Mack Magaha
Encyclopedia
Mack Magaha was a bluegrass
fiddle
r best known as a member of Porter Wagoner
's band, and a long-time backup player in the pioneering bluegrass band, Reno and Smiley
.
he wrote the popular song "I know You're Married But I Love You Still" which was recorded by Reno & Smiley. It was later covered by artists such as Bill Anderson, Rodney Crowell
, Jan Howard
, Patty Loveless
, Jimmy Martin
, Red Sovine
, and Travis Tritt
. In 1964, he joined Porter Wagoner's Wagonmasters. During the 1960s, he worked as an old-time fiddler on The Porter Wagoner Show and later he also worked with the aspiring female star on the show, Dolly Parton
. Among the later songs Magaha wrote, "We'll Get Ahead Someday" provided a top-ten country single for Wagoner in Parton in 1968, one of their first duet hits.
He became a regular performer at the theme park Opryland USA
in the 1970s. He died at age 74 at Nashville's Veterans Hospital
Magaha was known as Nashville's Dancing Fiddle Man. Magaha, like Curly Ray Cline
, had a fiery stage presence doing his dancelike movements while he was fiddling.
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
r best known as a member of Porter Wagoner
Porter Wagoner
Porter Wayne Wagoner was a popular American country music singer known for his flashy Nudie and Manuel suits and blond pompadour. He introduced the young Dolly Parton near the beginning of her career on his long-running television show, and they were a well-known duet throughout the late 1960s and...
's band, and a long-time backup player in the pioneering bluegrass band, Reno and Smiley
Reno and Smiley
Reno and Smiley were a musical duo composed of Don Reno and Red Smiley. They were one of the most acclaimed duos in country music of the 1950s and early '60s.-How They Met:...
.
Music career
In 1955, Magaha joined Reno and Smiley as a member of the Tennessee Cutups. Together with Don RenoDon Reno
Don Wesley Reno was an American bluegrass and country musician best known as a banjo player in partnership with Red Smiley, and later with guitarist Bill Harrell.-Biography:...
he wrote the popular song "I know You're Married But I Love You Still" which was recorded by Reno & Smiley. It was later covered by artists such as Bill Anderson, Rodney Crowell
Rodney Crowell
Rodney Crowell is a Grammy Award-winning musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music....
, Jan Howard
Jan Howard
Lula Grace Johnson , known professionally as Jan Howard, is an American country music singer and Grand Ole Opry star. She attained moderate success as a country female vocalist during the 1960s and early 1970s...
, Patty Loveless
Patty Loveless
Patty Loveless , is an American country music singer.Since her emergence on the country music scene in late 1986 with her first album, Loveless has been one of the most popular female singers of the Neotraditional country movement, although she has also recorded albums in the Country pop and...
, Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin
Jimmy Martin was an American bluegrass musician, known as the "King of Bluegrass".-Early years:Born James H. Martin in Sneedville, Tennessee. Jimmy Martin was born into the hard farming life of rural East Tennessee. He grew up near Sneedville, singing in church and with friends from surrounding...
, Red Sovine
Red Sovine
Woodrow Wilson Sovine , better known as Red Sovine, was an American country music singer associated with truck driving songs, particularly those recited as narratives but set to music...
, and Travis Tritt
Travis Tritt
James Travis Tritt is an American country music singer from Marietta, Georgia. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 2000s, he released two albums on Columbia Records and one for the defunct...
. In 1964, he joined Porter Wagoner's Wagonmasters. During the 1960s, he worked as an old-time fiddler on The Porter Wagoner Show and later he also worked with the aspiring female star on the show, Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
. Among the later songs Magaha wrote, "We'll Get Ahead Someday" provided a top-ten country single for Wagoner in Parton in 1968, one of their first duet hits.
He became a regular performer at the theme park Opryland USA
Opryland USA
Opryland USA was an amusement park located in suburban Nashville, Tennessee. It operated seasonally from 1972 until 1997...
in the 1970s. He died at age 74 at Nashville's Veterans Hospital
Magaha was known as Nashville's Dancing Fiddle Man. Magaha, like Curly Ray Cline
Curly Ray Cline
Curly Ray Cline was an American bluegrass fiddler from West Virginia known for his work with the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers and Ralph Stanley.-Biography:...
, had a fiery stage presence doing his dancelike movements while he was fiddling.