Lyman Enloe
Lyman Enloe got his start in fiddle music by playing guitar for his half-brother and father, both fiddlers. Amy Skillman photo.
Players: Lyman Enloe, fiddle
From the County CD "Three Fiddlers From the Show-Me State."
Players: Lyman Enloe, fiddle; Donna Rose, guitar; Rusty Dutton, banjo; Don Montgomery, bass
From the Missouri fiddling anthology, "Now That’s a Good Tune," (1989). Recorded by Amy Skillman and Charlie Walden in 1987.
Players: Lyman Enloe, fiddle; Donna Rose, guitar; Rusty Dutton, banjo; Don Montgomery, bass
From the County CD "Three Fiddlers From the Show-Me State."
Lyman Enloe was unusual in his fondness for bluegrass as well as old-time music, and his famous 1973 LP, "Fiddle Tunes I Recall," is a model recording of a fine old-time fiddler backed by a skilled bluegrass ensemble, The Bluegrass Association. In addition, the album contains a number of quite local tunes handed down to Lyman from fiddlers he learned from. Enloe and Kenny Baker (Bill Monroe’s favorite fiddler) jammed at many bluegrass festivals, and it was Lyman who taught Baker "Oklahoma Redbird," which has become part of the bluegrass fiddle repertoire.
Enloe’s father’s name was Elijah Enloe, and the first Enloes came from Ireland in the early 19th century and settled in the southwestern corner of Cole and northern section of Miller County. In addition to his father and uncles who fiddled, when Lyman was a child the primary fiddler in their community was Lee Carpenter. Lyman also played guitar behind legendary fiddler Tony Gilmore of Jefferson City on the radio in the 1930s.
In 1995 Enloe received the prestigious National Heritage Fellowship Award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Lyman died in 1998 in Lee’s Summit, where he had lived for many years and developed his house painting business.
-Howard Marshall
PS: My favorite quote of Lyman’s: "I like to play ‘em just as straight as can be."