Roscoe Holcomb (born Roscoe Halcomb; September 5, 1912 – February 1, 1981) was an American singer,

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

player, and

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

from Daisy, Kentucky. A prominent figure in

Appalachian folk music Appalachian music is the music of the region of Appalachia in the Eastern United States. Traditional Appalachian music is derived from various influences, including the ballads, hymns and fiddle music of the British Isles (particularly Scotland), ...

, Holcomb was the inspiration for the term "high, lonesome sound", coined by folklorist and friend John Cohen. The "high lonesome sound" term is now used to describe bluegrass singing, although Holcomb was not, strictly speaking, a bluegrass performer.

Performance style

Holcomb's repertoire included

old-time music Old-time music is a genre of North American folk music. It developed along with various North American folk dances, such as square dancing, contra dance, clogging, and buck dancing. It is played on acoustic instruments, generally centering ...

hymns A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

traditional music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

ballads. In addition to playing the banjo and guitar, he was a competent

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica incl ...

and

fiddle A fiddle is a Bow (music), bowed String instrument, string musical instrument, most often a violin or a bass. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including European classical music, classical music. Althou ...

player, and sang many of his most memorable songs

a cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

. Holcomb stated: "Up till then the blues were only inside me; Blind Lemon was the first to 'let out' the blues." Holcomb sang in a nasal style informed by the Old Regular Baptist vocal tradition.

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

, a fan of Holcomb, described his singing as possessing "an untamed sense of control". He was also admired by the Stanley Brothers and

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

, who cited Holcomb as his favorite country musician.

Life and career

coal miner Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extrac ...

, construction laborer and farmer for much of his life, Holcomb was not recorded until 1958, after which his career as a professional musician was bolstered by the folk revival in the 1960s. Holcomb gave his last live performance in 1978. Due to what he described as injuries he sustained during his long career as a laborer, Holcomb was eventually unable to work for more than short periods, and his later income came primarily from his music. Suffering from asthma and

emphysema Emphysema is any air-filled enlargement in the body's tissues. Most commonly emphysema refers to the permanent enlargement of air spaces (alveoli) in the lungs, and is also known as pulmonary emphysema. Emphysema is a lower respiratory tract di ...

as a result of working in coal mines, he died in a nursing home in 1981, at the age of 68.

Discography

Holcomb's discography includes the following albums released on LP during his lifetime: * ''The Music of Roscoe Holcomb and Wade Ward'',

Folkways Records Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987 and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways. History The Folkways Records & Service ...

, 1962 * ''The High Lonesome Sound'', Folkways Records, 1965 * ''Close to Home'', Folkways Records, 1975 The following single-artist compilations have been released since his death: * ''The High Lonesome Sound'',

Smithsonian Folkways Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was f ...

, 1998 * ''An Untamed Sense of Control'', Smithsonian Folkways, 2003 Holcomb's work appears on many multiple-artist compilations, including the following released during his lifetime: * ''Mountain Music of Kentucky'', Folkways Records, 1960 (6 of 29 tracks) * ''FOTM – Friends of Old Time Music'', Folkways Records, 1964 (2 of 16 tracks) * '' Zabriskie Point (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)'',

MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...

, 1970 (1 of 11 tracks) * ''3rd Annual Brandywine Mountain Music Convention – '76 Music of Kentucky'', Heritage Records irginia!-- do not link -- as of March 2018, Heritage Records lists: Heritage Records (United States),

Heritage Records (England) Heritage Records was a British independent record label located in London, England. It was founded in 1959 by Tony Standish, specialising in blues and early jazz recordings. Only nine completed LPs are known to exist on this label - as well as o ...

, and BMG Heritage Records, none of which refer to this label! -->, 1977 (2 of 14 tracks)

References

External links

Short biography from CMT.com
*
John Cohen's documentary 'The High Lonesome Sound'Television appearance on Pete Seeger's Rainbow Quest
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holcomb, Roscoe 1912 births 1981 deaths American country guitarists American folk guitarists American male guitarists American country singer-songwriters American folk singers American country banjoists Old-time musicians People from Perry County, Kentucky Musicians from Appalachia 20th-century American singer-songwriters Folk musicians from Kentucky Country musicians from Kentucky Singer-songwriters from Kentucky Bluegrass musicians from Kentucky 20th-century American guitarists Guitarists from Kentucky 20th-century American male musicians American male singer-songwriters