Charlie Monroe
Encyclopedia
Charlie Monroe was an American country
and bluegrass music
guitarist.
; he was the older brother of the mandolin
player Bill Monroe
. His sister Bertha also played guitar, and brother Birch, fiddle. Charlie, Birch, and Bill played together as a band in the middle of the 1920s, and played on radio starting in 1927. Soon after this, however, their parents died and Charlie and Birch moved to Detroit and then Indiana
to find work, eventually taking jobs in oil refineries
near Hammond, Indiana
. Bill followed them into the oil business in 1929, and the three continued performing in small-time and private venues.
Tom Owens, a musician on the WSL Barn Dance radio program, heard them play at a dance club in 1932 and asked them to join his group as dancers. They accepted, and toured with Owens for the next two years. In 1934, they once again got offers to play music, this time for Indiana radio stations WAE and WJKS. Not long after this, Texas Crystals, a pharmaceutical company, offered to sponsor the Monroes for a radio program of their own. When Birch refused the offer, Bill and Charlie took the bill as The Monroe Brothers. The resulting program was so successful that it eventually became a daily broadcast on Charlotte, North Carolina
station WBT
.
Texas Crystals dropped the sponsorship in 1936, but Crazy Water Crystal Company picked it up, and the brothers continued with the show. That same year, the brothers first recorded together for Bluebird Records
. Bill and Charlie recorded together for the next two years, but Bill chafed under Charlie's role as the usual lead singer, and they split in 1938. Each then formed his own band, with Bill starting The Kentuckians and Charlie the Kentucky Pardners. A number of noted bluegrass musicians played with Charlie's band, including Lester Flatt
, Red Rector, Curly Seckler
, Fiddlin Dale Cole and Ira Louvin
. The Kentucky Pardners enjoyed considerable success as a touring outfit in the American South throughout the 1940s.
Charlie signed with RCA Victor in 1946 and with Decca Records
in 1950; he wrote and recorded a large body of material and continued to tour relentlessly until he announced his retirement in 1957. He moved back to his farm and, after the death of his first wife, worked in manual labor in Indiana
again. He remarried in 1969.
Monroe was asked by Jimmy Martin
to play at the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival in 1972. His performance was a great success. He continued to play festivals until diagnosed with cancer
in 1974; he died at his farm in Reidsville, North Carolina
in 1975 and was buried in his family's plot.
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
and bluegrass music
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
guitarist.
Biography
Monroe was born on his family's farm in Rosine, KentuckyRosine, Kentucky
Rosine is an unincorporated town in Ohio County, Kentucky, United States. Bill Monroe, The Father of Bluegrass, is not only buried in the town but also memorialized with a bronze cast disk affixed to the barn where his music remains alive. The community was named for the pen name of Jenny Taylor...
; he was the older brother of the mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
player Bill Monroe
Bill Monroe
William Smith Monroe was an American musician who created the style of music known as bluegrass, which takes its name from his band, the "Blue Grass Boys," named for Monroe's home state of Kentucky. Monroe's performing career spanned 60 years as a singer, instrumentalist, composer and bandleader...
. His sister Bertha also played guitar, and brother Birch, fiddle. Charlie, Birch, and Bill played together as a band in the middle of the 1920s, and played on radio starting in 1927. Soon after this, however, their parents died and Charlie and Birch moved to Detroit and then Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
to find work, eventually taking jobs in oil refineries
Oil refinery
An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where crude oil is processed and refined into more useful petroleum products, such as gasoline, diesel fuel, asphalt base, heating oil, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas...
near Hammond, Indiana
Hammond, Indiana
Hammond is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 80,830 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Hammond is located at ....
. Bill followed them into the oil business in 1929, and the three continued performing in small-time and private venues.
Tom Owens, a musician on the WSL Barn Dance radio program, heard them play at a dance club in 1932 and asked them to join his group as dancers. They accepted, and toured with Owens for the next two years. In 1934, they once again got offers to play music, this time for Indiana radio stations WAE and WJKS. Not long after this, Texas Crystals, a pharmaceutical company, offered to sponsor the Monroes for a radio program of their own. When Birch refused the offer, Bill and Charlie took the bill as The Monroe Brothers. The resulting program was so successful that it eventually became a daily broadcast on Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
station WBT
WBT (AM)
WBT is a radio station in Charlotte, North Carolina, broadcasting on the AM dial at 1110 kHz. A 50,000-watt clear-channel station, it can be heard across most of the eastern half of North America at night. It simulcasts on WBT-FM, at 99.3 MHz in Chester, South Carolina. It is owned by Greater...
.
Texas Crystals dropped the sponsorship in 1936, but Crazy Water Crystal Company picked it up, and the brothers continued with the show. That same year, the brothers first recorded together for Bluebird Records
Bluebird Records
Bluebird Records is a sub-label of RCA Victor Records originally created in 1932 to counter the American Record Company in the "3 records for a dollar" market. Along with ARC's Perfect Records, Melotone Records and Romeo Records, and the independent US Decca label, Bluebird became one of the best...
. Bill and Charlie recorded together for the next two years, but Bill chafed under Charlie's role as the usual lead singer, and they split in 1938. Each then formed his own band, with Bill starting The Kentuckians and Charlie the Kentucky Pardners. A number of noted bluegrass musicians played with Charlie's band, including Lester Flatt
Lester Flatt
Lester Raymond Flatt was a bluegrass musician and guitarist and mandolinist, best known for his membership in the Bluegrass duo The Foggy Mountain Boys, also known as "Flatt and Scruggs," with banjo picker Earl Scruggs. Flatt's career spanned multiple decades; besides his work with Scruggs, he...
, Red Rector, Curly Seckler
Curly Seckler
-Formative Years:Born John Ray Sechler to Carrie and Calvin Sechler in China Grove, NC December 25th, 1919, "Curly" was destined to have a huge contribution on Bluegrass music. In his youth and formative years, Curly learned to play music from his parents. His father, Calvin, played old time...
, Fiddlin Dale Cole and Ira Louvin
Ira Louvin
Ira Lonnie Loudermilk , known professionally as Ira Louvin, was an American country music singer, mandolinist and songwriter. He was a cousin of songwriter John D. Loudermilk.-Biography:...
. The Kentucky Pardners enjoyed considerable success as a touring outfit in the American South throughout the 1940s.
Charlie signed with RCA Victor in 1946 and with Decca Records
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
in 1950; he wrote and recorded a large body of material and continued to tour relentlessly until he announced his retirement in 1957. He moved back to his farm and, after the death of his first wife, worked in manual labor in Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
again. He remarried in 1969.
Monroe was asked by Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin was an American bluegrass musician, known as the "King of Bluegrass".-Early years:Born James H. Martin in Sneedville, Tennessee. Jimmy Martin was born into the hard farming life of rural East Tennessee. He grew up near Sneedville, singing in church and with friends from surrounding...
to play at the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival in 1972. His performance was a great success. He continued to play festivals until diagnosed with cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in 1974; he died at his farm in Reidsville, North Carolina
Reidsville, North Carolina
Reidsville is a city located in Rockingham County, North Carolina. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 14,485.Originally established in the early 19th century as an outpost and stop on the stage line that ran between Salisbury, NC and Danville, VA called Wrights Crossroads,...
in 1975 and was buried in his family's plot.