Record Collection

JOHNSON CITY (March 2, 2018) – A vast collection of rare, vintage records has found a new home at East Tennessee State University, courtesy of the Appalachian Cultural Music Association and the ACMA Mountain Music Museum.

The museum, based in Kingsport, has donated more than 3,500 vinyl LPs and 1,200 78 rpm records to the Bluegrass, Old Time and Country Music Studies program in the university’s Department of Appalachian Studies for preservation and study.

“The record collection was gifted to the museum several years ago, but we don’t have the space or the resources to store and exhibit them all,” said Rick Dollar, executive director of the Mountain Music Museum. “We needed to find a home for the collection. ETSU has one of the most highly respected bluegrass, old-time and country music programs anywhere, so we know the records will be in good hands. Our goal is to see them used for educational purposes.”

The collection includes recordings by such pioneering artists as The Carter Family, Bill Monroe, Jimmie Rodgers and more, as well as obscure but historically significant recordings by local fiddler Charlie Bowman, Fiddlin’ Cowan Powers, Fiddlin’ John Dykes and many others.

“It is very exciting to receive this gracious donation of records from the Mountain Music Museum,” said Roy Andrade, an associate professor who leads the old-time music component within the Bluegrass, Old Time and Country Music Studies program.  “We look forward to using the 78 rpm records in the classroom to expose students to the vibrant and dynamic older music, which we hope will help them develop as artists, and as informed and curious traditional musicians.

“We are very grateful for these records,” he said, “and we’re hoping that folks out there hear about this collection, and think, ‘Hey, I’ve got a bunch of those old 78s that I’ve been wondering what to do with.’ We would love to be the caretakers of other collections to be used in our work with student musicians.”

Founded in 1982, the Bluegrass, Old Time and Country Music Studies program at ETSU was the first four-year program of its kind at any university. With classes integrating musicianship, musical history and business, the program’s reputation for academic and performance excellence spread quickly. Today, the program draws students from around the world. Notable alumni include Barry Bales, Adam Steffey, Tim Stafford, Kenny Chesney, Becky Buller, Hunter Berry, Brent Burke, The Reeltime Travelers, The Barefoot Movement, Bill and the Belles and more.

The ACMA Mountain Music Museum shares ETSU’s interest in preserving the legacy of the music for which the Appalachian region of East Tennessee is known. The museum’s exhibits include instruments, records, photos and other memorabilia associated with the history of mountain music, dating back to the 1800s, when immigrants brought their native music from Europe and Africa.

The Mountain Music Museum is located at 316 Broad Street in Kingsport. More information about the museum is available at www.MountainMusicMuseum.org.

Information about ETSU’s Bluegrass, Old Time and Country Music Studies program is available at https://www.etsu.edu/cas/das/bluegrass/.