240:'s visit in December 1925 to Henry Ford and in the thousands who came to a Tuesday evening appearance at a Detroit ballroom of Ford's own old-time dance orchestra. During the second week of January, the orchestra broadcast from the Ford showroom on Broadway in New York. An experimental network of radio stations around the country was organized. Local Ford dealers were to participate by getting loudspeakers and inviting the public in to dance to the broadcasts. The two broadcasts were on Tuesday and Friday. However, the Cincinnati station did not operate on Friday. To get around this situation, Ford dealers in Kentucky quickly organized fiddlers' contests, as did those in Tennessee and southern Indiana, all areas covered by the Cincinnati station. After capturing first prize at the Ford dealership in Lynchburg, Stephens proceeded to the Tennessee statewide contest in Nashville, which began on the morning of January 19, 1926. Stephens survived the first round of the state contest, and with five other finalists, was selected to play at a sold-out
267:. Stephens won second place behind Indiana fiddler W.H. Elmore, and, being in the top three, earned a trip to Detroit. On February 9–10, 1926, Stephens, along with Elmore and Claiborne, played at a banquet in Dearborn that was held during a convention of Ford dealers from around the country. Henry Ford was present. No contest was held.
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to record several sides for
Columbia Records. They remain his only known recordings. In conversations with reporters, Stephens exaggerated the nature of his appearance before Ford, making himself out to be the winner of a series of national contests, when in fact Ford never held any such contest.
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After his appearance in
Detroit, Stephens went on a tour in an attempt to replicate the commercial success of Mellie Dunham. Stephens played at various venues across the Eastern United States, which included a radio guest spot in
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Stephens died at his home near
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In early 1926, Ford Motor
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that night to decide which three fiddlers the state would send to the
Southeast regional contest. Stephens won third place behind
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fiddle player. After rising from relative obscurity in 1926 to win a nationwide fiddle contest hosted by automobile magnate
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Over the years, Stephens' repertoire grew to include folk tunes such as "Sail Away Lady", "
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Paul M. Gifford, "Henry Ford's Dance
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in 1896, and played regularly at various events throughout the early 1900s.
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and several guest appearances on the Grand Ole Opry (then called the WSM
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and made several guest appearances on what would later become the
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Gifford, "Henry Ford's Dance
Revival and Fiddle Contests"
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CO-3522, 2000) — contains the track "Candy Girl"
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Smithsonian
Folkways Anthology of American Folk Music
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423:Juneberry78s.com — Uncle Bunt Stephens
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383:Charles Wolfe, "Notes to Volume 2." In
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387:(pp. 8-9) . County Records, 2000.
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271:Recording and performing career
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450:Southern old-time fiddlers
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203:Bedford County, Tennessee
75:Bedford County, Tennessee
445:Musicians from Tennessee
19:Not to be confused with
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226:The Arkansas Traveler
201:Stephens was born in
261:Louisville, Kentucky
246:Uncle Jimmy Thompson
182:Lynchburg, Tennessee
51:Uncle Bunt Stephens
30:Uncle Bunt Stephens
354:2009-02-07 at the
299:American Civil War
186:American Civil War
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124:Years active
90:(1951-05-25)
88:May 25, 1951
470:1951 deaths
465:1879 births
305:Discography
295:Harry Smith
211:Shelbyville
439:Categories
322:References
282:Barn Dance
250:Hartsville
197:Early life
166:Henry Ford
158:Uncle Bunt
115:Instrument
62:1879-02-02
37:Birth name
207:Lynchburg
178:Nashville
352:Archived
286:New York
162:Old-time
154:Stephens
278:Chicago
265:Indiana
146:John L.
315:County
133:Labels
118:Fiddle
105:Genres
71:Origin
215:tramp
209:and
192:Life
150:Bunt
128:1926
85:Died
56:Born
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79:USA
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