Fruit Jar Guzzlers was an
old-time music
Old-time music is a genre of North American folk music. It developed along with various North American folk dances, such as square dancing, clogging, and buck dancing. It is played on acoustic instruments, generally centering on a combination ...
group who recorded during the 1920s.
Biography
Fruit Jar Guzzlers is one of the most mysterious old-time groups to ever record. In 1928, another old-time musician
Cleve Chaffin from
Wayne County, West Virginia
Wayne County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,982. Its county seat is Wayne. The county was founded in 1842 and named for General "Mad" Anthony Wayne.
Wayne County is ...
had supposedly recorded a session with two men named Stevens and Bolar for
Paramount Records
Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson.
Early years
Paramount Records was formed in 19 ...
as Fruit Jar Guzzlers.
The names Stevens and Bolar appear as the writers for most of these recordings.
[King, Christopher C. (1999). "Old-Time Music Of West Virginia Volume One" ounty CD-3518 Liner Notes.] The group recorded many sides for Paramount in 1928. Chaffin is said to have played on all the recordings the group made. Other records by the Fruit Jar Guzzlers were released on Paramount's subsidiary label,
Broadway Records, some were released as by the Panhandle Boys. It is possible that the Fruit Jar Guzzlers may also come from
Wayne County, West Virginia
Wayne County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,982. Its county seat is Wayne. The county was founded in 1842 and named for General "Mad" Anthony Wayne.
Wayne County is ...
, where Chaffin was from.
Recordings
* Stack-O-Lee/Steel Driving Man (John Henry) (Paramount #3121) (1928)
* Steel Driving Man (John Henry) (Broadway #8199) (1928)
* Wild Horse (1928)
* The Black Sheep Of The Family (1928)
* Yes I’m Free At Last (1928)
*
Old Joe Clark "Old Joe Clark" is a US folk song, a mountain ballad that was popular among soldiers from eastern Kentucky during World War I and afterwards. Its lyrics refer to a real person named Joseph Clark, a Kentucky mountaineer who was born in 1839 and murde ...
(1928)
*
Cripple Creek (1928)
* Cool Penitentiary (1928)
* Sourwood Mountain (1928)
* Pity The Tramp (1928)
* Fox In The Mountains (1928)
* C & O Whistle (1928)
* Cacklin’ Hen (1928)
* Kentucky Bootlegger (1928)
Various artists compilations
* My Rough And Rowdy Ways Volume One (Yazoo #2039) (1998)
* Old Time Music Of West Virginia Volume One (County #CD-3518) (1999)
* Old Time Music Of West Virginia Volume Two (County #CD-3519) (1999)
* Old Country Gospel (Vintage78 #C-11) (cassette)
* Paramount Old Time Recordings (JSP) (3-CD set) (2006)
Notes
External links
*
class=artist, id=p372167/biography, pure_url=yes Allmusic
Old-time bands
Old-time musicians