Country Music’s Oldest Living Legends & Links to the Past (3.0)

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Every once in a while, it is important to stop down, pay tribute, and appreciate all of the living legends we still have around in country and roots music. These are the contributors who you can sometimes trace back to the very formations of what we consider “country” and “bluegrass” today, even though as each year passes, the number of these artists continues to dwindle.

Though age is definitely part of it, so are the specific ties these individuals have back to important moments in country music, or the legends of their time. With the recent passing of some of these oldest and most important contributors, it feels important to revisit this list for now the third time, and the first time since 2023.

Some of the oldest living links and legends that we have lost recently include:

Merv Shiner – Age 102 – October 23, 2023
Bill Hayes – Age 98 – January 12th, 2024
Bobby Koefer – Age 95 – March 16th, 2024
Buck White – Age 94 – January 13th, 2025
Chad Morgan – Age 91 – January 1st, 2025
Bobby Hicks – Age 91 – August 16th, 2024
Roni Stoneman – Age 85 – February 22nd, 2024
Kris Kristofferson – Age 88 – September 28th, 2024

Please note: This list is of the oldest of the oldest living legends in country music worth remembering, meaning artists 85 years old or older.

Violet Hensley – Age 108

Known by numerous names including the “Whittling Fiddler” and the “Stradivarius of the Ozarks,” Violet Hensley was a Grand Ole Opry performer, actress, fiddler, and fiddle maker who has been designated a “Living Treasure.” Born on October 21, 1916 to George Washington Brumley and Nora Springer Brumley, that would make her 108 years old.

Hensley learned how to make fiddles from her father who made his first instrument in 1888 using hand tools. Violet Hensley was married at the age of 18 and had nine children, but always found the time to pursue her passion for fiddle making. A Violet Hensley-made fiddle is considered a treasure and a masterpiece. It wasn’t until later in life when she began to be known as a performer, releasing three album, Old Time Fiddle Tunes (1974), The Whittling Fiddler and Family (1983), and Family Treasures (2004).

Violet Hensley also appeared on The Beverly Hillbillies (1969), The Art Linkletter Show (1970), Captain Kangaroo (1977), and Live with Regis and Kathy Lee (1992). She’s been featured in National Geographic and other periodicals, and she made her Grand Ole Opry debut at the tender age of 99 on August 6th, 2016.

Leroy Van Dyke – Age 95

In a career spanning more than 50 years and more than 500 recorded songs, Leroy Van Dyke made many worthy contributions to the country music canon, but he’s most recognized for interpreting the wild cadence of a liquidator in 1956’s “The Auctioneer.” The song went on to sell some 2.5 million copies.

Though “The Auctioneer” would make Leroy Van Dyke an unlikely star at the time, it wouldn’t be until five years later that his single “Walk On By” would be his first #1, and become just as lasting of a contribution of “The Auctioneer.”

Along with being a performer, Leroy Van Dyke was also an important member and co-host of the Ozark Jubilee, which was only rivaled in stature by the Grand Ole Opry that Leroy eventually joined when he moved to Nashville. Leroy Van Dyke continues to perform and make public appearances, often with his son Ben playing lead guitar.

Leroy Van Dyke was born in Mora, Missouri on October 4, 1929.

Bill Clifton – Age 93

Born April 5, 1931, Bill Clifton is one of the very last ties to the originators of bluegrass, and is considered by many as an originator himself. Born William August Marburg on a farm in Riderwood, Maryland, he took a liking to music at an early age, but changed his name to Bill Clifton to perform since his family forbid him from pursuing music. Originally interested mostly in country music, Bill’s repertoire expanded when he attended the University of Virginia in 1949, and was exposed to folk and bluegrass.

Along with performing, Clifton worked closely with important figures such as A.P. Carter, Woody Guthrie, and The Stanley Brothers to discover lost songs. His 1955 book called 150 Old Time Folk and Gospel Songs is given credit for revitalizing songs like “Little Maggie” and “Long Journey Home,” and making them bluegrass standards. Ralph Stanley also helped Clifton launch a recording career.

Along with his influential book that most any folk and bluegrass musician was said to carry around in their guitar cases in the late 50s, Bill Clifton was important in forming the very first bluegrass festivals, including a bluegrass gathering at Watermelon Park near Berryville, Virginia on August 14, 1960, and later at Oak Leaf Park in Luray, Virginia on July 4th, 1961 where Bill Monroe, the Stanley Brothers, Jim & Jesse, and more played.

Willie Nelson – Age 91

Born April 29, 1933 in Abbott, Texas, Willie Nelson might not be at the very top of a list of country music’s oldest living legends. But no name might be bigger, or more important.

Aside from all of the obvious things that make Willie Nelson the most recognizable living link to country music’s past—including his songwriting for artists like Patsy Cline and Faron Young in hits from the early 60’s—as a youngster Willie played in Bob Wills’ Texas Playboys, and was performing in bars and honky tonks at the age of 13. He later played bass for Ray Price in the Cherokee Cowboys as well.

At the original Dripping Springs Reunion, and later at Willie’s annual 4th of July Picnics, Willie invited past greats to perform including Roy Acuff, Earl Scruggs, Buck Owens, Bill Monroe, Hank Snow, and other legends of country music’s past. Willie may not be the oldest link to the past still around, but he remains the patriarch of the genre as a whole.

Billie Jean Horton – Age 91

Though not a well-known performer herself, Billie Jean Horton born June 6, 1933 is one of the few remaining personalities in country music that didn’t just follow the music, but lived it, and helped keep it alive for future generations.

From Bossier City, Louisiana, Billie Jean was first introduced to Hank Williams by another famous country singer, Faron Young who was dating Billie Jean at the time. She was just 19-years-old, and in October of 1952, Billie Jean and Hank Williams were married in a private ceremony in Louisiana. Later they repeated their vows at two concerts on the stage of the Municipal Auditorium in New Orleans for large crowds.

Three short months later, Hank Williams was dead. He passed away on News Years Day, 1953. Later in 1953, Billie Jean Williams married country music star Johnny Horton, who died in a car wreck in 1960, making Billie Jean a famous country music widow for a second time. For a short period, Billie Jean also had a relationship with Johnny Cash while he was still married to his first wife Vivian Liberto.

The famous country music wife had a recording career of her own for a period, and had a Top 40 country record with “Ocean of Tears” in 1961. Billie Jean was a vocal promoter of the legacies of her two famous husbands for years, including gathering up songs from Johnny Horton after he died and compiling them into new releases.

Ray Walker – Age 90

(March 16, 1934) – Ray Walker is a Country Music Hall of Famer as a long-time member of the performing and recording singing group The Jordanaires. Not only did Ray Walker perform in the group from 1958 all the way up until the official dissolving in 2013, he was the highly important bass voice for the vocal orchestra. Ray Walker’s voice can be heard on thousands of country music recordings from the Countrypolitan era and beyond.

Walker formed The Jordanaires with Neal Matthews, Hoyt Hawkins, and Gordon Stoker. With the death of Stoker in 2013, Ray Walker is the last surviving member of the legendary group. In their heyday, The Jordanaires could sing on as many as 200 recordings a week. One estimate has Ray Walker’s voice being featured on as many as 200,000 songs in the country, pop, and Gospel worlds going back to the late ’50s.

Alice Gerrard – Age 90

One of the true mothers of bluegrass, Alice Gerrard is perhaps best known for her recordings with fellow bluegrass great Hazel Dickens in one of the most important duos in bluegrass history. A singer, banjoist, fiddler, and guitar player, Gerrard was also a member of The Strange Creek Singers and the Back Creek Buddies. Born July 8, 1934 and originally from Seattle, Washington, Gerrard also holds importance as a Pacific Northwest artist.

Alice Gerrard first found favor with folk music when attending Antioch College in Ohio. From there she moved to Washington, DC where she became part of the city’s culturally significant bluegrass scene. Gerrard recorded for Folkways and Rounder in her career, and was also married to musicians Jeremy Foster and Mike Seeger. She was inducted into the Bluegrass Hall of Fame in 2017 and is considered one of the most important women in bluegrass.

Johnny Western – Age 90

Born Johnny Westerlund on October 28th, 1934, Johnny Western has long list of career accomplishments in country music, even if he never strung together a long list of hits. He was a member of the Sons of the Pioneers for a bit, and would regularly tour and perform with Johnny Cash for nearly 40 years. He co-wrote the song “The Ballad of Paladin,” which became a hit for Duane Eddy. Western was also a prominent disc jockey who is in the Country Music Disc Jockey Hall of Fame.

Johnny Western was born in Minnesota where his parents took him to see the Gene Autry film Guns and Guitars when he was 12. Then and there he decided he wanted to be a singing cowboy and by 13 he was already performing while also working as a disc jockey. Western was profiled at the time in Billboard as the youngest disc jockey in America. By the time he was 16, Johnny Western had joined the Sons of the Pioneers.

Western’s recording career was scattered. After Duane Eddy’s hit with “The Ballad of Paladin,” Western was signed to Columbia Records. He recorded seven singles, and the album Have Gun – Will Travel, which became a standard of Western music, and also revolved around the popular TV show that aired starting in 1957. Johnny Western was also an actor, playing numerous roles in Western films and television programs. Though he’s been mostly a background character in country music, his contributions have been vast, varied, and important.

Donna LaVerne Stoneman – Age 89

Born February 7th, 1934, the legendary mandolin player is the last surviving member of The Stoneman Family, which was a family band from the Blue Ridge Mountains under the leadership of their father Ernest Van “Pop” Stoneman. Donna is truly one of the last links to the true original origins of country music.

They peg the “Big Bang of Country Music” to 1927 and the Bristol Sessions in TN/VA. But in 1924, Ernest “Pop” Stoneman had a hit with “The Sinking of the Titanic.” He was set to become one of the first country music stars, but then the Great Depression hit, and Pop already had over a dozen mouths to feed. It wasn’t until 32 years later in 1956 and a random appearance on a quiz show that Pop’s music career was rekindled. Donna was part of the family band comprised of mom, pop, and numerous siblings.

The family band won a contest on the televised Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts show, and quickly became regulars on TV shows of the era. 1962 saw their debut on the Grand Ole Opry, and soon The Stonemans became known as one of the most important family bands in country music. They officially moved from Washington D.C. to Nashville in 1966, even hosted their own series called Those Stonemans between 1966 and 1968. They also won the CMA’s Vocal Group of the Year award in 1967.

Bobby Bare – Age 89

There have been many true country music “Outlaws” over the years, and many more that claim to be. But there can be only one original Outlaw, and that is Bobby Bare, born April, 7th 1935. Without Bobby Bare, there may be no Waylon Jennings. When Bare discovered Waylon in Phoenix, AZ in 1964, Waylon was still very much a regional act. It was Bobby Bare that introduced Waylon to Chet Atkins at RCA in Nashville, and helped bring Waylon’s career to the national stage.

It was also Bobby Bare who first rebelled against Chet Atkins, RCA, and the Nashville system, which in the 60’s put all the creative power in the hands of producers, and didn’t allow artists to record with their own bands. Before Waylon, it was Bobby Bare who forbid session musicians from playing on his songs, and started picking out his own material from renegade songwriters such as Shel Silverstein, Kris Kristofferson, and Billy Joe Shaver. It was Bobby Bare who helped inspire Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson to extricate themselves from their restrictive RCA contracts, and stimulated the Outlaw movement of the early 70’s in earnest.

But that’s not what Bobby Bare is best known for. He’s known for his early country mod material, appearing in suits and singing Countrypolitan songs of the time such as “Detroit City” with its lush chorus lines. Later he would be known for the novelty songs by Shel Silverstein, and Paul Craft’s “Drop Kick Me Jesus.” Though no less an Outlaw than any of the other greats of the era, Bobby Bare didn’t have the rough persona preceding him like Waylon did. He didn’t have the crossover or acting success of Willie Nelson or Kris Kristofferson. His output was quality, and timeless, but perhaps not as defining of an era as others. Yet without Bare, the Outlaw era arguably may have never happened.

Other Important Living Links to Country Music’s Past


Lucy Dean Record – Age 100 – June 1, 1924 – A legendary Western Swing pianist, Lucy Dean Record performed with Western Swing band “In the Swing” under Jimmy Burson. She’s also performed with Ray Price and Asleep at the Wheel.

Bud Wendell – Age 97 – Born August 17th, 1927, he is the oldest living member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Wendell is not a performer though, he was an executive assistant at WSM starting in 1965, and became the general manager of the Grand Ole Opry in 1968. Ten years later, Wendell graduated to the CEO of WSM, and in 1991, he was named the President of Gaylord Entertainment. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998.

Ramblin’ Jack Elliot – Age 93 – Born August 1st, 1931, he is most certainly one of American music’s living legends. Though the Brooklyn, New York native first became fascinated with the rodeo and all things Western—and has certainly contributed songs to the Western and country canons—he is primarily renown for his work in folk, arguably the most important folk contributor still living right behind Bob Dylan.

Frankie Miller – 93 (December 17, 1931) – A recording artist for Starday, 4-Star Records, and Columbia Records, Frankie Miller had a couple of hits in 1959 with “Black Land Farmer” and “Family Man,” as well as 1960’s “Baby Rocked Her Dolly.” Miller performed on The Grand Ole Opry and Louisiana Hayride as well.

Mimi Roman – Age 89 – Born April 20, 1934, Roman is more of a cult figure in country music than a world-renown superstar, but has an interesting career that is worth checking out. Through the moniker “First of the Brooklyn Cowgirls,” she released a country album of the same name while also performing more pop-oriented material under the name Kitty Ford.

Ronnie Dove – Age 89 – (September 7, 1935) Though known mostly as a pop singer who appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show and accrued numerous hits, Ronnie Dove also recorded country music later in his career for Deccas Records, scoring a minor hit with Bobby Darin’s “Things” and other tracks.

Other older artists and contributors include:

J.J. Barrie – Age 91
Margie Singleton – Age 89
Dickey Lee – Age 88
Bill Anderson – Age 87
Wanda Jackson – Age 87
Sonny Curtis – Age 87
Lloyd Green – Age 87
Jeanne Pruett – Age 87
Pretty Miss Norma Jean – Age 86
William Lee Golden – Age 86
Norman Blake – Age 86
Buddy Spicher – Age 86
Ray Stevens – Age 86
David Allan Coe – Age 85
Phil Balsley (Statler Brothers) – Age 85


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