The father of Bluegrass music. Said like that, it doesn't mean much, does it?
So, let me tell you a story: when Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys were already at the height of their success, a hopeful young man from Memphis, Tennessee, went to visit him in Nashville, Tennessee.
It went roughly like this (the accounts from both sides are pretty much aligned):
- Mr. Monroe, I thought it would be interesting to try to blend your music with Delta Blues; I believe something beautiful would come out of it.
- My boy, I've done my part; I have my audience, who expects from me what I do (the folks from Kentucky tend to be quite conservative, editor's note). If you want to and if you’re capable, do it yourself. I wish you the best.
- Alright, Mr. Monroe, I’ll give it a try.
The young man returned to Memphis; I don’t know if it was at Sun Studio, I should check but I don’t have time right now, and in any case, it’s not important, and recorded Blue Moon of Kentucky by Bill Monroe, changing the time from 3/4 to 2/4. Bill Monroe wasn’t offended at all; in fact, from that day on, every time he played that particular song, and until the end of his days in 1996, after the waltz, he always added a reprise in rockabilly style.
That young man from Memphis was named Elvis Presley, but that’s another story.
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