BackinMemphis

The estate of the bluegrass legend and Grand Ole Opry star is selling his name and likeness, along with his hundreds of personal items and live recordings. Chance of a lifetime, friends! Fans of the father of bluegrass have the chance to buy the rebuilt cabin and 2 1/2 acres in Kentucky where Bill Monroe lived and played music with his Uncle Pen. The buyer will also own the rights to Monroe's name and image, which can be used in things like advertising and TV shows, along with his merchandise story. But Monroe died in 1996. So why is this happening now? "The simple, honest answer is that there's only one heir to this estate, which is his son, James," says Tony Conway, the agent for the family's estate. James "feels like there's someone out there who can do a much better job." Conway says James is looking to sell his father's assets to someone who will preserve and promote his legacy. In fact, conditions written into the contra...

NASHVILLE, Tenn.— Appalachian music patriarch Ralph Stanley, who helped expand and popularize the bluegrass sound, has died. He was 89. His publicist, Kirt Webster, says Stanley died Thursday. Stanley was born and raised in southwest Virginia. He and brother Carter formed the Stanley Brothers and their Clinch Mountain Boys in 1946. The brothers fused Grand Ole Opry star Bill Monroe’s rapid rhythms with the mountain folk of groups such as the Carter Family, and added a distinctive three-part harmony. Carter Stanley died of liver disease in 1966. Ralph Stanley’s a cappella dirge “O Death” from the “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” movie soundtrack introduced him to a new generation of fans in 2000. He became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 2000 and won a Grammy for best male country vocal performance in 2002. BIM: Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers. Source: Opry - FOX 59