Flatt and Scruggs were an American bluegrass duo. Singer and guitarist

Lester Flatt Lester Raymond Flatt (June 19, 1914 – May 11, 1979) was an American bluegrass guitarist and mandolinist, best known for his collaboration with banjo picker Earl Scruggs in the duo Flatt and Scruggs. Flatt's career spanned multiple decades, ...

and banjo player

Earl Scruggs Earl Eugene Scruggs (January 6, 1924 – March 28, 2012) was an American musician noted for popularizing a three-finger banjo picking style, now called "Scruggs style", which is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music. His three-fin ...

, both of whom had been members of

Bill Monroe William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre take ...

's band, the Bluegrass Boys, from 1945 to 1948, formed the duo in 1948. Flatt and Scruggs are viewed by music historians as one of the premier bluegrass groups in the history of the genre.Rosenberg, Neil V. (1998)
"Flatt & Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys"
''The Encyclopedia of Country Music'', Oxford University Press, pp. 173-4 Flatt and Scruggs recorded and performed together until 1969. Their backing band, the Foggy Mountain Boys, included fiddle player Paul Warren, a master player in both the old-time and bluegrass fiddling styles whose technique reflected all qualitative aspects of "the bluegrass breakdown" and fast bowing style; dobro player Uncle Josh Graves, an innovator of the advanced playing style of the instrument now used in the genre; stand-up bass player Cousin Jake Tullock; and mandolinist Curly Seckler.

Biography

worked for Monroe at the time

was considered for

's band, the

Blue Grass Boys William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre take ...

, in 1945. The two left that band early in 1948, and within a few months had formed the Foggy Mountain Boys. Flatt's rhythm-guitar style and vocals and Scruggs'

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

style gave them a distinctive sound that won them many fans. In 1955, they became members of the

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...

.Browne, Ray B. and Browne, Pat
"Flatt and Scruggs"
''The Guide to United States Popular Culture'', Popular Press, 2001, p. 284 Many of the songs on their albums are credited to "Certain and Stacey". These songs were in fact written by Flatt, Scruggs, and various other members of the Foggy Mountain Boys. Certain and Stacey are the maiden names of the wives of Flatt and Scruggs (Louise Certain, wife of Earl Scruggs, and Gladys Stacey, wife of Lester Flatt). Scruggs, who had always shown progressive tendencies, experimented on duets with saxophonist

King Curtis Curtis Ousley (born Curtis Montgomery; February 7, 1934 – August 13, 1971), known professionally as King Curtis, was an American saxophonist who played rhythm and blues, jazz, and rock and roll. A bandleader, band member, and session musicia ...

and added songs by the likes of

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

to the group's repertoire. Flatt, a traditionalist, did not like these changes, and the group broke up in 1969. Following the breakup, Lester Flatt founded the Nashville Grass and Scruggs led the Earl Scruggs Revue. Flatt died in 1979, at the age of 64. Flatt and Scruggs were elected to the

Country Music Hall of Fame The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the world's largest museums and research centers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of American vernacular music. Chartered in 1964, the museum has amass ...

in 1985. In 2003, they ranked No. 24 on CMT's ''40 Greatest Men of Country Music'', one of only four non-solo artists to make the list (The

Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

, and

Brooks & Dunn Brooks & Dunn are an American country music duo consisting of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, both of whom are vocalists and songwriters. The duo was founded in 1990 through the suggestion of Tim DuBois. Before their formation, both members were solo ...

are the others). Scruggs died from natural causes on March 28, 2012 in a Nashville hospital.

Members

(guitar) *

(

, guitar) * Paul Warren (

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

) * John Ray "Curly" Seckler (

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

, guitar) *

Josh Graves Josh Graves (September 27, 1927 Tellico Plains, Monroe County, Tennessee – September 30, 2006), born Burkett Howard Graves, was an American bluegrass musician. Also known by the nicknames "Buck," and "Uncle Josh," he is credited with introduci ...

(

Dobro Dobro is an American brand of resonator guitars, currently owned by Gibson and manufactured by its subsidiary Epiphone. The term "dobro" is also used as a generic term for any wood-bodied, single-cone resonator guitar. The Dobro was originally ...

, bass) * English P. “Cousin Jake” Tullock (bass) *

Chubby Wise Robert Russell "Chubby" Wise (October 2, 1915 – January 6, 1996) was an American bluegrass fiddler. Originally starting out playing the banjo and guitar, Wise began playing fiddle at age 12, working locally in the Jacksonville area. He joined ...

(fiddle) * Jim Shumate (fiddle) * Benny Martin (fiddle) *

Benny Sims Benny Sims (1924–1995) was a bluegrass and country musician who played with Flatt and Scruggs, Roy Acuff and Bill Monroe. Early years Benny Sims was born in Sevier County, Tennessee in 1924. His father and uncle were musicians. Beginni ...

(fiddle) *

Howdy Forrester Howdy Forrester (March 31, 1922 – August 1, 1987), born Howard Wilson Forrester, was an American bluegrass fiddler and a popularizer and practiser of the "Texas" or "show fiddle" style.Carlin 2003, p. 141. He was a long-time member of Roy ...

(fiddle) * Art Wooten (fiddle) * Howard Watts aka "Cedric Rainwater" (bass) * Charles Johnson aka "Little Jody Rainwater" (bass) * Frank "Hylo" Brown (bass, guitar) * Charles “Little Darlin’” Elza (bass) * Joe Stuart (bass) * Ernie Newton (bass) *

Bob Moore Bob Loyce Moore (November 30, 1932 – September 22, 2021) was an American session musician, orchestra leader, and double bassist who was a member of the Nashville A-Team during the 1950s and 1960s. He performed on over 17,000 documented record ...

(bass) * Everett Lilly (mandolin) * Jim Eanes (guitar) *

Mac Wiseman Malcolm Bell Wiseman (May 23, 1925 – February 24, 2019) was an American bluegrass and country singer. Early life He was born on May 23, 1925, in Crimora, Virginia. He attended school in New Hope, Virginia, and graduated from high school the ...

(guitar) * Billy E. Powers (guitar) * Johnny Johnson (guitar) * Earl Taylor (mandolin and

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

) * Grover C. Deskins Jr. (harmonica)

Notable songs

* "

Foggy Mountain Breakdown "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" is a bluegrass instrumental, in the common "breakdown" format, written by Earl Scruggs and first recorded on December 11, 1949, by the bluegrass artists Flatt & Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys. It is a standard i ...

": an instrumental originally released in 1949 and used in many

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are describ ...

car chase

movie A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

sequences, notably in ''

Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut (Champion) Barrow (March 24, 1909May 23, 1934) were an American criminal couple who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression. The co ...

''. It has won two

Grammy awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

. * "

The Ballad of Jed Clampett "The Ballad of Jed Clampett" is the theme song for the television series ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' and the later movie of that name, providing the introductory story for the series. The song was composed by Paul Henning, and recorded first by ...

" ( /upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c4/Ballad_of_Jed_Clampett.ogg listen: used as the theme for the ''

Beverly Hillbillies ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. It had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor, backwoods family from ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

. The song reached No. 42 on the record charts during the series' debut season of 1962. The song hit No. 1 on the country charts in January 1963, and was the only number-one hit song of their career. The song is one of only five TV theme songs to ever reach No. 1 on the country charts. *

Martha White Martha White is an American brand of flour, cornmeal, cornbread mixes, cake mixes, muffin mixes, and similar products. The Martha White brand was established as the premium brand of Nashville, Tennessee-based Royal Flour Mills in 1899. At that ti ...

jingle (still used in advertising today). * "

Petticoat Junction ''Petticoat Junction'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 1963 to April 1970. The series takes place at the Shady Rest Hotel, which is run by Kate Bradley; her three daughters Billie Jo, Bobbie Jo, and B ...

": theme from the TV series.

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flatt and Scruggs 1948 establishments in the United States 1969 disestablishments in the United States American bluegrass music groups American country music groups Grammy Award winners Musical groups established in 1948 Musical groups disestablished in 1969 Country Music Hall of Fame inductees