Jack Cooke

“I’m never going to work. I’m going to let this guitar do it for me.” The words of a teenage Jack Cooke to his sister say it all. In the end it wasn’t his guitar but his bass that has done all of the work for him in his 36-year tenure with Ralph Stanley as a Clinch Mountain Boy. Starting with the Stanley Brothers in the mid 50’s, Jack halted his musical collaborations with the group in order to sing the lead vocals for Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys for four and a half years (1956-1960) before ending up with the Clinch Mountain Boys for good in 1970. Jack sat down with producer Jim Lauderdale and recorded some of his favorite songs for his upcoming Pinecastle release, Sittin’ on Top of the World. Cooke’s supporting cast includes Ralph Stanley, Del McCoury, Ronnie McCoury, Rob McCoury, Mike Bub, Jim Lauderdale, and David Gisman among others