Gene Wooten (June 5, 1953 in

Franklinton, North Carolina Franklinton is a town in Franklin County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,456 at the 2020 census. History Franklinton, was established as Franklin Depot in 1839 on land owned by Shemuel Kearney (1791–1860), son of Crawford ...

– November 7, 2001 in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

) was an American dobro player and multi-instrumentalist.

Biography

Wooten became serious about playing music professionally while a student at Appalachian State University in

Boone, North Carolina Boone is a town in and the county seat of Watauga County, North Carolina, United States. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, Boone is the home of Appalachian State University and the headquarters for the disaster a ...

, and ultimately moved to Nashville in 1977, where he found his first professional job as a musician with

Wilma Lee Cooper Wilma Lee Leary (February 7, 1921 – September 13, 2011), known professionally as Wilma Lee Cooper, was an American country music entertainer. She was a guitarist, banjo player and vocalist, and was given the title of “First Lady of Bluegrass� ...

. He quickly became a regular on the '' Grand Ole Opry''. His work as a dobro player took him on the road and in the studio with numerous well-known Bluegrass stars including the

Osborne Brothers The Osborne Brothers, Sonny (October 29, 1937 – October 24, 2021) and Bobby (born December 7, 1931), were an influential and popular bluegrass act during the 1960s and 1970s and until Sonny retired in 2005. They are probably best known for ...

and Del and Ronnie McCoury. In 1994, he shared a

Grammy Award 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 ...

with

Jerry Douglas Gerald Calvin "Jerry" Douglas (born May 28, 1956) is an American Dobro and lap steel guitar player and record producer. Career In addition to his fourteen solo recordings, Douglas has played on more than 1,600 albums. As a sideman, he h ...

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 ...

Rob Ickes Rob Ickes hymes with "bikes"is an American dobro (resonator guitar) player, born 1967 in San Francisco, California, United States. Ickes moved to Nashville in 1992 and joined the contemporary bluegrass band Blue Highway as a founding member in ...

and others for his work on the all-star obro album called ''The Great Dobro Sessions''. He was also known as a member of the Country Gazette, and the Sidemen which was the house band of musicians at the famous Station Inn in Nashville, a coveted position he held for more than ten years. For three years, he was named dobro player of the year by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass in America. He recorded one solo album. Late in his career he was best known for playing on Patty Loveless' award-winning acoustic album, ''Mountain Soul''.Brad's Page Of Steel
/ref> Wooten’s craftsmanship with wooden instruments of all kinds impressed his peers. He worked for various musical instrument manufacturers, repairing instruments for some of the most famous Bluegrass musicians. He was especially appreciated for his ability to work on the dobro.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wooten, Gene 1953 births 2001 deaths People from Franklinton, North Carolina American bluegrass musicians American country guitarists American male guitarists Slide guitarists Guitarists from North Carolina Appalachian State University alumni 20th-century American guitarists Country musicians from North Carolina 20th-century American male musicians