Gid Tanner

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James Gideon “Gid” Tanner was one of the earliest stars of what would come to be known as country music. His band, the Skillet Lickers, was one of the most innovative and influential string bands of the 1920s and 1930s. Its most notable members were Clayton McMichen (fiddle and vocal) and the blind Riley Puckett (guitar and vocal).

Tanner was born in Thomas Bridge near Monroe, Georgia on June 6, 1885 and made a living as a farmer for most of his life. He learned to play the fiddle while in his teens and quickly established a reputation as one of the finest musicians in Georgia. He reportedly had a repertoire of more than 2000 songs.

Tanner and Puckett traveled to New York City in March 1924 to make the first of a series of duet recordings for Columbia Records. The first recording made with the Skillet Lickers was “Hand Me Down My Walking Cane,” recorded in Atlanta on April 17, 1926. It was released by Columbia on a 78rpm disc backed with “Watermelon On the Vine.” The group would eventually record more than 100 songs for Columbia before splitting up in 1931. Three years later, Tanner and Puckett reformed the Skillet Lickers and had several releases on Bluebird Records.

Many of the songs they recorded remain popular with bluegrass and country musicians to this day. Among their best-known songs are "Alabama Jubilee", "Shortning Bread", "Old Joe Clark", "Casey Jones", "John Henry", "Bully of the Town", "Bile Them Cabbage Down", "Cotton-Eyed Joe", "Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss", "Soldier’s Joy", "Boneparte's Retreat", "Leather Breeches", "Four Cent Cotton" and their biggest seller, "Down Yonder". Their comedy recordings, including A Corn Liquor Still in Georgia and A Fiddler’s Convention in Georgia were equally popular.

Tanner stopped making records in 1934, but continued performing into his 70s. Following his death in 1960, Tanner's grandson and great-grandson continued performing as the Skillet Lickers.

Song writer Bob Dylan wrote and performed a version of Gid Tanner's "Down on Tanner's Farm," retitled and reset as "New York Town." It can be heard in Martin Scorsese's Dylan tribute film.

Gideon Tanner is also the name of a role played by Kenny Rogers in his 1980 #1 hit concept album "Gideon" (see Gideon (album)).

[edit] References

• Cohen, Norm. Liner Notes for the CD Old Time Fiddle Tunes and Songs From North Georgia (County Records, 1996)
• Russell, Tony. Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 (Oxford University Press, 2004)
• The New Georgia Encyclopedia