Earl Taylor
Musician · Rose Hill, Virginia
Best known for
Mandolin
Earl Taylor was a Virginia-born mandolinist and lead singer whose Stoney Mountain Boys led the first bluegrass band to perform at New York's Carnegie Hall (1959) and pioneered the upper-Midwest bluegrass scene around Cincinnati and Dayton, with key tenures alongside Jimmy Martin and Flatt & Scruggs.
- Born June 17, 1929 in Rose Hill, Virginia, in the southwestern Virginia coalfields; named his band the Stoney Mountain Boys after a geological feature near his birthplace.
- Inspired by the Monroe Brothers and modeled his mandolin style on Bill Monroe; relocated to Michigan in 1946 and worked with the Mountaineers.
- Worked with Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys 1955–1957 in Detroit, helping define Martin's classic sound.
- In 1959 led the first bluegrass band to perform at New York's Carnegie Hall, presented by Alan Lomax (Folkways issued the recordings as "Folk Songs from the Bluegrass").
- Briefly rejoined Jimmy Martin in June 1965, then toured and recorded with Flatt & Scruggs for roughly 15 months in 1965–1966.
- Led the Stoney Mountain Boys for most of his career in the Cincinnati / Dayton area, becoming a pioneer of the upper-Midwest bluegrass scene.
- Released the landmark 1963 Capitol album "Bluegrass Taylor-Made" and made later recordings for Rural Rhythm and Vetco, including "20 Bluegrass Favorites" and "24 Bluegrass Favorites."
- Retired in 1974 after the death of his son and declining health; resumed performing in the early 1980s with banjoist Vernon McIntyre before his death from a heart attack in 1984.
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Earl Taylor and His Stoney Mountain BoysPlayed on recordings with Earl Taylor and His Stoney Mountain Boys
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The Stanley Brothers and the Clinch Mountain BoysPlayed on recordings with The Stanley Brothers and the Clinch Mountain Boys
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Earl Taylor and His Bluegrass MountaineersPlayed on recording with Earl Taylor and His Bluegrass Mountaineers
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Earl Taylor and Jim McCallPlayed on recording with Earl Taylor and Jim McCall
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Jimmy Martin and the Sunny Mountain BoysPlayed on recording with Jimmy Martin and the Sunny Mountain Boys
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Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain BoysPlayed on recording with Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys
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Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain BoysPlayed on recording with Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys