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15 Sep 05 - 09:48 PM (#1564770) Subject: American fiddling legend, Benny Thomasson From: rogerontheoldtraps How many members of this forum have ever heard of the late American fiddling legend, Benny Thomasson? Roger-on-the-old-traps Abilene, Texas |
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15 Sep 05 - 10:23 PM (#1564790) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: masato sakurai I have his video: TEXAS FIDDLE LEGENDS (Benny Thomasson & Dick Barrett) (Yazoo 517). Entertaining. |
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16 Sep 05 - 09:47 AM (#1564853) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: GLoux Didn't he write Midnight on the Water? -Greg |
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16 Sep 05 - 03:38 PM (#1565049) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: GLoux Here's a link to a bio on Benny Thomasson. -Greg |
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16 Sep 05 - 04:01 PM (#1565068) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: Bee-dubya-ell He's also the great-grandfather of teenage mandolin wizard Josh Pinkham. |
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16 Sep 05 - 04:12 PM (#1565073) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: GLoux DNA is a scary thing...WOW!!! |
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16 Sep 05 - 04:43 PM (#1565099) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: rogerontheoldtraps Once again, I'm impressed by the knowledge of those on this forum. According to legend, it was Benny's father, Luke, who wrote "Midnight On the Water." Yes, Benny's great-grandson, Josh Pinkham, is making quite a name for himself on the mandolin. Benny's son and Josh's grandfather, tenor guitarist Jerry Thomason, is a good friend of mine. Benny was very good friends with my maternal grandfather and Master violin maker, the late J.E. Morrow of Fort Worth, Texas. Incidentally, Chip Taylor & Carrie Rodriguez perform a lovely rendition of "Midnight On the Water" on their "Let's Leave This Town" CD. This is a *cool* forum! Cheers! Roger-on-the-old-traps Abilene, Texas |
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16 Sep 05 - 10:27 PM (#1565266) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: johnross I didn't know Benny well, but I met him a few times after he moved to Washington state. He became a big part of the Northwest fiddle community. I remember him as a really nice guy, and he was very generous with guidance to younger musicians, including the young Mark O'Connor. You can still hear his influence in the styles of a lot of fiddlers in this part of the country. There's also a lot of tape of Benny out there. His records for Voyager are still available on CD: http://www.voyagerrecords.com/cd_cass.htm#L345 And of course, he was a regular at the National Oldtime Fiddle Championships in Weiser, Idaho. In the early 70s, there was some serious competition for the Grand Championship among Benny, Dick Barrett and some of the other great Texas style fiddlers. I recorded the Wesier contest for NPR one year. I think the winner was Herman Johnson, with Dick B. second and Benny No. 3. They were all smiling for the crowd and the camera, but on the tape you can tell that Dick was seriously pissed that he didn't take the top award. Benny was the popular favorite, and he was happy to take his prize. |
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16 Sep 05 - 11:57 PM (#1565302) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: rogerontheoldtraps Most people that remember Benny Thomasson also remember his son, Jerry, who is awesome on the tenor guitar and backed up his father wherever he performed. (The is a Jerry Thomason signature tenor guitar on the market.) The fiddle player for Slim Chance & the Survivors is a fellow named Reggie Wrinkle, whose sister, Jennifer Wrinkle plays fiddle and sings harmony vocals for Reba McEntire. Reggie is a good friend of Mark O'Connor (Benny's star student) so he also is a big fan of Benny Thomasson. I had the pleasure of getting Reggie together with Jerry Thomason at a Texas music festival and the chemistry between them was incredible! They simply stole the show that day, although their performance was off-the-cuff as they had never before played together. Reggie was on top of the world, finally playing with the son of one of his biggest musical influences. I wish someone had recorded that performance. rogerontheoldtraps Abilene, Texas |
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28 Oct 08 - 02:32 PM (#2478352) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: GUEST,Lyddiebits (He's my Great-Granddaddy) Yep, I've heard of him...met him, fished with him. He's my Great-Granddaddy! I'm not a member of this forum, but I was doing a family search for another Thomasson and ran across this forum with my Granddaddy's name, so I thought I'd post. He was an amazing fiddler! All of Uncle Jerry's kids have lots of talent. (Josh Pinkham is Jerry's grandson). Lyddiebits Oregon |
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28 Oct 08 - 06:21 PM (#2478568) Subject: RE: American fiddle legend, Benny Thomasson From: Mark Ross Lyddiebits, where in Oregon are you? Mark Ross |