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"A beloved member of the country music community, David "Stringbean" Akeman found nationwide fame as a cast member of Hee Haw. The 1973 murder of Stringbean and his wife forever changed Nashville's sense of itself. Millions of others mourned not only the slain couple but the passing of the way of life that country music had long represented. Taylor Hagood merges the story of Stringbean's life with an account of murder and courtroom drama. Mentored by Uncle Dave Macon and Bill Monroe, Stringbean was a bridge to country's early days. His instrumental savvy and old-time singing style drew upon a deep love for traditional country music that, along with his humor and humanity, won him the reverence of younger artists and made his violent death all the more shocking. Hagood delves into the unexpected questions and uneasy resolutions raised by the atmosphere of retribution surrounding the murder trial and recounts the redemption story that followed decades later"--
List of contents
A Note on Names Prologue. Short Life and Trouble: November 11, 1973
Chapter 1. Way Back in the Hills of Old Kentucky: 1915-1935 Chapter 2. Stringbean and His Banjo: 1935-1942
Chapter 3. Goin’ to the Grand Ole Opry to Make Myself a Name: 1942-1945 Chapter 4. Big Ball in Nashville: 1945-1952
Chapter 5. Herdin’ Cattle in a Cadillac Coupe de Ville: 1953-1959 Chapter 6. Pretty Polly: 1960-1965
Chapter 7. Me and My Old Crow (Got a Good Thing Going): 1966-1973 Interlude. Goodbye Sweet Thing: Stringbean’s Final Day of Life, November 10, 1973
Chapter 8. Sinner Man, Where You Gonna Hide: November 1973
, January 1974 Chapter 9. You Can’t Do Wrong and Get By: January
, November 1974
Epilogue. Forgetting to Forget You: 1975-2014 Acknowledgments
Notes Selected Bibliography
Index
About the author
Taylor Hagood is a professor in the department of English at Florida Atlantic University. His books include
Faulkner, Writer of Disability and
Secrecy, Magic, and the One-Act Plays of Harlem Renaissance Women Writers.
