Blake Williams
Musician · b. 1956 · Sparta, Tennessee
Best known for
Banjo
Blake Williams is a Tennessee-born banjoist nicknamed "The Sparta Flash" whose decade with Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys (1981–1991) is the longest tenure of any Monroe banjo player, and whose post-Monroe work with Mike Snider's Opry band and Williams & Clark Expedition has kept him on the Grand Ole Opry stage for four decades.
- Born October 8, 1956 in Sparta, Tennessee; nicknamed "The Sparta Flash" after his hometown.
- Played banjo for Lester Flatt's Nashville Grass from 1978 until Flatt's death in 1979.
- Played banjo for Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys from July 1981 to 1991, the longest tenure of any Monroe banjo player.
- Recorded six albums with Bill Monroe, including "Southern Flavor" (1988), the first recording to win the Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album.
- Played bass with Mike Snider's Grand Ole Opry band for roughly a decade (1991–2001).
- Co-founded Williams & Clark Expedition with mandolinist Bobby Clark in 2002 (later renamed The Expedition Show).
- Three-time SPBGMA Entertainer of the Year nominee (2007–2009); featured on the cover of Banjo Newsletter, May 2008.
- Performed for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush; longtime Grand Ole Opry regular.
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Bill Monroe and His Bluegrass BoysPlayed on recordings with Bill Monroe and His Bluegrass Boys
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Bill Monroe and John HartfordPlayed on recording with Bill Monroe and John Hartford
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Bill Monroe and Ricky SkaggsPlayed on recording with Bill Monroe and Ricky Skaggs
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Curly Seckler and the Nashville GrassPlayed on recording with Curly Seckler and the Nashville Grass
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Patty LovelessPlayed on recording with Patty Loveless
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Red AllenPlayed on recording with Red Allen