Earl Taylor originally from Ohio where he had a band called the Stoney Mountain Boys in the 1940s. He came to Baltimore and formed a new Stoney Mountain Boys group in 1953 at Lindy’s 79 Club on Cross Street in South Baltimore. Led by Taylor (mandolin), with Charlie Waller (guitar), Sam Hutchins aka ‘Porky’ (guitar, banjo), Louie Profitt (violin), and comic ‘Boatwhistle’ McIntyre (bass).
Profitt left early on and was very briefly replaced with Art Wooten (ex-Earl Monroe’s band, Stanley Brothers) who briefly called Baltimore home.
In 1955 Charlie Waller left to join Buzz Busby’s band and later went on to co-found The Country Gentlemen.
In the late ’50s The Stoney Mountain Boys went to Nashville and toured as Jimmy Martin’s backing band before returning to Baltimore, and soon enlisted banjoist Walter Hensley.
Earl Taylor and group played regular gigs at The 79 Club (7-9 Cross Street), and Jazz City on Pratt Street.
Folklorist Alan Lomax came across the group via his friend Mike Seeger and was so enamored that he enlisted them to play at his “Folksong ’59” concert at Carnegie Hall in New York, this being the first bluegrass group ever to play the hall. The bill featured an eclectic mix of artists including Jimmy Driftwood, Muddy Waters, Memphis Slim, Pete Seeger, Mike Seeger, and The Cadillacs, although legend has it that Earl Taylor & the Stoney Mountain Boys stole the show. A live recording of the show was released in 1959 “Alan Lomax Presents Folksong Festival at Carnegie Hall” (United Artists 3050) on which The Stoney Mountain Boys are represented with three songs.
Jim McCall (guitar ex-River View Boys) joined in 1959 – later going on to perform at the Grand Ole Opry. Boatwhistle’s son Vernon McIntyre (banjo) replaced Hensley who left the group in 1960.
In 1959 they released the album “Alan Lomax presents Folk Songs from the Blue Grass” (United Artists 3049). The lineup was Taylor (mandolin and lead vocals), Sam Hutchins (guitar, banjo and second lead vocals), Vernon ‘Boatwhistle’ McIntyre (bass), Curtis Cody (fiddle), and Walter Hensley (lead banjo) had replaced Vernon Junior.
Lomax’s liner notes state “I am deeply obligated to Mike Seeger for taking me to hear the Stoney Mountain Boys whom he had discovered in Baltimore. There may be somewhat more accomplished players in other groups, there may be smoother orchestrations, but to my ear, nothing quite matches the wild, free, rambunctious rant of the Stoney’s. They attack every song and every note as if they were a wing of jet fighters on their last mission. When they finish with a tune, there is a sort of roar that reverberates for a few seconds in the studio, as if the very molecules in the air had been dancing a hoe-down and had to scurry back to their proper places before quiet could fall.”
Shortly after returning to Baltimore ‘Porky’ Hutchins left the group and was replaced with Jim McCall (banjo, guitar) from Virginia. The band relocated to the Cincinnati area for several years.
Hensley continued a prolific career as an influential banjoist and released several solo albums.
The group was managed by Stinson Barth (see bio) during part of the ’60s.
The Stoney Mountain Boys recorded at Rebel Records in 1962 and released the single “Calling Your Name” b/w “Stoney Mountain Twist.” In 1963 they released the album “Bluegrass Taylor-Made” on Capitol Records. The album was reissued in 2000 on Longhorn Records.
Their 1973 album The Bluegrass Touch featured Taylor with Sandy Rothman (banjo), Charlie Hoskins (guitar), Boatwhistle (bass), and Jack Carter (fiddle).
Locally they performed at the Blue Jay Club in Fells Point…
Waller formed the Country Gentlemen. Hensley (see bio) was also a member of the Country Gentlemen, Dukes of Bluegrass…
Taylor relocated to Cincinnatti in ‘60s. Over his career he played with the Stanley Brothers, Jimmy Martin, Flatt & Scruggs. Taylor passed away on January 28, 1984.
Hensley continued a prolific career as an influential banjoist and released several solo albums. Jim McCall’s son Dwight McCall went on to a prolific career as well playing and recording with J.D. Crowe & the New South, and others..
1959(LP) United Artists 3048 Folk Songs from The Blue Grass
1961(LP) United Artists 68107 American Folk Songs
1962 Rebel 230 Calling Your Name / Stoney Mountain Twist
1963(LP) Capitol 2090 Bluegrass Taylor-Made
1973(LP) Vetco 3017 The Bluegrass Touch
1976(LP) Vetco Body And Soul
1998(LP) Rural Rhythm 188 20 Bluegrass Favorites (Earl Taylor & Jim McCall with the Stoney Mountain Boys)
2000(CD) Longhorn Bluegrass Taylor-Made (reissue of 1963 Capitol Records LP)
