Bertha Bearden Dorsey was born and raised Jackson, Tennessee. Country music fans got to know her by her stage name, Ruby Falls. It has been written in several sources that she was among the most successful black female country music singers. … [Read more...] about Saturday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music
The Blackness of Country Music
Friday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music
Rufus "Tee Tot" Payne (4 February 1883 – 17 March 1939) was an early 20th-century African-American blues musician from Greenville, Alabama who was more widely known by his nickname Tee Tot. Payne's nickname of "Tee Tot" is a pun for "teetotaler". It is said that Payne received his nickname because he usually carried a homemade mixture of alcohol and tea wherever he went. … [Read more...] about Friday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music
Thursday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music
DeFord Bailey (December 14, 1899 – July 2, 1982) was an American country music and blues star from the 1920s until 1941. He was the first performer to be introduced on the Grand Ole Opry and the first African-American performer on the show. He played several instruments but is best known for his harmonica tunes. … [Read more...] about Thursday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music
Wednesday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music
Arnold Shultz (1886–1931) was an African-American fiddler and guitarist who is noted as a major influence in the development of the "thumb-style," or "Travis picking" method of playing guitar. Shultz, the son of a former slave, was born into a family of touring musicians in Ohio County, Kentucky, in 1886. In 1900, Shultz began studying guitar under his uncle, developing a … [Read more...] about Wednesday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music
Tuesday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music
Lesley "Esley" Riddle (June 13, 1905 - July 13, 1980) was an African-American musician whose influence on the Carter Family helped to shape country music. Riddle was born in Burnsville, North Carolina. He grew up with his paternal grandparents near Kingsport, Tennessee, not far from the Virginia border. … [Read more...] about Tuesday Open Thread: The Blackness of Country Music