![]() ![]() ![]() But it’s when The Whites formed officially in the early 1980’s and signed to Curb Records that things began to click. Buck White and The Down Home Folks formed in 1972 and did fine, and Buck recorded a solo album for Sugar Hill in 1979 called More Pretty Girls Than One. It’s when Buck White’s daughters Sharon White (born December 17, 1953) and Cheryl (born January 27, 1955) showed early promise in music that Buck White started to take it more seriously as a career. Originally from Fort Worth, Texas, Buck loved the music, but didn’t care too much for the places you had play late at night like dancehalls and wrestling arenas. Born December 13, 1930, Buck White was mostly a moonlighting musician for much of his life, working as a plumber by day, and playing piano and mandolin by night. The patriarch of The Whites, and the oldest current member of the Grand Ole Opry, Buck White was the somewhat reluctant, but ultimately proud leader of one of country music’s most important bluegrass Gospel bands. This makes Merv one of the last living performers who performed with Hank Williams on stage. The success of the song allowed Shiner to make his Grand Ole Opry debut on April 8, 1950, which was the day before Easter, and the perfect day to perform “Peter Cottontail.” Who did Merv Shiner perform the song with? None other than Hank Williams. The signature song during Merv Shiner’s 35-year career was the semi children’s song “Peter Cottontail,” which became a hit in 1950. That’s when he landed a recording contract with Decca Records. When that didn’t pan out, he came back to Pennsylvania, and started appearing on the radio in Allentown, and on television in New York City. Taught to sing and perform at a young age by his mother, he moved to Los Angeles in 1942, and worked at a defense plant while trying to make it as a solo artist. She’s been featured in National Geographic and other periodicals, and she made her Grand Ole Opry debut at the tender age of 99 on August 6th, 2016.īorn February 20, 1921, Merv is one of the last of the Singin’ Cowboys, though unlike many of his contemporaries who found their fame in California during the silver screen days, the Bethlehem, Pennsylvania-native found better fortune back east. Violet Hensley also appeared on The Beverly Hillbillies (1969), The Art Linkletter Show (1970), Captain Kangaroo (1977), and Live with Regis and Kathy Lee (1992). It wasn’t until later in life when she began to be known as a performer, releasing three album, Old Time Fiddle Tunes (1974), The Whittling Fiddler and Family (1983), and Family Treasures (2004). A Violet Hensley-made fiddle is considered a treasure and a masterpiece. Violet Hensley was married at the age of 18 and had nine children, but always found the time to pursue her passion for fiddle making. She learned how to make fiddles from her father who made his first fiddle in 1888 using hand tools. Born on Octoto George Washington Brumley and Nora Springer Brumley, that would make her 105 years old. Known by numerous names including the “Whittling Fiddler” and the “Stradivarius of the Ozarks,” Grand Ole Opry performer, actress, fiddler, and designated “Living Treasure,” Violet Hensley is likely the oldest living link to country music’s past. So let’s take time to pay tribute and remember these country music icons and contributors. Jerry Lee Lewis – Age 87 – October 28, 2022īut there are still many around. Stonewall Jackson – Age 89 – December 4, 2021 Jesse McReynolds – Age 93 – June 23, 2023 Ray “Chubby” Howard – Age 95 – December 23, 2021 Rose Lee Maphis – Age 98 – October 26, 2021 Some of the oldest living links and legends that we have lost recently include: With the recent passing of some of these oldest and most important contributors, it feels especially important to freshen this list. Though age is definitely part of it, so are the specific ties each of these individuals have back to important moments or the legends of their time. These are the contributors who you can sometimes trace back to the very formations of what we consider “country” and “bluegrass” today. Every so often, it is important to stop down, pay tribute, and appreciate all of the living legends we still have around in country and roots music.
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