larry p - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:24:56

Dear Friends, It's with the utmost regret and sorry that I'm sharing this news with you: I've just been told by someone in Earl's Doctor's office that our beloved Earl Scruggs passed away this morning around 10:00am at St. Thomas Hospital...Full of hope that this was a mix up of some kind, I asked the receptionist if she was CERTAIN of this, and she said she was, and one of the Doctor's assistants confirmed it as well by saying that she was the one that took the call from St Thomas with the news..

Edited by - larry p on 03/28/2012 16:26:04

dixie kiwi - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:26:46

I am speechless. If confirmed, this is very sad news indeed. My thoughts are with the family and the banjo community worldwide.

fivedrive5 - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:29:25

So sorry to hear ,Speechless! A true legend gone!!!       Jim

trapdoor2 - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:30:53

RIP, Earl. I learned a lot from you. Many, many thanks!

uptofreedom - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:31:11

blogs.tennessean.com/tunein/20...t-age-88/



R.I.P. Earl

Edited by - uptofreedom on 03/28/2012 16:31:44

tbfnyc - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:32:27

Terrible news.

Grinnin&Pickin - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:32:42

A sad day indeed! Thank you Earl for sharing your talents with us all. Your legacy will live on forever.

John Allison - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:33:13

Wow, first read about Doug Dillard with a collapsed lung and now hearing about Earl. What a loss. My thoughts and prayers are for Earl and with his family and friends. RIP

loukiii - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:33:16

There will be on heck of a bluegrass festival in Heaven this weekend! RIP Earl Scruggs.

mikey5string - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:36:16

Earl lived a life that only a few achieve. He died (and lived) a legend, you couldnt do much better than that. I hope to leave a fraction of he left when Im gone.

Richard Dress - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:41:10

RIP a great artist

the Adcocks jsut called and said the Nashville news broke in with the story

sad day

Goldstarman - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:42:19

Sad indeed.......Ill be praying for his family

The Pope - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:44:48

Earl was the reason I got into Bluegrass back when I was the banjo player in a Kingston Trio clone band. I knew this would eventually happen but it still hurts. RIP Earl.

"Learn a few tunes on the banjo, it's the key to life."

Vince Gill

JAFO - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:45:58

Yes, sad to say, I was just about to post the confirmation here and see that in a matter of 4 minutes the word is traveling fast. I just called Bill Keith and broke the news to him. Sad day indeed. Bill said the last time he saw Earl, back in the fall he was not looking well.

 Truly a great man, and will be more than sorely missed. However I have to make note that his contributions will stand the test of time and bring joy for many generations to come. Such cannot be said for many folks. Earl was indeed one of a kind who has earned our respect and honor.

Rest in Peace Earl..

The Pope - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:48:51

What happened to Doug: "Doug Dillard with a collapsed lung"   I also learned a lot of banjo by watching Doug from the first row @ The Troubadour in Hollywood. Can this day get any worse?

recokin - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:53:28

RIP Earl... Many friends are in mourning in Japan.

John Mark Batchelor - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:55:57

my hero! I can say i love this man very much!

robbif - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:57:56

robbif - Posted - 03/28/2012:  16:59:28

The Tennesean article

Jim D - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:00:24

theleafchronicle.com/article/2...120328003

"NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Country Music Hall of Famer Earl Scruggs, a singular talent of collective import, died Wednesday morning at a Nashville hospital. He was 88.

A quietly affable presence, Mr. Scruggs popularized a complex, three-fingered style of playing banjo that transformed the instrument, inspired nearly every banjo player who followed him and became a central element in what is now known as bluegrass music.

But Mr. Scruggs’ legacy is in no way limited to or defined by bluegrass, a genre that he and partner Lester Flatt dominated as Flatt & Scruggs in the 1950s and ‘60s: His adaptability and open-minded approach to musicality and to collaboration made him a bridge between genres and generations.

Rather than speak out about the connections between folk and country in the war-torn, politically contentious ‘60s, he simply showed up at folk festivals and played, at least when he and Flatt weren’t at the Grand Ole Opry. During the long-hair/ short-hair skirmishes of the ‘60s and ‘70s, he simply showed up and played, with Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and The Byrds. And when staunch fans of bluegrass - a genre that would not exist in a recognizable form without Mr. Scruggs’ banjo - railed against stylistic experimentation, Mr. Scruggs happily jammed away with sax player King Curtis, sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar, piano man Elton John and anyone else whose music he fancied.

He was the man who melted walls, and he did it without saying three words,” said his friend and acolyte, Marty Stuart in 2000."

Edited by - Jim D on 03/28/2012 17:02:20

JLB - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:01:55

I think we'll play FMB at our jam tonight first off. RIP Earl. And thank you. You've touched so many people.

Just Bill - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:03:29

Very, VERY saddened to hear this! We will miss you, Mr. Scruggs, but thankful to you for your gift here on Earth. God speed, Mr. Scruggs.

banjotom2 - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:07:43

He's with his wife... and the Lord... who put him here...

Tom

grich - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:08:48

R.I.P. Earl you will be missed.

A very sad day

Bradskey - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:09:14

Just heard on the radio.  I will always love Earl Scruggs.

DannyB4 - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:10:38

...what a shame!!!....man, the banjo will never be the same with Earl gone...I'll truly cherish my picture with him from Street Scene 1980....rest in peace, Earl, you have given the music world so much and I'm truly greatful....now Lester has his banjo picker with him...Heaven's Blue Grass Band has become much, much greater ,now......my condolences go out to his family and friends...now, I'll reckon I'll pick some tunes and shed a few tears......peace

MrHoney - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:11:53

R.I.P. Earl Scruggs, I'm so fortunate to have seen him not even a year ago in San Francisco.  I'll never forget it.  It was a beautiful day!  I'll never stop learning from him.

Byron

danielburdett - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:12:28

Very sad day.  I'll have to pick a little extra tonight in memory of Earl, a great man.

LouZee Picker - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:14:04

R.I.P. Mr. Scruggs, I can't even try to put in words the impact that this man has had on my life. I got bit by the Earl Scruggs banjo bug when I was 16 years old & man what a ride it's been! Now he knows just what he was singing about, "When the angels carry me home" Welcome home Earl! I'll be prayin' for your family & close friends,
.

Brian

Ebanjo - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:14:25

Earl was the man that made me want to play the banjo. I remember seeing him on the Martha White tv show when I was a little boy. May you rest in peace Earl.
Eric Ellis

josh95843 - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:16:54

The greatest musician of all times in my eyes. Sad day for me and many many others. Rest In Peace Earl.

DIV - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:18:08

I knew this day was approaching.
Very sad news indeed.
I was hoping to meet him in person, but at least I got to see him in concert.

RIP Legend Earl

Countryrelaxin - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:18:16

Wow, such a shock. A sad,sad day. What a wonderful and influential legacy he has.

Bass Lady - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:19:13

Sadly, none of us get to live forever. May he rest in peace with his beloved wife.

Kapellmeister - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:20:05

A sad day indeed. I'll bet many of us wouldn't be here on the BHO or even play the banjo if it were not for Earl.

sugarinthegourd - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:21:34

Of course Bill Monroe was the original Bluegrass Boy, but it didn't really become bluegrass music until Earl Scruggs joined the band.

RIP Earl, you were one in a billion.

robbie93 - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:22:25

Earl, you where a true legend and an inspiration to us all. I fell in love with the banjo the moment I saw you play on the Beverly Hillbillies. I was just a small boy but I will never forget it.

What can we on the hangout do to as a tribute to him.

jethrobodine - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:22:44

Thank you Mr. Scruggs for all you gave us and taught us.  Rest now.

We offer our prayers for your family.

Beardog - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:24:31

We all knew that this day was probably approaching much sooner than we wished. But, that doesn't help the awful feeling in the pit of my stomach right now.

Bluegrass didn't truly happen until Earl and that style 11 stepped up to the microphone for the first time.

BanjoFlyboy - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:25:05

I'm not ashamed to admit that I shed a few tears when I heard this. God bless you Earl! Tonight I'm gonna pick a few of my hero's tunes.

DrBob - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:25:53

Earl will always be considered "The Man" when it comes to the banjo...a true legend, and he'll be missed. I wish there was a YouTube tribute, or maybe a TV special covering his life and times.

jbalch - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:26:28

We are all very sad to hear this news. 

Larry P. - I know how close you have been to Earl (practically like family).  I hope you are OK. 

1935tb-11 - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:28:14

late in 1978 i traded for an old banjo,, a week or so later i found a copy of foggy mountain banjo at a yard sale. i wore the grooves out on that album trying to do what he was doing, and to this day still don't play it as good as he did.. but he was the reason i stuck it out with the banjo.
i never got to meet him in person, but i was fortunate enough to have a short conversation with him over the phone one day through a friend of mine who was close to him. i will never forget that day. and he sent me an autograghed photo that i have hanging in my living room right now.
he was a once in a lifetime type of figure that we all owe a great debt to and was really responsible for bringing the 3 finger style to the forefront and masses of people . it is truly a sad sad day. i am just glad i was here on earth the same time he was.



terry m

apherigo - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:31:45

He accomplished so much and contributed to so many.  There are not enough thank you's to express the pain.  You deserve the right to rest in the peace of knowing you have given this WORLD such a beautiful place to be in.  Thank you.

Paul R - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:31:57

R.I.P. Earl, and condolences to family and friends, including those friends here on BHO.

There aren't many people who can claim to have invented a genre of music, and fewer still whose musical legacy can be summed up in their first name. Earl's legacy lives.

mdenny4 - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:33:42

A friend of mine called me and told me about this five minutes ago. He was and is the reason why I love music.

Brooklynbanjoboy - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:34:36

We should all be thankful that Earl got the recognition he deserved consistently throughout his long life, and especially toward the last years.  A lot of attention in Banjo Newsletter.  A consistent flow of articles recognizing his contribution in all manner of publications.  Legions of imitators.  I especially remember a birthday issue last year or so in BNL.  Some of the Founding Fathers of banjoing never really got their due.  Earl left this world knowing he made a difference. 

kellypage - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:35:11

I'm so sad. Nothing I can say will be enough of a compliment on such an amazing banjo player. Thanks Mr. Scruggs for giving me inspiration to pick up a banjo and strive to be the best I can be.

El Dobro - Posted - 03/28/2012:  17:35:34

I'm speachless. RIP Earl