Can't You Hear Me Calling : The Life Of Bill Monroe, Father Of Bluegrass

INTRODUCTION; CHAPTER 1: Blue Moon of Kentucky Rising (The Beginnings to 1920); CHAPTER 2: The Big City, The Big Country (1929 to 1938); CHAPTER 3: His Own Man (1938 to 1945); Photos; CHAPTER 4: Bluegrass (1945 to 1953); CHAPTER 5: Impacts: Rock 'N' Roll, Flatt and Scruggs, Folk Music (1953 to 1961); CHAPTER 6: Renaissance: Folkies and Yankees (1962 to 1965); Photos; CHAPTER 8: Blue Moon of Kentucky Setting (1983 to 1996); EPILOGUE; NOTES; BIBLIOGRAPHY; Recommended Listening; Acknowledgments; Index.;Now in paperback: The definitive biography of the father of bluegrass, who "did what no other individual has done: invented an entire genre of music."--Chicago Tribune. Considering the range of stars that have claimed Bill Monroe as an influence—Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, and Jerry Garcia are just a few—it can be said that no single artist has had as broad an impact on American popular music as he did. For sixty years, Monroe was a star at the Grand Ole Opry, and when he died in 1996, he was universally hailed as "the Father of Bluegrass." But the personal life of this taciturn figure remained largely unknown. Delving into everything from Monroe's professional successes to his bitter rivalries, from his isolated childhood to his reckless womanizing, veteran bluegrass journalist Richard D. Smith has created a three-dimensional portrait of this brilliant, complex, and contradictory man. Featuring over 120 interviews, this scrupulously researched work—a Chicago Tribune Choice Selection, New York Times Notable Book, and Los Angeles Times Best Book of 2000—stands as the authoritative biography of a true giant of American music. CONTENTS 8 INTRODUCTION 10 CHAPTER 1: Blue Moon of Kentucky Rising (The Beginnings to 1920) 22 CHAPTER 2: The Big City, The Big Country (1929 to 1938) 47 CHAPTER 3: His Own Man (1938 to 1945) 66 Photos 98 CHAPTER 4: Bluegrass (1945 to 1953) 113 CHAPTER 5: Impacts: Rock 'N' Roll, Flatt and Scruggs, Folk Music (1953 to 1961) 151 CHAPTER 6: Renaissance: Folkies and Yankees (1962 to 1965) 187 Photos 266 CHAPTER 8: Blue Moon of Kentucky Setting (1983 to 1996) 278 EPILOGUE 323 NOTES 328 BIBLIOGRAPHY 364 Recommended Listening 381 Acknowledgments 383 Index 388 Chronicles the life and career of the creator of the unique sound of American bluegrass music and documents his influence on American popular music in the twentieth century A wagon road led south from the railroad depot in Rosine, Kentucky.