Clarence Ashley | |
|---|---|
 Ashley as a member of the Carolina Tar Heels | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Clarence Earl McCurry |
| Also known as |
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| Born | September 29, 1895 Bristol, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | June 2, 1967 (aged 71) Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Genres | Folk music |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instruments |
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| Years active | c. 1928–1943; 1960–1967 |
| Labels | |
| Formerly of |
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Clarence "Tom" Ashley (born Clarence Earl McCurry; September 29, 1895 – June 2, 1967) was an American musician and singer, who played the clawhammer banjo and the guitar. He began performing at medicine shows in the Southern Appalachian region as early as 1911, and gained initial fame during the late 1920s as both a solo recording artist and as a member of various string bands. After his "rediscovery" during the folk revival of the 1960s, Ashley spent the last years of his life playing at folk music concerts, including appearances at Carnegie Hall in New York and at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island.[1]
- ^ Colin Larkin (ed.), "Clarence Tom Ashley", The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Vol. 1 (New York: Oxford University Press, 2006), p. 272, ISBN 978-1846098567