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Wednesday September 13th, 2000
Bill Monroe, father of bluegrass: A birthday anniversary remembrance
Today would have been music and bluegrass legend Bill Monroe's 89th birthday. William Smith Monroe is the acknowledged father of bluegrass. He invented the style, invented the name and, for the great majority of the twentieth century, embodied the art form. Beginning with his Blue Grass Boys in the '40s, Monroe and his banjo player, Earl Scruggs "defined a hard-edged style of country that emphasized instrumental virtuosity, close vocal harmonies and a fast, driving tempo," writes critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine. Monroe played a 1923 Gibson F5 Master Model mandolin designed by the renowned Gibson luthier Lloyd Loar.
Monroe died on September 9, 1996, four days short of his 85th birthday.
In honor of Monroe's 89th birthday today, Gibson received a beautiful Monroe remembrance from Murfreesboro, TN's, Tom Christy. Tom and his wife Gloria are the backbones of the town's venerable Uncle Dave Macon Days.
"I remember a concert I helped arrange years ago at John Battle H.S. in Bristol, TN, where Bill Monroe was the featured artist. I was on WETS-FM, Public Radio from Johnson City at the time, playing old time and bluegrass, and so was the host MC.
What I remember most from that concert was how gracious and kind Mr. Monroe was to his fans. One in particular, an older man with lots of teeth missing, was so nervous about meeting him that he accidentally spilled the hot cup of coffee he was carrying on Bill's shirt and into his instrument case. Everybody kind of gasped in shock and stepped back a bit, but Bill just took it in stride. Somebody handed him a roll of paper towels, he quickly wiped off his mandolin and shirt (in that order) and went right on smiling, assuring the man he was OK, not to worry about it.
The old man had been telling Bill how he loved to sing with his records, how often they'd helped him get through his job (he'd been a factory worker, he told me later, now retired.) Later in the evening, when Bill was on stage, he called the guy up on stage with him to sing with him on one, and he was actually pretty good! The guy just beamed. When the song was over, Bill put his arm around him and motioned for the audience to applaud, which they did, wildly.
Many years later, while helping my wife (Gloria Christy, Uncle Dave Macon Days Festival organizer) with various chores during the event, Bill Monroe was our Heritage Award recipient. One of the fun activities we offer the honoree each year is the opportunity to ride through Murfreesboro and greet the fans in the motorless parade. I had the task of taking Mr. Monroe from Cannonsburg (festival site) to Central Middle School (a distance of about 3 miles) to get him into his horse drawn carriage for the parade. While we waited for the wagons to form up, we sat in the car, chatting. I could tell he was tired, probably from having been on the Opry the night before, so I didn't say much. The next thing I knew, Bill Monroe was fast asleep in the passenger side of my little Ford Escort. I suppose his entire career he'd had to catch little cat-naps whenever he could. Sometime later, when it came time to trade in that car, it was a tough decision... parting with the Ford where Bill Monroe had slept!
Hope these stories of mine bring you a smile. We join you in missing this great artist and gentle benefactor of the some of the sweetest music ever made."
Tom Christy
Photo of Bill Monroe by Les Leverett
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