Biography
Samantha Bumgarner stood among the trailblazers who shaped country music across the first decades of the twentieth century. Renowned as an elite banjoist and fiddler, she captured multiple competition titles during an era when female participation remained largely restricted. Renowned banjoist Bascom Lunsford extended an invitation in 1928 for her to appear at the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival in Asheville, NC; from that point forward she returned annually, maintaining the role until her passing thirty years later at age eighty. Although performance defined her career more than studio work, she produced twelve coveted sides in 1924 alongside guitarist Eva Davis for Columbia, documents that still display her commanding command of the country banjo style.
Albums