New Coon Creek Girls

Formed in 1979 under John Lair’s direction, the New Coon Creek Girls upheld the bluegrass lineage first established by his original Coon Creek Girls during the 1930s. Lair supported the new ensemble through the same Renfro Valley Barn Dance radio program and stage that had showcased its predecessor. Guitarist and banjoist Vicki Simmons joined at the outset, bringing not only instrumental skill but also a direct link to the earlier group’s Lilly Mae Ledford, who had instructed her in clawhammer banjo technique. Although personnel shifted repeatedly, Simmons remained a fixture throughout the band’s existence.

The group stayed with Lair’s broadcast until 1983, after which it pursued an independent path. Across the 1980s and 1990s it became a steady draw on the bluegrass and folk festival circuit. By 1991 the roster featured Simmons alongside banjoist Ramona Church Taylor, vocalist and guitarist Dale Ann Bradley, and Pam Perry handling vocals and mandolin. This configuration recorded The L&N Don’t Stop Here Anymore in 1994 and followed it a year later with Ain’t Love a Good Thing. For 1996’s Everything You Do, Deanie Richardson assumed the mandolin chair previously held by Perry, though both musicians appeared on the 1998 release Our Point of View. At that time Bradley and Simmons were also performing together in a separate outfit named Coon Creek. Teenage fiddling sensation Kati Penn added tracks to the New Coon Creek Girls’ later recordings.