Bill Harrell Archives - Bluegrass Today

Bill Harrell & The Virginians photos from the late 1970s

Many bluegrass lovers know Akira Otsuka as a brilliant mandolinist, something he has pursued from the time he was a young man in Japan, through his later life here in the United States. Fewer know that he is also a talented photographer whose images from his early days here in the 1970s are being archived online.

He has agreed to share some of those with our readers, starting with this gallery shot during a recording session at Track Recorders in Silver Spring, Maryland. It shows Bill Harrell & The Virginians in the studio for Dick Freeland and Rebel Records, engineered by Ronnie Freeland. The band included Bill on guitar and lead vocal, Darrel Sanders on banjo, Larry Stephenson on mandolin, Carl Nelson on fiddle, Ed Ferris on bass, and Mike Auldridge on reso-guitar.

Darrel and Larry are the only ones still with us from that session, which was released as I Can Hear Virginia Calling Me on Rebel Records in 1980.

We reached out to Larry Stephenson who shared a few memories from that day.

“I recall that time fairly well. It was in November of 1978. The thing I remember the most about that session was that I wasn’t a member of the band yet. I was playing with Leon Morris at the time, and Bill had just put The Virginians back together. I had seen him play a show with just four pieces, and I had gone up and told him that if I could ever help him out on mandolin, I would love to have a try at it.

He put me off several times before finally hiring me in January of ’79, but he did hire me for that session. I remember that in addition to Mike Auldridge from Seldom Scene being there, Phil Rosenthal was there as well since we were cutting his song, Something In The Wind is Calling Me.

I was just 22 years old and getting to record with guys like Ed Ferris, Mike Auldridge, and Bill Harrell was a pure joy.”

Thanks Larry, and Akira for the memories!

We will share some of Otsuka’s other images as the spring and summer roll along.

Reno & Harrell ride again

Don Reno and Bill Harrell had quite a run in the 1960s, with Harrell stepping in for Red Smily when Red retired in 1964. Red rejoined the group in ’69, and stayed until his death in ’72, while Don and Bill continued together until Don passed away in 1984. Bill went on performing with his own group, though more sporadically as he aged, leading up to his passing in 2009.

Don’s sons, Ronnie, Dale and Don Wayne, have been active in bluegrass all their lives, working together as The Reno Brothers for many years. Ronnie also toured with Merle Haggard for a time, and now hosts a number of popular shows on Bluehighways TV. Dale and Don Wayne were part of Hayseed Dixie, a hilarious group that started as an AC/DC bluegrass tribute band, who built a worldwide following.

Not as many fans are familiar with Bill’s son Mitch, who plays guitar and sings in the manner of his iconic dad, even keeping the band name that Bill used, The Virginians.

We heard last week from Mitch, with exciting news for Reno and Harrell fans. He, Dale and Don Wayne have assembled a new group, billing as Reno & Harrell. They are headed into the studio in January with plans to record a mix of their fathers’ hits and their own original songs. A debut CD is expected in the Spring of 2013.

Several festivals have already booked the band for next year. The show is expected to draw on both the Reno & Smiley and original Reno & Harrell catalogs. Mitch mentioned that they are considering reprising the Saturday Night/Sunday Morning theme mined so often in bluegrass.

The trio have been friends since childhood, and have played music together for years. Mitch says that all three of them are eager to get this party started.

More details about other band members will be announced soon. It is hoped that a live performance on December 8 in Annapolis, MD will yield some live audio or video we can share with our readers.

West Virginia Style coming back in June

West Virginia banjo man, Darrell Sanders, recently announced plans to release an instrumental recording titled West Virginia Style. Originally recorded in 1983 and pressed in vinyl, the project was released on Webco Records, and has been out of print for many years. Darrell was able to obtain the right to release the project on compact disc, and plans to release the CD in June.

Most fans are familiar with Darrell’s work with Bill Harrell and the Virginians in the late 70’s through the early 1980’s, and this recording features the instrumental talents of the Virginians, including Harrell on guitar, Larry Stephenson on mandolin, Carl Nelson on fiddle, Ed Ferris on bass, and Darrell on banjo, supplemented by guest Mike Auldridge on dobro. While Bill Harrell and his band were firmly planted in traditional bluegrass, Darrell’s banjo style was, characteristic of the late 70’s, a blend of melodic and Scruggs-Reno traditions.

Red Haired Boy: [http://traffic.libsyn.com/thegrasscast/red_haired_boy_darrell.mp3]

Double Banjo Blues: [http://traffic.libsyn.com/thegrasscast/double_banjo_blues.mp3]

While Harrell, Ferris, and Nelson, have since passed away, Larry Stephenson and Mike Auldridge congratulated Sanders on the release, with Stephenson reminiscing…

“They were fun times for a couple of young guys, and Bill was so nice to let us record our own music. This record still sounds good today.”

In recent years, Darrell has been performing as a member of Stoney Creek, based in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia, and he recently signed an endorsement deal with Deering Banjos. One or more CD release performances are in the works for Darrell and the group, and will be announced in the near future.

Two more from the Rebel Vault

Rebel Records has two new digital reissues which were released last week.

We have on many occasions tipped our cap to the Rebel folks for their ongoing efforts to digitize and re-release their rich back catalog of classic bluegrass, generally at the rate of two per month. These two late April offerings capture a pair of legendary performers, Bill Harrell and Larry Sparks, with snapshots of their music in the early 1980s.

Lonesome Guitar is a cherished classic for fans of Larry Sparks’ lead guitar playing. Long celebrated for his distinctive, soulful singing, Larry is also a fine guitarist, noted for his gritty, somewhat-funky solos and driving rhythm.

Sparks is supported on this all-instrumental album by his son Larry D. Sparks on bass, John Masters on banjo, Josh Graves on dobro, and a young Stuart Duncan on mandolin and fiddle, in his only recording with The Lonesome Ramblers.

The 12 tracks consists of a number of traditional fiddle tunes, and one Sparks original.

Chittlin Cookin’ Time in Cheatum County
Faded Love
The Old Spinning Wheel
Ramblin’ Guitar
In The Garden
Florida Blues

Carrol County Blues
Time Changes Everything
Buffalo Gals
Farewell Blues
Under The Double Eagles
Low and Lonely

You can hear audio samples in iTunes.

Also new in digital audio is I Can Hear Virginia Calling Me from Bill Harrell & The Virginians. Originally released on LP in 1980, the record include the iconic vocalist with Carl Nelson on fiddle, Darrell Sanders on banjo, Ed Ferris on bass, Mike Auldridge on dobro, and Larry Stephenson on mandolin.

This first Harrell project for Rebel features 12 tracks with his strong, traditional bluegrass band.

Green Rolling Hills
Let Me Make You Smile Again
Amy
Martinsburg March
Time Clock Of Life
I Can Hear Virginia Calling Me

Lonesome With Heartaches
Something In The Wind
A Visit to Mother’s Grave
I Can Get The Blues When It Rains
When The Saints Go Marching In
I Want To Go Back To The Mountains

Audio samples for I Can Hear Virginia Calling Me are also available in iTunes.

10 digital reissues from Pinecastle

The resurrected Pinecastle Records has announced a digital re-release of ten classic albums originally found on the Webco label. Pinecastle had acquired Webco back in 1993, and these reissues involve both then-existing catalog items and subsequent anthologies.

These include albums from Bill Emerson, Bill Harrell, Larry Stephenson, James King, Jim Eanes and several others. All are available now wherever digital downloads are sold (iTunes, Amazon, etc).

Bill Emerson & Pete Goble – WEBCO Classics Vol 1
James King – WEBCO Classics Vol 2
Jim Eanes – WEBCO Classics, Vol. 3
Bill Harrell – WEBCO Classics Vol 4
Larry Stephenson – WEBCO Classics Vol 5
Bill Emerson – Banjo Man
Bill Emerson – Reunion
Emerson & Taylor – Appaloosa
Larry and Wyatt Rice – Larry and Wyatt Rice
Lou Reid, Terry Baucom & Carolina

Some of these albums have been unavailable for some time, and their return is most welcome.

New Reno, Smiley, Harrell compilation released

Gary Reid, he of Copper Creek Records and The Bluegrass Calendar, has announced a new reissue of music from Don Reno and his two primary partners, Red Smiley and Bill Harrell.

The 4-CD set is simply titled 1963 – 1972, featuring 5 albums released during that era on King and Starday Records. Perfectly timed for the season, the set includes the Reno & Smiley Christmas album from 1963, The True Meaning Of Christmas (with previously unreleased tracks). What could be better as you wrap those gifts than listening to Don and Red sing Jingle Bells, Silent Night and Frosty The Snowman?

Also included are Reno and Smiley Sing A Bluegrass Tribute To Cowboy Copas, and All The Way To Reno, their salute to over-the-road truckers.

There are also two Reno & Harrell albums: Bluegrass On My Mind and I’m Using My Bible For A Roadmap.

Gary tells us that the box set is packaged with a 32 page booklet, including many previously unpublished photographs. It is offered for sale online for $25.

Darrell Sanders and Larry Stephenson – a Virginians reunion

We got a note recently from Aaron Kilmer, sound tech with West Virginia’s Stoney Creek.

He shared a story about Darrell Sanders, the band’s banjo picker, and his reunion earlier this month with Larry Stephenson with whom he had performed in Bill Harrell’s group during the late 1970s and early ’80s.

“Larry Stephenson recently caught up with fellow Bill Harrell & the Virginians alumni Darrell Sanders. The former bandmates met up backstage before the Larry Stephenson Band’s show with Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper on January 9th in Berryville, VA. Sanders was also able to reunite with bluegrass veterans Kenny Ingram and Lynn Morris.

It really was a classic moment. Darrell had celebrated a birthday earlier in the week, and as a surprise some of his friends got tickets for the Larry Stephenson show. He hadn’t really seen any of those guys for probably 20 years, although he spoke with Larry over the phone when Bill Harrell passed away last summer. Darrell also knew Kenny Ingram from sharing the stage years ago, and he had jammed on tour with Lynn Morris and Marshall Wilborn.

LSB and Michael Cleveland/Flamekeeper put on an excellent show; probably some of the best bluegrass I’ve heard.”

Stephenson began his professional career with Bill Harrell & the Virginians, playing mandolin from 1979 until 1983. After a stint with Charlie Moore & the Dixie Partners, Sanders joined the Virginians in 1978 while still in his teens and played banjo with the group for the next 10 years. Stephenson and other members of the Virginians played on Sanders’ 1983 instrumental solo album West Virginia Style.

Here’s a video of a much younger Darrell and Larry with Bill Harrell at the Philadelphia Folk Festival in 1981. Carl Nelson is on fiddle and Ed Ferris on bass. Great stuff!

Stoney Creek is in the studio now completing their next album, while Larry is touring in support of his 20th Anniversary CD, due from Pinecastle on February 23.

Bill Harrell – A Look Back

As reported earlier veteran singer/multi-instrumentalist Bill Harrell passed away on June 24 at his home in Davidsonville, Maryland. He had suffered a stroke on June 12 and was hospitalized for a week. His health was further complicated by advanced prostate cancer, an enlarged heart and fluid on his lungs.

Born in Marion, Virginia, on September 14, 1934, Harrell had a recognizable vocal style, light and mellow in tone, in a bluegrass music career that started during his college years when he began playing mandolin in a trio. Prior to that he learned to play the piano and to read music.

Subsequently he played with several Washington, DC area musicians like Eddie Adcock, Donny Bryant, Smiley Hobbs, Smitty Irvin, Carl Nelson and Roy Self, during stints with bands such as the Rocky Mountain Boys.

While serving in the armed forces, Harrell was injured in an auto accident, and spent close to a year recovering in a military hospital. Upon his release, he returned to Washington, DC and formed a group that released three singles on the Starday label. Subsequently he formed the Virginians with Irvin on banjo, Buck Ryan on fiddle and Stoney Edwards on bass and in 1963 released the album The Wonderful World of Bluegrass Music (United Artists). This was followed two years later with Ballads and Bluegrass (Adelphi). The group played dates up and down the East Coast of America and Harrell hosted his own weekly television program from Harrisonburg, Virginia, and the group were frequent guests on Jimmy Dean’s network TV series.

In December 1966, Harrell joined Don Reno and the Tennessee Cut-Ups, remaining Reno’s partner for over a decade; a period in which saw the rise in popularity of bluegrass music festivals. Reno and Harrell recorded several albums for a variety of established labels, like King, Starday and Monument, as well as smaller ones such as Jalyn, King Bluegrass and CMH (recently formed at that time).

Early in 1977 Harrell and bass player Ed Ferris amicably left the Tennessee Cut-Ups to re-form the Virginians with Harrell’s old friend Carl Nelson on fiddle and newcomer Darrell Sanders on banjo. The following year the band released their first album Bluegrass and Ballads (Adelphi), followed by the back-to-back albums Bluegrass Gospel, Pure and Simple (Leather) and I Can Hear Virginia Calling Me (Rebel), in 1980. By this time mandolin player Larry Stephenson had joined the band also. These albums were followed by another album for Leather, The L&N Don’t Stop Here Anymore (in 1981). Despite a constantly changing line-up, Harrell continued to lead the Virginians well into the 1990s, issuing excellent records like Walking in the Early Morning Dew (1983), Blue Virginia, Blue (1986) and After The Sunrise (1990); all for Rebel Records.

Shortly afterwards, Harrell retired and son Mitch, who was already by that time a member of the Virginians, took over the band.

In a career that spanned over 30 years and is noted for his relaxed, easy-going style of traditional bluegrass, Bill Harrell was a major contributor to the growth of bluegrass music in the Washington DC area. He performed for three presidents; Nixon, Reagan and Bush.

Last year the IBMA honored Harrell with a Distinguished Achievement Award, presented to him by Larry Stephenson.

Bill Harrell remembered

In addition to Richard Thompson’s overview of Bill Harrell’s long career in bluegrass, we spoke to a number of artists who had worked with Bill, and wanted to share their thoughts on his passing.

First up is Ronnie Reno, who performed with Bill as a member of Reno & Harrell.

“Bill Harrell goes deep into being a Pioneer of the music and was a great influence on a lot of young pickers and singers. I know for a fact that my friend Larry Stephenson was a student of Bill’s. Bill met my Dad (Don Reno) and Red Smiley in the middle 50’s and I remember Bill playing mandolin with them at the Old Dominion Barn Dance in Richmond VA.

Shortly after that I believe Bill went onto the Army. Dad and I moved to Riverdale MD in 1966 and he and Bill had a great 10 year partnership. I was with them for a year and then I moved to Nashville TN. During that short year I got to know Bill very well. He was a gentle man with a lot of talent and was a great business man. Bill had a very smooth voice and played a hard driving rhythm guitar. He was also a very good song writer and interacted well with his fans and friends on stage.

Bill will be remembered as a great influence on our next generations for years to come. I will miss Bill as I considered him a friend and he was always there when I needed him.

May he rest in piece and enjoy singing with Dad and Red on a wonderful trio as of this writing.”

Larry Stephenson also had a few thoughts to share…

“Bill Harrell was the complete package. Guitar playing, songwriting, emceeing, working an audience, and he knew how to sing a song. His phrasing was second to none. When I was with Bill he kept us very busy. He did his own booking and also did some booking in the early days for the Johnson Mountain Boys and other acts in the DC-Baltimore area.

I learned the business of Bluegrass from Bill Harrell……how to find songs, put an album together, book a band, how to treat your band….. just everything about running a band as a business. I’ve tried my best to carry on my ‘Bill Harrell Schooling’ for the last twenty years of the Larry Stephenson Band. He was the best and I will miss him forever.

I want to thank IBMA for Bill’s Distinguished Achievement Award last October at the World of Bluegrass in Nashville, TN. He’s was so happy and never quit talking about it. It was well deserved and way over due.”

We also heard from Eddie and Martha Adcock:

“I worked with Bill a little while in the ’50s in the Washington DC area. Note that I said “with Bill”, not “for Bill”: he was a very democratic bandleader.

Back then, a band generally wore shirts alike onstage, and the way we paid for ours was with fines. If you cussed onstage or at a job, or if you were late to a show or to a rehearsal, you paid a fine into the shirt kitty. Well, I was just a kid and had no car –and Bill wasn’t that much older than me– but sometimes Bill would have to pick me up, come 50 miles to get me, and 50 back to where we were going; and then if we were late to the show or rehearsal because of that, Bill insisted on paying both our fines! And it would be 200 miles total to get me back home. He was always more than fair.

Bill Harrell was a fun person to work with , too…he was always happy, and he loved to hang out with the band as much as possible. He lived with his parents at that time.

The music with Bill was superb in every way. We had a tremendous following. At that point, the other guys in the band were Carl Nelson on fiddle and keyboard, and Roy Self on bass. I played banjo, and Bill played guitar, of course. Bill sang all the bluegrass material, and some country too, and I sang some country and ‘most all the rockabilly, with Roy Self doing some of that too. Rockabilly was very popular at that time.

The band was extremely tight. We had frequent practice sessions for the new material. All of us got to choose songs.

At one point we recorded some things at Roy Self’s house, with quilts over the windows, but I have no idea what happened to that.”

Martha Adcock adds:

“Bill Harrell was, to me, an enormous rhythm-guitar influence. I’d see him at Carlton Haney festivals in the early ’70s. Bill’s style was so powerful. And he was fast! Even with the last three fingers on his picking hand hanging out straight, he could really fly. Those fingers were just a blur.”

Eddie rejoins:

“When I was with Bill, we played so fast it seemed like no human could keep up. His hand was going like the blades of a fan!”

Bill Harrell passes

Larry Stephenson shared some sad news…

I’m sorry to report that Bill Harrell passed away this afternoon at 4:10 p.m. at his home in Davidisonville, MD.

Viewing with be Sunday evening (6/28) from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Chesapeake Christian Fellowship Church, Central Ave, Davidisonville, MD. The funeral will be at 10:00 a.m. Monday morning at the same church.

Condolences may be sent to:

938 St. George Barber Road
Davidisonville, MD 21035

Bill suffered a stroke on June 12 and had returned home after a week in the hospital.