Bill Lowe

the keeper of the flame
of traditional and ‘ole time

Bluegrass music

Music from the true vine

          Native son and true Kentuckian

When you hear Bill Lowe and Cripple Creek you will hear pickin’ and singin’ the traditional way and they might even add a few new licks for effect.  Their music will take you back to the green hills of Kentucky or wherever in the Bluegrass Country you’re from.  Their love for the music is contagious and before you know it, this very personable band may find their way into your heart.

Bill Lowe inspires you with his traditional type of music.  His long time friend, Doc Watson, his Uncle Grover who taught him claw hammer banjo, his friend and great guitarist Russell Farley, who he sat on many a front porch with and worked out songs for over 3 years, and the Carter Family, influences his music.  All these factors finally culminated into the famous Bill Lowe flat top pickin’ he is renowned for in the bluegrass circles.  Bill talks with his music, believing that songs need to be sung from the heart.  A lot of songs that are sung by Bill are old time and many people today haven’t heard them.  He feels there is a wealth of music in our country that is lying dormant that needs to be revived.  Bill might be called a walking reference book of American Mountain Music and has always been the front man in his bands, filled with past and present tales and good information about the music and those that play it.  Doc Watson, Norman Blake, and Bill Monroe are Bill’s all time favorite musicians. 

Bill has a long history in the music business.  Among them are:  T.V., radio, recording artist and disc jockey. At the age of 16 Bill started his first band called The Lonely Mountain Boys, which was based out of Pikeville, Ky.  He played radio stations WLSI, WPKE, and WBTH and hundreds of schoolhouse shows.  At WLSI Bill played many shows with the Stanley Brothers in the 1950’s.  These shows were called The Big Sandy Valley Hayride. After several years of the local scene Bill enlisted in the Marines and ended up in California where he continued his music.  His first T.V. experience was on KXLA in California with Joe Nixon and The Happy Hoedowners in the early 60’s; he knew and worked with the great Kentucky Colonels Rolin and Clarence White; Bill co-wrote songs that were recorded by the great Kentucky Colonels. Rolin and Bill were offered a recording contract with Decca but couldn’t come up with enough material and Bill has always regretted this.  He did, however, record 2 country songs for Sundown and one, My Foolish Heart, almost became a hit.  He was also a studio musician in California. During his stay in California he recorded with country artists like Chet Diagle and Jim Russ and opened for such greats as George Jones and Merle Haggard, but the highlight of his time in California was when Bill Monroe offered him a job and he turned it down because he had four children to raise.  Bill has been involved with a total of 27 recording projects during his musical career and is currently working at number 28. In 2004 and 2006 Bill and his band completed two bluegrass gospel shows for Time Warner in Ohio.  Bill was a disc jockey for three years in Yellow Springs, Ohio at Antioch College where he played bluegrass and old time music once a week.  He’s recorded 12 projects with Cripple Creek (Bill’s Bluegrass Band) over the past 25 years.