Clifford Waldron (born April 4, 1941) is a retired American

bluegrass music Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States. The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Like mainstream country music, it la ...

ian. Waldron is best known for his collaborations with bluegrass musician

Bill Emerson Norvell William Emerson (January 1, 1938 – June 22, 1996) was an American politician. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri from 1981 until his death from lung cancer in Bethesda, Maryland in 19 ...

, with the two forming the bluegrass duo ''Emerson & Waldron,'' as well as the formation of his own band, ''Cliff Waldron and the New Shades Of Grass''.

Early life

Waldron was born April 4, 1941, in

Jolo, West Virginia Jolo (pronounced "Joe-Lowe") is an unincorporated community on West Virginia Route 83 in McDowell County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The community was mentioned in the book ''Salvation on Sand Mountain'' by Dennis Covington for being the ...

, a small rural community in McDowell County. He grew up listening to

Bill Monroe William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre take ...

Flatt & Scruggs Flatt and Scruggs were an American bluegrass duo. Singer and guitarist Lester Flatt and banjo player Earl Scruggs, both of whom had been members of Bill Monroe's band, the Bluegrass Boys, from 1945 to 1948, formed the duo in 1948. Flatt and Scru ...

, and the

Stanley Brothers The Stanley Brothers were an American bluegrass duo of singer-songwriters and musicians, made up of brothers Carter Stanley (August 27, 1925 – December 1, 1966) and Ralph Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016). Ralph and Carter perfo ...

. As a teenager, he played mandolin and guitar and later performed in local bands.

Career

Waldron played mandolin for the Page Valley Boys for a short time. Waldron relocated to the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

area in the early 1960s and went on to perform with regional pickers. Waldron soon formed a relationship with bluegrass musician

and began performing with him, forming the duo ''Emerson & Waldron''. The initial band was called The Lee Highway Boys, but was changed to ''Emerson & Waldron'' and it stuck. Though the partnership with Emerson was short lived, it provided three, well received recordings on

Rebel Records Rebel Records is an independent American record label based in Charlottesville, Virginia that specializes in bluegrass and old time music. The label was founded in Mount Rainier, Maryland in 1959 by Dick Freeland, Bill Carroll and Sonny Compton. ...

. In 1970, Emerson joined the band ''Waller'', replacing

Eddie Adcock Eddie Adcock (born June 21, 1938) is an American banjoist and guitarist. His professional career as a 5-string banjoist began in 1953 when he joined Smokey Graves & His Blue Star Boys, who had a regular show at a radio station in Crewe, Virgin ...

, and also played with the '' Shenandoah Cut-Ups''. He then formed a new band, the New Shades Of Grass, who backed up his first solo release. The band made several well-received albums into the mid-70s. Waldron stopped making music in the early 1970s, however. For the next two decades he worked for the National Park Service, though he sometimes played music at his church and made some private gospel music recordings. In 1975, Waldron dedicated his life to Christ. He made two albums in the middle 1970s, ''Gospel'' and ''God Walks the Dark Hills'', before taking a break from music to begin a career with the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government within the United States Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of ...

. In 1996, Waldron retired from his job at the

and returned to bluegrass. From 1998 to 2003, he recorded four new albums: ''Old Friends and Memories'', ''Seasons Past'', ''Higher Ground'', a gospel collection with bluegrass musician

Paul Williams Paul Williams may refer to: Authors * Paul O. Williams (1935–2009), American science-fiction author and poet * Paul L. Williams (author) (born 1944), FBI consultant, journalist * Paul Williams (journalist) (1948–2013), American founder of mu ...

, and ''A Little Ways Down the Road''.

Discography

This is the incomplete discography for bluegrass musician Cliff Waldron. He has released three studio albums, a compilation album, and many singles as a solo artist.

Emerson & Waldron

* ''New Shades of Grass'' (Rebel, 1968) * ''Bluegrass Country'' (Rebel, 1970) * ''Bluegrass Session'' (Rebel, 1970)

Studio albums

* ''Old Friends & Memories'' (Rebel, 1998) * ''Seasons Past'' (Rebel, 2000) * ''A Little Ways Down The Road'' (Rebel, 2003)

Compilation albums

* ''The Best of Cliff Waldron'' (Rebel, 1999)

Singles

* "Anchored Safe in the Fold" (feat. ''Cliff Waldron & the New Shades of Grass'') * "Another Mile" (feat.

) * "An Axe to Grind" (feat. ''Cliff Waldron & the New Shades of Grass'') * "Blue Bonnet Lane" * "Brand New Wagon" * "Brother, I'm Getting Ready to Go" * "Close the Door Lightly When You Go" * "Deep River" (feat. ''Emerson & Waldron'' /

) * "Don't Know Why" * "

Early Morning Rain "Early Morning Rain," sometimes styled as "Early Mornin' Rain," is a song written, composed, and recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot. The song appears on his 1966 debut album '' Lightfoot!'' and, in a re-recorded version, on ...

" (feat. ''Emerson & Waldron'' /

) * "Falling Leaves" * "Far Above the Starry Sky" (feat. Paul Williams) * "

Walk a Mile in My Shoes "Walk a Mile in My Shoes" is a song written by Joe South, who had a hit with it in 1970. South was also producer and arranger of the track and of its B-side, "Shelter." The single was credited to "Joe South and the Believers"; the Believers inclu ...

" (

Joe South Joe South (born Joseph Alfred Souter; February 28, 1940 – September 5, 2012) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Best known for his songwriting, South won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year in 1970 for " Gam ...

) (feat. Cliff Waldron & the New Shades of Grass

Personal life

Waldron is fully retired from music and lives in

Amissville, Virginia Amissville ( ) is an unincorporated community in Rappahannock County in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. It is located on U.S. Route 211 about halfway between Warrenton and the small town of Washington, Virginia. The Locust Grove/R.E. Lutt ...

with his wife, Nancy.

References

External links

*
Cliff Waldron's OLDIES.com page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waldron, Cliff 1941 births Living people American bluegrass musicians Musicians from Washington, D.C. Musicians from West Virginia 20th-century American musicians 21st-century American musicians People from McDowell County, West Virginia