J.P. Nestor

Musician
Best known for Songwriter

J.P. Nestor was an early-twentieth-century Galax, Virginia banjo player and singer whose 1927 Victor sessions produced the standard fiddle-and-banjo piece “Train on the Island.” The piece has since been recorded by Tommy Jarrell, the New Lost City Ramblers, and the Highwoods String Band, and remains a fixture of festival repertoires.

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  • Worked the southwest Virginia old-time fiddle and banjo tradition.
  • Recorded with fiddler Norman Edmonds for Victor in 1927; the pair’s rendition of “Train on the Island” is the source for nearly every later recording of the tune.
  • The tune has since been carried into the modern old-time and bluegrass repertoire by Tommy Jarrell, the New Lost City Ramblers, the Highwoods String Band, and many others.

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