Kentucky Colonels (band)
| Kentucky Colonels | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Genre (s) | Bluegrass |
| founding | 1962 |
| resolution | 1965 |
| Founding members | |
| Clarence White | |
| Billy Ray Lathum | |
| LeRoy Mack | |
guitar |
Roger Bush |
| Last occupation | |
guitar |
Clarence White |
banjo |
Billy Ray Lathum |
| Roland White | |
guitar |
Roger Bush |
The Kentucky Colonels was one from California native bluegrass band, one of the pioneers of progressive bluegrass.
history
Beginnings
The predecessor of the later Kentucky Colonels was the family band The Three Little Country Boys consisting of the brothers Roland, Eric and Clarence (* June 7, 1944, † July 14, 1973) White , which was formed in Los Angeles in the early 1950s. They started with traditional country music, but switched to bluegrass in 1955 . Winning a talent competition led to a first appearance on a local television station. This was followed by appearances at dance events and on a local radio station. From 1957 on they were hired a few times for the television show Town Hall Party .
In 1958, banjo player Billy Ray Lathum joined what became known as The Country Boys . In the same year the first single, Head Over Heels in Love with You was released . A little later, the Dobro player and songwriter LeRoy Mack was hired and the second single, Valley Below , was released. There were also several appearances on the popular Andy Griffith Show . In 1961, Eric White left the group after his marriage. He was replaced by Roger Bush. A year later, Roland White was drafted into the military. Scott Hambley stepped in for him briefly.
Careers as Kentucky Colonels
After Scott Hambly left, the first album, New Sound of Bluegrass , was recorded in 1962 . Since formations with the name "The Country Boys" already existed, the name was changed to Kentucky Colonels . The first line-up under this name consisted of Clarence White, Billy Ray Lathum, LeRoy Mack and Roger Bush. Occasionally they were assisted by the fiddler Bobby Sloan. The band gained more and more popularity in the Californian folk and bluegrass scene. The highly talented Clarence White, the youngest member of the group, increasingly played himself in the foreground as a guitarist - a rather unusual process in bluegrass, in which guitars traditionally play a subordinate role.
In the fall of 1963, LeRoy Mack left. A little later, Roland White returned from military service. The next album, the Appalachian Swing , characterized by Clarence White's virtuoso guitar playing , was released in 1964. This was followed by an extensive tour of the USA with a highly regarded appearance at the Newport Folk Festival , the live recordings of which later appeared on the album Long Journey Home . In 1965 they starred in the feature film The Farmer's Other Daughter .
Her musical career, however, stalled. The new superstars like Bob Dylan or the Byrds had made folk rock popular and pushed bluegrass to the edge. The Kentucky Colonels tried in vain to counteract this by using drums and electrically amplified instruments and finally disbanded in late 1965. The members joined various rock groups. The biggest leap in his career was made by Clarence White, who replaced the retired Gram Parsons with the Byrds .
In 1966 the three White brothers got together again and undertook an extensive tour of the United States, reinforced by Bob Warford and Dennis Morris. In 1973 there was another brief reunion, from which the album The White Brothers Live in Sweden emerged . A little later Clarence White died of the consequences of a car accident.
Albums
- 1963: New Sound of Bluegrass (Briar)
- 1964: Appalachian Swing (Rounder)
- 1973: The White Brothers Live in Sweden (Rounder)
- 1991: Long Journey Home (Vanguard)