Cleveland County reacts to Earl Scruggs' death

CLEVELAND COUNTY, N.C. — Earl Scruggs' bluegrass music propelled him to international stardom.

But before he was the Earl Scruggs who won Grammys and received his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Scruggs was a boy playing the banjo in Cleveland County.

Friends of Scruggs say the talented banjo player from south of Boiling Springs never forgot his roots.

Stan Anthony, mayor of Shelby

Stan Anthony said it was the 1970s and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, a catalyst for country rock, was at their height.

The album, “Will the Circle be Unbroken,” was popular and one of its musicians, Earl Scruggs, announced plans to come to town.

Anthony said he jumped at the chance to attend the concert.

“I was really into that album and that music,” he said.

Anthony said Scruggs was touring with his sons at that time, and the group was known as the Earl Scruggs Review.

The concert was held at Gardner-Webb’s old Bost Gym, which wasn’t much bigger than a high school gym, Anthony said.

“We thought this was huge,” he said. “It was a big deal they had come to town.”

Several years ago, Scruggs returned to perform at the Malcolm Brown Auditorium and Anthony had a chance to meet him in person and shake the banjo player’s hand.

“He was so humble,” Anthony described him.

He said you would never guess Scruggs had acquired international fame for his trailblazing banjo technique and musical talent.

Anthony said he was sad to hear of the bluegrass legend’s death Wednesday, particularly with the Earl Scruggs Center in the historic Cleveland County courthouse yet unfinished.

The museum will be a tribute to not only Scruggs, but the history and music of the Carolina foothills.

Anthony, who is a guitar player himself,  said Scruggs didn’t just play the banjo.

“One of the things that impressed me was his guitar playing,” he said. “When I saw him at that concert at the (Shelby) High School a few years ago, he picked up a guitar and started playing.”

Although not often lauded for anything other than his banjo skills, Anthony said he was very talented.

“The thing that was so cool…Earl was always pushing the envelope,” Anthony said. “He was always trying to find a new sound.”

Lt. Governor Dalton Remembers Earl Scruggs

Lieutenant Governor Walter Dalton made this statement on the death of Earl Scruggs:

“I am saddened to hear of the passing of one of North Carolina’s treasures.  Earl Scruggs pioneered bluegrass music and his one-of-a-kind banjo sound inspired generations of musicians.  He was a native of Cleveland County, which I represented in the North Carolina Senate, and I was honored to meet him on several occasions and consider myself a big fan.  Lucille and I extend our thoughts and prayers to the Scruggs family and know his music will live on for generations to come.”

(Updated 10:50 a.m.)

Arrangements for Earl Scruggs funeral have been announced following his death Wednesday.

A public funeral for bluegrass legend, who was born in Cleveland County's Flinthill Community, will be held Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN.

(updated 11:25 a.m.)

Singer, songwriter Al Dunkleman describes Earl Scruggs influence

“I just talked to history.” That’s how musician Al Dunkleman, a sociology instructor at Cleveland Community College, described a 30-minute conversation with Earl Scruggs.

Dunkleman, who serves on the committee for the Earl Scruggs Center: Music & Stories from the American South, had the opportunity to talk with Scruggs during a visit to the old courthouse, the future home of the Earl Scruggs Center. He, along with other members of the committee, were walking through the courthouse with Scruggs and his son, Gary, and nephew, J.T. Scruggs.

“Gary and J.T. headed upstairs and asked me to if I would be willing to stay with Earl while they were gone,” Dunkleman said. “Of course, I was. I’ve heard that Charlie Poole influenced the bluegrass musicians and asked him if he was influenced by Poole and was a little embarrassed after his answer. He said, ‘We didn’t hear the musicians, because we didn’t have electricity.’”

Scruggs then shared a story with Dunkleman about the person who sparked his interest in learning the banjo.

“When Earl was 4 years old, he heard Mack Woolbright, a blind banjo player” Dunkleman said. “The blind person fascinated him with his playing.”

He also told Dunkleman how he and Lester Flatt got their start.

“He said they would go from one radio station to the next and play,” Dunkleman said. “When people in that city got tired of them, they would moved to another city and play the radio stations. The lifestyle was transient until he got well known and settled.”

As a sociology instructor, Dunkleman stresses to his students the contributions Scruggs has made to music.

“Students in my class who have grown up here don’t know who Scruggs is and that’s a tragedy,” he said.

Not only did Scruggs create a new style of banjo playing, he brought back the instrument’s popularity, which was losing ground to the guitar, Dunkleman said.

“Just think how Earl boosted the economy for the banjo, because people started buying them again,” he said.

Dunkleman, a singer, songwriter, who plays the guitar, banjo and fiddle, was asked to make a presentation in 2005 when Scruggs received the North Carolinian of the Year Award from The North Carolina Press Association.

“I demonstrated several different styles,” Dunkleman said. “I was thrilled to hear him say he enjoyed it. That’s a super bowl experience for any musician. I’ve had an opportunity to meet a legend and that’s real special.”

Updated at 6:17 p.m.

Noel Manning II, Gardner-Webb University’s director of university communications

Manning met Scruggs in the early 1990s when he was producing a documentary about bluegrass music and itsClevelandCountyroots.

“He was just a gentleman," Manning said. “…Every time I saw him after that, he was just always so kind.”

Manning remembered Scruggs not only as a bluegrass pioneer, but also as a musician who wasn’t afraid to try new things. During Scruggs’ storied career, he collaborated with artists such as Sting, Elton John, Joan Baez and Johnny Cash.

But no matter how many Grammys Scruggs won or who he performed with, Scruggs never forgot his home in the Flint Hill community south of Boiling Springs.

“His music was amazing,” Manning said. “But from a personal standpoint, it’s just the fact that he never forgot his home. He never forgot where he came from.”

Travis Powell, Shelby-born musician and performer

Up-and-coming artist Powell grew up inShelby. He never met Scruggs, but he knows about his influence in the music world.

“He's basically a pioneer of bluegrass music," Powell said. “You’ll find people today that still mimic him – or try to.”

Scruggs’ international success is an inspiration to performers, including Powell, who come from small towns, Powell said.

Darin Aldridge, part of Cleveland County bluegrass duo Darin and Brooke Aldridge

Aldridge and his wife, Brooke, are bluegrass artists who opened for Scruggs when he performed inShelbya few years ago.

Aldridge called Scruggs an innovator who shaped the twang of bluegrass music into what we hear today. Scruggs pioneered the three-finger roll, which changed the way musicians change banjos.

“Every note that we make as bluegrass artists with the banjo involved – it all leads back to Earl Scruggs,” Aldridge said.

Scruggs’ death shocked and saddened Aldridge. He said he’ll remember the man as a pioneer of bluegrass music who never forgot his roots.

“He was a great legend and a great man from right here inClevelandCounty," Aldridge said.

Dan X Padgett, a bluegrass performer and artist who played with Scruggs

Padgett has known Scruggs since he was 10 years old. The men played together regularly, and Padgett would fill in for Scruggs if Scruggs was unable to perform.

“Earl – he was the man,” Padgett said. “Without him, I doubt bluegrass would have ever gotten so big.”

Padgett said Scruggs’ rolling, three-finger picking style changed the way banjo music sounded. Padgett called Scruggs an innovator who worked hard to make a name for himself in the music industry.

Jeff Powell, 88.3 FM WGWG radio station operations manager and program director

WGWG radio station will air an Earl Scruggs tribute segment Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. The segment will feature interviews with Scruggs and some of Scruggs’ music.

“It's certainly putClevelandCountyon the musical map,” Powell said of Scruggs’ style. “People from all around the world know who Earl Scruggs is."

Powell said the radio station has played Scruggs’ music for years. The bluegrass sound is something that captures the attention of people across the map, but it’s a sound unique toClevelandCounty.

Many people say the bluegrass sound originated inKentucky, but bluegrass music wouldn’t sound like it does today without Scruggs’ influence, Powell said.

Ron Humphries, longtime Cleveland County bass player and performer

One of Humphries’ earliest memories in life is hearing Scruggs’ banjo music on “The Beverly Hillbillies.” Humphries said he had a small rocking chair that always had a place by the TV when the show came on.

“I would drag that thing right in front of that TV,” Humphries recalled. He said his parents told him the rocking chair would rock as the song played.

A few years later, Humphries started exploring music.Bluegrasswas the first kind of music he learned to play.

Humphries, who plays bass and sings backup vocals, spent several years touring on the road. He now has a family of his own, but he’s never forgotten how bluegrass music and Scruggs inspired his early music career.

WSOC