Don Stover (1928-1996) was an American Bluegrass musician. He toured with numerous bands, most notably The Lilly Brothers. He is a member of both the Massachusetts Country Music Hall of Fame and the

International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame For a professional in the bluegrass music field, election to the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame is the highest honor the genre can bestow. An invitation can be extended to performers, songwriters, promoters, broadcasters, musicians, a ...

Career

Stover was born in 1928 and learned to play

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 in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

from his mother. He worked full-time as coal miner and played part-time in the band Coal River Valley Boys. He later joined The Lilly Brothers & Don Stover when the group moved to

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

in 1952. At the time, the group was known as the Confederate Mountaineers and worked in various clubs which included the Hillbilly Ranch. The group was credited with introducing

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

to Bluegrass music. Stover played banjo for

Bill Monroe William Smith Monroe ( ; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre takes its n ...

in 1957. Over the period of six months, they produced 11 recordings, including a remake of " Molly and Tenbrooks." The tracks became part of Monroe's 1958 album '' Knee Deep in Blue Grass.'' After his time with The Lilly Brothers, Stover formed White Oak Mountain Boys. He later moved to

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

where he worked with musicians such as

Bill Clifton Bill Clifton (born William August Marburg; April 5, 1931) is an American Bluegrass music, bluegrass musician and singer who is credited with having organized one of the first bluegrass festivals in the United States in 1961.Wolff, Duane 2000, p. ...

and Red Rector. Stover was inducted to the Massachusetts Country Music Hall of Fame in 1987, the year after The Lilly Brothers earned the same. He is also a member of the

where he was inducted in 2002 along with other members of The Lilly Brothers & Don Stover. Stover died in 1996.

References

{{Reflist American bluegrass musicians Banjoists 1928 births 1996 deaths