Lena Hughes
Ludlow, Missouri
Belle Waltz
Players: Casey Jones, fiddle; Jake Hughes, guitar; Lena Hughes, banjo
From the County CD “Three Fiddlers From the Show-Me State.”
Billy in the Lowground
Players: Casey Jones, fiddle; Jake Hughes, guitar; Lena Hughes, banjo
Casey’s Waltz #1
Players: Casey Jones, fiddle; Jake Hughes, guitar; Lena Hughes, banjo
Probably from the home recordings of Lena Hughes.
Clyde Durst’s Tune
Players: Cyril Stinnett, fiddle; Jake Hughes, guitar; Lena Hughes, banjo
From the home recordings of Dwight Lamb. Clyde Durst was a fiddler Dwight knew while growing up in northwest Iowa.
Dubuque’s Hornpipe
Players: Cyril Stinnett, fiddle; Lena Hughes, banjo
From the County CD “Three Fiddlers From the Show-Me State.”
Lantern in the Ditch
Players: Cyril Stinnett, fiddle; Lena Hughes, banjo
From the County CD “Three Fiddlers From the Show-Me State.”
Melinda
Players: Casey Jones, fiddle; Jake Hughes, guitar; Lena Hughes, banjo
Probably from the home recordings of Lena Hughes. From the County CD “Three Fiddlers From the Show-Me State.”
St. Anne’s Reel
Players: Cyril Stinnett, fiddle; Lena Hughes, banjo
From the County CD “Three Fiddlers From the Show-Me State.”
Lena Hughes, Casey Jones’ sister, is lengendary among Missouri backups. She grew up with the same influences as her well-known brother, in an era when women fiddlers were very rare. Her talent was put to good use nonetheless, as she became a crack guitar player and a unique and masterful banjo player. Like Earl Scruggs, she developed her own backup method, which was appropriate to the tunes played in her family and community.
Though Casey was probably better known during their lifetimes, Lena is now one of the Missouri fiddle backup players best known outside of Missouri. Here in Missouri, she’s often considered a banjo player, for her spirited and unique two-finger playing behind her brother and other Missouri Valley fiddlers. However, she was also an accomplished guitarist. She was recently featured on NPR, and some of her guitar recordings have been recently re-issued as “Queen of the Parlor Guitar” and on the compilation “Rural Parlor Guitar.”
Though it’s not well known, Lena also played fiddle, in a time when few women did. She competed in the “ladies’ division” in a few fiddle contests, but her real love was the banjo and guitar.
Lena backed up her brother Casey on the radio and numerous recordings, and knew the repetoire inside and out. Perhaps the best tribute to her contributions is that these days, the gentle, rolling two-finger patterns she created are simply called “Lena-style.”