After Bill Monroe's first performance on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry in 1939, Opry founder George D. Hay told him "If you ever leave, it'll be because you fired yourself." He never left, preforming regularly until ill health forced him to stop shortly before his passing in 1996.He kept his music pure, long after many bands were featuring electric instruments or drums. his band's line-up from 1946-1947 is said by some to be the best line up of any music group ever. Two of them, Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, later left and formed The Foggy Mountain Boys- what is probably the second best Bluegrass group after Monroe's Bluegrass Boys.
I met Bill Monroe once, at a concert he gave ina small theater in Philadelphia PA in 1994. He and the band came in the main entrance, and as he made his way down the left aisle, Bill shook hands with people sitting on that side (including me). Later my dad lied to the manager saying it was my Birthday, and they let me go back stage to meet him- He signed the color photo shown above, and was very codial even though I had interrupted him while he was talking with a band member's wife.
After the show was done and everyone got up to leave, Bill walked back out on stage alone, no Mandolin, and sang "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" as the crowd joined in. He was truly a wonderful performer who really appreciated his fans and loved what he did.
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