Mike Seeger Collection, 1923-2012 (bulk 1955-2009)

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Mike Seeger Collection, 1923-2012 (bulk 1955-2009)

1923-2012 (bulk 1955-2009)

https://finding-aids.lib.unc.edu/20009/

During the 1950s and 1960s, collector,folklorist, and traditional music performer Mike Seeger recorded interviews andperformances of many legendary old-time and bluegrass musicians. The collection consists of open reel tape and DAT audiorecordings from 1955 to 2002, along with supporting logs and films. The audiorecordings include both live performances and Seeger's interviews with many notablebluegrass and old-time musicians; master tapes from various LP recording projects;and recordings of Seeger's own band, the New Lost City Ramblers. Of particularinterest are live concert recordings featuring such musicians as Tony Alderman, E.C. Ball, Dock Boggs, Buzz Busby, Alex Campbell and Ola Belle Reed, Maybelle Carter,Elizabeth Cotten, Sady Courville, Cousin Emmy, Hazel Dickens, Lester Flatt and EarlScruggs, Roscoe Holcomb, Mississippi John Hurt, Tommy Jarrell, the Jim Kweskin JugBand, Grandpa Jones, the Lilly Brothers, the Louvin Brothers, Carl Martin and TedBogan, Dennis McGee, Sam McGee and Kirk McGee (the McGee Brothers), Bill Monroe andCharlie Monroe (the Monroe Brothers), the Osborne Brothers, Don Reno, Marc Savoy,Red Smiley, Kilby Snow, the Stanley Brothers, Ernest V. Stoneman, J. C. Sutphin,Merle Travis, Wade Ward, Mac Wiseman, and the New Lost City Ramblers. Also includiedare recordings of various performances and workshops at festivals, including theAmerican Old-Time Music Festival, the Bean Blossom Music Festival, and the CulpeperMusic Festival. There are also recordings from the New Lost City Ramblers' Europeantour with Adam Landrenau and Cyp Landrenau, Cousin Emmy, and the Stanley Brothers.Performances were recorded at large and small venues, including New River Ranch nearRising Sun, Md.; Sunset Park, Pa.; and the Union Grove Fiddlers Convention in NorthCarolina. Seeger recorded in-depth interviews with many musicians, includingClarence Tom Ashley, the Benfield Family, Dock Boggs, Charlie Bowman, MaybelleCarter, Tommy Jarrell, Kirk McGee, Sam McGee, Eck Robertson, Leslie Riddle, KilbySnow, Ernest V. Stoneman, and Wade Ward. Of particular interest is Seeger'sinterview with Columbia Records talent scout Frank Walker. Other New Lost CityRamblers recordings include raw tracks and master tapes for the group's albums; liverecordings at folk festivals, colleges, and other venues; and band meetings.Supporting documentation includes Seeger's logs for all of the audio recordings andan artist index. The Addition of February 2003 contains films of Mike Seeger andother musicians, including films of an old-time music workshop in 1977 and aninterview with Mike Seeger. The Addition of July 2009 contains audio recordingsfeaturing many of the musicians represented in the collection and others,among them Eddie Adcock, Howard Armstrong, Kenny Baker, the Balfa Brothers, DeweyBalfa, Ted Bogan, Hylo Brown, Vassar Clements, Sady Courville, Kyle Creed, BobbyDurham, Flick Flaharty, Alice Gerrard, the Goins Brothers, Ted Gossett, SarahGunning, Bill Harrell, Doc Hopkins, Tommy Jarrell, Lily May Ledford, Tex Logan, CarlMartin, Jimmy Martin, Dennis McGee, Melvin Robinette, Montana Slim, Ralph Stanley,Carl Story, Tut Taylor, Doc Watson, Nimrod Workman. The addition alsocontains recordings of Mike Seeger's interviews with musicologist Charles Seeger.The Addition of May 2010 includes video footage from Seeger's documentary project, . The Addition of June 2011 includes photographs and some negatives of Mike Seeger and many of the artists represented in the collection. Many of the photographs were taken by Seeger or otherwise collected by him. There are also several related manuscript items, among them letters relating to photographs in the collection, promotional materials, and scattered journals related to folk music. The addition of April 2012 contains photographs of Mike Seeger, both on stage and off, throughout his career. Talking Feet

107.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 75,000 items)

eng, Latn

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Folklife Collection.

Information

SNAC Resource ID: 6628901

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Folklife Collection.

Related Entities

There are 81 Entities related to this resource.

Monroe, Bill, 1911-1996

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Bill Monroe (1911-1984), Anglo-American mandolin player, singer, and songwriter known as the "Father of Bluegrass", from Rosine, Ky.; and his band, the Blue Grass Boys, featuring banjo player Earl Scruggs of Flint Hill, N.C. From the description of John Edwards memorial collection, 1940s. WorldCat record id: 27189199 Pioneer bluegrass performer. Born September 13, 1911. Died September 9, 1996. Full name: William Smith Monroe. Career active 1920s-1990s. Known as the Father of...

Louvin Brothers

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The Louvin Brothers were an American musical duo composed of brothers Ira and Charlie Louvin (né Loudermilk). The brothers wrote and performed country, bluegrass, and gospel music. Ira played mandolin and generally sang lead vocal in the tenor range, while Charlie played rhythm guitar and offered supporting vocals in a lower pitch. They helped popularize the vocal technique of close harmony in country and country-rock. After becoming regulars at the Grand Ole Opry and scoring a string of h...

Gerrard, Alice, 1934-

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6204vzv (person)

From the 1950s through the 1990s, collector, folklorist, and traditional music performer Alice Gerrard recorded interviews and performances of many legendary old-time and bluegrass musicians. From the description of Alice Gerrard collection, 1954-2000. WorldCat record id: 213374394 Alice Gerrard has devoted her life to playing and preserving traditional music as a musician, collector, and the founding editor of The Old Time Herald . The daughter ...

Durham, Bobby

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6fz053x (person)

Flatt, Lester, 1914-1979

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Bluegrass musician. Born June 14, 1914. Died May 11, 1979. Full name: Lester Raymond Flatt. Guitarist and lead singer for Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys, 1945-early 1948. In 1948 teamed with Earl Scruggs to form the Foggy Mountain Boys. In 1969 ended his professional association with Earl Scruggs and formed Lester Flatt and the Nashville Grass. Member, International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor. Member, Country Music Hall of Fame. From the description of Oral history interview with L...

Ward, Wade

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Stoneman, Ernest V.

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Kweskin, Jim

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Gossett, Ted.

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Ashley, Clarence, 1895-1967

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McGee, Kirk, 1899-1983

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Country performer. Born November 4, 1899. Died October 24, 1983. Career active 1920s-early 1970s. With his brother Sam (Born May 1, 1894; Died August 21, 1975) formed the McGee Brothers. Longtime Grand Ole Opry stars, they backed Uncle Dave Macon on stage and in the recording studio. In the 1930s they teamed with Fiddlin' Arthur Smith to form to Dixieliners. From the description of Oral history interview with Kirk McGee; 1973 December 18; interview conducted by Douglas B. Green. 1973...

Holcomb, Roscoe

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Balfa Brothers

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Ball, E. C. (Estil Cortez), 1913-1978

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Flaharty, Flick.

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Stanley, Ralph Leslie, 1951-

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Pioneer bluegrass performer. Born February 25, 1927. Full name: Ralph Edmond Stanley. Banjoist and singer. Performed with brother, Carter Stanley, as the Stanley Brothers from the late 1940s until Carter's death in 1966. Recorded for Columbia, Mercury, and King record labels. In 1966 he formed the Clinch Mountain Boys. Member, International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor. From the description of Oral history interview with Ralph Stanley; 1968 October 19; interview conducted by Thomas ...

Alderman, Tony, 1900-1978

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w62v5397 (person)

Sutphin, J. C., 1885-

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6p8775k (person)

Taylor, Tut

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6cc3vmk (person)

Savoy, Marc, 1956-

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6p00rkr (person)

Goins Brothers

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Culpeper Bluegrass Folk Festival.

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Robertson, Eck, 1887-1975

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Harrell, Bill D.

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Reed, Ola Belle, 1916-2002

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Musician Ola Belle Reed was born in Grassy Creek, N.C. As a teenager, she performed with an early version of the North Carolina Ridge Runners. In 1949, she married Bud Reed. They formed the New River Gang, with Alex Campbell, and operated New River Ranch, a popular country music park near Rising Sun, Md. In the early 1960s, they moved to Sunset Park, Md., and broadcast a weekly show from their store in Oxford, Pa. During the 1970s, Ola Belle Reed and family performed at many folk festivals. ...

Osborne brothers

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Carter, Maybelle, 1909-1978

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Legendary country music performer. Born May 10, 1909. Died October 23, 1978. Guitarist renowned for her playing style and her crafting of the "Carter Lick." Member of the original Carter Family musical group, and mother of June, Helen, and Anita Carter. Member, Country Music Hall of Fame. From the description of Oral history interview with Maybelle Carter and Ernest V. "Pop" Stoneman; 1968 February 1; interview conducted by Bill Williams. 1968 Feb. 1. (Country Music Foundation, Libra...

Hurt, Mississippi John, 1892-1966

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Gunning, Sarah Ogan, 1910-1983

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Martin, Jimmy, 1927-2005

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Bluegrass performer. Born August 10, 1927. Full name: James Henry Martin. Guitarist and lead singer for Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys, 1949-1954. Successful performer, songwriter, and recording artist. His recording credits include the bluegrass standards "Rock Hearts," "Sophronie," "Hold Whatcha Got," "Widow Maker," and "The Sunny Side of the Mountain." Member, International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor. From the description of Oral history interview with Jimmy Martin; 1993 Decembe...

Boggs, Dock, 1898-1971

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Martin, Carl, 1906-1979

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w68m054c (person)

Hopkins, Doc, b. 1899.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6s19nb2 (person)

Seeger, Mike, 1933-2009

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6pg239w (person)

Anglo-American early country musician Ernest V. Stoneman of Virginia; fiddler Charlie Bowman, originally from Tennessee; guitarist Sam McGee of Franklin, Tenn.; early country and cowboy musician Edward L. Crain of Texas; banjo player Doc Walsh, member of the Carolina Tar Heels; harmonica player Garley Foster; fiddler Alonza Elvis ("Tony") Alderman of Virginia; arranger Irene Spain; talent scout Polk Brockman; early country musician Wilber Ball of Kentucky; Blake Gardner and Bill Knapke; early co...

McGee, Dennis

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Robinette, Melvin, 1905-1999

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Baker, Kenny, 1926-2011

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Union Grove Fiddlers Convention (N.C.)

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Jarrell, Tommy, 1901-1985

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Landrenau, Cyp.

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Landrenau, Adam.

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Story, Carl

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Snow, Kilby, 1905-1980

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Adcock, Eddie

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Workman, Nimrod

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Wiseman, Mac

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Bluegrass musician and music industry executive. Born May 23, 1925. Real name: Malcolm B. Wiseman. Emerged in the late 1940s as a featured singer with Molly O'Day. Original member of Flatt & Scruggs's Foggy Mountain Boys (1948). Member of Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys (1949). Recorded for Dot Records 1951-1963. Head of the Country Department of Dot Records, 1956-1959. Managed the WWVA Jamboree 1966-1970. Member, International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor. From the description of...

Monroe Brothers.

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Reno, Don

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Dickens, Hazel, 1925-2011

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Hazel Jane Dickens (1925*-2011) was an American bluegrass singer, songwriter, double bassist and guitarist. Her music was characterized not only by her high, lonesome singing style, but also by her provocative pro-union, feminist songs. Cultural blogger John Pietaro noted that "Dickens didn’t just sing the anthems of labor, she lived them and her place on many a picket line, staring down gunfire and goon squads, embedded her into the cause." The New York Times extolled her as "a clarion-voiced a...

Watson, Doc

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Doc Watson (1923- ), Anglo-American guitarist, of Deep Gap, N.C., winner of four Grammy music industry awards, and considered by many to be the foremost player of the flat-picking guitar style. From the description of John Edwards memorial collection, 1963-1965. WorldCat record id: 27190383 ...

Smiley, Red, 1925-1972

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w67d5q2m (person)

Scruggs, Earl

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6jq1ddr (person)

Influential banjo player and bluegrass pioneer. Born January 6, 1924. Full name: Earl Eugene Scruggs. Important musical innovator, his thumb-and-two-finger banjo picking style became an essential building block of bluegrass. Member, Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys, 1945-1948. Performed as Flatt & Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys, 1948-1969. In 1969 he formed the Earl Scruggs Revue with his sons. Member, International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor. Member, Country Music Hall of Fame. ...

Bean Blossom Music Festival.

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Brown, Hylo

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McGee Brothers.

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Travis, Merle

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Guitarist, songwriter, and performer. Born November 29, 1917. Died October 20, 1983. Full name: Merle Robert Travis. As a leading exponent of the thumb-style guitar technique, his innovative style influenced generations of guitar players. Songwriting credits include the classics "Sixteen Tons," "Dark as a Dungeon," and "Smoke, Smoke, Smoke (That Cigarette)." Member, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Member, Country Music Hall of Fame. From the description of Oral history interview ...

Benfield Family (Musical group)

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Logan, Tex

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w60g6g32 (person)

Bowman, Charlie

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w60p2jqh (person)

Montana, Slim 1904-1996

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Lilly brothers

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American Old-Time Music Festival.

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Armstrong, Howard, 1909-2003

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6475jnh (person)

Howard "Louie Bluie" Armstrong was born on March 4, 1909, in Dayton, Tennessee, to Daisy and Thomas Armstrong. Armstrong's great-grandfather was a slave owner, and his grandparents were slaves. His father, a gifted musician, artist and preacher, worked as a furnace man at the LaFollette Iron and Coal Company in eastern Tennessee to support his wife and nine children. He taught his children to play a variety of musical instruments, and Armstrong learned to play the mandolin, fiddle and guitar, am...

Creed, Kyle (Andy Kyle), 1912–1982

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6rr3f4j (person)

Emmy, Cousin, 1903-1980

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w62z4101 (person)

Riddle, Leslie

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McGee, Sam, 1894-1975

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6xh2mh9 (person)

Jones, Grandpa, 1913-1998

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Country performer. Born October 20, 1913. Died February 19, 1998. Real name: Louis Marshall Jones. Performer, banjoist, and comedian. Career active 1930s-1990s. During early career worked with Bradley Kincaid who gave him the "Grandpa" nickname. Recorded for the King, RCA, and Decca record labels. Regular cast member of the popular Hee Haw television show. Grand Ole Opry performer for over fifty years. Member, Country Music Hall of Fame. From the description of Oral history interview...

Seeger, Charles, 1886-1979

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6833xgx (person)

Musicologist. From the description of Ballad of Hattonchatel : manuscript and typescript poem, 1920. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 70981474 Seeger was born on Dec. 14, 1886 to American parents in Mexico City; graduated from Harvard University, 1908; taught music at UC Berkeley (1912-19), the Institute of Musical Arts, N.Y. (1921-33), and the New School for Social Research, N.Y. (1931-35); served as asst. director, Pan American Union (1941-53); visiting prof., Yale Univ. (19...

Monroe, Charlie

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6tq5zm2 (person)

Country performer and bandleader. Born July 4, 1903. Died September 27, 1975. Full name: Charles Pendleton Monroe. Career most active 1930s-1950s. Performed with his brother, Bill Monroe, during the late 1920s-1930s as the Monroe Brothers. The duo broke up in 1938. Formed the Kentucky Pardners and recorded with them during the late 1930s-1950s on the RCA and Decca labels. Recordings include "Bringing in the Georgia Mail," and "Old Kentucky Bound." From the description of Oral history...

New Lost City Ramblers.

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Campbell, Alexandra

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Early resident of Collins in Erie County, N.Y. From the description of Letters : to Major A. and Mrs. Campbell, 1839 Dec. 16-1861 Dec. 6. (Buffalo History Museum). WorldCat record id: 33428783 ...

Courville, Sady

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Grand Ole Opry (Theater)

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Ledford, Lily May, 1917-1985

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Lily May Ledford brought tradional banjo and fiddle tunes to a mainstream audience through years of radio performance. Lily May Ledford grew up learning ballads and hymns from her mother and fiddle tunes and popular songs from her father. In her teens she performed for community dances and tourists visiting the Red River Gorge area near her home. Lily May and sisters Rosie and Minnie were the key members of the Coon Creek Girls, probably the first all-female string band....

Busby, Buzz

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Clements, Vassar

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Stannley Brothers.

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Bogan, Ted, 1913-

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Balfa, Dewey

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Walker, Franklin, 1900-1978

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Franklin Dickerson Walker (b. 1900) was an American educator and author. His published works include a biography of Frank Norris (1932), a biography of Ambrose Bierce (1941), and Jack London and the Klondike (1966). From the description of Papers of Franklin Dickerson Walker, 1900-1967. (Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens). WorldCat record id: 122354179 ...