Larry Sparks (born September 25, 1947) is an American Bluegrass singer and

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

ist. He was the winner of the 2004 and 2005 International Bluegrass Music Association Male Vocalist of the Year Award. 2005, won IBMA for Album of the Year and Recorded Event of the Year for his album "40," celebrating his 40th year(2003) in bluegrass music.

Biography

Sparks was born and raised in

Lebanon, Ohio Lebanon is a city in and the county seat of Warren County, Ohio, United States. The population was 20,841 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area. History Lebanon is in the Symmes Purchase. The first European settler ...

. His family originated from

Jackson County, Kentucky Jackson County is located in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2021 census estimation, the population was 12,984. Its county seat is McKee. The county was formed in 1858 from land given by Madison, Estill, Owsley, Clay, Laurel, and Rockc ...

in the

Appalachians The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

. In his childhood, he used to listen to 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 div ...

and to radio station WCKY. He learned to play the guitar when he was quite young influenced by artists such as Wayne Raney,

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 ...

, Tommy Sutton and Paul "Moon" Mullins. Although he had played in

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

and rock bands while he was in high school, his bluegrass career began when he joined the

in 1964. At that time he was playing in a local band in

Middletown, Ohio Middletown is a city located in Butler and Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio, about 35 miles (47 km) north of Cincinnati. The population as of the 2020 census was 50,987. It is part of the Cincinnati metrop ...

: "Irvin MackIntosh and His Band" and a friend of his, banjo player Wilbur Hall, was acquainted with Moon Mullins - who had just arrived to Middletown - and Hall told Mullins about Sparks. Mullins, who knew the Stanley Brothers, recommended Sparks to them and he was hired after an audition. An extensive tour followed and he recorded for the first time in 1965 for a small label in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, Ohio, Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County, Ohio, Greene County. The 2020 United S ...

. In December 1966,

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 ...

of the Stanley Brothers died 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 ...

was in need of a guitarist to replace Carter. "Ralph Stanley and His Clinch Mountain Boys" consisted of Ralph Stanley-banjo, Larry Sparks-guitar,

Curly Ray Cline Curly Ray Cline (January 10, 1923 – August 19, 1997) was an American bluegrass fiddler from West Virginia known for his work with the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers and Ralph Stanley. Biography Cline was born in Mingo County, West Virginia. He learne ...

-fiddle and Melvin Goins-bass. Sparks moved to

Clintwood, Virginia Clintwood is a town in Dickenson County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,414 at the 2010 census, with an estimated population of 1,304 in 2018. It is the county seat of Dickenson County. Although originally called "Holly Creek" af ...

and got married. With Ralph Stanley, Larry Sparks recorded the original versions of modern bluegrass standards including "I Only Exist", "Sharecropper's Son", and "Going Up Home To Live in Green Pastures". In late 1969, he left the "Clinch Mountain Boys", formed the "Lonesome Ramblers" and began recording for Pine Tree Records. The first version of the "Ramblers" comprised Larry Sparks, David Cox, Lloyd Hensley, Joe Isaacs and Larry's sister Bernice Sparks. After Pine Tree Records he went to Old Homestead Records and then to

Starday Records Starday Records was an American record label producing traditional country music during the 1950s and 1960s. History The label began in 1952 in Beaumont, Texas, when local businessmen Jack Starnes (Lefty Frizzell's manager) and Houston record di ...

before moving to the bluegrass label

Rebel Records Rebel Records is an independent American record label based in Charlottesville, Virginia that specializes in bluegrass and old time music. The label was founded in Mount Rainier, Maryland in 1959 by Dick Freeland, Bill Carroll and Sonny Compton. ...

in 1977. Over the years, his band has undergone numerous personnel changes. Banjo player and tenor singer Dave Evans has been one of the "Ramblers" most well-known members. In 2005 Sparks performed at the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival with the Lonesome Ramblers."Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival", ''Strings'', newsletter of the Pineridge Bluegrass Folklore Society, October 2005

Selected discography

References

*Vladimir Bogdanov, Chris Woodstra, Stephen Thomas Erlewine, '' All Music Guide to Country: The Definitive Guide to Country Music'', 2003 (p. 710) *Thomas Goldsmith, ''The Bluegrass Reader'', 2004 (p. 195-198) *Kurt Wolff, Orla Duane, ''Country Music: The Rough Guide'', 2000 (p. 249-250) *John Wright, ''Traveling the High Way Home: Ralph Stanley and the World of Traditional'', 1995 (p. 117-122)

External links

Official websiteAnswersArticle on rebelrecords.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sparks, Larry 1947 births American country singer-songwriters American bluegrass musicians American male singer-songwriters Living people American bluegrass guitarists American male guitarists Rebel Records artists People from Lebanon, Ohio Singer-songwriters from Ohio Guitarists from Ohio 20th-century American guitarists People from Clintwood, Virginia Country musicians from Ohio 20th-century American male musicians