Bill has a long history in music. T.V., radio, recording artist and disc jockey. At the age of 16 Bill started his first band called The Lonely Mountain Boys, which was based out of Pikeville, Ky.  He played radio stations WLSI, WPKE, and WBTH and hundreds of schoolhouse shows.  At WLSI Bill played many shows with the Stanley Brothers in the 1950’s.  These shows were called The Big Sandy Valley Hay-ride. Bill played with the Bent Mountain Boys and soon  Bill enlisted in the Marines and ended up in California where he continued his music.  His first T.V. experience was on KXLA in California with Joe Nixon and The Happy Hoedowners in the early 60’s; he knew and worked with the great Kentucky Colonels Rolin and Clarence White; Bill co-wrote songs that were recorded by the great Kentucky Colonels. Rolin and Bill were offered a recording contract with Decca but couldn’t come up with enough material.  He did, however, record 2 country songs for Sundown and played to a full house at the Hollywood Bowl in the 1950s.  He was also a studio musician in California. During his life in California he recorded with country artists like Ted Diagle and Jim Russ and rubbed elbows with great artists in every genre, bluerass players such as Doyle Lawson an Doc Watson as shown in his photo gallery. One of  the highlights of his life in California was when Bill Monroe offered him a job even though he turned it down. Bill longed for Kentucky and moved back East to be near his family. Read more...