American Songwriter

On This Day in 1979, Bluegrass Lost One-Half of Its Greatest Duo and a Guitarist Who Shined Alongside Bill Monroe

On this day (May 11) in 1979, Lester Flatt died of heart failure in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 64. Most remember him as half of Flatt & Scruggs, the foundational bluegrass duo. He and Earl ...
AOL

How Flatt and Scruggs' 'The Ballad of Jed Clampett' Became a No. 1 Hit Against All Odds

While "The Ballad of Jed Clampett" became a big hit, Scruggs’ wife and manager, Louise, almost put a stop to the project. Speaking with NPR in 2003, she recalled showrunner Paul Henning approaching ...
American Songwriter

On This Day in 1963, Bluegrass Greats Flatt and Scruggs Were at No. 1 With a Classic TV Theme Song

While the lyrics of the TV theme and the single version of “The Ballad of Jed Clampett” are largely the same, there are some major differences between the two versions. First and foremost, Lester ...
Nashville Scene

Bluegrass Giants Mark 100 Years of Earl Scruggs

Popular music in North America entered a revolutionary stage in the 1940s, and a handful of recordings from the decade document the shift into music that was more virtuosic than what had come before.
Rolling Stone

Earl Scruggs Would’ve Turned 100 This Year. Bluegrass Is Still Playing His Songs

Backstage at the Earl Scruggs Music Festival in North Carolina, Marty Stuart has just finished a whirlwind set on the Flint Hill Stage. A blitzkrieg of country, bluegrass, and rock, Stuart & His ...