Keepin' it Country Media & Radio » Deaths

Country-Folk Icon Spencer Moore Passes Away

Lydia Picknell — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 15:12:53 +0000

The Boot is reporting that Spencer Moore has passed away at the age of 92 at his nursing home in Chilhowie, Virginia. He had known more than 600 folk songs by heart, which he would play on his century-old acoustic guitar in the Blue Mountains. He was still playing in local clubs until his passing. With his brother Joe, he performed in a Carter Family tent show.

The North Carolina native’s funeral service was held on June 7th. He is survived by his nieces and nephews, and he had tragically lost his infant son and wife previously.

Bluegrass Singer Hazel Dickens Dies

Lydia Picknell — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 04:31:18 +0000

Hazel Dickens, a pioneer among female bluegrass musicians, died Friday (April 22) in a hospice in Washington, D.C., from pneumonia complications. She was 75. Dickens partnered with Alice Gerrard, the wife of folk singer Mike Seeger, to form the duo Hazel & Alice, one of the first bluegrass bands led by women. Dickens and Gerrard wrote songs together, as well as covered material they learned from folk festivals and the files at the Library of Congress. The duo broke up in 1976. In addition, Dickens was known for speaking out on behalf of coal miners in her native West Virginia. She also appeared in the Oscar-winning documentary, Harlan County, USA, about Kentucky coal miners, and the accompanying soundtrack featured four of her original songs. She was inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame in 2008 and had received a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts.

- CMT.com

“Okie From Muskogee” Writer Passes Away

Lydia Picknell — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 14:52:58 +0000

Country Weekly is reporting that the famed writer of “Okie From Muskogee” passed away April 19th from complications of heart problems. Roy Burris co-wrote the classic Merle Haggard song in 1969 on their tour bus. In 1970, Okie From Muskogee won the Country Music Association’s Single Of the Year award and is seen as Merle’s anthem.

Our thoughts are with the Burris family at this tough time.