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Lost and Found

Band · Active 1973–c.2016 · Ferrum, Virginia

Lost and Found was one of the most influential contemporary-traditional bluegrass bands of the 1970s and 80s — a Ferrum, Virginia quartet led by bassist/vocalist Allen Mills whose 14 Rebel Records albums defined a relaxed, songs-first approach distinct from the harder-driving Reno or Martin schools. Their alumni roster includes Ronnie Bowman, making them a crucial incubator for the Lonesome River Band generation.

  • Formed in 1973 in Ferrum, Virginia with Allen Mills (bass, lead vocals), Dempsey Young (mandolin), Roger Handy (guitar), and Gene Parker (banjo). Mills explained the name: “at the time we started this band, all of us were lost in other bands; but we found each other through a mutual love for bluegrass music.”
  • Gene Parker was a mentor to Sammy Shelor; young Ronnie Bowman served as guitarist and lead singer before joining the Lonesome River Band. Junior Sisk also spent time in the group early in his career.
  • First recorded for Outlet Records (Roanoke) starting 1976 with regional distribution; signed to Rebel Records in 1980 for national reach.
  • Fourteen Rebel albums (four are compilations) include Endless Highway, Sun's Gonna Shine, Hymn Time, January Rain, A Ride Through the Country, It's About Time, Just for the Record, and the 30th-anniversary compilation Down on Sawmill Road (2011).
  • Mills's “Love of the Mountains” became a bluegrass standard, covered by dozens of bands. Other Mills originals include “Leftover Biscuits,” “Struttin' to Ferrum,” and “Harvest Time.”
  • “Johnston's Grocery Store” from It's About Time hit #1 on the Bluegrass Unlimited chart.
  • Dempsey Young's mandolin style and harmony singing were defining features alongside Mills's voice; Young's untimely death in December 2006 at age 52 was a major blow to the band.
  • Later lineups included mandolinist Scott Napier, banjoist Ronald Smith, guitarists Scottie Sparks and Dan Wells, and others. Final studio album Love, Lost and Found (Rebel, 2009) featured Young's final recordings alongside Napier's.
  • Allen Mills was a founding member of IBMA in 1985. Despite the band's 40-year run, they never won a major IBMA award.
  • Back problems forced Mills to retire from the road; released a final EP in 2022 at age 85 featuring nephew Jason Moore on bass.
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