Roy Cecil Harvey (March 24, 1892 – July 11, 1958) was an American old time guitar player, singer and songwriter.[1] He was the guitarist with Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers and also recorded on his own, appearing on more than 200 records between 1926 and 1931.[2]
Harvey was born in Greenville, Monroe County in southeastern West Virginia on March 24, 1892. He played guitar from an early age, but spent much of his youth and early adulthood as a worker for the Virginian Railway, starting as a fireman and eventually becoming the railroad's youngest engineer. In 1923, he lost his job after walking out during a rail strike.[1][2] Two years later, while operating a streetcar, he struck up a friendship with Charlie Poole and two other members of the North Carolina Ramblers. At the time, he was also working as a salesman in a music shop, where he supplemented his musical knowledge by becoming familiar with the day's most popular records, as well as sheet music dating back to the previous century. Harvey began playing with the North Country Ramblers in 1926. An astute businessman, he also recorded on his own for Columbia Records, backed by other seasoned hillbilly musicians. Harvey's most significant recordings were made in 1929 and 1930. He cut his last records the next year and drifted off into obscurity.[1][2]
Final yearsedit
During the Great Depression, Harvey worked as a police officer and newspaperman. In 1942, he re-located to Florida, falling back on his former expertise in operating trains. He died on July 11, 1958, while still employed by the Florida East Coast Railway, his musical legacy virtually forgotten.[1][2] In 1999, Old Homestead released a 24-song compilation Early String Band Favorites.[3] A four-volume set featuring 94 of his songs from 1926–1931 was released by Document Records in 2001.[4]
Referencesedit
^ abcdCohen, Norm (2000). Long Steel Rail: The Railroad in American Folksong, 2nd Ed. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. pp. 592–595. ISBN0-252-06881-5. Retrieved February 21, 2012.
^ abcdarwulf, arwulf. "Biography: Roy Harvey". Allmusic. Retrieved February 21, 2012.
^Russell, Tony; Bob Pinson (October 7, 2004). Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 (1 ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN978-0-19-513989-1. Retrieved August 16, 2017.
harvey, musician, cecil, harvey, march, 1892, july, 1958, american, time, guitar, player, singer, songwriter, guitarist, with, charlie, poole, north, carolina, ramblers, also, recorded, appearing, more, than, records, between, 1926, 1931, harveyalso, known, as. Roy Cecil Harvey March 24 1892 July 11 1958 was an American old time guitar player singer and songwriter 1 He was the guitarist with Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers and also recorded on his own appearing on more than 200 records between 1926 and 1931 2 Roy HarveyAlso known asRoy Harper John MartinBorn 1892 03 04 March 4 1892Greenville Monroe County West VirginiaDiedJuly 11 1958 1958 07 11 aged 66 FloridaGenresOld time bluegrassOccupation s Musician singer songwriterInstrument s Guitar vocalsYears active1926 31 Contents 1 Musical career 2 Final years 3 References 4 External linksMusical career edit source source MilwaukeeBlues2 Harvey was born in Greenville Monroe County in southeastern West Virginia on March 24 1892 He played guitar from an early age but spent much of his youth and early adulthood as a worker for the Virginian Railway starting as a fireman and eventually becoming the railroad s youngest engineer In 1923 he lost his job after walking out during a rail strike 1 2 Two years later while operating a streetcar he struck up a friendship with Charlie Poole and two other members of the North Carolina Ramblers At the time he was also working as a salesman in a music shop where he supplemented his musical knowledge by becoming familiar with the day s most popular records as well as sheet music dating back to the previous century Harvey began playing with the North Country Ramblers in 1926 An astute businessman he also recorded on his own for Columbia Records backed by other seasoned hillbilly musicians Harvey s most significant recordings were made in 1929 and 1930 He cut his last records the next year and drifted off into obscurity 1 2 Final years editDuring the Great Depression Harvey worked as a police officer and newspaperman In 1942 he re located to Florida falling back on his former expertise in operating trains He died on July 11 1958 while still employed by the Florida East Coast Railway his musical legacy virtually forgotten 1 2 In 1999 Old Homestead released a 24 song compilation Early String Band Favorites 3 A four volume set featuring 94 of his songs from 1926 1931 was released by Document Records in 2001 4 References edit a b c d Cohen Norm 2000 Long Steel Rail The Railroad in American Folksong 2nd Ed Urbana University of Illinois Press pp 592 595 ISBN 0 252 06881 5 Retrieved February 21 2012 a b c d arwulf arwulf Biography Roy Harvey Allmusic Retrieved February 21 2012 Russell Tony Bob Pinson October 7 2004 Country Music Records A Discography 1921 1942 1 ed Oxford University Press ISBN 978 0 19 513989 1 Retrieved August 16 2017 Unterberger Richie Roy Harvey Roy Harvey Vol 1 1926 1927 Allmusic Retrieved February 21 2012 External links editRoy Harvey recordings at the Discography of American Historical Recordings nbsp nbsp nbsp This article about an American musician is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte nbsp This article on a musician who plays a string instrument is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Roy Harvey musician amp oldid 1177561162, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
