Died On This Date (January 16, 2010) Joe Forrester / Played With Bill Monroe
themusicsover Joe Forrester
March 21, 1919 – January 16, 2011
Joe Forrester was a bluegrass pioneer. He is perhaps best remembered for playing alongside his brother, Howdy Forrester, in Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys. In 1935, Forrester moved to Nashville where he had the opportunity to play at the Grand Ole Opry. He could also be heard playing on radio stations in Tulsa, OK and Tuscola, IL. After taking a break to serve his country during World War II – he landed on Utah Beach on D-Day, Forrester returned to music and performed with the likes of Gene Autry, Georgia Slim, and Art Davis. Joe Forrester was 91 when he passed away on January 16, 2011.
Utah Phillips was a great folk singer, poet and much respected labor organizer. Phillips first picked up a ukulele when he was a child but soon switched to guitar after he moved to Yellowstone Park to work on a road crew. It was there that he was exposed to the music of 
Born in Ada, Oklahoma, Monte Hale was best known for his “singing cowboy” roles in many Republic Pictures westerns of the ’40s and ’50s. Prior to that, Hale made his living playing country music at local rodeos and vaudeville shows. He also co-founded the Autry Museum of Western Heritage with 
Known since the 1930s as the Singing Cowboy, Gene Autry was country singer-songwriter and cowboy actor. Signing to Columbia Records in 1929, Autry began releasing what were called “hillbilly” music in the early ’30s. Over the course of his career, Autry made over 600 records, roughly half either co-written, or written by himself. Besides his signature song, “Back in the Saddle Again,” Autry best remembered for “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,” “Frosty the Snowman,” and the self-written, “Here Comes Santa Claus.” Besides making nearly 100 films, Autry successfully transitioned to television during the ’40s, starring in his own show on CBS. Autry also owned several California radio stations as well as Major League Baseball team, the California Angels. Forbes Magazine included him in annual list of the 400 richest Americans for many years. Gene Autry died of lymphoma at the age of 91.