Lester Flatt (1914-1979)

One of the pioneers of bluegrass music, Flatt possessed one of the most recognized voices in all of music. He first came to prominence in the 1940s, playing and singing as a member of Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys. In 1948, he formed a partnership with banjo wizard Earl Scruggs, also a Bluegrass Boys alumnus, and formed a new group, The Foggy Mountain Boys, that toured and recorded for the twenty years. In 1969, Flatt started a new band, Nashville Grass, hiring most of the Foggy Mountain Boys, and he continued to record and perform with that group until his death. He was a posthumous honoree, elected as a member of the first group of inductees into the International Bluegrass Hall of Honor in 1991.

1977
Studio portrait/Nashville