North Carolina's Earl Scruggs inspires musicians worldwide
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- With the 2015 International Bluegrass Music Awards and Wide Open Bluegrass festival in Raleigh this week, musicians from around the world are flocking to the Triangle.
They're taking every opportunity to play tunes and learn from their fellow musicians. As we've talked to them, one common thread we've discovered is the influence of a legend in the industry now long gone who inspired many and their style of play.
"I don't care who you are. If you play banjo, Earl Scruggs is your leader," said Bruce Hill.
Born in January, 1924 into a family of musicians in Cleveland County, North Carolina, Scruggs quickly gravitated to the banjo.
"He made it the lead instrument. Before, it was a background rhythm type instrument," said Hill.
Scruggs used that banjo to deal with his father's death when he was just 4 years old. At the time, he could barely hold it in his little hands but he never gave up.
People remember him in Shelby where he grew up spending all his free time working on his family's farm and picking his banjo.
He's mostly known for the three finger roll he mastered at the age of 10 that so many musicians use today.
"When he began playing the banjo, and playing it in not only the three finger style which in itself was not particularly known at that point, but playing it in the Scruggs style that is, by many people, defined as the moment bluegrass was born," explained Emily Epley, Executive Director of the Earl Scruggs Center.
Scruggs was an innovator and his talent was hard to ignore. The man some refer to as the father of bluegrass, Bill Monroe, took a chance on Scruggs and asked him to play with the famous Monroe's Bluegrass Boys at the age of 20.
"When he came on stage and played the first time at the Ryman, people stood up and clapped. It was pretty obvious he was going to be pretty popular," said Hill.
And that's where he met a talented guitarist named Lester Flatts who he later formed a band with. The first song they recorded was the Grammy winning tune, and now bluegrass classic, "Foggy Mountain Breakdown."
"They were so amazing and brought such a different approach to the music that people really got engaged with that and excited about it," said Epley.
The two eventually split and Scruggs started a band with his sons called The Earl Scruggs Review.
"They were phenomenal and people have described them as a psychedelic rock band with a banjo," said Epley.
"At one point, they were second in demand on college campuses right behind Elton John," said Epley.
Before Scruggs died in 2012, he recorded songs that featured artists like Elton John, Johnny Cash, Don Henley, and even Billy Bob Thorton.
Now, Scruggs' legacy has been honored with a museum dedicated to him in Shelby. You learn about how the boy from Cleveland County made his mark on bluegrass and what was happening at the time he was making a breakthrough in the music industry.
In addition to the loss of his father, historical events in the south influenced his music, which is why Epley said she feels it's so important for that to be included in the exhibit.
"We went through the 60s and the 70s and you have desegregation, the civil rights movement, the march on Selma, Vietnam, there were so many events happening in our country but they affected our region and the south and they affected Earl, she explained.
The Earl Scruggs Center was not created with government funds and the Scruggs family didn't do it. It's the work of people who wanted to help their community and share as much of the history of the legend in an engaging way.
"You have a lot of standard static exhibits and panels and images," said Epley. "And then you have some really hi-tech where we have what basically looks like a giant iPad it is an interactive touch table. It's actually laser driven, but people can stand around it together you can have there are actually six separate stations and you can have up to 24 people around it at a time."
To date, people from 46 states and 12 foreign countries have walked through the doors of the Scruggs Center and one man is the reason why.
"They are coming because of Earl," said Epley. "And they're coming here to explore his legacy and see where he came from and touch the ground and hopefully have it rub off on them."
The Scruggs Center is open Wednesday through Sunday. Admission is $12 and there are discounts for children, students, and senior citizens.
