Rudy Lyle

"He was so powerful," was how legendary bluegrass bandleader Bill Monroe described this banjo player. Rudy Lyle was a member of Bill Monroe & His Bluegrass Boys through several different stints, beginning in 1949 and winding up sometime in the early '60s. The exact nature of these different periods of employment with Monroe tend to differ depending on which reference is being used, but there is evidence of Lyle in the band in the periods of 1949 through 1951, 1953 through 1954, and 1955 through 1956. He may have been one of Monroe's favorite banjo pickers, but this is a subject for debate along with the hot topic of how important Lyle was to the development of bluegrass. There are those fans who believe early Monroe recordings featuring Lyle, such as the rapidly moving mandolin feature "Raw Hide," constitute the true origins of bluegrass, while others feel the Monroe band was really playing "hillbilly" music and not a note of real bluegrass was played until Earl Scruggs happened to come along. Lyle is certainly appreciated by banjo players, however. Pickers from younger generations sometimes tell stories of seeking the man out backstage for impromptu lessons, finding Lyle to be generous with his time and technical wisdom. The best recordings of Lyle are of course to be found in the company of Monroe, especially some of the breakneck, frantic live recordings from the early '50s that have been released on compact disc collections. An extremely early Lyle track is featured on the Rounder compilation entitled WPAQ: The Voice of the Blue Ridge Mountains, a collection of radio recordings done in Mount Airy, NC, in the late '40s. Lyle was hired away for his first gigs with Monroe shortly after this track was recorded. He also recorded a rare single for Starday, featuring the song "Brown Eyes Cryin Over Blue." ~ Eugene Chadbourne