The Greenbriar Boys were an American northern

bluegrass music Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States. The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Like mainstream country music, it la ...

group. who first got together in jam sessions in

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's Washington Square Park.

Biography

In 1958, guitarist and vocalist John Herald formed The Greenbriar Boys, along with Bob Yellin (banjo) and Eric Weissberg (fiddle, mandolin, banjo). Weissberg was soon replaced by Paul Prestopino, who, in turn was later replaced by

Ralph Rinzler Ralph Rinzler (July 20, 1934 – July 2, 1994) was an American mandolin player, folksinger, and the co-founder of the annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the Mall every summer in Washington, D.C., where he worked as a curator for American a ...

(mandolin) to form their most successful combination. The trio often played the

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scene, but were good enough to be the first northern group to win the Union Grove Fiddlers' Convention competition, where Yellin also took top honors for banjo. They were credited as guest artists on two tracks from

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...

's 1961 album '' Joan Baez, Vol. 2''. In 1962, they released their first (eponymous) album on

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City. It was a primarily classical label at its peak in the 1950s and 1960s, but also has a catalogue of recordings by a n ...

. Three more albums followed: ''Dián and the Greenbriar Boys'' in 1963 for Elektra (with Dián James, died 18 May 2006), ''Ragged but Right!'' in 1964, and ''Better Late Than Never'' in 1966 (with the additions of mandolinist/vocalist Frank Wakefield, who replaced Rinzler, and fiddler, Jim Buchanan). The 1966 album included the first recorded version of Mike Nesmith's " Different Drum", which was recorded again in 1967 by the Stone Poneys and became a hit. This album was also the source for a subsequent Stone Poneys single, "Up To My Neck In High Muddy Water," with author credit to Wakefield, Herald, and Yellin. By the last album, Rinzler had left to become director of the folklife area at the

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which now bears his name. Rinzler was replaced in 1965 by the Tennessee-born mandolin virtuoso Frank Wakefield who, at the age of 31, was already a leading figure in bluegrass music, having performed since the age of 16 with such bluegrass stars as

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 ...

, Jimmy Martin and Red Allen and the Kentuckians. He had made a Carnegie Hall appearance with Allen, had done guest spots on various TV programs and had appeared on dozens of records, including the first-ever all-bluegrass album produced by Smithsonian-Folkways Records. Wakefield's arrival therefore brought some welcome southern appalachian authenticity to what until then was a northern, urban and folkish-oriented group. Over the next four years, the close friendship and musical collaboration between John Herald, Bob Yellin, Jim Buchanan and Frank Wakefieldb resulted in some successful recordings and national television appearances. In addition to his mandolin playing, Wakefield's southern-accented lead and harmony vocals lent a distinctively rural sound to the Greenbriar Boys. Wakefield was also responsible for bringing young Kentucky-born guitarist and lead singer, Joe Isaacs, into the group by 1968. The Greenbriar Boys disbanded in 1970 as Wakefield launched what was to become a successful solo career. The Greenbriar Boys reunited occasionally in later years. John Herald released albums with The John Herald Band and a solo album, in 2000, ''Roll On John,'' before committing

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

in 2005.

Discography

Studio albums

*1962: ''The Greenbriar Boys'' (Vanguard) *1963: ''Dian & the Greenbriar Boys'' (Elektra) *1964: ''Ragged But Right!'' (Vanguard) *1966: ''Better Late Than Never'' (Vanguard)

Compilations

*1986: ''The Best of the Greenbriar Boys'' (Vanguard) *2002: ''Best of the Vanguard Years'' (Vanguard) *2003: ''Big Apple Bluegrass'' (Vanguard)

References

External links

Richie Unterberger, Liner notes for reissue of ''Dian & the Greenbriar Boys''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greenbriar Boys American folk musical groups American bluegrass music groups Elektra Records artists Musical groups established in 1958 Musical groups disestablished in 1970 1958 establishments in New York City