Leon Kiser and The Holston Mountain Boys

#34427/34428
Leon Kiser and The Holston Mountain Boys
Holston Mountain Bluegrass
Label : Mag (1975)
LP

Contains the following songs: Country Fried, Hickory Tree, Nolichuckey, Move Over Old Man, The Next Voice You Hear, Pickin and Grinnin, Beech Bark, Lone Gone, I’ve Waited Too Long, Deer Liberty, The Old Church

Charles Maggard Recording Studio, Big Stone Gap, Virginia
Stereo

Leon Kiser (Bristol, Tennessee) was known to be a natural-born salesman. Since 1976, his Kiser Supply has become the largest distributor of kitchen and bath cabinets and countertops in the Tri-Cities, Tennessee/Virginia region. However, if he could have supported his family by playing music, he would have done nothing else. Born the son of a primitive Baptist preacher and a clawhammer-banjo-playing mother, Kiser became interested in music while quite young. Though most accomplished on mandolin, he could play anything and won awards at local fiddlers’ conventions on every instrument. Kiser performed weekly on radio while serving the Air Force in Frankfurt, Germany, during the Korean War. After his return to the States, he became an advocate for furthering bluegrass music and putting Bristol, Tennessee/Virginia, on the map as the birthplace of country music. His group, the Holston Mountain Boys, often performed at Bristol's "Country Music Days," which was started in 1971 by the Appalachian Music Association. This led to the establishment of the Country Music Foundation and Bristol's first country music museum in Steele's Creek Park. Kiser was heavily involved in both organizations. He also reveled in encouraging young people to play bluegrass and often volunteered to perform at local elementary schools. Kiser was an annual participant on the WCYB- TV March of Dimes Telerama with stars like Roni Stoneman of the Stoneman Family. He passed away in early 1997. That same year, Kiser was honored by the BCMA with a Lifetime Achievement Award at a tribute concert in his name. (source : Birthplace of Country Music Alliance website)

Maggard Sound began as a private recording studio in 1963 when Charlie Maggard needed somewhere to record the songs he had been writing at the time. Read more here.