Pete Kirby

Musician · 1911–2002 · Also a recording artist
Best known for Dobro

Beecher Ray “Pete” Kirby, known on stage as “Bashful Brother Oswald,” was an American dobro and banjo player, a longtime member of Roy Acuff's Smoky Mountain Boys.

Assisted by AI. Spot something off? Help us fix it.
  • Born in 1911 in Sevier County, Tennessee, in the Great Smoky Mountains.
  • Joined Roy Acuff's band and made his Grand Ole Opry debut with the group on New Year's Day 1939.
  • Is widely credited with helping popularize the resonator guitar, or dobro, in country music.
  • Performed as a comic rural character, “Bashful Brother Oswald,” in a floppy hat and oversized shoes.
  • Played on the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's landmark 1972 album “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.”
  • Remained with Roy Acuff's band until Acuff's death in 1992.
  • Died in 2002.

Share Playlist