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Jimmy Martin: said by Ralph Rinzler to be the best lead singer in bluegrass; first came to prominence with Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys (off and on from 1949 through 1952); joined the Osborne Brothers in 1954; later (1955) formed his own band, the Sunny Mountain Boys, and embarked on a successful solo career including a regular spot on the Louisiana Hayride 1957 to 1959; has long insisted that his music is not bluegrass (that's Bill Monroe's music) but "Good'n'Country" (the name of his Decca album released in 1960); headlined on the WWVA Jamboree in Wheeling, West Virginia, 1959 to 1962.
Lester Flatt: with Blue Grass Boys 1945 - 1948; attained greatest fame working with Earl Scruggs and their Foggy Mountain Boys 1950 - 1967; later toured with his own group Nashville Grass, which introduced Marty Stuart to professional music.
Mac Wiseman: gained greatest prominence with Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys (1948); a superb crooner with a distinctive voice, he was also capable of excellent bluegrass singing with plenty of drive; perhaps the only bluegrass singer with formal (classical conservatory) voice training.
Joe Stuart: played guitar (or banjo or bass) off and on with the Blue Grass Boys over two or three decades; the only person to have played every one of the five basic bluegrass instruments in the Blue Grass Boys.
Del McCoury: one of the best bluegrass singers; first came to prominence with Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys (1964); later formed his own band which continues to be one of the best groups in bluegrass.
Red Allen: possibly the best lead singer in bluegrass; first gained widespread notice in the classic trio with the Osborne Brothers; later produced brilliant work with mandolinist Frank Wakefield; continued to produce superb bluegrass with his own band, The Kentuckians; later performed with his sons Greg and Harley and produced some haunting and powerful bluegrass.
Bob Jones: excellent bluegrass singer, largely in the style of Bill Monroe, Del McCoury, & Red Allen; founded the Blue Ridge Mountain Boys; member of Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys in the mid-'70s; has fronted the Blue Ridge Mountain Boys with a variety of personnel since then, performing mainly overseas since the end of the '80s.
Carter Stanley: member of Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys in 1951; best known for his subsequent work (through 1966) with his brother Ralph as the Stanley Brothers with their band the Clinch Mountain Boys; a very traditional-sounding singer with an old-time style.
Clyde Moody: the second bluegrass guitar player (Bill Monroe was the first); member of Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys 1939-1940.
Charlie Waller: lead singer and mainstay of the Country Gentlemen; played some lead guitar. Charley played guitar in Earl Taylor's Stoney Mountain Boys and Buzz Busby's Bayou Boys before founding the Country Gentlemen with Bill Emerson and John Duffey in 1957. He then ran the Country Gentlemen until his death in August 2004.
Clarence White: with his brother Roland worked as the White Brothers and later as the Kentucky Colonels; best known for dazzling lead guitar work.
Tony Rice: excellent lead guitar player (disciple of Clarence White); best known for work with J. D. Crowe.
Benny Birchfield: long time guitar and third trio voice with the Osborne Brothers.
Jim McReynolds: half of the well known duo Jim and Jesse; remarkably clear, high tenor harmonies.
Roland White: with his brother Clarence worked (on mandolin) as the White Brothers and later as the Kentucky Colonels; member of Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys in 1967-1968; subsequently played with Country Gazette.
Pete Rowan: member of Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys 1964-1967; later gained some notoriety with his participation in making the widely known newgrass album Old and In the Way.
Curtis Blackwell: gained prominence for his powerful lead singing with fiddler Randall Collins in the mid-60s.
Red Smiley: long-time partner of Don Reno with their band, the Tennessee Cut-Ups; not a driving bluegrass singer, but excellent in a crooning or country style.
Ronnie Reno: son of Don Reno; played mandolin in his father's band for many years; then joined the Osborne Brothers; subsequently joined country singer Merle Haggard's band, The Strangers, as rhythm guitar.
Bill Harrell: solid bluegrass singer; fronted his own groups, but later joined with Don Reno.
Dale Sledd: long time guitar and third trio voice with the Osborne Brothers.
Jim Eanes: best known in the Virginia and Washington, D.C., area; not an especially driving bluegrass singer, but a fine crooner.
Bill Clifton: one of the first to spread the sound of bluegrass to overseas audiences.
John Starling: original lead singer in the Seldom Scene; not strictly a bluegrass singer, but a pleasant country-folk voice and style.
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