Buell Kazee (August 29, 1900 - August 31, 1976) was an American country and… Read Full Bio ↴Buell Kazee (August 29, 1900 - August 31, 1976) was an American country and folk singer. He is considered one of the most successful folk musicians of the 1920s and experienced a career comeback during the American folk music revival of the 1960s, due in part to his inclusion on the Anthology of American Folk Music.
Born at the foot of Burton Fork, a mountain in Magoffin County,Kentucky, Kazee was already known for playing banjo at church by the age of five . After graduating high school, he studied English, Greek and Latin at Georgetown College.
In 1927, Kazee traveled to New York City, and eventually signed with Brunswick Records. His first record was "Roll On John" backed with "John Hardy". Over the next two years, backed by an assortment of New York musicians, he recorded 51 songs, including such hits as "Gray Lady," "The Sporting Bachelors," and "The Little Orphan Child." His greatest success was "On Top Of Old Smoky", which has been covered over 15,000 times.
He married in the early 1930s, and moved to the Vocalion label, but as the Depression worsened, Kazee recorded less and less, and eventually left the music business and worked for the next 22 years as a pastor.
After the Depression, Kazee performed only rarely and devoted himself entirely to the ministry, the profession he had wanted to pursue since his teens. During the 1960s folk music boom, Kazee enjoyed a comeback and began to perform again. He made joint appearances with other former folk stars like Dock Boggs and Clarence Ashley and Doc Watson at the Newport Folk Festival. He also wrote and published three books.
Buell Kazee died on 31 August 1976 at age 76.
Born at the foot of Burton Fork, a mountain in Magoffin County,Kentucky, Kazee was already known for playing banjo at church by the age of five . After graduating high school, he studied English, Greek and Latin at Georgetown College.
In 1927, Kazee traveled to New York City, and eventually signed with Brunswick Records. His first record was "Roll On John" backed with "John Hardy". Over the next two years, backed by an assortment of New York musicians, he recorded 51 songs, including such hits as "Gray Lady," "The Sporting Bachelors," and "The Little Orphan Child." His greatest success was "On Top Of Old Smoky", which has been covered over 15,000 times.
He married in the early 1930s, and moved to the Vocalion label, but as the Depression worsened, Kazee recorded less and less, and eventually left the music business and worked for the next 22 years as a pastor.
After the Depression, Kazee performed only rarely and devoted himself entirely to the ministry, the profession he had wanted to pursue since his teens. During the 1960s folk music boom, Kazee enjoyed a comeback and began to perform again. He made joint appearances with other former folk stars like Dock Boggs and Clarence Ashley and Doc Watson at the Newport Folk Festival. He also wrote and published three books.
Buell Kazee died on 31 August 1976 at age 76.
The Wagoner's Lad
Buell Kazee Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'The Wagoner's Lad' by these artists:
Dudley Saunders oh I'm just a poor boy my fortune is sad I've always…
The Duhks Oh hard is the fortune of all womankind They're always cont…
We have lyrics for these tracks by Buell Kazee:
The Butcher's Boy She went upstairs to make her bed And not one word…
The Butcher´s Boy She went upstairs to make her bed And not one word…
The Dying Soldier Oh brother Green, oh come to me, For I am shot…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
More Genres
No Artists Found
More Artists
Load All
No Albums Found
More Albums
Load All
No Tracks Found
Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Search results not found
Song not found
@evetelfordfolk1551
He has such a beautiful clarity to his delivery. It reminds us that he was a minister.
@appalachianamerican5
Proud to be from the same place as this man (Magoffin County, Kentucky)
@rbdriftin
I’m obsessed with this song
@zkafel
Obviously the thumbs downs were accidents. Amazing tune!
@allen_p
Song is really from the heart
@jayocaine2946
They thought it meant drop thumb
@jeremyreagan9085
My favorite song to play on the old 5 string Banjo.
@TheKiller1345
Do you have a tab??
@jeremyreagan9085
@Keith DaSneaksNo apologize I learn music by hearing it I cannot read music.
@dewdop
This is a fantastic song.