Singer and guitarist was called “The Voice with a Heart.”
Mac Wiseman was a bluegrass legend known as “The Voice with a Heart.” The singer-guitarist’s big break came when he was asked to join the Foggy Mountain Boys. He moved on to Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys, singing on the classic, “Can’t You Hear Me Calling.” Wiseman had a long solo career that included the hit song “Jimmy Brown the Newsboy,” and worked with artists of various genres such as John Prine and funk master Bootsy Collins.
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Died: Sunday February 24, 2019 (Who else died on February 24?)
Details of death: Died from kidney failure in Nashville at the age of 93.
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On his love of different styles of music: “I liked all kinds of music. I liked Bing Crosby and Montana Slim, and the reason that I mention those two is that they both had network radio shows, two 15-minute programs in the morning, back to back out of New York, when I was 8, 9 years old — and it just struck me that I liked one as well as the other.” —Wiseman said in 2006 according to the New York Times
Kris Kristofferson on one of his music heroes: “Mac is one of the heroes,” said Kristofferson, whose song “Me and Bobby McGee” was among Wiseman’s favorites to sing. “Having Mac cut ‘Bobby McGee’ was one of the highlights of my life.” —He told The Tennessean in 2012
Country Music singer Teea Goans on Twitter: “Just heard that the great Mac Wiseman passed away. He was so influential in Country and Bluegrass music and was one of the sweetest fellas in the business. He’ll be missed.”
Full obituary: New York Times
Birthdate: May 23, 1925 (Who else was born on May 23?)
Related lives:
- Bill Monroe, Father of Bluegrass
- Bluegrass Legend Lester Flatt
- Harold Bradley (1926–2019), Hall of Fame country music guitarist
