Editing Bill Monroe (section)

== Career ==
[[File:MonroeBrothers.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Bill Monroe (left) and his brother Charlie in 1936.]]

In 1929, Monroe moved to [[Indiana]] to work at an oil refinery with his brothers [[Birch Monroe|Birch]] and Charlie.<ref name="LarkinGE"/> Together with a friend, Larry Moore, they formed the "Monroe Brothers", to play at local dances and house parties.

Birch and Moore soon left the group, and Bill and Charlie carried on as a duo, eventually winning spots performing live on radio stations, first in Indiana and then, sponsored by Texas Crystals, on several radio broadcasts in [[Shenandoah, Iowa]], [[Nebraska]], [[South Carolina]] and [[North Carolina]] from 1934 to 1936.<ref name="LarkinGE"/> [[RCA Records#Previous labels|RCA Victor]] signed the Monroe Brothers to a recording contract in 1936.<ref name="LarkinGE"/> They scored an immediate hit single with the gospel song "What Would You Give in Exchange For Your Soul?" and ultimately recorded 60 tracks for Victor's [[Bluebird Records|Bluebird]] label between 1936 and 1938.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bill Monroe: American Musician|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bill-Monroe|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=January 30, 2018}}</ref>

After the Monroe Brothers disbanded in 1938, Bill Monroe formed The Kentuckians in [[Little Rock, Arkansas]], but the group only lasted for three months.<ref name="LarkinGE"/> Monroe then left Little Rock for [[Atlanta, Georgia]], to form the first edition of the Blue Grass Boys,<ref name="LarkinGE"/> with singer/guitarist [[Cleo Davis]], fiddler Art Wooten, and bassist [[Amos Garren]].

In October 1939, Monroe successfully auditioned for a regular spot on the [[Grand Ole Opry]], impressing Opry founder [[George D. Hay]] with his energetic performance of [[Jimmie Rodgers (country singer)|Jimmie Rodgers]]'s "[[Mule Skinner Blues]]".<ref name="LarkinGE"/> Monroe recorded that song, along with seven others, at his first solo recording session for RCA Victor in 1940; by this time, the Blue Grass Boys consisted of singer/guitarist [[Clyde Moody]], fiddler Tommy Magness, and bassist Bill Wesbrooks.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://doodah.net/bgb/|title=Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys|website=Doodah.net|access-date=January 20, 2018}}</ref>

While the fast tempos and instrumental virtuosity characteristic of bluegrass music are apparent even on these early tracks, Monroe was still experimenting with the sound of his group. He seldom sang lead vocals on his Victor recordings, often preferring to contribute high tenor harmonies as he had in the Monroe Brothers. A 1945 session for [[Columbia Records]] featured an [[accordion]], soon dropped from the band. Most importantly, Monroe added [[banjo]] player [[David "Stringbean" Akeman]] to the Blue Grass Boys in 1942.<ref name="LarkinGE"/> Akeman played the instrument in a relatively primitive style and was rarely featured in instrumental solos. Monroe's pre-1946 recordings represent a transitional style between the [[string band|string-band tradition]] from which he came and the musical innovation to follow.