Skillet Lickers

Lore & Background

The Skillet Lickers were formed by Gid Tanner in 1926, with an initial lineup of Tanner, blind guitarist Riley Puckett, Clayton McMichen, and Fate Norris. Between 1926 and 1931 they recorded 88 sides for Columbia, 82 of which were commercially issued. Their best-selling single was 'Down Yonder', a hillbilly breakdown, released in 1934 on RCA Victor. The band disbanded in 1931 but reformed occasionally with changing personnel. Later members included Lowe Stokes, Bert Layne, Hoke Rice, Arthur Tanner, and Hoyt 'Slim' Bryant.

Individual members had varied backgrounds: Clayton McMichen, the lead fiddler, worked as an automobile mechanic and later became National Fiddling Champion from 1934 to 1949. Lowe Stokes, a superb fiddler, lost his right hand to a shotgun blast in the late 1920s but continued playing with a prosthetic attachment. Fate Norris, a one-man band performer, played banjo and harmonica and died on stage in 1944. Riley Puckett, a virtuoso guitarist, toured with his own tent show. The band's recordings included instrumentals, ballads, pop songs, and comedy sketches such as 'A Corn Licker Still in Georgia', a series of 14 sketches about illegal stills and fiddle-playing.

Reader's Guide

The Skillet Lickers are significant for embracing and popularizing a style of American music rarely heard outside private performances or Southern gatherings. Their recordings, especially the hard-driving fiddle-based style, made Atlanta and North Georgia an early center of old-time string band music. The band's legacy includes influencing later revival groups like the New Lost City Ramblers, and continuing through Tanner's son Gordon (Junior Skillet Lickers) and grandson Phil (Skillet Lickers II). Despite McMichen's later disdain for the Skillet Lickers, his recordings with the band remain the only ones of his in print. The group's extensive discography on Columbia, Victor, and other labels, along with numerous reissues, ensures their place in the history of American folk and country music.

Did You Know?

• The Skillet Lickers recorded 88 sides for Columbia between 1926 and 1931, with 82 commercially issued.
• Lowe Stokes lost his right hand to a shotgun blast in the late 1920s but continued fiddling with a prosthetic attachment.
• Clayton McMichen was National Fiddling Champion from 1934 to 1949.
• Fate Norris died on stage in Subligna, Georgia on November 11, 1944.