Nancy Blake
Musician · b. 1952 · Independence, Missouri
Best known for
Guitar
Nancy Blake is a Missouri-born multi-instrumentalist whose decades-long duo with husband Norman Blake has placed her cello, fiddle, and mandolin at the heart of one of the most distinctive partnerships in traditional acoustic music.
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- Born Nancy Ann Short on June 11, 1952 in Independence, Missouri.
- Began cello at age 12; moved to Nashville and played with the Nashville Youth Symphony as a youth.
- Multi-instrumentalist on cello (often called "hillbilly cello" in her duo work), fiddle, mandolin, guitar, bass, and melodeon.
- Met Norman Blake in 1972 when her band Natchez Trace opened for him; the pair married in 1975.
- Recorded her debut alongside Norman, "The Fields of November" (Flying Fish, 1974), with Nancy on cello.
- Performed and recorded as a duo with Norman Blake for roughly twenty years, contributing a chamber-music sensibility to traditional repertoire.
- Contributed to Grammy-nominated Norman Blake albums "Just Gimme Somethin' I'm Used To" (1993) and "Hobo's Last Ride" (1996).
- Lives in retirement at the Blakes' north Georgia home; still appears as a vocalist on later Norman Blake solo records.
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Norman and Nancy BlakePlayed on recordings with Norman and Nancy Blake
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Norman BlakePlayed on recordings with Norman Blake
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June CarterPlayed on recordings with June Carter
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Fletcher Bright and Bill EvansPlayed on recordings with Fletcher Bright and Bill Evans
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Norman Blake and Tony RicePlayed on recordings with Norman Blake and Tony Rice
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Hazel DickensPlayed on recording with Hazel Dickens
