Foggy Mountain Banjo is a Columbia LP (CL 1564), released in February 1961 under the billing Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys. All twelve tracks are instrumentals: “Ground Speed,” “Home Sweet Home,” “Sally Ann,” “Little Darlin’, Pal of Mine,” “Reuben,” “Cripple Creek,” “Lonesome Road Blues,” “John Henry,” “Fire Ball Mail,” “Sally Goodwin,” “Bugle Call Rag” and “Cumberland Gap.” Most are credited as arrangements by Scruggs; exceptions include A.P. Carter’s “Little Darlin’, Pal of Mine,” Fred Rose’s “Fire Ball Mail” and “Bugle Call Rag,” credited to Pettis, Meyers and Schoebel.
The sessions were held at Bradley Film & Recording Studio in Nashville. Seven titles were cut on 11 August 1960 and four on 9 September 1960; “Ground Speed” was recorded earlier, on 23 January 1959. Flatt on guitar, Scruggs on banjo and Jake Tullock on bass are credited on every track. Curly Seckler plays mandolin on eleven of the twelve and Paul Warren fiddle on ten, Buck Graves is credited on dobro on eight, and Murrey Harman Jr. adds drums on the seven titles from 11 August. On “Ground Speed” Curley Lambert plays guitar in place of the mandolin.
Tracklist
- 1 Ground Speed alt version 2:15
- 2 Home Sweet Home alt version 3:30
- 3 Sally Ann alt version 3:01
- 4 Little Darling Pal of Mine alt version 2:50
- 5 Reuben alt version 2:53
- 6 Cripple Creek Source Recording 2:06
- 7 Lonesome Road Blues alt version 2:02
- 8 John Henry alt version 3:12
- 9 Fireball Mail alt version 2:14
- 10 Sally Goodwin 2:11
- 11 Bugle Call Rag alt version 2:45
- 12 Cumberland Gap alt version 3:06
