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Mentors

  • Herman Crook
  • Sam and Kirk McGee
  • Deford Bailey
  • Steve Davis

Associated With

  • University of Kansas, Lawrence, 1967-1970
  • Middle Tennessee State University, 1970-2005
  • Editor, Tennessee Folklore Society Bulletin

Led the Way

  • Wrote liner notes for approximately 300 bluegrass and old-time music albums and CDs.
  • Set high standards of professionalism for research and writing about country music.
  • Served as a mentor to other writers and historians.
  • IBMA Award of Merit (Distinguished Achievement Award), 1990.
  • Two-time recipient of IBMA award for Best Liner Notes, 1995 and 2004.
  • Bluegrass Hall of Fame, 2008.

By the Way

  • An amateur photographer in his youth.
  • Became enamored with old-time music by hearing 78 rpm records on the family Victrola.
  • His mother loved the music of Elvis Presley.
  • Had aspirations of becoming a professional musician and, after graduation from high school, spent two years working in local bands, including Johnny and the Echoes, Ronnie Self, and Terry Bidell and the Nighthawks.

Mentors

  • Herman Crook
  • Sam and Kirk McGee
  • Deford Bailey
  • Steve Davis

Associated With

  • University of Kansas, Lawrence, 1967-1970
  • Middle Tennessee State University, 1970-2005
  • Editor, Tennessee Folklore Society Bulletin

Led the Way

  • Wrote liner notes for approximately 300 bluegrass and old-time music albums and CDs.
  • Set high standards of professionalism for research and writing about country music.
  • Served as a mentor to other writers and historians.
  • IBMA Award of Merit (Distinguished Achievement Award), 1990.
  • Two-time recipient of IBMA award for Best Liner Notes, 1995 and 2004.
  • Bluegrass Hall of Fame, 2008.

By the Way

  • An amateur photographer in his youth.
  • Became enamored with old-time music by hearing 78 rpm records on the family Victrola.
  • His mother loved the music of Elvis Presley.
  • Had aspirations of becoming a professional musician and, after graduation from high school, spent two years working in local bands, including Johnny and the Echoes, Ronnie Self, and Terry Bidell and the Nighthawks.

From the Archives

“From [Bill Monroe’s] very first recording session, there was brilliance: breathtaking technical skill, soaring vocals, and a dynamic mixture of tradition and innovation.”
Charles Wolfe in liner notes to Bill Monroe: Blue Moon of Kentucky 1936-1949, Bear Family Records, 2002.
“The sound [Carl Story] made owed something to bluegrass and something to gospel, but also included early honky tonk country, a taste of rockabilly, and even a nod or two to western music. It was a prime example of what Don Gibson once called ‘that old Knoxville sound’.”
Charles Wolfe in liner notes to Carl Story: Lonesome Hearted Blues, Bear Family Records, 2005.
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