Curly Ray Cline (January 10, 1923 – August 19, 1997) was an American bluegrass fiddler from

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

known for his work with the

Lonesome Pine Fiddlers The Lonesome Pine Fiddlers (1938- 1966) were an early bluegrass band. Throughout their formations, they included notable "first generation" bluegrass musicians such as Ezra Cline, Bobby Osborne, Paul Williams, Melvin Goins, Charlie Cline, Curl ...

and

Ralph Stanley Ralph Edmund Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016) was an American bluegrass artist, known for his distinctive singing and banjo playing. Stanley began playing music in 1946, originally with his older brother Carter Stanley as part of ...

Biography

Cline was born in Mingo County, West Virginia. He learned the basics from his father, but other than that he was self-taught. While he was growing up playing the fiddle, he was inspired by Fiddlin' Arthur Smith of the Grand Ole Opry. Curly and his brothers were all musically talented, but Curly Ray and brother Charlie Cline were especially gifted. When Curly Ray was 15 years old, he, along with his cousin

Ezra Ezra (; he, עֶזְרָא, '; fl. 480–440 BCE), also called Ezra the Scribe (, ') and Ezra the Priest in the Book of Ezra, was a Jewish scribe ('' sofer'') and priest (''kohen''). In Greco-Latin Ezra is called Esdras ( grc-gre, Ἔσδρα ...

and brother Ned formed the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers around 1938. The Lonesome Pine Fiddlers started off playing on radio station WHIS in the nearby town of Bluefield, where they remained until 1952. Although during this time Curly and brother Charlie Cline were also playing in Jimmy Martin's band, the

Sunny Mountain Boys Sunny is a daytime weather condition. It may refer to: People * Sunny (name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Sunny (singer), member of Girls' Generation * Sunny, of Sue and Sunny, who also recorded as a solo artist ...

. Occasionally, Curly Ray did studio work for many musicians such as Jimmy Martin,

Bobby Osborne Bobby Osborne (born December 7, 1931) is an American bluegrass musician. He is the co-founder (with his brother Sonny Osborne) of the Osborne Brothers and a member of the Grand Ole Opry and the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame. He also ...

, Rex and Eleanor Parker and Hobo Jack Adkins. He continued to perform with the Fiddlers intermittently through the early 1960s. In early 1963, Curly Ray left the Fiddlers to play with

The Stanley Brothers The Stanley Brothers were an American bluegrass duo of singer-songwriters and musicians, made up of brothers Carter Stanley (August 27, 1925 – December 1, 1966) and Ralph Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016). Ralph and Carter perform ...

. He played with them on a part-time basis until

Carter Stanley Carter Glen Stanley (August 27, 1925 – December 1, 1966) was a bluegrass music lead singer, songwriter, and rhythm guitar player. He formed The Stanley Brothers and The Clinch Mountain Boys band with his younger brother Ralph Stanley. Biog ...

's death in 1966. When Ralph Stanley reconfigured the band in 1967, Curly Ray signed on as his full-time fiddler. Curly Ray appears on every succeeding record until his retirement in 1993. He was succeeded by fellow West Virginian James Price. Curly Ray's fiddling blended in perfectly with Ralph Stanley's music. Curly's playing was that of the old time bluegrass. Cline had a deep passion for old time music, as he did for bluegrass. Ralph Stanley felt the same way about his music. The two became very good friends while touring together. Ralph Stanley said of Curly Ray, at Curly Ray's funeral: "He plays the fiddle sort of the way I play the banjo, he plays it the way he feels it."Wright, John, Traveling the Highway Home, Ralph Stanley and the World of Traditional Bluegrass Music. p. 71 While playing in Ralph Stanley's

Clinch Mountain Boys Ralph Edmund Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016) was an American bluegrass artist, known for his distinctive singing and banjo playing. Stanley began playing music in 1946, originally with his older brother Carter Stanley as part of ...

, Curly Ray released a few solo, mostly instrumental, records. On these albums, Cline combined his own vocal sound effects, including sounds of barking hounds and braying mules, with traditional bluegrass songs. He did hardly any solo singing until about 1972, when he began to sing comedy numbers to add variety to Ralph's shows.

Discography

* And His Lonesome Pine Fiddle (Melody MLP-17) 1969 * The Working Man (Jalyn JLP-126) 1970 * Chicken Reel (Rebel SLP-1498) 1971 * They Cut Down the Old Pine Tree (Rebel SLP-1509) 1972 * My Little Home In West Virginia (Rebel SLP-1515) 1972 * Fishing For Another Hit (Rebel SLP-1531) 1974 * Why Me Ralph? (Rebel SLP-1545) 1975 * It's Bread And Water For... (Rebel SLP-1566) 1977 * Who's Gonna Mow My Grass (Rebel SLP-1577) 1978 * Boar Hog (Old Homestead OHS-90138) 1980 * The Old Kentucky Fox Hunter Plays Gospel (Old Homestead OHS-70047) 1982 * Smarter Than The Average Idiot (Tin Ear TE-33010) 1984 * The Deputy (Nashville Country NCLP 101) 1988 * Together Again At Their Best (River Track Studios RTS-1341) c1990 (cassette shown as by Curly Ray, Charley and Timmy Cline)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cline, Curly Ray 1923 births 1997 deaths American bluegrass fiddlers Musicians from West Virginia 20th-century American musicians