Band Members

Dudley Dale Connell

Born: February 18, 1956 in Olney , Maryland Primary Instrument: Guitar
Born: September 29, 1958 in Washington , DC Primary Instrument: Ronald Padraic “Ron” Welch Primary Involvement: Guitar

Francis “Frannie” Davidson

Primary Instrument: Banjo

Richard Dean Underwood

Born: July 14, 1956 in Seabrook , Maryland Primary Instrument: Banjo

Raymond Thomas “Tom” Adams, Jr.

Born: November 17, 1958 in Gettysburg , Pennsylvania Primary Instrument: Banjo

David Wallace McLaughlin

Born: February 13, 1958 in Wasington , DC Primary Instrument: Mandolin

Edward Joseph “Eddie” D’Zmura

Born: November 30, 1955 in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania Primary Instrument: Mandolin

Edward Lawrence “Eddie” Stubbs

Born: November 25, 1961 in Bethesda , Maryland Primary Instrument: Fiddle

Gary Badger Reid

Born: October 2, 1956 in Olney , Maryland Primary Instrument: Bass

Mark Richardson Prindle

Born: January 24, 1956 in Chevy Chase , Maryland Primary Instrument: Bass

Larry Robbins

Born: April 25, 1945 in , Montgomery County,Maryland Primary Instrument: Bass

Marshall McKinney Wilborn

Born: March 12, 1952 in Austin , Texas Primary Instrument: Bass

Hugh Clarke “Earl” Yeager

Born: November 2, 1953 in Gordonsville , Virginia Primary Instrument: Bass

Composed

BMI’s database credits various members of the Johnson Mountain Boys with 124 published compositions and arrangements, including:

 

“Georgia Stomp”

 

“Goodbye to the Blues”

 

“Johnson Mountain Hoedown”

“Maury River Blues”

“Mother’s Voice is in the Wind”

“Now Just Suppose”

“Sugarloaf Mountain Special”

“Weathered Gray Stone”

“When I Can Forget”

Early Influences

George and Dottie Connell

Bill and Nancy McLaughlin

Stanley Brothers

Bill Monroe

Flatt and Scruggs

From the Archives

“You couldn’t find a more diverse group of people. [But] we all really listened to the same kind of music, and had been influenced by the same people. It was really a charged atmosphere when we got together, because everybody was learning new things for the first time . . . hearing old, old records that were new to us—it was really an exciting time.”
Dudley Connell, quoted by Bill Vernon in liner notes to The Johnson Mountain Boys Live at the Old Schoolhouse (Rounder Records, 1989).
“It was really hard to believe. I remember when the first [Johnson Mountain Boys] Rounder record was reviewed in the Washington Post and the writer compared it to landmark albums like J. D. Crowe & the New South or albums by the Seldom Scene. Obviously, those were bands that we had looked up to a great deal. And still do! It was a shock, but it was a pleasant shock.”
Richard Underwood, quoted by Steve Romanoski in “Johnson Mountain Boys: In the Neo-Tradition,” Option, May/June 1986.
“In numerous ways, my days with the Johnson Mountain Boys groomed me for what I’m doing today, work a lot of long hours, and I couldn’t do what I do had it not been for those days in the 1980’s. Performing music in a traveling band allows one to build incredible stamina . . . to keep going even if you’re tired.”
Eddie Stubbs, quoted by Rick Lang in “The Johnson Mountain Boys – A Nostalgic Look,” 2006 Bluegrass Guide, 2006.
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