Appalachian Swing!

Thought I'd focus on another guitarist this week.

Clarence White is given credit for making the guitar a lead instrument in Bluegrass instead of just a rhythm instrument.  He became known as a master of the guitar while playing with The Kentucky Colonels, who were part of the Folk Revival scene of the early Sixties.  He also worked as a session musician, sitting in with such performers as Joe Cocker, Linda Ronstadt and The Byrds.  In 1968, White was invited to join The Byrds, staying until the band was dissolved in 1973.

After leaving The Byrds, White joined The Muleskinners, a Bluegrass supergroup that formed for a one-time TV gig as a backing band for Bill Monroe.  When Monroe couldn't make it because his bus broke down on the way to the studio, The Muleskinners ended up as the main act.  This earned them a one-album recording contract.

In 1973, White rejoined The Kentucky Colonels, as part of a Country Rock tour that also featured Gram Parsons and Emmy Lou Harris, among others.  When that tour ended, he began work on a solo album, recording six songs.  The album was never finished because White was hit by a drunk driver and killed on July 15, 1973.  Gram Parsons' song, 'In My Hour Of Darkness', was written in part as a tribute to Clarence White.

'Appalachian Swing!' was The Kentucky Colonels second studio album.  It was released in 1964.

You can find the full album here.