Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. A widely popular star in the jazz and swing eras, he toured internationally, achieving critical and commercial success in the United States and Europe. His best-known compositions, "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Honeysuckle Rose", were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1984 and 1999.
The story of Tennessee's contribution to American music is essentially the story of three cities: Nashville, Memphis, and Bristol. While Nashville is most famous for its status as the long-time capital of country music, Bristol is recognized as the "Birthplace of Country Music". Memphis musicians have had an enormous influence on blues, early rock and roll, R&B, and soul music, as well as an increasing presence in rap.
Appalachian music is the music of the region of Appalachia in the Eastern United States. Traditional Appalachian music is derived from various influences, including the ballads, hymns and fiddle music of the British Isles, and to a lesser extent the music of Continental Europe.
Yank Rachell was an American country blues musician who has been called an "elder statesman of the blues". His career as a performer spanned nearly seventy years, from the late 1920s to the 1990s.
Noah Lewis was an American jug band and country blues musician, generally known for playing the harmonica.
The Rock and Roll Trio were an American rockabilly group formed in Memphis, Tennessee, during the 1950s. They were also known as "Johnny Burnette and the Rock and Roll Trio" and the "Johnny Burnette Trio". The members of the Trio were Dorsey Burnette, his younger brother Johnny, and a friend Paul Burlison. Dorsey and Johnny Burnette were both natives of Memphis, having been born there in 1932 and 1934 respectively. Paul Burlison was born in Brownsville, Tennessee, in 1929, but moved to Memphis with his family in 1937.
"Tiger Rag" is a jazz standard that was recorded and copyrighted by the Original Dixieland Jass Band in 1917. It is one of the most recorded jazz compositions. In 2003, the 1918 recording of "Tiger Rag" was entered into the U.S. Library of Congress National Recording Registry.
MerleFest is an annual "traditional plus" music festival held in Wilkesboro, North Carolina on the campus of Wilkes Community College. The festival, which is held the last weekend in April, was hosted by Grammy Award winner Doc Watson prior to his death and is named in memory and honor of his son, Eddy Merle Watson, who died in a farm tractor accident in 1985.
Gene "Sxip" Shirey is an American electric-acoustic composer, performer, and story-teller. Currently based in New York City, he is known for working with found objects, traditional and rare modified instruments, as well as computers and other electronic instruments. Shirey has released three solo albums, including Sonic New York in 2010. Shirey is a member of The Daredevil Opera Company and is a founding member of the band Luminescent Orchestrii, as well as the band Gentlemen & Assassins. He is the host and producer of Sxip's Hour of Charm, a variety show of cabaret acts.
Nick Raskulinecz is an American record producer. He resides in Nashville, Tennessee.
Howard "Louie Bluie" Armstrong was an American string band and country blues musician, who played fiddle, mandolin, and guitar and sang. He was also a notable visual artist and raconteur.
The Tennessee Ramblers were an American old-time string band originally consisting of William "Fiddlin' Bill" Sievers (1875–1954) on fiddle, his son James "Mack" Sievers on banjo and vocals, daughter Willie Sievers (1909–1998) on guitar, and cousin Walter McKinney on steel guitar. The band was one of the most popular performing groups in East Tennessee during the 1920s through the 1940s, gaining initial fame as a backing band in fiddle contests held at Market Hall in Knoxville, Tennessee, and later performing at fairs and other gatherings around the eastern United States. They recorded several sides for Brunswick/Vocalion in 1928 and 1929, which were issued on the Vocalion label. After the death of William Sievers in 1954, siblings James and Willie formed a Hawaiian music group known as Mack's Novelty Hawaiians. Willie Sievers' guitar solos recorded with the band in 1928 and 1929 are among the first by a female lead guitarist in Country music.
The Carolina Chocolate Drops were an old-time string band from Durham, North Carolina. Their 2010 album, Genuine Negro Jig, won the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards, and was number 9 in fRoots magazine's top 10 albums of 2010.
Carl Story was an American bluegrass musician, and leader of his band the Rambling Mountaineers. He was dubbed "The Father of Bluegrass Gospel Music" by the governor of Oklahoma.
Carl Martin was an American Piedmont blues musician and vocalist who was proficient at playing several instruments and performed in various musical styles.
Rhiannon Giddens is an American musician known for her eclectic folk music. She is a founding member of the country, blues, and old-time music band the Carolina Chocolate Drops, where she was the lead singer, fiddle player, and banjo player.
Chocolate Williams was an American jazz bassist and vocalist based in New York City. He was a prolific performer of jazz, and, notably, performed and recorded with Art Tatum in 1941 and Herbie Nichols in 1952.
Theodore R. Bogan was an American country blues guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known for his work with Howard Armstrong and Carl Martin. His career spanned over 50 years. His finger-picking guitar style was much admired. He played in various string bands for most of his career, including Martin, Bogan & Armstrong.
Dominique Flemons is an American old-time music, Piedmont blues, and neotraditional country multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. He is a proficient player of the banjo, fife, guitar, harmonica, percussion, quills, and rhythm bones. He is known as "The American Songster" as his repertoire of music spans nearly a century of American folklore, ballads, and tunes. He has performed with Mike Seeger, Joe Thompson, Martin Simpson, Boo Hanks, Taj Mahal, Old Crow Medicine Show, Guy Davis, and The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band.
