b. South Charleston, West Virginia, February 9, 1938
Nashville Cat
Wayne Moss’s iconic guitar riffs helped forge the identifiable sounds of country and rock hits.
Inspired by Country Music Hall of Fame members Chet Atkins and Earl Scruggs, Moss was performing in his teens, on radio and in bands in Charleston, West Virginia. Shortly after moving to Nashville at age twenty-one, he befriended fellow musicians Kenny Buttrey and Charlie McCoy. Moss became a founding member of two early Nashville rock bands, the Escorts and the Casuals. He later was a key member of groundbreaking country-rock bands Area Code 615 and Barefoot Jerry.
As a session guitarist, Moss played on top hits by Patsy Cline, George Hamilton IV, David Houston, Waylon Jennings, Loretta Lynn, and Charley Pride. His non-country work included sessions with Joan Baez, the Steve Miller Band, the Monkees, Linda Ronstadt, and soul singer Joe Simon.
Moss also owns Cinderella Sound, a popular Nashville recording studio that has hosted hundreds of master recordings featuring artists such as Jackie DeShannon, Grand Funk Railroad, the James Gang, Tracy Nelson, Mickey Newbury, Miller, and Ronstadt.
Barefoot Jerry
Barefoot Jerry
Bob Dylan, “I Want You,” 1966
Listen to Wayne Moss
Selected Songs
Bob Dylan, “I Want You” (Bob Dylan)
Among the musicians featured on this recording are Wayne Moss, guitar; Robbie Robertson, guitar; Al Kooper, organ; Henry Strzelecki, bass; Kenny Buttrey, drums.
From the album Blonde on Blonde, 1966. Produced by Bob Johnston at Columbia Studios, Nashville.
Area Code 615, “Just Like a Woman” (Bob Dylan)
Among the musicians featured on this recording are Wayne Moss, guitar; Mac Gayden, guitar; Charlie McCoy, harmonica; Buddy Spicher, fiddle; Bobby Thompson, banjo; Weldon Myrick, pedal steel guitar; David Briggs, keyboards; Norbert Putnam, bass; Kenny Buttrey, drums.
From the album Area Code 615, 1969. Produced by Kenny Buttrey, Elliot Mazer, and Area Code 615 at Cinderella Sound Studios, Madison, Tennessee.
Waylon Jennings, “Only Daddy That’ll Walk the Line” (Jimmy Bryant)
Among the musicians featured on this recording are Wayne Moss, guitar; Fred Carter Jr., guitar; Charlie McCoy, organ and harmonica; Bobby Dyson, bass; Jerry Carrigan, drums.
From the album Only the Greatest, 1968. Produced by Chet Atkins at RCA Studio B, Nashville.
Roy Orbison, “Oh, Pretty Woman” (Roy Orbison, Bruce Dees)
Among the musicians featured on this recording are Wayne Moss, guitar; Billy Sanford, guitar; Jerry Kennedy, guitar; Roy Orbison, twelve-string guitar; Bob Moore, bass.
Single, 1965. Produced by Wesley Rose at Fred Foster Sound Studio, Nashville.
Bobby Bare, “Four Strong Winds” (Ian Tyson)
Among the musicians featured on this recording are Wayne Moss, guitar; Jerry Reed, guitar; Charlie McCoy, harmonica; Henry Strzelecki, bass; Willie Ackerman, drums.
Single, 1964. Produced by Chet Atkins at RCA Studio B, Nashville.
Joe Simon, “The Chokin’ Kind” (Harlan Howard)
Among the musicians featured on this recording are Wayne Moss, bass; Charlie McCoy, guitar; Mac Gayden, guitar; Bob Wilson, organ; Kenny Buttrey, drums; Bergen White, horn arrangement.
From the album The Chokin’ Kind, 1969. Produced by John Richbourg at Music City Recorders, Nashville.
Meet the Cats
Best known for his harmonica technique—distinguished by speed, clarity, and exceptional phrasing, Charlie McCoy is a multi-instrumentalist who has been recorded on bass, guitar, keyboards, percussion, saxophone, trumpet, and tuba.
Charlie Daniels proved pivotal to many of the Nashville recording sessions of Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan. Because Daniels had a strong blues influence, Johnston felt he would fit with the adventurous singer-songwriters.
Ben Keith was a prominent Nashville pedal steel guitarist and dobro specialist before becoming a producer and instrumentalist for Neil Young.
One of country music’s most admired and influential steel guitarists, Weldon Myrick taught himself to play lap steel and, at age thirteen, landed a job on a radio station near his hometown of Jayton, Texas.
Mac Gayden grew up fascinated by the R&B acts he heard in his hometown of Nashville. That interest helped him develop a style as a guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter distinctly different from other Nashville studio pros.
Lloyd Green developed an emotional, resonant style of pedal steel guitar playing that gave him a distinct sound apart from other top steel specialists.
At age eighteen, Pete Drake heard steel guitarist Jerry Byrd on the Grand Ole Opry during a trip to Nashville. Duly inspired, Drake purchased a steel guitar in an Atlanta pawnshop. The decision not only changed his life, but impacted the sound of country and rock music.
Pig Robbins earned his stripes by creating the rocking piano on George Jones’s “White Lightnin’.” Over the ensuing decades, his integral role on Music Row recording sessions earned him membership in the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2012.
In his distinctive fiddle style, Buddy Spicher combined a rich tonal quality with bluegrass precision and an adventurous sense of swing. After arriving in Nashville, he quickly gained attention as a dazzling instrumentalist capable of handling country, jazz, pop, and rock.
Inspired by Country Music Hall of Fame members Chet Atkins and Earl Scruggs, Wayne Moss’s iconic guitar riffs helped forge the identifiable sounds of country and rock hits.
Norbert Putnam is a widely admired bassist, record producer, and studio owner. He started his career in his teens recording with soul singer Arthur Alexander at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, as part of a renowned rhythm section that included keyboardist David Briggs and drummer Jerry Carrigan.
Grady Martin was a member of a loose collection of legendary studio musicians known as the Nashville A-team. His versatility and creativity as a guitarist also appealed to younger rockers and singer-songwriters who came to Nashville.
David Briggs began playing piano on R&B, pop, and country hits in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, in his teens. After a brief stint as a pop singer, Briggs moved to Nashville in 1964 to focus on a career as a studio musician.
Three-time Grammy winner Jerry Reed is most famous for his colorful, catchy story songs steeped in Southern attitude and lore. He was recognized as a groundbreaking guitarist with a guitar technique that gave an extra layer of funky, back-country grease.
The preferred drummer for artists across America—he built a lasting legacy with his work in R&B and rock.
Fred Carter Jr. began his career in northeastern Louisiana playing rock & roll. He backed Dale Hawkins, known for his rock hit “Susie-Q,” and later played with Ronnie Hawkins, Dale’s cousin, in his backing group, the Hawks. Carter left and was replaced by Robbie Robertson before the group evolved into the Band.