sides worth reissuing could fit on one LP. Personally, I’ve always been fond of the eight 1953 sides you recorded soon after Bobby came back from Korea. But what tracks would you have chosen from those early efforts?

On another matter, do you prefer the stereo or mono mixes on your later MGM and early Decca albums? Were you and Bobby directly involved in the mixes back then? Thanks much!

Dave in Indiana

Dave in Indiana and Tom S. included, I welcome you to the most read column on Bluegrass Today. I’m proud of that, and some of you may take that as conceit, but that’s alright.

Rite Records released three albums of material, recorded just a month into my 14th year, and it sounded like that. Was I happy with that? As an adult, no I was not. And when Bobby came home from Korea, we recorded some pretty decent stuff. I was happy with that. That band on those 8 sides was pretty good.

As far as the earlier releases, there were 2 sides I was pleased with…one was Sunny Mountain Chimes and the other was Banjo Boy Chimes. When stereo was first introduced to our music, on MGM especially, they destroyed more than they helped. Decca Records was not in that same category. By then they had stereo down to a science. Bobby and I were not involved with mixing our music until about 1965. That’s not to say it was all bad because Pathway of Teardrops was a part of those sessions.
S

—–

Hey Sonny, I was wondering what do you think of the Gibson Brothers style of bluegrass singing? It seems they sound different from other bluegrass bands in their harmony and rhythm.

Also: Speaking on today’s bluegrass being weak country… seems like the way bands dress have gone the same way. I saw a member of a popular bluegrass band once show you their Kentucky Wildcats t-shirt, which they were wearing to the stage. You politely reminded them what people were there to see, pointing to your shirt and tie. Do you think there’s a correlation in dressing for the stage and the quality of music that band produces?

Wes Vanderpool (Krako enthusiast)

So now I’m having to deal with Wes Vanderpool, who is a KRAKO banjo enthusiast, and one hell-of-a banjo player.

I really like the Gibson Brothers’ choice of songs and arrangements. Although I’m not sure they want to be classified as 100% bluegrass.

Speaking on today’s bluegrass being weak country, I stand by that, solidly. When country entertainers started wearing blue jeans they had slept under a bridge in, with holes in the knees…bluegrass bands were surely to follow….and they did. So, a country guy, very popular, goes onstage with a wife-beater undershirt on, next thing I know I’m seeing a very popular bluegrass guy go onstage with a wife-beater undershirt on. In my opinion, this does not affect their music but I firmly believe it affects the quality of their audience because we are so far from the shirt and tie and suit days, so then how far are we from the bottle-throwing audience. And then, does this make sense to any of you? It does to me and it is a little bit scary, especially when a now-deceased well-known banjo player came up to me wearing a t-shirt that said, “Sex and drugs, Flatt and Scruggs.” And I told him “Son, I’d be ashamed to wear that.”
S

—–

Boys and girls and adult children all over this chaotic world…

I want to introduce you to a brand new band called The Tennessee Bluegrass Band, and also make you aware of a 32-yr old band that is playing some of the smoothest Bluegrass music you will hear this day and time.

The Tennessee Bluegrass Band consists of (guitar/vocal) John Meador, (bass/vocal) wife Gracie Meador, (mandolin/vocal) Tim Laughlin, the incomparable Lincoln Hensley playing the Krako banjo (like no other), and US and Canadian Grand Masters fiddle champion, Aynsley Porchak. These 5 people have just begun, and in my opinion, are going to be heard from on a major scale. They are that good. The Tennessee Bluegrass Band.

The old guy I was talking about, who in my opinion has assembled his best band, that would be The Larry Stephenson Band which consists of great original banjo playing (Krako #3) Derek Vaden, guitar/vocal Nick Dauphinais, a new guy named Andy playing bass, and of course Larry Stephenson on mandolin/vocal. They are smooth and very good. If you haven’t heard them recently….you should!

And I want to thank you for making this little experiment the most read, weekly column in Bluegrass Today. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Sonny

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… did banjo tone change with plastic heads?

Posted on May 28, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny, I can’t thank you enough for your insightful article that you both produce each week. I read a lot of music articles in various online publications on a daily basis, a few are pretty good, most are just fair, and many are just a waste of my time. Yours are like gold to me. The way you candidly, “tell it like you saw it,” makes for great reading, and a tremendous help for those of us trying to make sense of the music business (especially bluegrass).The saying “you don’t know where you are going if you don’t know where you been” captures what your articles are all about! Keep up the great work!

Lengdae

Len..I appreciate your time and your kind words. At my age, every little bit helps, and when I tell a story it may be the 5th or 15th time that I tell that same story, and sometimes they differ a little. But I still tell basically exactly what I saw.

If you’re trying to make any kind of sense out of the music business, mainly country which is now pop, and especially bluegrass which is now bad country, or I should say weak country…in my opinion….and the old saying, “You don’t know where you’re going if you don’t know where you’ve been.” That holds so much truth for what they call country now and it’s beginning to trickle down into bluegrass, sorry to say.

—–

Sonny,

I look forward to this column every week. I consider it a treasure. I’ll ask you something I’ve always wondered about.

I’ve heard hundreds of people over the years talk about your style of banjo playing being among the best (which I happen to agree with), but I don’t ever hear anyone talking about the Osborne Brothers rhythm. I’ve always felt there was a very unique “drive” to the rhythm section. You have this unique vamp, or “chop,” like us hillbillies call it. It almost has a double vamp, at times…like when a snare drum adds an extra hit for accent.

I’ve never heard any other banjo player, myself included, be able to recreate it. That, combined with Bobby’s broad mandolin chops and Jim Brock’s powerful Music Man Sabre, made for a percussive and unique rhythm. I noticed Bobby would often drop out to focus on a vocal line, but then when he would come back in with the chop it would be like getting hit with a tidal wave of sound. I’m sure the Granada and Bobby’s Fern have a little to do with that.

It seems like your vamps and Bobby’s chops became more prominent in your music after you no longer carried drums. Was this by design, necessity, or both?

My original question here: In your opinion, what makes your vamps so powerful and unique? I think I’d rather listen to your vamps than most players lead playing. Have a great day!

Tom Feller

Hey Tom, good to hear from you.

When we had Jim Brock, who was the best electric bass player ever, who is now playing drums by the way, we also had Robby (Bobby’s son) playing drums. We didn’t need Bobby’s rhythm nor mine that much. The vamp I did on the banjo came from watching Bobby’s right hand and Dale Sledd’s right hand. It’s different, I understand that, but when we stopped carrying drums my rhythm vamp was a necessity and, yep, it was my design.

My vamps were so powerful and unique, as you stated, was mainly because I wasn’t afraid to do it.

And that last part of your question, I’m not even going to comment on. I’m just going to thank you for it.

—–

Hello Sonny,

I’ve got two things I’d like to ask your opinion of. First, once (’80s) I showed you a 1925 TB-Granada I had recently purchased, and the first thing you did, was to put your nose to the flange, and inhale like an addict getting a fix. Ever since that day, I also do the same when I encounter an original old instrument. I wonder why you do?

Secondly, I’d like to hear your opinion of how the plastic head changed the sound of the great pre-war banjos, as many of the most revered records were cut with calfskin. When did you switch? Were there some players that stuck with calfskin?

Thanks, always enjoyed your music.

Paul

Paul, thank you for joining us and thank you for your time. The old instruments, like a 1925 Granada, used a different kind of glue that had a specific odor, and the first thing I did was smell that glue, and that would tell me if it was authentic. That was why I did it, although I realize that I looked like an addict getting a ‘fix.’

Secondly, the plastic head for a banjo was the greatest improvement ever, and I really don’t think it changed the sound of the really good pre-war banjos. I can only think of the Scruggs tone that would have changed when he started using plastic.

I switched in 1961 and some of guys still tried to use calfskin, and they realized quickly that it wasn’t worth the effort because the skin heads took maintenance on your banjo every day, tightening and untightening the head, which involved removing the resonator, etc etc.

—–

Sonny,

I understand that the Osborne Brothers were the first to record the Darrell Statler song (in 1967) – My Favorite Memory. You did a great job, of course. Merle Haggard recorded it much later.

How did you connect with Statler? Did you record any other songs of his?

Thanks for taking my question.

Tom McCreight

Tom, thank you for your question and I appreciate your involvement in our little free-for-all.

My Favorite Memory was not the only Statler song we recorded. The other ones included Up This Hill and Down and When You Wind Down. The Haggard song was not the same as the one we recorded. Teddy Wilburn found the Statler song among the others. He was a genius at just that.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… did Earl ever get bored with the banjo?

Posted on May 21, 2021 by Azlyrics

Hello Sonny. I seen the brothers many times in and around Burlington, NC at Bass Mountain festival and The Big O Jamboree. Do you remember the Big O and any stories? One time I remember seeing Glen Duncan was on fiddle, was that his first show with y’all? Bobby even twinned with Glen that night. Thanks for the article. I look forward to it every week.

Randy

Hey Randy, I appreciate your time. Sorry I missed last week.

I do remember the Bass Mountain festival, and especially Mike Wilson. We were talking out where our bus was parked when a guy came running down and said a couple guys were causing a disturbance…you know, like showing they —! Well Mike, at 6’4” and 260 said I’ll be back in a minute. He ran up to the pickup bed and literally reached into the melee, grabbed this guy by the hair, a longish braid like thing, and proceded to half drag him and fast walk him to the waiting police cruiser. Thus coming to an end of those two old boys Bass Mountain Festival for that year. I loved that place…Big O I don’t remember, however Glen did play the fiddle with us then. Most enjoyable time musically to work with the great fiddle player, Glen Duncan.

S
—–

Years ago when I was young and uneducated, I would listen to Flatt and Scruggs records of Blowin’ in The Wind, Like a Rollling Stone, and Down in the Flood, and thought they were just the neatest things….then many years later I found out that they were Bob Dylan and other “folky” songs, and that Lester hated them, and that was one of the reasons for the big breakup of Flatt and Scruggs. To be honest, after listening to the Bob Dylan and other original versions of those songs, I think Lester and Earl did much better versions. I know I am in the minority in those beliefs, but as an artist how do you feel when you have recorded music that after a while you really don’t care for, and the fans latch on to it and think it’s some of your best recordings. I wish I was around back in the day and was able to sit down and talk to Lester and tell him how versatile he was, and how he could take any song and make it pure bluegrass.

Thanks Sonny.

Cory S.

Cory….I apprecate your valuable time. Thank you.

I hope I can get through this subject without hurting too many feelings. You must remember that I considered me to be one of the most intent followers of The Earl. After 1957, not nearly as much. WHY? I felt like along about then, he took his foot off’n the gas pedal.

Earl and I became pretty good friends through most of the ’60s….once at his house, The Earl told me he hadn’t been interested in the banjo in 10 years. Which ripped me a pretty large one. He also told me he wanted out because he wanted…needed…to be with his boys. There’s only so many ways you can play Cumberland Gap. I didn’t understand this until 30 years later.

So by doing a completely different sound, I was put into the position of liking or disliking what my pal was doing. Being such a fanatic follower in the ’50-’53 version of the greatest 5 string banjo playing..player…in history, I decided I did not like the contemporary sound they were doing. Good though it might be…hell, the younger generation was going wild for it…but, Hello! I was not that generation, didn’t want to be. Chose not to be. Granted the Dylan songs were good…for Peter Paul and Mary…but not good for me. I liked Benny Martin and The Earl…still do…always will. Long way of answering your question, if there was one. If not, sorry, maybe next time.

You know what, Cory? If you were lucky enough to sit down and talk to Lester Flatt and tell him what great songs Blowin’ in the Wind etc were, and how he made them into pure bluegrass songs, he would probably just get up and walk off because he hated these songs so much, and detested the idea of calling their music bluegrass. I don’t know why, but I never heard Lester or The Earl refer to what they were doing as bluegrass.

s
—–

Sonny,

I am reading this week’s column and Mark K asked you about your break on Sunny Side Of The Mountain on the Bluegrass Collection album.

I went over to YouTube and listened to it, then decided I wanted the entire album so I went to iTunes and bought it.

I guess my question is two parts and if I’m being too personal I sincerely apologize.

1. Do you get any kind of payment from YouTube for us listening to your songs.

2. I just bought the song on iTunes do you receive anything for that.

Thanks,

Lenny

Lenny, thank you for joining our weakly get together. Your questions were of a personal nature, but I’ll answer them as best I can. When you download or buy any music we do get paid through a company called Soundexchange. That’s as far as I care to take this. Like I said it is rather personal. You understand, I’m sure. Good question though…connect with me again, anytime. As for that last part of the break…it was conceived on the spot…first time through. My mind just told my hands that it was the thing to do, so they did it.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… a look back at 2019

Posted on May 14, 2021 by Azlyrics

Sonny wasn’t able to get us answers to your questions this week, so we figured it would be fun to take a look back at the second column he did, back in June 2019. Hopefully he’ll be back on track for next week.

You’ve pretty well seen it all (and created a lot of it) when it comes to bluegrass music. Do you ever get nostalgic for the way the music sounded back in the early/mid 50’s (before it was called bluegrass)? Why does it sound so different? What has it lost, if anything? What has it gained?
– wretchasketch

Just the music. Yes I miss it when Monroe, Flatt, Scruggs, Wise, and Cedric were creating what we called bluegrass back in the day. They were learning and it was interesting to hear the progress being made. Of course, being able now to look back allows me to think in this manner.

What has it lost? Sincerity. Listen closely (if you can) to Monroe sing Blue Moon of Kentucky, Flatt singing are you Washed in The Blood, Chubby Wise break on Blue Moon, Earl’s background on I’ll Never Love Another. Sincerity… love of what they were doing. I’ve seen Benny Martin stare at the neck of the fiddle whilst playing as if to say, “My God, I love how you sound!” It sounds different because of the quality of the instruments, the players and the amount of time devoted to practice and the number of things there is to deal with now which was not available in Thousand Sticks, or Flint Hill.

What has it gained? Intelligence. Knowledge. A method in which to reach Point A and get to point B by playing Cripple Creek and not starving to death in the process! KNOWLEDGE AND INTELLIGENCE. We knew that we had something that could not be duplicated…. Bobby’s voice and our unique trio… Knowledge to realize that success would come if you could create a need and be able to fill it. Knowledge of the need to get your records and product, played by the media, and getting your product to the public so they can hear it, and the Intelligence in which to make it happen. All given by the mistakes, and successes of the ones who suffered through “back in the day!” which I was (am) part of both!

p.s. I already think you pretty awesome and your Banjo Medley is the background to my sweetest dreams. 🙂
– Cindy B. in NC

Sonny, what’s the nicest thing Bobby ever said to you?
– Anna W.

The nicest thing Bobby ever said to me….”If you think you can drive it any better, you get your big … up here and drive it yourself!”

Really, the nicest thing I ever heard Bobby say, concerning me, was in an interview he did, (I don’t remember where). It was his reply when asked about his opinion of my banjo playing. “Sonny took, and takes banjo playing to another level!” I was standing in the other end of the dressing room and I’m sure he didn’t know I overheard him say this.

Bobby and I worked together for 52 years and never had an argument…we had disagreements, I’m sure but that’s as far as it went. Also we never talked much about the others talent nor how we each played our part. Bobby was a much better mandolin player…. he created a style that everyone plays now… he would have gotten more credit but he just so happened to be the best voice ever!

Sonny, did you ever throw a drunk guys banjo in the pond behind the stage at Bean Blossom? Yes, I actually heard some old dude bloviating about seeing you do that many years ago but I never believed it. LOL!
– Dave R.

Nope, I would never do a thing like that. I loved and respected the banjo more than the drunk that was abusing it. I might have thrown the drunk in, or had Birch sidle down there and escort him out to the parking lot and check out his medicine.

If you could fill in on banjo with any band touring today, who would it be?
– John G.

We’re talking about if I were on top of my game banjo wise. It would be Rhonda Vincent’s band. She’s got it going as much or more than anyone else right now. I love Rhonda and her music… and everyone in that band. Aaron McDaris is (almost) unbeatable, Josh Williams is the best, Hunter Berry is the best, Mickey Harris is the best for her band…. I would like to play with that quality of people and music.

Tell us how Sledd came into the band…where did you all find him?
Raymond E.H.

Spring or early Summer of 1966. We played at Lake of The Ozarks at a place maybe Austin? something… Gordon Cash was playing guitar and doing vocal with us. The house band consisted of Dale and Patsy Sledd. We were there two days and Dale invited us to their “Trailer House” for a late snack, and perhaps pick a bit. Gordon didn’t go.

So we did pick some and it turned out that Dale knew every song we had recorded to that point, and knew the correct third part of our unique harmony. (High lead, Baritone, and low tenor) AND, he just so happened to be the best guitar player a banjo player could wish for. Reason being, he was a pretty good banjo player too. We offered him he job immediately and he took it, but he couldn’t come to Nashville until the place they were playing closed…which was September.

September 10, 1966 Dale Sledd came to Nashville and he became an Osborne Brother for the next 12 years.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… celebrating The Chief’s 100th column!

Posted on May 7, 2021 by Azlyrics

Good morning Chief, well it’s finally here… Ask Sonny # 100! On behalf of all our readers, your fans and admirers around the world, Mr. Lawless and myself, please accept our heartfelt thanks for this weekly journey through the pages of bluegrass history. The many stories recorded here will be preserved for generations to come, to read and enjoy. And of course, let no one overlook the support and contribution of your loving wife, Judy.

Thank you from all of us, and here’s to the next 100 columns and beyond!

===============

Congratulations Sonny on your 100th Column in Bluegrass Today.

Please tell us about recording Bluegrass Collection. Did you rehearse those songs before you recorded them?

Sunny Side Of The Mountain – The second banjo break did you have that worked out before you recorded it? That break just says, ‘Hey I’m Sonny Osborne and you are??’ The Bluegrass Collection is the way bluegrass music should be played.

Mark K

Mark, welcome to our little get-together. I appreciate your contribution.

We asked Benny Birchfield if he would agree to help us do this album, mainly because we were used to singing with Benny and his voice matched ours well. So far as rehearsing for this album, the answer to that would be no, or really I should say not extensively. We grew up listening to this collection of songs and so they just came natural to us.

The 2nd banjo break on Sunny Side of the Mountain, just happened, when we recorded it. I didn’t work it out beforehand.

—–

Hello Sonny – Thank you for this bluegrass question column, all of your banjo tunes, all of your banjo skills, all of your stage showmanship, all of your recordings, and all of your, … well, … Lifetime Of Bluegrass!!

There was a great bluegrass album recorded in 1964 called Bluegrass Banjos On Fire by a band named Homer And The Barnstormers – many instrumental tunes and some songs with vocals. There are rumors around the internet, and during conversations, regarding just who the unknown musicians on this album were.

Have you listened to this particular album all the way through? There have been no credits provided to the pickers on this album, and I have always wondered if you were one of them.

I think that some tunes have similarities to your particular banjo technique, I’m only a beginner and I listen to and study your style and banjo technique over and over. You always put in sneaky goody notes and secret quickie licks – everything for a bluegrass banjo picker to have to work at to try to figure out. A good friend of mine picks a banjo exactly like you – when he concentrates and picks one of your tunes your way, I watch him tear into his Chief and I can’t get enough.

Some people say these tunes on this mystery album don’t sound quite like your fingers, and others say they do. I think some do but I can’t be sure. There are no credits on the album jacket or anywhere in print, or even on the internet.

Please tell me if you were the banjo picker on this album, or if you were one of the contributing banjo pickers on this album.

Also, please tell me if you know the other mystery bluegrass pickers on this bluegrass album and who they were.

Thank you.

Jaysyn S.
Tucson AZ

The album titled Bluegrass Banjos On Fire, I have not heard any part of this album although I knew that it existed. As far as my recollection goes, I did not play on this album and I don’t have any idea who did, however if I had to guess, I would guess that it is some bluegrass pickers around Cincinnati. That’s all that I can help you with, as far as who the musicians are on the album.

When you mention banjo technique, I honestly do not know what that means. I would like to know the name of this friend of yours who plays exactly like me.

—–

Sonny… I’ve been a big fan of the Osbornes for as long as I can remember. I’m an old codger, soon to be 83, so I go back and remember the good old days at Sunset Park and listening to you guys sing those great three part harmonies with the soaring endings. Almost made my hair stand up. I was lucky enough to catch you there a few times. I was wondering if you had any trouble learning the third part – baritone – of your trio when you started out. I’ve always been a parts singer, loving good three part harmony, and I can remember vividly trying to learn the baritone. I would sit by my old Magnavox vinyl spinner playing Jim and Jesse’s Tribute to The Louvin Brothers, and try to put the third part in. Jim seldom ventured far from the true tenor, so he didn’t get in the way of the baritone. I finally got it, but it wasn’t easy. Did you have any trouble learning it, or did it come easy for you? Tenor never gave me much trouble but baritone took a lot of work on my part. Just wondering how you got along with it, or did it cause you to throw your hands up in disgust sometimes?

Thanks for looking…

Bob A.
Seaford, DE

Bob, so you are an old codger soon to be 83, and that makes me one already because I’ll soon be 84. Baritone and parts singing came natural to me, and by that I mean it was easy for me to fill in that part. But Bobby and I exchanged parts so often, that it would be really hard for someone to sing with us, unless they had that same kind of talent. You mentioned Jim & Jesses tribute to The Louvin Brothers, and I’m here to tell you that is one fine album, and really I don’t see how it could be improved on. Baritone is a part that you just have to hear, and it can be very hard to learn. It was really easy for me.

—–

Hi Sonny, love the column.

Somewhere I read that you and Bobby were the first bluegrass group to perform at a college, I think it was Oberlin or Antioch in Ohio. What was that like, your remembrances of that gig? I read they wanted you all to play more old time traditional folk songs rather than your usual newer tunes.

All the best,
Chuck Van Dyke

Chuck, welcome in. Yes, we were the first bluegrass band to ever play at a college. It was in 1960 at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. You asked what I remember from that place, and I’ll tell you right now we were all nervous and scared, because none of us had ever been on a college campus. As the evening progressed, we found out that they, in fact, wanted more old traditional songs like She’’l Be Comin’ Round the Mountain, and Maple on the Hill, etc etc. We didn’t know that, to start with, and we came out and performed our latest records and at halftime in our show, we were all sitting back in the dressing room, and somebody had a jug and passed it around and it calmed us right down and our appearance at Antioch was a big success.

—–

Hello Sonny. I’ve seen the brothers many times in and around Burlington, North Carolina, at the Bass Mountain festival and The Big O Jamboree. Do you remember the Big O and any stories? One time I remember seeing Glen Duncan on fiddle, was that his first show with y’all? Bobby even twinned with Glen that night. Thanks for the article I look forward to it every week.

Randy

Randy, I remember Bass Mountain Festival very well, and my answer will be quite long so I’m going to save it for next week.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… who was the biggest jokester on the Opry?

Posted on April 30, 2021 by Azlyrics

Well Chief, it’s hard to believe, but this is Ask Sonny #99. Next week will mark the 100th column since we began this little journey nearly two years ago. I think congratulations are in order, so to everyone reading this, be sure to send in a personal note to Sonny next week for the big milestone article.

Terry

===========

Sonny, I’ve always a big fan of you and Bobby, and I miss you together on stage. I look forward to Bobby returning to touring when the pandemic is behind us. As for my question, I wasn’t surprised that George Morgan was nice to him. We knew Jimmy C. Newman, and he talked about how Morgan put him at ease when he was nervous about joining the Opry. I was disappointed in Billy Grammer, but I wondered if Grammer might have thought it was funny because Morgan had the reputation for being a major practical joker. So I wondered if George ever “got” the Osbornes, or if there were other practical jokes or jokers around the Opry he would like to tell us about. I had a friend who was a drummer in a bluegrass band (rare, to say the least), and he told me, yes, they got him for the “plug-in” fee.

Michael G.

—–
Michael. thank you for joining us and sharing your time with us. I appreciate that.

I think you misread what I had written about George Morgan, Hank Williams Sr and Jack Anglin. When I went to the Opry as a 14 yr old know-nothing kid, those three were the only ones who treated me like a human. Those three people would talk to me and I was ignored by everyone else. That was in 1952, and if you move ahead 12 years when we, The Osborne Brothers, became members of the Grand Ole Opry, George and Jimmy C Newman were two of our strongest supporters, among others of course. Jimmy C even told me on several occasions, that he went to the head honchos of the Opry and told them that we would be excellent members of the Opry. I’m not sure I believe that but it might have happened. But in our case, the Wilburn Brothers were our strongest supporters.

George was the practical joker at the Opry, but the Willis Brothers were close to the top in that category. Once they caught Grandpa Jones sleeping between the first and second show, and they proceeded to tape Grandpa snoring. They even went so far as to write a song, and taped it and circulated it throughout the Opry. Almost everyone got a copy of the Willis Brothers singing … and Grandpa snoring … at the end of each line. Grandpa Jones was not happy.

George Morgan had a hit with his Grand Ole Opry Ugly List, in that every week he posted on the bulletin board the top ten ugliest people on the Opry. This list included some of the biggest names, such as Roy Acuff, Bill Monroe, me, and everybody else on the Opry was fair game, and all wanted to be on George’s Ugly List. As a matter of fact, I went so far as to pay George $5 to be #1, which was a great honor. But the highest I ever got was #2. And when I complained to George, he got me by the arm and led me out to the stage where this old boy was playing drums and he said, “I want you to look at this guy and tell me if you still want to be #1 … ahead of HIM.” I immediately gave in.

George was one of the funniest, and most beloved, people at the Opry, and the story about Billy Grammer is true and I’m convinced that it was meant to make fun of and hurt George because of his eye problem. I say this because I was sitting right beside him when it happened and it did hurt George Morgan’s feelings terribly.
S

=========================

Sonny

I can’t begin to tell you how much I’ve been enjoying this column. It’s the absolute highlight of my week. Your wit, life experience and…hahum… “attitude” are such a treasure. So to my question – You and Bobby have always been revered as defining part of the core sound of bluegrass as we know it. The Osborne Brothers have always been atop the list for fans of traditional bluegrass…but how did those fans react when you began incorporating electric instruments and more importantly, how did you respond to them?

We all understand the importance of being able to pay the bills, and sometimes that requires a shift in musical direction, but how did you pull it off without losing your die-hard bluegrass fans, AND do you think you had a net gain of fans as a result?

Walter H.

—–
Walter, thank you for giving us a few minutes of your time. We, the brothers, chose to incorporate country-sounding instruments such as piano, steel, electric guitar and drums. We did this for one reason, and that was to get our records played more on country music stations. The whole thing is too complicated to go into here, but I will suffice it to say that in our case it worked beautifully. More plays on country stations meant more popularity, which meant more dates, which meant more money to buy farms and put kids through college. We did lose a great deal of our traditional Bluegrass fan base, but then on the other hand we gained 4 or 5 times what we lost and that put us ahead “by a country mile.” You asked how we pulled it off and that was quite simple, because for the most part, we still had the great trio with Benny Birchfield and Dale Sledd, and we never laid our bluegrass instruments down, so in effect we became sort-of one of a kind and it worked well enough that we won the CMA Vocal Group of the Year and Bluegrass Band of the Year (the latter, 9 years in a row 1970-1979).
S

========================

G’day Sonny, Like you, I enjoy Tone Tuesday… three excellent musicians. Lincoln plays various banjos from week to week but why does his Chief have different metal finishes? Still sounds good, and of course Earl’s was that way too, but not in such an obvious way. Cheers to you.

Andy

—–
Andy, I’m not sure I understand what your question is. True, Lincoln played various banjos but I wasn’t aware that he played a Chief. I am aware that he played several different Krako banjos that might have had different metal finishes. I don’t really know what you mean by, “Earl’s was that way too but not in such an obvious way.” Earl’s metal was changed from gold to nickel because Earl changed it. To my knowledge, Lincoln only played several different Krako banjos and a gold-plated 1966 Vega that I played on Roll Muddy River. I don’t think I answered your question because I never understood it.
S

=================================

I’ve heard that the Earl played a RB-3 on the last Mercury and first Columbia session while his Granada was being repaired. Where is the 3? Do you have any insight?

Jon C.

—–
Jon, welcome to our little free-for-all and I thank you and appreciate your time.

Earl and I were pretty close and he never mentioned that he had played an RB-3 other than Joe Drumright’s wreath pattern 3 on a Red Foley recording of Polka On A Banjo, and it was kinda weird because I had used that same banjo on some of our later MGM recordings. Beings I never knew about a 3, so I don’t have any insight as to where it is now, or even if it ever existed because he never mentioned it to me in any of the many conversations I had with Mr Scruggs. If anybody reading this, has any further absolute knowledge that this banjo ever existed, please write in and tell me.
S

======================

Thank you, and I look forward to #100 next week.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… where is that biography you promised?

Posted on April 23, 2021 by Azlyrics

Good morning Chief,

I hope you get this. When I got off the bus last week we were in 1996, I turned around and you boys were gone. Very funny.

Fortunately we have dial-up internet. I’m out front here at Bean Blossom…reading about this guy named Theodore Kaczynski that they finally caught about 2 weeks ago. The good news is, it’s safer to open your mail now.

I’m waiting…

============

Hey Sonny! I’ve got two questions: I know you’ve not picked a banjo in years because of the shoulder issues, but if you were to just play one song, what would it be? Secondly, Doyle Lawson announced his retirement recently and I wondered if you have any memorable experiences with him over the years. Thanks for humoring our questions!

Michael O
Greensboro, NC

—-

Hey Mikey!!!!

If I could play one more tune, it would be in the key of G and the title would be No Mother or Dad.

Bobby and I always wanted to sing and play with Doyle, but when he was working with other bands, before Quicksilver burst on the scene, we tried but he was too expensive. Not to imply that he was too expensive, he was for us. Man, the few times we sang together, he was so good, and he had the great thing going with the guitar.

Back in the day, before the Opry, Decca records, and all that, we had been to Nashville to record and were on the way back to Dayton. this would be about late 1957, early 1958. Dayton disc jockey Les Bodine was with us. We stopped in Louisville for gas and the guy pumping gas told us our car had a muffler which was dragging, and did we want him to wire it up so it wouldn’t drag. We said yes and he fixed it. We went on our merry way. Years later we were reminded that the guy who fixed our car was the leader of the band known as QUICKSILVER… ’twas none other than….The great Doyle Lawson.

=================================

Good afternoon, Mr. Osborne. I was just listening to a few recordings that Johnnie and Jack made with your clawhammer instructor, Grandpa Jones. Were the Osborne Brothers influenced by the trio harmony of the Tennessee Mountain Boys? Did you ever rub elbows with Johnnie and Jack before Mr. Anglin died?

Thank you for this wonderful series, not to mention all of your contributions to the music we descendants of hillbillies and briarhoppers cherish so much.

BK…thank you for coming our way today….Ha, that rhymes.

When I joined Bill Monroe’s band as a legitimate Blue Grass Boy I was a very green kid of 14, and I guess I didn’t belong. I was treated as an outcast, in that no one would talk to me. At the Opry I just stood around. Bill was off doing what he was doing, Jimmy and Charlie didn’t want to be seen with a child, everyone except George Morgan, Jack Anglin, and Hank Williams. I reckon they felt sorry for a kid and went out of their way to speak, if nothing else. George and I were sitting on the stage years later and Billy Grammer walked by. (Note: George had an eye problem that couldn’t be corrected) So Billy stopped and held his watch high and to the right and said, “Hey George, what time is it?” Then broke out in a laugh and proceeded on his way. George was hurt and said, “He didn’t have to do that.” Incidentally, it is my understanding that Billy Grammer was blind when he crossed over.

Grady Martin told a Hank Williams story that he swore to be true. Grady played fiddle for the Hank Williams band for a spell. They were filming the Kate Smith network show…Hank was rehearsing his song, Milton Berle who was also on the show was on the side of the stage, upstaging Hank. Hank stopped, traips’d over to Berle and politely said, “Now Uncle Milty, I do appreciate your talent but if you don’t get your big ass off the stage while I’m on, I’m gonna wrap the neck of this D28 Martin Guitar around your f……. neck!” Uncle Milty left the stage area.

Note: (the word ‘traips’d’ is a Judy-word from the ’60s)

============================

Sonny,

I remember a few years ago when you’d post on the Banjo Hangout forums that you were working on an autobiography of your life and times in music. I’m wondering if you’re still working on it, and if you are, I’d be the first one to buy!

– Corey

Hi Corey. Thank you for joining us.

My book. Scott Street, RHS, started the book idea and asked me if it was something I would be interested in if he agreed to do all the work, and all I would have to do was allow him to interview me. I told him to have at it, and did he ever. He spent hundreds of hours and many thousand miles on his car, driving all over doing interviews. After Scott’s untimely death, Bill Evans agreed to finish the book, and all the material from Scott went to Bill. It just so happened that Bill’s wife was diagnosed with Leukemia and Bill, being the sole caregiver, did not have the time to work on the book. After about a year, he decided he couldn’t finish it and it was subsequently awarded to Daniel Mullins, and it sat in his basement for a year, at which time I gave up on the idea and asked my attorney, Steve Martin, if he would get the material and hold it for me, and he agreed to do that and, dear friends, that’s where it will remain until Judy, my wife, or one of our heirs sees fit to go get it. While I think it will be an interesting read for some people, I think where it winds up is where it needs to be. Would you say I’ve lost interest?

=================

Hey Sonny, I was wondering if you were to listen to one group of your choosing right now who would it be? Also other than yourself, who would you say is the best banjo player? Lastly, what do you think of your Granada compared to some other banjos?

– PhillipH

Hello Phillip, thank you for your time.

Due to the COVID pandemic, I have no idea who is playing with whom and so I honestly can’t answer that. I did hear a few Facebook tunes recorded by Aynsley Porchak, Lincoln Hensley, and Dan Boner on a thing they call Tone Tuesday. They really played some good music, but they’re not a band. I enjoy listening to them.

So far as bands existing before, I would have to say The Del McCoury Band, and The Grascals (Terry Eldredge and Jamie Johnson era). Actually the best banjo player on the planet is Jens Kruger, but due to the fact that no one can understand what he’s doing, I would have to say the best traditional 5-string banjo player is Rob McCoury. My reasoning is that Rob does his own thing and doesn’t lean on anything for his material.

You asked about my Granada, and I would have to say that, for me, there is no comparison to any instrument I ever touched. In order to get the best out of an instrument, you two have to be friends. In my opinion, Earl and Bluegrass Breakdown, Foggy Mountain Breakdown, Dear Old Dixie, Randy Lynn Rag…Earl seemed like he was mad at the banjo, and his banjo sounded like it was mad at him. The RB-3 that I owned for many years (the banjo Aaron McDaris has now)…. while I had that banjo it was a constant battle, and while Aaron has had it, it seems to have settled down and found a home with Aaron. But I didn’t like it much, and it surely didn’t like me. But then the Granada felt right at home from the very beginning. Love at first sight on both sides. And if you listen to the recordings that it made for me, I would beg you to find a better tone. That banjo knew it was home and knew that the guy that was playing it, loved it dearly. And the two together, in my opinion, created the best tone ever recorded with a 5-string banjo. I reckon that answers your question.

If there are any doubts, please listen to the Essential Bluegrass album that we recorded with Mac Wiseman, and specifically the banjo break on Shackles and Chains. Banjo tone doesn’t get any better. As dash-2 sits in my living room, the love affair continues.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… did you ever play clawhammer banjo?

Posted on April 16, 2021 by Azlyrics

Hey Good morning Chief! We just swung by the electronic post office, and we have a bag of questions for you. Hey, there’s some doozies in here. Be forewarned, we have an onion and a glass of water next to your donuts…some come join us if you dare!

==============

Chief, hope you’re doing well. I look forward each week to your stories and your humble and honest opinions. It’s a priceless treasure that we should all be grateful for. I enjoyed your insight on my past few questions and stories. I had a couple more short stories that I wanted to ask about that came from my good friend, the late Dale Vanderpool. Dale was as big a fan of the “Brothers” as anyone I’ve ever know and just a good person.

Years ago, Dale told me of a couple stories he allegedly got from you. I wanted to ask if you can remember and/or verify these stories. Here goes:

During an early “Brothers” trip, Bobby and yourself stopped into a truck stop/small diner for a meal. It was hot inside and you both were road-weary. While waiting on your food, a persistent fly found its way to your table and relentlessly pestered Bobby. After a few minutes of dealing with the uninvited table guest, Bobby seized the opportunity as the fly landed on the window blinds next to the table, and proceeded to dowse the fly with a full glass of water and exclaim, “there, take that…you red-eyed blue ****!!!” Dale and I would often bring the story up while traveling…especially anytime we were visited by a fly…and laugh extensively about it. Even if you can’t remember, or this simply didn’t take place, it’s still fun to imagine!

Also, Dale shared the story that Bobby, in his younger days, would eat a whole onion, in the same manner as folks would eat an apple, in claims that it had benefits to his voice and range of singing. Is this something that you recall? I know ole Bobby is tough as they come, but I would think it takes a heck of a man to eat an entire onion in one sitting. Just a thought.

Thanks for everything you do and the best music and a lifetime of memories!

Tom, (the Boy from Indiana)

Tom, thank you for your participation. If you had a good friend in Dale Vanderpool, you had a good friend in the best.

Now this first story that he told you, is the absolute truth. The only thing different is that Bobby not only threw water on the fly, he threw the whole glass (which was plastic of course) and then he said, “There, take that, you red-eyed blue f-bomb.” Had you been there when it happened, you would have come unglued.

The thing about Bobby eating a whole onion like an apple, I never saw that, but I wouldn’t doubt it.

Thanks Tom, if I’m not sadly mistaken, that would be Tom Holt because lo and behold during their heyday, Tom was a Boy from Indiana. And they were good! And every time we would show up and they were there, we knew that we would be eating well that day, because every one of them was a great cook. I would imagine that Tom could tell some stories too because Harley Gabbard was also in that band.

=================================

Hi Sonny. Stan here…you have been gracious enough to answer a few questions in the past, and I am forever grateful…one question I still wonder about is the Brothers’ relationship with Mac Wiseman. Mac is one of my favorites and I grew up listening to Renfro Valley on Sunday mornings. Your rendition of Take Me Back to Renfro Valley always reminds me of those mornings! How did you two meet Mac, and how did you decide what songs to sing on your collaborations, including The Essential Bluegrass Album? Who made those decisions and do you have any good stories regarding the many performances you did while performing together at the numerous festivals you played? Lastly, thank you again for doing this and for letting us share in your memories of bluegrass music, and the wild adventures of your and Bobby’s lives!!

Stan

Hey Stan, thank you for joining us today. Beautiful day here in Tennessee, as long as you like the threat of rain and sometimes sunshine and cloud cover….and then every now and then the educated ones get it right. But that hasn’t happened this year…yet!!!!

You know what Stan? I don’t remember first meeting Mac Wiseman, although I knew of Mac from when he was with Flatt & Scruggs and Bill Monroe. And then he was in Shreveport with his own band, and Joe Medford played the banjo with him and they were good. The double album we did with Mac was a combination of Bobby’s idea, my idea, and then we asked Mac and he said, “When do we start?” I called Martin Haerle, owner of CMH Records, and he gave the go-ahead, and so that meant that we were on our own to get it done. I set up studio time at Hilltop and as far as the songs we did, we didn’t actually rehearse…we just said titles and every one of us knew the songs. Take Me Back to Renfro Valley was a song written by Ralph Gabbard, and while me and Judy were using his seats one night at a Kentucky basketball game, he mentioned in passing that he had a good song for us that he had written. Turns out, it was Take Me Back to Renfro Valley. That’s not the only great song in that album. It’s loaded with them.

Our songs, Mac’s songs, and songs from just about anybody we could think of. Mac and Bobby could sing anything.

Stan, it is my pleasure to be able to do this, and I thank Terry and John for allowing me to get by with saying anything.

==============================

Sonny,

I was fortunate to have performed with the late, great Bill Yates for the last 10 years of his life. I always enjoyed listening to his stories relating to his time performing with Bill Monroe, Jimmy Martin, Red Allen and, especially, The Country Gentlemen. Did you ever perform with Bill in the early years or have any Bill Yates stories you could share? Thanks for this column. I enjoy it very much.

Mike Phipps

Hi Mike., I’m going to tell you a story that comes from Bill Yates himself, although I wasn’t there. But it’s too good to pass up.

Bill was working for Jimmy Martin, and they were on the way to a date when Jimmy’s bus broke down. Something serious about the engine. So Bill volunteered to stay behind and try to fix the bus. You need to keep in mind that Bill was a great many things, and a mechanic was one of them. He stayed behind and was lucky enough to find all the parts that he needed, and then proceeded to basically give Jimmy’s bus an overhaul. When he got through, he got on the bus and drove it to where they were playing, and I don’t remember whether the show was over, just ending, or anything else. But I do know that Bill told me, they all got on the bus and took off for the next date. On the way, they stopped at a McDonalds and so Bill ordered a Big Mac and Jimmy went up to him and said, “Don’t worry about this, Sport, I’ve got it and I want to thank you for fixing my bus.” I asked Bill….is that all? He said…”Yep, that’s what I got paid for overhaulling Jimmy’s bus.” You can believe that or not. Yates told it to me shortly after it happened. I tend to believe it. During Bill’s years with The Country Gentlemen, they were good. Real good.

============================

I have been wanting to contact you for some time, but when I read your comment about Casey Clark I had to respond. Casey was my Mom’s cousin. We always enjoyed his band coming to the Clark Reunions at Carter Caves State Park in Kentucky near where the family was from. I was able to contact Casey’s granddaughter K. Stephens living in Minnesota to share your comment with her. Her reply was, “It is wonderful to know that my grandfather is still remembered. Both he and my Mom always had a lot of respect, and liking for both the Osborne Brothers, and Sonny was a particular friend of my Moms.” I thought maybe you would enjoy her response.

The Clark family had many of us who loved our music, and were always singing and playing instruments. Currently Scott Tackett who plays with the bluegrass band Hammertown is from the Clark family. Also many years ago we had a conversation (either at Frontier Ranch or Festival of the Bluegrass) about you attending Fairview High School. I attended Stivers High School in Dayton. I would like to hear of your days of playing music in Dayton, at Frank’s Tavern, Canal Street Tavern with Red Allen, and his sons Harley and his brothers, Frank Wayfield, and many others. Thanks for your time, God Bless, and stay healthy.

Donna Smith

Thank you for your time and comments. Casey was a good guy and always had a good band. While we were there, Buddy Emmons and Herb Williams were members of the band. I don’t think I know Scott Tackett but I do know Hammertown is a good band. And yes, I attended Fairview High School for a few months in the 10th grade. Although I knew of Stivers High School in Dayton, I never knew where it was. By the time bluegrass music arrived in Dayton at places like Frank’s Tavern, Canal Street Tavern… Bobby and I were gone and had been for several years. The places we worked in Dayton several years earlier were The Friendly Inn, the Ring Bar, Engles Tavern, Ruby’s White Sands….and then we moved to Nashville.

Thank you for your participation.

=================================

Hello again, Sonny

I once heard a story about you learning clawhammer banjo from Grandpa Jones. Could you elaborate more on this? Also, to answer your question from the last time I wrote in, my full name is Elijah, but I don’t use it. Thank you for your time

Eli P.

Eli wrote in again and stated that his true name was Elijah, but he goes by Eli. We thank you, Eli, for straightening us up on that.

Now, you asked about my experience with Grandpa Jones trying to teach me clawhammer banjo. We sat there in the dressing room of the Ryman Auditorium for 40 minutes, and he tried his damnedest to teach me how to clawhammer. I tried as hard as I could to learn to do that because I really like it, but there was something about that rhythm that I just couldn’t get. And Grandpa, who had quite a temper, finally handed me the banjo… stomped his feet and got up, and he said, “A man like you, that can do what you can do with your fingers, and can’t play clawhammer banjo…I ain’t got nothin’ else to say to him.” Grandpa stormed out of the room, and didn’t speak to me for two years. And we never discussed clawhammer banjo playing again. That’s the truth.

Thank you Eli for participating in our little freeforall.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… what was it like touring with Merle Haggard?

Posted on April 2, 2021 by Azlyrics

Good morning Chief! Wow, how about those storms huh? Made me think we were heading back to 2010 and the big flood here in Music City. Not to worry though, Larry just got the pontoons on the bus (which we’ve now nicknamed the BlueSplash Express) and we’re good to go. Professor Dan is launching the skiff now and headed to your porch, so grab your snorkel and Mae West and let’s go sailing!

….Lawrence told me he could back it into a rathole. Well now I wanta see him back this thing up his driveway with those skids on each side. My money is on him…I was pretty good, Benny and Raymond were better’n me, but Raymond Huffmaster was the best ever. (Incidentally, who was Mae West????)

>>> Sonny, she was the girl on the poster in your uncle’s shop.

=====

Hey Sonny,

Looks like Bobby is at it again with a brand new cover of a Merle Haggard classic, just released on Alison Brown’s Compass label this week. Which made me wonder, got any stories about the “Hag” you can share with us?

Uncle C.

Uncle, glad to have you jump right on in hyer! Thank you for your time. YEP…I’m familiar with Bobby’s latest Compass release. If Bobby makes his next December 7 birthday, he will be 90 years old. How many 90 year old singers still sound good? Well, he does. This is not the Bobby I’m used to hearing for over 50 years, but who is? I haven’t picked a lick since 2003, so I don’t reckon I have much room to have an opinion one way or the other, would you agree? So, in my opinion…if Ms. Brown and the folks at Compass Records are pleased and happy with Bobby’s sound, and if Bobby is pleased with how Bobby sounds, and he’s making the cash registers jingle, who wants to complain? Hey, I still have Decca, MGM, RCA…and a lifetime of live show memories. Carry on Brother Bob!

Merle Haggard era… There was a reason for taking the dates to open for Merle. I wanted to get to play the venues in larger cities, LA, Oakland Coliseum, Madison Square Garden…etc. And for 4 years we played for 10,000 to 20,000 per night. That was a total of maybe 40 days per year…including The White House, Harrah’s in Lake Tahoe, Fort Worth with Bob Wills in the audience. Crowds were great, we were accepted if not loved. Lot of work, money not great but good enough…it served its purpose.

Met and became friends with Bob Eubanks. Still talk to him occasionally. Merle was relatively quiet, not rude, open for conversation but not a big mouth….just a good ole boy. One of us…the biggest star, in country music, world wide, but he didn’t act like it. Very few get that popular and stay down to earth. One night he walked through pretty steady rain over to our motorhome to just get away from that bunch, maybe drink a couple beers, see what you guys were doing. Guy that big can prove himself right quick by doing things like that. Johnny Cash and Carl Smith did basically the same thing. You just love guys like that, feel sorry for the others.

—-

Hey Sonny,

I really like your column, so much bluegrass history in them! I just wondered if Flatt and Scruggs ever asked The Osborne Brothers to join them onstage?

Mark K.

Hey Mark. Thanks for joining our fracas…good to hear from you. So far as Lester and Earl asking us to come on stage with them, no they never did. But in 1960, Berryville, Virginia, Eddie Matherly wanted to hear Bobby sing with Lester and I tagged along. I think Benny came too. We did Roll in My Sweet Baby’s Arms and We’ll Meet Again Sweetheart. I picked and Bobby sang. Lester sang and Earl didn’t take any breaks. Just stood there and played a little rhythm. Looked tired, he might have been. It was very hot that day and after our show, I was standing beside our car and just had opened perhaps the coldest Budweiser ever brewed…I took one swallow and I heard this voice, and it said, “Boy I wisht I had me a cold byer.” I looked around and realized I was standing beside Lester and Earl’s bus. The voice was Earl in the driver’s seat. So I reached it up and offered him a drink of it. He took it and damned if he didn’t drink the whole thing and handed me the can back. He said, “boy that was good. Thank you!” A few years later we became closer with them. Lester told me that when Earl had the wreck in 1955, he tried to get in touch with us but couldn’t find us, and he had to have someone immediately.

—–

Hello Sonny

In the early part of the 2000s, my grandmother served as the official photographer for a festival in West Liberty, KY, called the Old Mill Park Bluegrass Festival. She once told me about a time that you guys headlined the festival, and that you brought the house down. So, I was curious as to whether or not you have any memories of playing this festival.

Eli P.

Eli….good to have and enjoy your company. West Liberty, Kentucky. ‘Bout a hundred miles from My Old Kentucky Home….I don’t know that to be fact, I just made it up cause it sounded good. I remember playing that because a band member got mad at me that day, and quit if memory serves me correctly. I bought a good guitar from him and I think he thought I would bring it every week and he would still get to play it. Wrong, I sold it to another guy in our band who played a different instrument. Never saw the guitar again. I do remember playing there. I remember that we had a hard time finding the location. I don’t remember tearing the house down, but I do remember gong over quite well. Thank you Eli…would that be Elihue, or Elijah…or both or neither. Sandy Rothman will probably set me straight on that. See you next week if the Lord’s willing and the creeks don’t rise.

—–

In all your travels, where did you find the best food? Homemade? Restaurants?

And what is your favorite meal?

Bobby’s??

N.B.

NB…Thank for your time. I appreciate it very much. Outside USA would be rather easy. Canada and Germany. Not fair though. We spent a lot of time in Canada, Germany… only a little in comparison. Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Moncton, New Brunswick were the closest to ’40s and ’50s southern country meals.

Germany had Wiener Schnitzel. Both places were very good but right here in the USA, you can find anything a person would want. Bobby, I don’t really know what he likes most. If I had to guess, I would have to say fried chicken…actually you could mark that down for both of us. However, for the last 20 years I worked he brought his food from home. We had the freezer and refrigerator on the bus, so he rarely went into a restaurant to eat with us. But once we stopped at a truck stop South of Cincinnati and brother went in with us. He sat at a different table and when he left, he dropped a dollar bill on the table as a tip. David Crow, who played fiddle with us was sitting at our table. After Bobby left, David rushed to that table, picked up the dollar brother left and replaced it with one of his own. He wrote on it. I read what he wrote. “This dollar was left by Bobby Osborne as a tip on this date. It is the only tip I saw him leave, ever.” HOO RAH DAVID.

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… how ’bout Billy Strings and his Grammy?

Posted on March 26, 2021 by Azlyrics

Good morning Chief! Well the bus is packed with all the usual suspects and we’re ready to roll. Today it looks like we’re heading back to 1996 and Bobby’s River Bend Festival. Also, one of your fans is asking about life on the road back in the day. Plus, we lost another legend in our industry with the passing of J.T. Gray this week.

===========

Sonny, thank you so much for sharing your stories and insight, I sure do appreciate it. With the recent passing of J.T. Gray, I’m hoping you can share a few special memories with us of the World Famous Station Inn.

Lilly D.

Lilly, let me welcome you in here. We going to take a ride in Larry’s fancy 45 foot long truck. Unfortunately, I had bad experiences at the Station. Partially my fault, some not. I was sitting at a table talking with my banjo camp partner when this drunk wandered up, saw me and wanted to talk. He leaned over to speak, and not realizing it he also allowed the beer bottle to lean too which poured a bottle of beer all over me.

Then there was the time I went to see Kenny Ingram play one of my banjos. I was sitting in a chair in the small dressing room. This guy who’s name I won’t tell sat down beside me and asked if his girlfriend could take our picture. Of course I said yes. He started counting. On three she snapped the shutter. At that precise time, Nameless chose to grab me in the crotch.

Then, I went to hear the Grascals shortly after they organized. El, Smitty, Matty, all ex-employees of the Brothers. I told them to please don’t draw attention to me and they agreed. Dave Talbot, fine banjo player went to the mic and I heard Terry Smith say, “he is not going to like it. We promised him.” Dave said he was going to do it any way. He pointed me out, I got up and left. There is more but I think you get the idea.

We arranged a roast for Lance Leroy. Lotta fun. Right? Ummmhmmm! David Parmley and I were MC for it. All of a sudden, as Lance was sitting on stage, this woman just walks up to Lance and throws her coat off, and she is very scantilly dressed, proceeded to sit on his lap. David and I are flabbergasted. I yelled to David to get her the hell outa here.

This seemed to happen every time I went in the place. J T was a good friend and a wonderful man. My condolences to his family. That man will be missed…by many. Although I rarely saw him, I can’t seem to get the fact that today when I woke up, he was gone. RIP brother JT.

—–

Hey Sonny, I wonder if you remember a festival, I think called Bobby’s River Bend in ol KY? A specific time, 1996, I was there with my dad and uncle who was playing with Melvin Goins at the time. You gave me your video camera to record uncle’s playing. My question is do you remember that instance and if you still had the tape? I think there was an incident after your show which was interesting to say the least. Hope you are well!

Wes V.

Wes Vanderpool, friend, banjo player, bought Krako number 6. That thing is going to blow you right on out of h’yer…Son! I remember that time and place. I still ache because I did a thing I will regret forever. Dale Vanderpool was one of my best fans and very close friends. Fine banjo player but easily rattled. Nerves. I asked him to come on stage with us and play. I asked if he knew Tennessee Hound Dog. He said he did. He played about five seconds into the break and then went mentally somewhere else. It embarrassed him and that was the last thing on this earth I would have intentionally done. 25 years later and I still have an ache in my heart.

Already irritated, this drunk insisted on standing directly in front of us and dancing…alone. I asked him to please sit down, people were complaining. They couldn’t see us. I told him that, and he told me what I could go do to myself, which would have been physically impossible. I asked him to meet me right beside the stage and I would detach him from his ass. He said he’d be there. I don’t ever remember being so mad. We finished and I gave my banjo to Dale. Take it to the bus, put it my room, shut the door.

An old boy walked up and told me to not get my hands dirty, “we’ll find him, we know him. We’ll take care of him for you!” I remember that place well.

—–

Sonny,

You may have noticed a lot of discussion here about Billy Strings since he won the Grammy. Some love him, some not so much, but Vince Gill had an interesting take awhile back on the changes to country music as well. When asked his opinion he said: In fact I do like it, it’s just “not my cup of tea. But I don’t know if I was Merle Haggard’s cup of tea when I first got going. And I don’t know if Merle Haggard was Roy Acuff’s cup of tea. I don’t know if Roy Acuff was Jimmie Rodgers’ cup of tea. To me, to be ‘that’ guy that looks back, you sound like a curmudgeon, you sound like you’re bitter, you sound like all those things…I love seeing young people just out there doing what they love.”

So whadda ya say Sonny, ready to give Billy Strings a break? After all, you kinda started this. LOL.

Walter B.

Walter, sit right down. {that’s make believe} Billy Strings. I’ll give him a break in C# or A flat…Billy, he say “Duh”…I have listened to two songs by Billy boy. Both were bluegrass, both performed live, with a sub par sounding band. Listen now, I did this for over 50 years and can you imagine how many bluegrass bands I’ve heard; some good some bad. So at this time of my life if it’s not on the level of good solid picking and singing, like maybe Jim and Jesse, Doyle Lawson, Flatt and Scruggs, Larry Stephenson Band, Country Gentlemen when Bill Emerson was with them…(to name a few) I really didn’t listen. My blunder.

I might have paid better attention If I had known I would be grilled at some point in my life…{;~0>) make no mistake, I love doing this. So, Billy Strings. He might be the best singer, guitar player…(I would think Josh Williams, Clarence White, or Tony Rice would have something to say about that), best dude on the planet, I don’t know him so maybe I’m not qualified to have an opinion. So far he’s just not “my cup of tea..black gold, Texas tea.” Here it is Walter, if Billy is promoting Bluegrass Music, by Golly…I love him. He won a Grammy…Lawd How Moicy!!!!!

—–

Sonny,

I love, love, love your column. Never miss it and it always brightens up my Friday mornings. So here’s my question: I’ve spoken with a good number of musicians over the years and the ones who are honest often tell me after years of touring, they’re just burned out and tired of the road. So much so, they dread getting back on the bus. Did that ever happen to you and if so, are there times now that you miss being out there laying down miles to another festival?

Virginia P.

…Hey girl, thank you for your time. Let me see now. Just guessing I would say we worked over 10,000 shows. I’ve played in boiling heat, rain and snow, sub zero, 120 degree, so tired I could barely stand, seen good and bad…in the ’50s I called my Dad several times at 3:00 in the morning, he always said how much and where can I send it. Never questioned me but always asked if we were safe.

I tell you this so you might know that we saw the good and bad…both sides of the coin. Made it to the Grand Ole Opry, played in the White House for the Nixon bunch, big crowds, no crowds. Probably traveled a total of 6 million miles and right now, if I were healthy I would do it all over again, jump right in that white Eagle… (nicknamed by Russell Moore..”The refrigerator”) and gladly drive it the 600 miles to tomorrow’s date. I loved it that much. I loved hearing Bobby’s voice…Paul’s voice and guitar, Benny and Dale blending in our trio. I’d do it all over again if I could…starting this evening….yep, I would…befo da good lawd say, THAT’s ALL!

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.

Ask Sonny Anything… what made Merle Haggard laugh?

Posted on March 19, 2021 by Azlyrics

Hi Sonny:

I think the year was 1995 or ’96 and you were playing a carnival in Clear Springs, MD, and the rain interrupted your show for some time and you, Bobby, and the band went to your bus parked just off the stage area. I came over and stood against the bus to shield myself somewhat from the rain. You were standing in the door and we exchanged some conversation and you invited me to come on board out of the rain. We had a conversation about several things pertaining to bluegrass that night, and finally you were able to finish the performance. You were gracious as a host and to let me in out of the rain.

I think Terry Eldredge was in your band then. Terry and I have become friends down through the years, and I really love his singing and his down home personality. I’m just a bit younger than you, (just turned 81 in November) but still remember that night and the great music, one of the many times I caught an Osborne Brothers performance.

Dick Beckley

Hey Dick. Great to share a moment of your time. Let’s see what you have for us today. I remember doing a fire carnival in Clear Springs and yes, Terry El would have been with us at the time. Terry was definitely one of the most honest, loyal people who ever worked with us. Talent galore…you could not have picked a better friend. He was with us 12 years. Terry Smith, El, and a couple other guys formed a band…they called it The Grascals. Great band. 5 time banjo player of the year, Kristin Scott Benson, has been with that band for over 10 years now. She is one fine banjo player…I’m certainly glad to have had your company…as I remember it poured for over an hour and we did finish our shows that night. Pretty good crowd too.
S

—–

Sonny, I will always remember the time you took to talk bluegrass with me (a then 20-ish country/bluegrass disc jockey) behind the stage at Sunset Park. It was in 1981 or so and we talked about several bluegrass-related topics, none of which I recall specifically. I do remember how kind you were to talk with me for, what I recall as, a pretty long time. The Sunset Park property is now partially occupied by a shopping center and an elder living community. I know that you and Bobby appeared there annually for 25 years or more and I wonder if you have any specific recollections about Sunset or its owners, Lawrence and Hazel Waltman?

Sincerely,

Ron Baker, Wilmington, DE

Ron. Man have you stirred up some memories. Answer to that is yes. We held the record for number of times we worked there. Over 25, we did it sometimes twice in a season. I loved the place. Always good sound, good crowds, and the majority of the folks knew us and we knew them. Great place to play. Winnie Winston always showed up and gave me a Scruggs string sleeve. I won’t discuss at this time what it contained, but it will become obvious later. Winnie was a banjo player, then became a pretty good steel player. At some point he moved to New Zealand or Australia, can’t remember which.

Del and Jean McCoury and their family came to see us at Sunset Park. Just to the right of the stage was a huge trunk that was left when the monster tree was taken out. The stump would measure at least 4 or 5 feet thick. Del and Jean sat in their lawn chairs and Rhonda, Ronnie, and Robin Floyd sat on that big ole stump. I wonder if my memory coincides with theirs. I wonder if they had any thought or the vaguest idea of just what all lay ahead for that family of the finest folks you would ever want to know.

I remember this guy named Arthur who brought at least 15 books and pictures for each of us to sign. He also had specific pens for us to use. Yep, we signed them all. And Ron, I wonder if you went on to become a country DJ and if you played our records…huh? Too country for bluegrass and too grassy for country. But they sold, why? Can’t say, Thank you LORD!

…Naw Ron boy, you wouldn’t do that, would you. My first time to play at Sunset was in 1952 as a Blue Grass Boy. I also traveled on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. That was my first time to experience a toll road. Did I have a rude awakening…New York City….
S

—–

Sonny, the music business is tough and it takes a special degree of determination to survive and succeed. Based on your experience, what advice would you give another musician hoping to earn a living making music? We all can’t record a Rocky Top!

John G.

John, thank you for sharing your time with us. Come on in hyer and tell us what you got. Making a living as a musician. First you gotta be good at what you do. Real good. Confidence almost to the point of conceit, but check conceit at the front door. Conceit is a one way ticket to the cellar, and once you’re there it’s a million miles back… kick conceit in he ass and practice till you are blue in the face the keep right on practicing. You can not…CAN NOT PRACTICE ENOUGH. If your craft is that important to you and you are determined to do that for a living. you better get used to practice.
S

—–

Hey Sonny, Were you able to get the feel for Earl’s boogie-woogie style licks like he played on Foggy Mountain Special, Don’t Get Above Your Raisin’, and even on Heavy Traffic Ahead with Monroe. Those seem really hard for a lot of banjo pickers.
J

Thank you for your time J, but I warn you when Larry backs this 45-foot monster you will have to dodge Terry Herd as he flees to the back. It’s not really that bad J, but I can imagine it any way I want and that’s the way it’ll be for now.

If you listen closely to what Earl did, the notes are exactly the same. It’s just a matter of timing, spacing notes, and phrasing. He used the same break on Blue Yodel #4, and Six White Horses, and a half dozen others that I won’t go into here. I hope this answers your question.
S

—–

Now to make reference to a subject I delved into earlier. We, the Brothers, played the Memorial Hall in Dayton, Ohio with Merle Haggard and the Strangers. No sooner than I had the bus stopped, Roy Nichols came and knocked on the door and then just walked in. He sat down, or I should say jumped down, into the shotgun seat. He was so nervous his hands were shaking. He said, “Have you got anything to help us? because Merle and I really need some help.”

I went to the back and got string sleeve (the one Winnie Winston gave me, of which I had absolutely no use for). I never touched the stuff. I gave it to Roy and told him, “Be careful, I think this is potent stuff.” Roy looked at me and said, “Oh yeah, we will”.

Now fast-forward about 2 hours…..We had already been on, received the Keys to the City of Dayton from the Mayor, and Merle and the Strangers were on and about 10 minutes into their show. I had gotten my regular chair and sat it right behind Roy, and behind the curtain. Suddenly, Roy put his guitar down, leaned back in his chair, and lit a cigarette. I knew right then that Roy and Merle had not been careful.

About every 20 seconds, Roy would just burst out laughing. While Merle was at the mike singing, and it became Roy’s break time, and there was no Roy. And the great Merle Haggard turned his head and looked at Roy and Roy was sittin’ over there laughing….at nothing….and Merle looked over at Roy and saw him laughing and HE started laughing. And he said, “It’s funny, ain’t it Roy?” and just about doubled over laughing…………………….

That explains Winnie Winston’s Sunset Park Earl Scruggs string sleeve ingredients, of which I knew nothing of. heh heh heh heh

If you have something you would like to ask Sonny, be sure to post it in the comments below, or send it to us directly.