Flatt & Scruggs

Flatt & Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys rank among the most celebrated bluegrass ensembles ever assembled. Their efforts elevated the style to levels that eluded even Bill Monroe, the figure who originated the genre. Guitarist and vocalist Lester Flatt from Tennessee and banjo virtuoso Earl Scruggs from North Carolina drove bluegrass toward worldwide audiences and mainstream acceptance.

Both musicians emerged from Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys. Their distinctive contributions, described by one observer as “overdrive,” left Monroe feeling diminished once Flatt’s precise vocals and Scruggs’s banjo leads departed in 1948. The pair promptly formed a new group widely regarded as one of the strongest in the field. Supported by exceptional players and Flatt’s steady, restrained singing, the Foggy Mountain Boys carried bluegrass to international attention through their Martha White Flour Opry broadcasts and extensive television and film exposure. From 1948 until their 1969 separation, prompted by diverging musical interests, they functioned as the genre’s flagship act.

Monroe united Flatt and Scruggs in 1945. By March of the next year the lineup also included fiddler Chubby Wise and bassist Cedric Rainwater. This classic five-piece unit shaped bluegrass’s core sound and secured national notice via radio programs, recordings, and live performances. After three years, Flatt exited in 1948; Scruggs soon joined him. Together they launched the Foggy Mountain Boys, quickly adding former Blue Grass Boy Rainwater, fiddler Jim Shumate, and guitarist-vocalist Mac Wiseman. The group performed on southern radio outlets and secured a Mercury Records contract in late 1948. Over the following two years they toured extensively, appeared on numerous broadcasts, and cut several Mercury sessions, one of which yielded the first recording of “Foggy Mountain Breakdown,” later a bluegrass standard.

In 1951 Flatt & Scruggs moved to Columbia Records. The band now featured mandolinist-vocalist Curly Seckler, fiddler Paul Warren, and bassist Jake Tullock. While other bluegrass and hard-country acts struggled through the early and mid-1950s, the Foggy Mountain Boys thrived. Their Columbia single “’Tis Sweet to Be Remembered” reached the Top Ten in 1952. In 1953 the Martha White Flour company sponsored a regular WSM radio program. The band joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1955; the next year Dobro player Buck Graves joined the roster.

Late-1950s folk revival audiences expanded their reach, leading to festival appearances aimed at younger bluegrass and folk listeners. Syndicated country television shows also featured them regularly. Beginning in summer 1959 they launched a string of Top 40 country singles that continued through 1968. Their profile peaked in 1962 with the theme for the television series The Beverly Hillbillies. “The Ballad of Jed Clampett” became the first bluegrass single to top the charts in early 1963, and the duo made several guest appearances on the program.

Additional film and television work followed, most prominently the placement of “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” in Arthur Penn’s 1968 film Bonnie and Clyde. Despite broadening bluegrass’s audience more than any prior artist, including Monroe, this success contributed to the duo’s rupture. Scruggs sought stylistic expansion and urged Flatt to record Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone” in 1968 while booking concerts at rock venues. Flatt preferred to remain within traditional bluegrass. The tension culminated in their 1969 split. Flatt established the traditional Nashville Grass; Scruggs formed the more progressive Earl Scruggs Revue.

Both pursued active solo careers throughout the 1970s. Plans for a reunion album in 1979 ended with Flatt’s death on May 11 of that year. Scruggs continued releasing projects, including the 1982 album The Storyteller and the Banjo Man with Tom T. Hall and 2001’s Earl Scruggs and Friends, which featured Johnny Cash, Elton John, Sting, Vince Gill, Albert Lee, Leon Russell, and Steve Martin. He also made frequent television appearances, often for reunion performances, until his death in Nashville in 2012. Flatt & Scruggs entered the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1985.