Gary Eugene Scruggs
Died:
Dec 1, 21
Obit:
Nashville – Gary Scruggs, Grammy-winning
country music performer, producer, singer, bassist, and songwriter,
passed away on Wednesday December 1, 2021, at 72.
Gary was the eldest son of bluegrass music legend Earl Scruggs.
Gary grew up surrounded by music 'royalty', and began playing guitar
and bass as a child. He contributed to Flatt and Scruggs' albums as
a teenager, and earned a BA in Philosophy from Vanderbilt
University.
With brother Randy he released two albums (1969 and 1970) as The
Scruggs Brothers, and then formed the progressive country rock band
The Earl Scruggs Revue with their father, Earl. The Revue toured
extensively, and during that early time in 1970 Gary convinced his
father to go to a concert of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. With Earl
and mother Louise's help, this led to other iconic traditional
country artists joining them to create the first Will the Circle Be
Unbroken album, an album that is in the Grammy Hall of Fame and
Library of Congress.
He then played guitar and sang backup for Waylon Jennings, produced
his records, and finally retired from the road in the mid-1980s. At
that point he focused primarily on songwriting, and over the course
of his career wrote or cowrote hundreds of songs. His incredible
'lonesome' song The Lowlands was used for a film score produced by
John McEuen and sung by Vince Gill.
In 2005 Gary and Earl coauthored the "Revised and Enhanced" version
of his father's classic book "Earl Scruggs and the 5-string banjo".
In 2008 his song, Speed of Life, became the title cut for the Nitty
Gritty Dirt Band's record. In 2009 Gary co-wrote Daddy Played the
Banjo with Steve Martin for his Grammy Winning Best Bluegrass Album,
The Crow.
He, alongside other "Earl Scruggs and Friends", won the Best Country
Instrumental Performance Grammy award in 2001 for "Foggy Mountain
Breakdown". He was also nominated for the Best Bluegrass Album
Grammy award in 2008 for "The Ultimate Collection / Live at the
Ryman".
Gary worked with a wide range of musicians, including Bob Dylan,
Joan Baez, Doc Watson, The Byrds, Vince Gill, Rosanne Cash, Charlie
Daniels, Steve Martin, Patty Loveless, and many others.
He will be greatly missed by many.
Gary is survived by sons Jesse (Emily) and Jaime (Erika), his niece
Lindsey, and grandchildren Alex, Camila, Austin, and Lily.
A Celebration of Life Funeral Service will be held Wednesday,
December 8, 2021, 2:00 p.m. in the chapel of Spring Hill Funeral
Home. Visitation will be Wednesday from 12:00 noon until time of
service. Burial will follow in Spring Hill Cemetery. Memorial
contributions may be made to the Country Music Hall of Fame or the
Earl Scruggs Center in Shelby, North Carolina.
Arrangements entrusted to Spring Hill Funeral Home and Cemetery,
5110 Gallatin Road, Nashville. A landmark since 1780, "Where
Nashville Comes to Remember." Click
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