Country Music Originals (Nonfiction)

Students and lovers of today’s Country music will appreciate this scholarly recognition of the pioneers responsible for introducing their music to the rest of the nation in the early 20th century.

In the 1920s, “Hillbilly music,” as it was then called, began to be commercially recorded and it was music to which the common folks beyond the southern mountains could relate. Biographies and musical styles of more than 100 of these artists, many of whom are quite obscure, are outlined here with playlists and popularity notes galore. Most of these pickers and singers were born in the 1800s, and their talent was genuine and straight from the heart. Russell presents each one’s contribution to Country with the same feeling.