World-renowned luthier and finger-picking legend Wayne Henderson returns to Mountain Stage, recorded live at the Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Va. Often called "the world's greatest guitar maker," the southwestern Virginia native has been fixing and constructing instruments for over 50 years for artists like Elvis Presley, Neil Young, Gillian Welch and Doc Watson. In 1995, the National Endowment for the Arts awarded Henderson a National Heritage Fellowship, the highest honor given to folk and traditional artists. There's a 10-year waiting list for Henderson's instruments (even if your name is Eric Clapton), and at the time of this 2015 recording, Henderson was working on making his 661st guitar. Once he gets to the 666th, he promises to "donate it to my preacher and let him deal with it."
Wayne Henderson's latest release is Thumb To Thumb: The Museum Recordings, recorded in Henderson's luthier workshop in Rugby, Va. For this performance, Henderson's joined by Helen White on fiddle, guitar and background vocals and Jeff Little on the ivory keys.
SET LIST
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.