I heard from a usually reliable source that Curly died today, can any one confirm this. If true one of the few 1st generation left has passed.
I heard from a usually reliable source that Curly died today, can any one confirm this. If true one of the few 1st generation left has passed.
Searched, several places listed that he had passed on the 27th at 98 years old.
Last edited by MikeEdgerton; Jan-02-2018 at 8:53pm. Reason: Changed spelling in title
There is a write up about it and funeral arrangements on the Bluegrass Today website. Unfortunately true.
Spencer
Last edited by MikeEdgerton; Jan-02-2018 at 8:53pm. Reason: Changed spelling in title
Just finished reading his biography, Foggy Mountain Troubadour; The Life and Music of Curly Seckler by Penny Parsons. Sad that I guess the last of the Foggy Mountain Boys (well, Mac Wiseman played with them for a while, but I don't consider him one of the main members) has left us.
I recommend the book, if only to show what the reality of playing country and bluegrass music was, between World War II and the recent past. Seckler was a musical gypsy, starting in a band with his brothers, working with Charlie Monroe, who called him "Smilin' Bill" to suggest an heir to Bill Monroe's role, then playing in band after band, roaming around from radio station to radio station in the upper South. When his first wife deserted him, and he was left with their children, he had to leave them, first with relatives, then in an orphanage, while he tried to make a living through music. Though he worked constantly, he was never able to afford to settle down and buy a house, until he took a "day job" as a truck driver, delivering mobile homes. His years with Flatt & Scruggs were some of the more stable ones, and he garnered praise both among fellow bluegrass musicians, and from the fans, for his singing -- but he was never more than a few paychecks from insolvency. His second wife, with a long history of mental illness, ended up a suicide; he finally found a home with fiddler Paul Warren's widow, and continued to front versions of the Nashville Grass after Flatt's death. It struck me deeply when Parsons described Seckler's series of retrospective awards and honors from the bluegrass community, while he was still only able to afford a trailer as a home.
A long and distinguished career, that offered limited material rewards, and little stability. Parsons' book portrays an affable, modest man, with many stories to tell of the musicians with whom he worked, and the ups and downs of a life spent following his music wherever he needed to go. None of the bitterness or defensiveness we can read in others' late-career memoirs; however, the objective facts of Seckler's life might well have pushed another person into feeling victimized or disrespected (cf. Jimmie Martin).
So long, Curly, and glad you got a chance to tell your story in your 90's. Another of the first bluegrass generation leaves us.
Last edited by MikeEdgerton; Jan-02-2018 at 8:54pm. Reason: Changed spelling in title
Allen Hopkins
Gibsn: '54 F5 3pt F2 A-N Custm K1 m'cello
Natl Triolian Dobro mando
Victoria b-back Merrill alumnm b-back
H-O mandolinetto
Stradolin Vega banjolin
Sobell'dola Washburn b-back'dola
Eastmn: 615'dola 805 m'cello
Flatiron 3K OM
Curly's autobiography sounds like the "True-Life" adventures (and Blues) of The Soggy Bottom Boys.
It's great that he got to see it published in his own lifetime.
But Amsterdam was always good for grieving
And London never fails to leave me blue
And Paris never was my kinda town
So I walked around with the Ft. Worth Blues
One of the under-rated greats. I have all of the 'Flatt & Scruggs' show DVD's and Curly's influence on the band was considerable. A superb vocalist. He clearly sacrificed a lot for his art and dedication (thanks, Allen, for the abbreviated biog, lots I didn't know there).
Gibson F5 'Harvey' Fern, Gibson F5 'Derrington' Fern
Distressed Silverangel F 'Esmerelda' aka 'Maxx'
Northfield Big Mon #127
Ellis F5 Special #288
'39 & '45 D-18's, 1950 D-28.
Lester always said Curley was the best tenor singer that he ever had in a band...He also spoke of his mandolin playing saying, "Curly ain`t all that good playing the mandolin but he sure holds one real nice"...
I loved his tenor singing myself and have quite a few recordings with him singing on them...
Willie
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Here's my brother's and my humble try at an old song I believe Curley Seckler wrote:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZwUia2nexA
A great song, I do believe Lester and Earl recorded it with Curly playing and singing on it...
Willie
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