Grady Martin

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Thomas Grady Martin (born January 17, 1929 in Chapel Hill, Tennessee; died December 3, 2001 in Lewisburg, Tennessee) was a noted session musician who played guitar on several hit songs including Honky Tonk Man by Johnny Horton. He went by the name "Grady Martin" rather than "Thomas." He began playing professionally in 1946 and by 1951 had his own country/jazz band called Grady Martin and the Slew Foot Five.^[1] The band had an uneven history, and he later became known as a session musician. He provided the guitar on the Marty Robbins hit songs El Paso (1959) and Don't Worry (1960), and he would later be heard on Roy Orbison's Oh, Pretty Woman (1964).^[2]

He is also in the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.

Martin played guitar for the country music artist Loretta Lynn.

Martin is credited with having the inspiration for adding distortion to the electric guitar.

A fan's tribute webpage:[1]

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