Blue Moon of Kentucky

[JeffD]

I guess bluegrass fans have been fiercely protective for a long time. More protective than
even Bill seems to have been.

I didn't know the details.



The recording.

[Drew Egerton]

I think Mr. Monroe would have been a little more offended if the royalty checks weren't rolling in.

[Timbofood]

I think Mr. Monroe would have been a little more offended if the royalty checks weren't rolling in.

"They was some powerful checks, powerful!" The nice thing is (the story goes) Elvis actually asked Bill before recording the tune.
I heard that from Mr. Bill in an interview years ago, always makes me smile.

[ralph johansson]

I've read somewhere that Monroe liked Presley, largely because of the gospel influence, his use of a gosperl trio or quartet on several numbers.

I'm a bit puzzled by this video. For instance, cut time is not 4/4 but 2/2. Also there's talk of the banjo, of which there strangely was none on Monroes' 1954 re-recording of the song.

[Drew Streip]

Also there's talk of the banjo, of which there strangely was none on Monroes' 1954 re-recording of the song.

I believe he's referring to later, live performances.

[grassrootphilosopher]

I would take the factual information of the first video with a grain of salt.

For example: Bill Monroe is referred to as "the father of bluegrass". Yet this was not in the late fifties as the person in the video proposes. In the late fifties the term bluegrass was just being applied to the musical genre.

[Ivan Kelsall]

I had heard that the term ''Father of Bluegrass Music'' was originally applied to Bill Monroe by his then manager,Ralph Rinzler,in the liner notes to the ''Greenbriar Boys'' first LP - i've just read RR's notes & there's no ref. to ''The Father of Blue Grass'',so maybe at some later date than 1963 ?. I'm sure that if RR had coined the term before he wrote the notes,he would have used it. We owe RR a vast debt. He revived Bill Monroe's flagging career almost single handedly by getting him onto the 'college circuit'. Many other bands had been doing that for a long while,most notably 'Flatt & Scruggs'. RR booked him on many of the Folk Music festivals,his 'new' career took off & he gained the reputation as ''The Father of Bluegrass Music'' via RR's publicity. RR also got many of the 'shelved' recordings that BM had made years before onto records,& as BM became better known,they all sold !,
Ivan

[ralph johansson]

The term "Bluegrass" was established by 1959 when Alan Lomax published his (somewhat inadequate) essay in Esquire Magazine. In 1960 UA released the LP "Folk Songs from the Bluegrass" with Earl Taylor, annotated by Lomax. His notes clearly state the founding role of Monroe; as I recall the Esquire article (no longer freely available) did that, too. I don't recall whether the exact word "father" was used, and that's not really important. Ralph Rinzler's article in Sing Out! - in response to Louise Scruggs' earlier piece - appeared in 1963. Seems the word he used was "Daddy".

[billkilpatrick]

Jeff - for some reason the attachments in your original posts didn't make it across the Atlantic - could be my ancient Mac or some copy rite restrictions perhaps? … boh'. Curious to see them. Could you please paste the links again, without them being highlighted? Thank you - Bill

[JeffD]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILhWKPiyBlE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5kNVizmNL4