Roscoe Holcomb, (born Roscoe Halcomb September 5, 1912 – died February 1, 1981) was an American singer,

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 ...

player, and

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

from

Daisy, Kentucky Daisy is an unincorporated community, unincorporated town in Perry County, Kentucky, Perry County, Kentucky. The population was 1758 as of the 2000 United States Census, with a population density of 32 per square mile. The area is known historica ...

. A prominent figure in

Appalachian folk music Appalachian music is the music of the region of Appalachia in the Eastern United States. Traditional Appalachian music is derived from various influences, including the ballads, hymns and fiddle music of the British Isles (particularly Scotland), ...

, Holcomb was the inspiration for the term "high, lonesome sound," coined by folklorist and friend John Cohen. The "high lonesome sound" term is now used to describe bluegrass singing, although Holcomb was not, strictly speaking, a bluegrass performer.

Performance style

Holcomb's repertoire included

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 ...

hymns A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

traditional music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

ballads. In addition to playing the banjo and guitar, he was a competent

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 ...

and

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 ...

player, and sang many of his most memorable songs

a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...

. Holcomb stated "Up till then the blues were only inside me; Blind Lemon was the first to 'let out' the blues." Holcomb sang in a nasal style informed by the

Old Regular Baptist The Old Regular Baptist Religious denomination, denomination is one of the oldest in Appalachia with roots in both the Regular Baptists, Regular and Separate Baptists of the American Colonies and the Particular Baptist of Great Britain. This group ...

vocal tradition.

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 ...

, a fan of Holcomb, described his singing as possessing "an untamed sense of control." He was also admired by 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 perfo ...

and

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

, who cited Holcomb as his favorite country musician.

Life and career

coal miner Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use c ...

, construction laborer and farmer for much of his life, Holcomb was not recorded until 1958, after which his career as a professional musician was bolstered by the

folk revival The American folk music revival began during the 1940s and peaked in popularity in the mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, and performers like Josh White, Burl Ives, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, Big Bill Broonzy, Billie Holiday, Richard Dyer-Benn ...

in the 1960s. Holcomb gave his last live performance in 1978. Due to what he described as injuries he sustained during his long career as a laborer, Holcomb was eventually unable to work for more than short periods, and his later income came primarily from his music. Suffering from asthma and

emphysema Emphysema, or pulmonary emphysema, is a lower respiratory tract disease, characterised by air-filled spaces ( pneumatoses) in the lungs, that can vary in size and may be very large. The spaces are caused by the breakdown of the walls of the alve ...

as a result of working in coal mines, he died in a nursing home in 1981, at the age of 68. Holcomb is buried at the Arch Halcomb Cemetery in Leatherwood, Kentucky. His tombstone bears his given name of Halcomb rather than Holcomb.

Discography

Holcomb's discography includes the following albums released on LP during his lifetime: * ''The Music of Roscoe Holcomb and Wade Ward'',

Folkways Records Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987 and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways. History The Folkways Records & Service ...

, 1962 * ''The High Lonesome Sound'', Folkways Records, 1965 * ''Close to Home'', Folkways Records, 1975 The following single-artist compilations have been released since his death: * ''The High Lonesome Sound'',

Smithsonian Folkways Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was fou ...

, 1998 * ''An Untamed Sense of Control'', Smithsonian Folkways, 2003 Holcomb's work appears on many multiple-artist compilations, including the following released during his lifetime: * ''Mountain Music of Kentucky'', Folkways Records, 1960 (6 of 29 tracks) * ''FOTM – Friends of Old Time Music'', Folkways Records, 1964 (2 of 16 tracks) * '' Zabriskie Point (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)'',

MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...

, 1970 (1 of 11 tracks) * ''3rd Annual Brandywine Mountain Music Convention – '76 Music of Kentucky'', Heritage Records irginia!-- do not link -- as of March 2018, Heritage Records lists:

Heritage Records (United States) Heritage Records was an American record label founded in the early 1960s by Jerry Ross Productions. It was distributed by MGM Records. It released a number of hits by groups such as The Cherry People, Euphoria Euphoria ( ) is the experienc ...

Heritage Records (England) Heritage Records was a British independent record label located in London, England. It was founded in 1960 by Tony Standish, specialising in blues and early jazz recordings. Only nine completed LPs are known to exist on this label - as well as o ...

, and

BMG Heritage Records BMG Heritage Records was the record label of the BMG Strategic Marketing Group reissue division of Sony BMG Music Entertainment which handled the reissue of recordings first issued on the RCA Victor, Arista, Buddah, Windham Hill and Jive Records ...

, none of which refer to this label! -->, 1977 (2 of 14 tracks)

References

External links

Short biography from CMT.com
*
John Cohen's documentary 'The High Lonesome Sound'Television appearance on Pete Seeger's Rainbow Quest
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holcomb, Roscoe 1912 births 1981 deaths American country guitarists American folk guitarists American male guitarists American country singer-songwriters American folk singers American banjoists American country banjoists Old-time musicians People from Perry County, Kentucky Musicians from Appalachia 20th-century American singers Folk musicians from Kentucky Country musicians from Kentucky Singer-songwriters from Kentucky Bluegrass musicians from Kentucky 20th-century American guitarists Guitarists from Kentucky 20th-century American male musicians American male singer-songwriters