Franklin "Amos" Garren was the first bass player for Bill Monroe and his bluegrass boys. He was the bass player who played on the famous hit for Mr. Monroe, "Mule Skinner Blues." He was not in the band for a long time but he made an impact as a double bass player that is still seen today.[1]
Early History
editFranklin "Amos" Garren was born in North Carolina on May 10th, 1914[2] He was one of the first bluegrass "bass players." Bill Monroe selected Amos Garren to become his bass player after the band move their home base to Greenville, South Carolina. Amos Garren was hired in the year 1942, as the "father of bluegrass music," Bill Monroe, was putting together his blue grass boys and his baseball team together.
Professional Career
editAmos Garren started his career with Bill Monroe & The Bluegrass Boys in August of 1939, after "Snowball" Millard left the band in July to be with his wife who was expecting a baby.[3] The band really liked Amos Garren because he was a lead singer for the band. The gospel music songs that the band would do would be given more attention because the band would start doing quartet music. Amos would sing lead, Bill would sing the tenor part, Art Wooten would sing tenor, and Johnnie Davis sang the bass. Amos Warren also did comedy and Bill was happy with the group he had, because they would put in the long hours of practice.[4] With this band, they would be the first band to ever receive an encore on a broadcast, and it was even on the Grand Ole Opry[5] After the hiring of Amos, Bill Monroe started promoting the band and this specific lineup.[6] Amos was playing bass with Mr. Monroe when Monroe made his Opry Debut.[7] Bill Monroe loved his solid foundation on the bass and was happy in hiring Amos, as now Davis has a solid backing for his rhythm.[8] Amos Garren left the band in 1940, right before the Blue Grass Boys recorded there first album.[9]
Songs that Amos Garren played with Bill Monroe
edit| Year / Date | Song | Band Name | Band Members | Venue / Name of album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 25th, 1939 | Bile 'Em Cabbage Down* | Bill Monroe & The Bluegrass Boys | Bill Monroe, Johnnie "Cleo" Davis, Art Wooten | Grand Ole Opry - Nashville, Tennessee |
| 1965 | Uncle Pen | Bill Monroe & The Bluegrass Boys | Bill Monroe, Johnnie "Cleo" Davis, Art Wooten | Porter Wagoner Show |
| 1965 | Blue Grass Breakdown | Bill Monroe & The Bluegrass Boys | Bill Monroe, Johnnie "Cleo" Davis, Art Wooten | Porter Wagoner Show |
- Bile "Em Cabbage Down was the second song of the set that Opry member Bill Monroe played on his set of the Grand Ole Opry, as he was one of the newest Grand Ole Opry members that he was inducted only a month before this set[10]
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External Links
editArticle body
editReferences
edit- ↑ "Release "The Music of Bill Monroe from 1936 to 1994" by Bill Monroe - MusicBrainz". musicbrainz.org. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
- ↑ "Amos Garren: Blue Grass Boy". doodah.net. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
- ↑ Ewing, Tom (2018). Bill Monroe: The Life & Music of the Bluegrass Man. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 9780252050589.
- ↑ Ewing, Tom (2000). The Bill Monroe Reader. University of Illinois Press. p. 134. ISBN 9780252025006.
- ↑ Mazor, Barry (2009). Meeting Jimmie Rodgers: how America's original roots music hero changed the pop sounds of a century. New York Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-19-532762-5.
- ↑ Paradis, Thomas (2022). A Place Called District 12. McFarland. p. 201. ISBN 9781476687285.
- ↑ Cunningham, Mike. The Legends of Bluegrass Music. 2023.
- ↑ Smith, Richard (2009). Can't You Here Me Calling. Hachette Books. ISBN 9780786731169.
- ↑ Guralnick, Peter (2020). Looking to Get Lost, Adventures in Music and Writing. Little, Brown. ISBN 9780316412643.
- ↑ Bill Monroe - Bile 'Em Cabbage Down (Opry 1939), retrieved 2023-11-15