Mac Wiseman, known worldwide as “The Voice with a Heart,” turned 92 yesterday.
He hosted a birthday get-together at his home this past Saturday with about 50 close friends and family members in the Nashville area. They told stories, sang songs, and Mac sang along as well.
Wiseman has been a part of our music from its earliest days. He worked with both Bill Monroe and Flatt & Scruggs in the 1940s and now, 70 years later, he’s still writing and recording bluegrass. A new album from Mountain Fever Records, I Sang The Song, has spent much of this year on our Bluegrass Today Weekly Airplay Chart, which includes 10 new songs he wrote with Thomm Jutz and Peter Cooper, performed by some of the biggest names in the music business. The album closes with a duet between Mac and Alison Krauss on his trademark number, ‘Tis Sweet To Be Remembered.
Mac also had a successful career in country music, and was instrumental in the founding of both the Country Music Association and the International Bluegrass Music Association. At one point in his career he had the confidence to tour without a band, feeling completely confident that wherever he performed, he could find a group of musicians who knew his songs. And he was right!
Here at Bluegrass Today, we celebrate Mac Wiseman every day, but especially for his birthday.
Happy Birthday Mac!
