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Chet Atkins
By Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Without Chet Atkins, country music may never have crossed over into the pop charts in the '50s and
'60s. Although he has recorded hundreds of solo records, Chet Atkins' largest influence came as a
session musician and a record producer. During the '50s and '60s, he helped create the Nashville
sound, a style of country music that owed nearly as much to pop as it did to honky tonks.
And as a guitarist, he is without parallel. Atkins' style grew out of his admiration for Merle Travis,
expanding Travis' signature syncopated thumb and fingers roll into new territory.
Interestingly, Chet Atkins didn't begin him musical career by playing guitar. On the recommendation of
his older brother, Lowell, he began playing the fiddle at a child. However, Chet was still attracted to the
guitar and at the age of nine, he traded a pistol for a guitar. Atkins learned his instrument rapidly,
becoming an accomplished player by the time he left high school in 1941. Using a variety of contacts,
he wound up performing on the Bill Carlisle Show on WNOX in Knoxville, TN, as well as becoming
part of the Dixie Swingers. Atkins worked with Homer and Jethro while he was at the radio station.
After three years, he moved to a radio station in Cincinnati.
Supporting Red Foley, Atkins made his first appearance at the Grand Ole Opry in 1946. That same
year, he made his first records, recording for Bullet. Atkins also began making regular performances
on the WRVA radio station in Richmond, VA, but he was repeatedly fired because his musical
arrangements differed from the expectations of the station's executives. He eventually moved to
Springfield, MO, working for the KWTO station. A tape of one of Atkins' performances was sent to
RCA Victor's office in Chicago. Eventually, it worked its way to Steve Sholes, the head of country
music at RCA. Sholes had heard Atkins previously and had been trying to find him for several years.
By the time Sholes heard the tape, Atkins had moved to Denver, CO and was playing with Shorty
Thompson and His Rangers. Upon receiving the call from RCA, he moved to Nashville to record.
Once he arrived in Nashville, Chet recorded eight tracks for the label, five of which featured the
guitarist singing. Impressed by his playing, Sholes made Atkins the studio guitarist for all of RCA
studio's Nashville sessions in 1949. The following year, Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters hired
him as a regular on the Grand Ole Opry, making his place in Nashville's musical community secure.
While he worked for RCA, he played on many hit records and helped fashion the Nashville sound.
RCA appreciated his work and made him a consultant to the company's Nashville division in 1953.
That year, the label began to issue a number of instrumental albums that showcased Atkins'
considerable talents. Two years later, he scored his first hit with a version of "Mr. Sandman;" it was
followed by "Silver Bell," a duet with Hank Snow. By the late '50s, Chet Atkins was known throughout
the music industry as a first-rate player. Not only did his records sell well, he designed guitars for
Gibson and Gretsch; models of these instruments continued to sell in the '90s.
Steve Sholes left for New York in 1957 to act as head of pop A&R, leaving Atkins as the manager of
RCA's Nashville division. However, the guitarist didn't abandon performing, and throughout the early
'60s his star continued to rise. He played the Newport Jazz Festival in 1960; in 1961, he performed at
the White House. Atkins had his first Top 5 hit in 1965 with a reworking of Boots Randolph's "Yakety
Sax," retitled "Yakety Axe;" in addition to being a sizable country hit, the song crossed over to the pop
charts. Atkins' role behind the scene was thriving as well. He produced hits for the majority of RCA's
Nashville acts, including Elvis Presley and Eddy Arnold, and discovered a wealth of talent, including
Don Gibson, Waylon Jennings, Floyd Cramer, Charley Pride, Bobby Bare, and Connie Smith. Because
of his consistent track record, Atkins was promoted to vice-president of RCA's country division when
Steve Sholes died in 1968.
The following year, Atkins had his last major hit single, "Country Gentleman." In the late '60s and early
'70s, several minor hits followed, but only one song, "Prissy" (1968), made it into the Top 40. Instead,
the guitarist's major musical contribution in the early part of the '70s was with Homer and Jethro.
Under the name the Nashville String Band, the trio released five albums between 1970 and 1972.
Following Homer's death, Atkins continued to work with Jethro.
Atkins continued to record for RCA throughout the '70s, although he was creatively stifled by the label
by the end of the decade. The guitarist wanted to record a jazz album, but he was met with resistance
by the label. In 1982, he left the label and signed with Columbia, releasing his first album for the label,
Work It Out With Chet Atkins, in 1983. During his time at Columbia, Atkins departed from his
traditional country roots, demonstrating that he was a bold and tasteful jazz guitarist as well. He did
return to country on occasion, particularly on duet albums with Mark Knopfler and Jerry Reed, but by
and large, Atkins' Columbia records demonstrated a more adventurous guitarist than was previously
captured on his RCA albums.
Throughout his career, Chet Atkins earned numerous awards, including 11 Grammy awards and nine
CMA "Instrumentalist of the Year" honors, as well as "Lifetime Achievement Award" from NARAS.
Although his award list is impressive, they only begin to convey his contribution to country music.
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