For nearly 60 years, Bashful Brother Oswald was one of the most influential and talented dobro players in country music. For the majority of his career, he was the dobroist for Roy Acuff's Smoky Mountain Boys, and became one of the most popular members of the band. Over the course of his career, Oswald released only a handful of solo recordings, but left behind enough music to illustrate why he was one of the most influential players of his era. As a vocalist, he first gained recognition for singing a few lines on Acuff's classics "Precious Jewel" (1940) and on "Wreck on the Highway" (1942). Acuff later named him "Brother Oswald," and the dobroist happily complied in creating the Oswald character, wearing a floppy mountain hat, tattered overalls, and enormous shoes while adopting a braying horse laugh. He began a solo career beginning with 1962's Bashful Brother Oswald. In 1972, guitarist and dobro player Tut Taylor produced Oswald's Brother Oswald album. Later in the decade, he began playing in the Opryland theme park with former Smoky Mountain bandmate Charlie Collins. Following Acuff's death in 1992, Oswald and Collins earned a regular slot on the Opry's main stage. ~ Sandra Brennan