Distinctive Qualities of Southwestern Ohio Bluegrass

Abstract

Regional bluegrass mixed earlier rural influences with those of urban dislocation and factory life, yielding significant innovations that inspired later bluegrass worldwide. Scruggs-style banjo techniques were adapted by mandolinist Jesse McReynolds and guitarists Bill Napier and George Shuffler. Tavern acoustics required piercing tones, and percussive plucked-stringed instruments were prized over the fiddle. The Osborne Brothers and Red Allen, Jim and Jesse, and Jimmy Martin brought trio vocal harmony to the forefront. “Melodic” five-string banjo, later developed elsewhere, drew upon Noah Crase’s innovations. Sonny Osborne’s unconventional musical vocabulary inspired newgrass. Bobby Osborne, Frank Wakefield, and Dorsey Harvey influenced generations of mandolinists. King Records owner Syd Nathan encouraged bluegrass’s earliest guitar flatpicking solos. Lillimae Whitaker and Katie Laur were pioneer woman bandleaders.