Bill Clifton
Encyclopedia
Bill Clifton is an American bluegrass
musician and singer who is credited with having organized the very first bluegrass festival in the United States in 1961.
to pursue his degree in business. In 1952, Clifton made his recording debut with the Dixie Mountain Boys. With the addition of banjo player Johnny Clark, the group signed with Blue Ridge Records in 1953 and began playing traditional bluegrass. They soon appeared on the Wheeling Jamboree radio barn dance show on AM station WWVA
. Clifton published a songbook in 1955 called 150 Old Time Folk and Gospel Songs. In the mid 1950s, he enlisted in the Marine Corps and was discharged two years later. He recorded for Starday Records and Mercury Records
, paying for the sessions himself. On July 4, 1961, Clifton organized the very first bluegrass festival at Oak Leaf Park in Luray, Virginia
. The festival featured the biggest acts of the day in bluegrass music including Bill Monroe
, the Stanley Brothers, Jim & Jesse
, Red Allen, Frank Wakefield & The Kentuckians, Mac Wiseman
and the Country Gentlemen
. In 1963, Clifton's family moved to England and he toured all over Europe playing in local folk clubs. In 1967, he joined the Peace Corps
, serving three years in the Philippines
. Meanwhile, he recorded with a local New Zealand
band, The Hamilton County Bluegrass Band. In later years, he recorded both in Europe and in the United States. In the 1970s, he signed with County Records
and formed the First Generation band, consisting of Clifton on guitar, Red Rector on mandolin and Don Stover on banjo. Clifton and his family returned to the United States in 1978 and settled down in Virginia
. In 1980, he began recording for his own label Elf Records. In 2008 he was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Association's Hall of Fame.
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
musician and singer who is credited with having organized the very first bluegrass festival in the United States in 1961.
Biography
Bill Clifton was born William Marburg into a wealthy family in Riderwood, Maryland. From an early age, he listened to country music radio stations. While still in college, he formed the Dixie Mountain Boys together with his friends Paul Clayton and Dave Sadler. Because his family was opposed to his musical activities, he took the stage name "Bill Clifton". In 1949, he attended the University of VirginiaUniversity of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
to pursue his degree in business. In 1952, Clifton made his recording debut with the Dixie Mountain Boys. With the addition of banjo player Johnny Clark, the group signed with Blue Ridge Records in 1953 and began playing traditional bluegrass. They soon appeared on the Wheeling Jamboree radio barn dance show on AM station WWVA
WWVA (AM)
WWVA is an AM radio station that broadcasts on a frequency of 1170 kHz with studios in Wheeling, West Virginia, USA, and towers formerly located in St. Clairsville, Ohio, before they were destroyed in an August 2010 storm...
. Clifton published a songbook in 1955 called 150 Old Time Folk and Gospel Songs. In the mid 1950s, he enlisted in the Marine Corps and was discharged two years later. He recorded for Starday Records and Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
, paying for the sessions himself. On July 4, 1961, Clifton organized the very first bluegrass festival at Oak Leaf Park in Luray, Virginia
Luray, Virginia
Luray is a town in Page County, Virginia, United States, in the Shenandoah Valley of the northern part of the state. It is also the county seat...
. The festival featured the biggest acts of the day in bluegrass music including Bill Monroe
Bill Monroe
William Smith Monroe was an American musician who created the style of music known as bluegrass, which takes its name from his band, the "Blue Grass Boys," named for Monroe's home state of Kentucky. Monroe's performing career spanned 60 years as a singer, instrumentalist, composer and bandleader...
, the Stanley Brothers, Jim & Jesse
Jim & Jesse
Jim & Jesse were an American bluegrass music duo composed of brothers Jim McReynolds and Jesse McReynolds...
, Red Allen, Frank Wakefield & The Kentuckians, Mac Wiseman
Mac Wiseman
Malcolm B. Wiseman , better known as Mac Wiseman, is an American bluegrass singer, nicknamed The Voice with a Heart. The bearded singer is one of the cult figures of bluegrass....
and the Country Gentlemen
The Country Gentlemen
The Country Gentlemen were a bluegrass band that originated during the 1950s in the area of Washington, DC, United States, and recorded and toured with various members until the death in 2004 of Charlie Waller, one of the group's founders who in its later years served as the group's "focal point...
. In 1963, Clifton's family moved to England and he toured all over Europe playing in local folk clubs. In 1967, he joined the Peace Corps
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...
, serving three years in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. Meanwhile, he recorded with a local New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
band, The Hamilton County Bluegrass Band. In later years, he recorded both in Europe and in the United States. In the 1970s, he signed with County Records
County Records
County Records also expanded into the bluegrass music genre, although Freeman preferred those artists who stayed the closest to their old-time roots. The label's first bluegrass release was 1965's Blue Ridge Bluegrass featuring Larry Richardson and the Blue Ridge Boys.-Related businesses:Freeman...
and formed the First Generation band, consisting of Clifton on guitar, Red Rector on mandolin and Don Stover on banjo. Clifton and his family returned to the United States in 1978 and settled down in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. In 1980, he began recording for his own label Elf Records. In 2008 he was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Association's Hall of Fame.
Selected discography
- Mountain Folk Songs - Starday Records (1960)
- Carter Family Memorial Album - Starday Records (1961)
- Bluegrass Sound of - Starday Records (1962)
- Soldier, Sing Me A Song - Starday Records (1963)
- Code of the Mountains - Starday Records (1964)
- Mountain Bluegrass Songs - Nashville Records (1964)
- Bluegrass In the American Tradition - Nashville Records (1965)
- Are You From Dixie - Bear Family Records (1971)
- Getting Folk - Bear Family Records (1972)
- Blue Ridge Mountain Blues - County Records (1973)
- Come By the Hills - County Records (1975)
- Bluegrass Session 1952 - Bear Family Records (1975)
- Going Back To Dixie - Bear Family Records (1975)
- Another Happy Day - Bear Family Records (1976)
- Are You From Dixie - Bear Family Records (1977)
- Clifton & Company - County Records (1977)
- Autoharp Centennial Celebration - Elf Records (1981)
- Beatle Crazy - Bear Family Records (1983)
- Where the Rainbow Finds Its End - Elf Records (1991)
- The Early Years 1957-1958 - Rounder Records (1992)
- River of Memories - Elf Records (1994)
- Around the World To Poor Valley - Bear Family Records (2001)
- Alive - Elf Records (2001)
- Playing Where the Grass Is Greener - Elf Records (2003)
- Mountain Laurel - Elf Records (2004)