Wednesday, November 18, 2020

Ralph Blizard - "When The Zephyrs of Heaven Shall Fan Me to Sleep"

In August 1997 Ralph Blizard and the New Southern Ramblers played at the annual Bluegrass festival at the Ulster-American Folk Park. Just a few months later in October I saw them live in Tennessee at the Museum of Appalachia's Homecoming Festival, when we were there on honeymoon. We spoke with him at both events, such a gentle and smiling man. He was raised in Blountville in Tennessee (right in the middle of that old-time music triangle of Bristol, Kingsport and Johnson City) and his fiddle playing and singing voice sounded like he had transported himself from the 1930s, which makes sense as he was born in 1919. So glad to have found this clip on YouTube. Here is an obituary to him from 2004.

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