This page is a list of fiddlers and musicians from Missouri and the surrounding region. Persons with names in bold are hyperlinked to a page on this site or another on the interwebs.
To submit a name to this least or to biographical information, photos, etc., please email missourifiddling@gmail.com.
Walter Alexander – an Ozarks Fiddler.
Liz Amos
William “Bill” Anthony – His name was William “Bill” Anthony, and he was born in 1923 in Boone County. He had been a fiddler since the early 1930’s, and was very well known in Mid-Missouri music groups. He played the fiddle, guitar, steel guitar, and piano. He could pick up just about anything and learn how to play it very fast. He was a member of the Missouri Outlaws before they went big, and also a Goodtimer in Columbia. He used to be on the radio in the 1940’s and 50’s with a country music show.
Kenny Applebee – Guitar accompanist and fiddler from Rush Hill, Audrain Co. MO. Has backed up many fine Missouri fiddlers in contests. Played a lot with Pete McMahan.
Earl Ball
Dr. Walter Bone – Old-time fiddler and veteranarian from Pineville, McDonald Co., Missouri. Ozarks.
Nolan Boone – Fiddler from Mexico, Audrain Co., MO. Used to play in contests and dances with his wife accompanying on the piano. Best known for playing the tune Aunt Mary’s Hornpipe.
Emily Buckhannon
Kenneth “Polly” Burre more info…
Fiddler and popular contest MC from Tebbetts in Holt Co., MO. Also liked to repair musical instruments.
Pete “Pierre” Boyer
Luther Caldwell
Bill Caton (also Katon)
- P. Christeson
Bill Conley
Buck Cuno
Earl Collins
Bill Driver
Roy “Bill” Eddy
Lyman Enloe
Mike Fraser
Art Galbraith
Chris German (Germain) website
Joe Gerst
Simey Gerst
Jimmy Gilmore
Tony Gilmore
Cecil Goforth
Gene Goforth
Dr. Jimmy Gray
Dr. Gray was an oral surgeon and fiddler from St. Louis. I went to visit him once with John Griffin at his home in suburban St. Louis County. He was in his eighties at the time. It was damn hot day and we watch Jimmy as he watered a large pumpkin vine and brought it back from a severely wilted condition.
Dr. Gray played many unique tunes. Kingery Hornpipe was one such set in the key of A, which I transcribed and gave to R. P. Christeson for inclusion in his second volume. Interestingly, Dr. Gray was the originator of Gray’s Solution, which was a cure for gingivitis. He reveled in showing John Griffin and I a photo album full of before and after shots of people’s bad gums!
John Griffin
Dwight Grover
Bob Hagan
Steve Hall
John Hartford
Carol Hascall
Clifford Hawthorne
George Helton
Ike Helton
Warren Helton
W. O. Hickam
Jake Hockemeyer
Referred to by some as the “left-handed dutchman”, Jake Hockemeyer was one of the great old-time fiddlers from the Little Dixie region of Missouri when I was young. He was from Mokane in Cole County and played left-handed “over the bass”.
His signature tune was Marmaduke’s Hornpipe. I think I have never heard it played better than he could. He also played Fisher’s Hornpipe in F really nicely (R. P. Christeson admired Jake’s playing and once said he played Fisher’s like Heifitz!). He had a particularly nice version of Peek-a-boo Waltz, as well, which if you closed your eyes while listening you might envision a slowly turning water wheel.
Bob Holt
Jim Herd
Travis Inman
Raymond “Pick” Johnson
Vesta Johnson
Dean Johnson
Gary Johnson
Alton Jones
Casey Jones
Daniel Boone Jones
Kelly Jones
Paul Jones
Sac River Jones
Bill Kearns
Francis Kepner
Dwight Lamb (Iowa) website
Vee Latty
Jim Lansford website
Amy LeGrand
Harold Leek
- E. “Bunny” Marriott
Junior Marriott
Cody Marriott
Howard “Rusty” Marshall website
Taylor McBaine
Pete McMahan
Dave Morris
Brother of George Morris
George Morris more info…
The famous “fiddlin’ sheriff” from Columbia, Boone Co., MO.
John Murdock
Michelle Ogle
Charlie Pasha
Joe Pollite
Dale Potter – Extra-ordinarily gifted and successful professional fiddle player from Puxico in Southeast Missouri. He composed extremely difficult tunes incorporating extended double-stop passages beyond the capability of most country players (yours truly included), such as Fiddle Patch. Not really Missouri-style per se, but still should be recognized as coming from the Missouri tradition.
Wade Ray
Lonnie Robertson
Geoff Seitz
Paul Shikles
Bill Shull
Hollis Shumaker
- K. Silvey
Pearl Sivetts
Jimmy Skiles
Virgil Smith
Claude Stearns
Cyril Stinnett
Pete Stinnett
Alita Stoneking
Fred Stoneking
Lee Stoneking
Howe Teague
Ed Tharp
Elliot Tharp
Henry Taylor
Rhona Vincent website
Linton Vomund
Bob Walsh
Billy Ward
Bob Walters more info…
Gary Watson
Barbara Weathers
Gene Wells
Henry Wells
Lynn Wells
Mike Wells
John White
Adrian Williams
John Williams website
Dolph Wilson
Nile Wilson
Doc Winagear
Roy Wooliver
Matt Wyatt