Bill Monroe's full name was William Smith Monroe. Bill was born on a farm outside Rosine, Kentucky on Sept 13, 1911 to James and Malissa Monroe.
When Bill Monroe died on Sept 9, 1996 the world lost one of the greatest and most influential bluegrass musicians ever known, but fortunately Bill left us with many great recordings and his influences on the world of bluegrass music will never be forgotten.
Bill Monroe is known as the "Father of Bluegrass" and he is the man who is credited with the development of one of the greatest music genres ever. In fact the phrase "Bluegrass" was taken from Bill's original band which was called The Blue Grass Boys!
Bill Monroe The Early Days
In 1929 Bill Monroe, along with Charlie and Birch, his older brothers, and Larry Moore formed a band called the Monroe Brothers. Birch and Larry decided to leave the band and Bill and Charlie continued to play as a duo. The Monroe Brothers got their first recording contract, with RCA Victor, in 1936 and right away they achieved a hit single, What Would You Give In Exchange For Your Soul? From 1936 to 1938 the brothers recorded 60 songs.
In 1938 Bill and Charlie went their separate ways and Bill put together a band he called The Kentuckians, but only three months after the band was formed they broke up.
In 1939 Bill assembled The Blue Grass Boys with Cleo Davis, Art Wooten and Amos Green. Later that same year he became a member of the Grand Ole Opry. In 1940 The Blue Grass Boys recorded Muleskinner Blues for RCA Victor, but by that time the lineup had changed to Clyde Moody, Tommy Magness and Bill Westbrooks.
In 1945 David Ackerman, known as Stringbean joined the Blue Grass Boys. Stringbean is most known for his role on Hee Haw and for his appearances at the Grand Ole Opry. In December that same year the now famous Earl Scruggs played banjo for The Blue Grass Boys.
Bill Monroe's Mandolin
Bill Monroe was the greatest mandolin player ever known and has influenced and inspired others to play the instrument. It is difficult to imagine any bluegrass band without a mandolin.
Sometime in the early 1940s Bill Monroe bought a 1923 Gibson F5 style mandolin signed by the creator of the F5 model Lloyd Loar, which he played throughout the rest of his musical career.
There are only around 200 F5 mandolins signed by Lloyd Loar known to exist and of all those the most prized would definitely be the one owned by the great Bill Monroe.
Bill Monroe Memorial Bean Blossom Bluegrass Festival
In 1967 Bill Monroe started an annual bluegrass festival at Bean Blossom Park in Indiana. Bill himself had owned the park since 1951. Throughout the United States as well as some other countries bluegrass festivals are a popular gathering. The Bill Monroe Bluegrass Hall Of Fame and Uncle Pen Days Festival now has the distinction of being the oldest and most well attended bluegrass festival of all time.
The Bill Monroe Memorial Bean Blossom Bluegrass Festival is held every year in late September at 5163 SR 135 N, Bean Blossom, Indiana. Of course you can visit Bean Blossom Park anytime you like, but it would be great to get to attend the festival. The park had a Bluegrass Hall of Fame and Country Star Museum, flea market, camping, gift shop and much more for the bluegrass lover.
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