Author: Richard Thompson

  • Songwriter Bill Castle passes 

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    After a spell of declining health, prolific bluegrass song writer Bill Castle passed away at Maysville Nursing and Rehabilitation, in Maysville, KY on February 27, 2023. He was 89. William Lewis 'Bill' Castle was born on January 6, 1934, in Fleming

  • On This Day #68 – Muleskinner Live

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    On this day … On February 13, 1973, Muleskinner - the first super group of bluegrass music - made its debut on what was the first nationally televised bluegrass music concert.  The program was intended as a showcase for Bill Monroe and

  • Gary Adams passes

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    Michigan-area bluegrass musician Gary Adams passed away on Monday, January 23. He had very recently been diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumour.  Gary Lee Adams was born Harts Creek (Logan County), West Virginia, on January 1, 1952. He began playing at

  • George Portz passes

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    Illinois fiddler and bluegrass promoter George Portz passed away on January 9, 2023, from a heart attack, just two days after his last performance – at the Missouri Area Bluegrass Committee’s (MABC) Winter Festival, Eureka. He was 70 years old. Since

  • Vivian Williams passes

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    Vivian Williams, fiddler, composer, recording artist, and writer, passed away on January 6, 2023 at the age of 84. She had been suffering with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), aka Lou Gehrig's disease, for a few years.   Vivian Tomlinson Williams was

  • Carl Pagter passes 

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    Co-founder of the California Bluegrass Association (CBA), Carl Pagter passed away on Tuesday, January 3, 2023, in Virginia. He was 89 years old. Carl Richard Pagter was born on February 13, 1934, in Baltimore, and helped to form the San