Hylo Brown
Encyclopedia
Hylo Brown was a bluegrass
and country music
singer, guitarist and bass player.
and began his career as a performer on radio station WCMI in Ashland, Kentucky
in 1939. Soon, he moved to WLOG in Logan, West Virginia
and their "Saturday Jamboree". Six months later, he moved with his family to Springfield, Ohio
. He began composing songs and performing on local radio stations in Ohio. During an appearance at WFPB in Middletown, Ohio
he received his nickname "Hylo" because Smoky Ward, who was on the show, couldn't remember his name and started calling him "Hi-Lo". That nickname was a humorous indication of Brown's presumed vocal range. In 1950, he recorded with Bradley Kincaid
at WWSO studio in Springfield. Four years later, Brown wrote a song, Lost To A Stranger, that was sent to Ken Nelson, the A & R man of Capitol Records
. The song was meant to be recorded by Kitty Wells
but instead, Nelson offered Brown a recording contract if he recorded it himself. On November 7, 1954, he cut his first recordings for Capitol Records
. Lost To A Stranger became his first hit. In early 1955, he formed the "Buckskin Boys" performing on the WWVA
Jamboree in Wheeling, West Virginia
. In 1957, he joined Flatt & Scruggs as a bass player on their "Martha White Mills" shows. He renamed the "Buckskin Boys" calling them "The Timberliners". The Timberliners consisted of Brown on guitar, Red Rector on mandolin, Jim Smoak
on banjo, Clarence "Tater" Tate on fiddle and Joe "Flap Jack" Phillips on bass. After his Capitol contract had expired, Brown signed with Starday Records in 1961. He retired in 1991 and moved to Mechanicsburg, Ohio
.
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...
and country music
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...
singer, guitarist and bass player.
Biography
Frank "Hylo" Brown was born in River, KentuckyRiver, Kentucky
River is an unincorporated community located in Johnson County, Kentucky, United States. The post office was first established on September 6, 1890 and its current ZIP code is 41254 and its telephone area code is 606...
and began his career as a performer on radio station WCMI in Ashland, Kentucky
Ashland, Kentucky
Ashland, formerly known as Poage Settlement, is a city in Boyd County, Kentucky, United States, nestled along the banks of the Ohio River. The population was 21,981 at the 2000 census. Ashland is a part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, Metropolitan Statistical Area . As of the 2000 census, the...
in 1939. Soon, he moved to WLOG in Logan, West Virginia
Logan, West Virginia
Logan is a city in Logan County, West Virginia, United States, along the Guyandotte River. The population was 1,779 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Logan County.-History:...
and their "Saturday Jamboree". Six months later, he moved with his family to Springfield, Ohio
Springfield, Ohio
Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River, Buck Creek and Beaver Creek, approximately west of Columbus and northeast of Dayton. Springfield is home to Wittenberg...
. He began composing songs and performing on local radio stations in Ohio. During an appearance at WFPB in Middletown, Ohio
Middletown, Ohio
Middletown is an All-America City located in Butler and Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Formerly in Lemon, Turtlecreek, and Franklin townships, Middletown was incorporated by the Ohio General Assembly on February 11, 1833, and became a city in 1886...
he received his nickname "Hylo" because Smoky Ward, who was on the show, couldn't remember his name and started calling him "Hi-Lo". That nickname was a humorous indication of Brown's presumed vocal range. In 1950, he recorded with Bradley Kincaid
Bradley Kincaid
William Bradley Kincaid was an American folk singer and radio entertainer.He was born in Point Level, Garrard County, Kentucky but built a music career in the northern states. His first radio appearance came in 1926 when he performed on the National Barn Dance show on WLS-AM in Chicago, Illinois...
at WWSO studio in Springfield. Four years later, Brown wrote a song, Lost To A Stranger, that was sent to Ken Nelson, the A & R man of Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
. The song was meant to be recorded by Kitty Wells
Kitty Wells
Ellen Muriel Deason , known professionally as Kitty Wells, is an American country music singer. Her 1952 hit recording, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels", made her the first female country singer to top the U.S. country charts, and turned her into the first female country star...
but instead, Nelson offered Brown a recording contract if he recorded it himself. On November 7, 1954, he cut his first recordings for Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
. Lost To A Stranger became his first hit. In early 1955, he formed the "Buckskin Boys" performing on the WWVA
WWVA (AM)
WWVA is an AM radio station that broadcasts on a frequency of 1170 kHz with studios in Wheeling, West Virginia, USA, and towers formerly located in St. Clairsville, Ohio, before they were destroyed in an August 2010 storm...
Jamboree in Wheeling, West Virginia
Wheeling, West Virginia
Wheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. In 1957, he joined Flatt & Scruggs as a bass player on their "Martha White Mills" shows. He renamed the "Buckskin Boys" calling them "The Timberliners". The Timberliners consisted of Brown on guitar, Red Rector on mandolin, Jim Smoak
Jim Smoak
Jim Smoak is an American bluegrass and country music banjo player from Louisiana. Smoak may be the first bluegrass banjoist to have come from that state....
on banjo, Clarence "Tater" Tate on fiddle and Joe "Flap Jack" Phillips on bass. After his Capitol contract had expired, Brown signed with Starday Records in 1961. He retired in 1991 and moved to Mechanicsburg, Ohio
Mechanicsburg, Ohio
Mechanicsburg is a village in Champaign County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,744 at the 2000 census.Mechanicsburg laid out in 1814 on the site of the Shawnee Indian Village of Chief Ohito...
.
Selected discography
- Hylo Brown - Capitol (1959)
- Bluegrass Balladeer - Starday Records (1962)
- Bluegrass Goes To College - Starday Records (1963)
- Sing Me A Bluegrass Song - Starday Records (1963)
- Hylo Brown and The Timberliners - Rural Rhythm Records (1966)
- Sings Folk Songs of Rural America - Rural Rhythm Records (1967)
- Legends & Tall Tales - Rural Rhythm Records (1967)
- Sings Country Gospel Songs - Rural Rhythm Records (1967)
- Hylo Brown and the Blue Ridge Mountain Boys - Rural Rhythm Records (1968)
- Sings the Blues - Rural Rhythm Records (1968)
- America's Favorite Balladeer - Rural Rhythm Records (1968)
- Hylo Brown & The Timberliners, 1954-1960 - Bear Family Records (1992)
- 20 Old-Time Favorites (Re-Issue of "Hylo Brown and the Blue Ridge Mountain Boys") - Rural Rhythm Records (1997)