Don Reno

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Don Reno as Donald Wesley Reno (* 21 February 1927 in Spartanburg , South Carolina , USA; † 16th October 1984 in Charlottesville , Virginia ) was an American bluegrass - banjo player and guitarist .

Life

Childhood and youth

Don Reno grew up in rural South Carolina. He built his first banjo at the age of five and played with the Morris Brothers and Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith as a teenager . A little later he made his first records with Woody Guthrie before serving in the US Navy between 1944 and 1946 .

Career

Upon his return from military service Reno initially worked as fronting a local bluegrass band before in Bill Monroe's backing band, the Blue Grass Boys , Earl Scruggs replaced as a banjo player. As Scruggs had done before, Reno significantly influenced the bluegrass with the 3-finger style and contributed to the popularization of this style of play.

In 1949 Reno left the Bluegrass Boys to join Tommy Magness and his Tennessee buddies . In this band he met his future long-term partner Red Smiley . Together they formed the bluegrass duo Reno and Smiley , which remained one of the most successful bluegrass formations until 1964. During his partnership with Smiley, Reno achieved hits like I Know You're Married , Don't Let Your Sweet Love Die and I'm Using My Bible for a Road Map . Reno and Smiley simultaneously became popular musicians in the popular Old Dominion Barn Dance and hosted their own television show.

After Smiley had severely restricted his tours in 1964 because of diabetes, Reno began a new musical partnership with multi-instrumentalist Bill Harrell in 1966, which lasted for the next ten years. With Fiddler Benny Martin , Reno later achieved another chart hit with Soldier's Prayer in Vietnam .

In the 1970s, Reno played several albums with Bill Harrell for Dot Records , Monument Records and CHM Records, on which Reno's old companion Smiley played from time to time. In the fall of 1976, Reno separated from Harrell and settled in Lynchburg , Virginia , where he continued to perform with his sons. In 1979 he teamed up again with Arthur Smith for the album Arthur Smith and Don Reno Feudin 'Again .

Don Reno died in 1984. He was posthumously inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame in 1992.

Two of his sons, Don Wayne Reno and Dale Reno, formed the band Hayseed Dixie in 2000 .

Banjo style

Reno played the 5-string resonator banjo in bluegrass music. Reno developed the "Single String" or "Double Thumbing" style (the strings are played similarly to the Plectrum / Tenor Banjo, but instead of the Plectrum, the thumb and forefinger alternate individually: thumb-index-thumb-index etc.) in Combination with the "brush technique". The brush technique is similar to playing the plectrum / tenor banjo, but with the thumb pick only two or three strings are played in a chord. Reno plays the chords slowly, not as fast as in jazz . A thumb pick and two metal finger picks on the index and middle fingers are used to play.

Discography

  • 1965: Mr. 5-String
  • 1965: Gospel Songs from Cabin Creek (with Benny Martin)
  • 1966: A Song for Everyone
  • 1967: Don Reno & Billy Harrell with the Tennessee Cutups (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1968: A Variety of Sacred Songs (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1968: Sensational Twin Banjos (with Eddie Adcock)
  • 1969: All The Way to Reno (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1969: Fastest Five Strings Alive
  • 1969: I'm Using My Bible Like a Roadmap (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1969: Bluegrass Favorites
  • 1970: Most Requested Songs (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1972: Bluegrass On My Mind (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1973: Tally-Ho
  • 1973: Don Reno on Stage
  • 1974: Rivers and Roads
  • 1975: Bi-Centennial Bluegrass (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1975: Space of Life (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1975: Profile (with Red Smiley, Bill Harrell)
  • 1976: Dear Old Dixie (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1977: Home on the Mountain (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1977: Don Reno Story (with Bill Harrell)
  • 1978: Magnificent Bluegrass Band
  • 1979: Feudin 'Again (with Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith)
  • 1980: 30th Anniversary Album
  • 1983: The Original Dueling Banjos (with Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith)
  • 1986: Final Chapter
  • 1989: Family and Friends
  • 1998: Bluegrass Legends Together (with Charlie Moore)
  • 1998: Heroes (with Wayne Reno)
  • 2000: The Golden Guitar of Don Reno
  • 2001: Founding Father of the Bluegrass Banjo

literature

  • The Musical History of Don Reno: His Life, His Songs. Riverdale, Md .: Don Reno Publications, 1975 (Biography & Songbook (c) 1975 & 1983)

Web links