Jack Bernhardt Papers Inventory (#20061)

Manuscripts Department, Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Contact Information:

Manuscripts Department

CB#3926, Wilson Library

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC 27514-8890

Phone: 919/962-1345

Fax: 919/962-3594

Email: mss@email.unc.edu

URL: http://www.lib.unc.edu/mss/

Processed by

Steven Weiss

Date Completed

March 2000

Encoded by

Steven Weiss

Descriptive Summary Including Abstract

Title

Jack Bernhardt Papers (#20061) 1943-1993

Creator

Bernhardt, Jack.

Extent

About 164 items

Repository

Southern Folklife Collection

Abstract

Jack Bernhardt (1944- ), music critic, musician, and anthropologist of Durham, N.C., recorded, interviewed, and performed with country, old-time, bluegrass, gospel, and other musicians, including many well-known country music stars and old-time musicians and scholars. The collection includes materials on contemporary country artists; the Jerry and Tammy Sullivan Bluegrass Gospel Project; old-time music and musicians; and Uncle Joe Johnson, radio personality at WPAQ in Mount Airy, N.C. The contemporary country artists materials are interviews conducted by Bernhardt with many of America's leading country music stars, including Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Guy Clark, Rodney Crowell, David Grisman, George Jones, Wynnona Judd, Kris Kristofferson, Kathy Mattea, Hugh Moffatt, Bill Monroe, David Olney, Leon Redbone, Marty Stewart, Joe Thompson, Randy Travis, and Townes Van Zandt.. The Jerry and Tammy Sullivan Bluegrass Gospel Project materials include interviews with Jerry Sullivan, Tammy Sullivan, and other members of the Sullivan family and field recordings of performances by the group in small churches in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Background information on the Sullivan family, photographs of performances, and concert posters are also included. Old-time music and musicians materials consist of interviews with and performances by many notable old-time musicians and scholars, some from the Galax, Va., and Mount Airy, N.C., areas. They include Rafe Brady, Cecelia Conway, Dwight Diller, Ernest East, Alice Gerard, Bill Hicks, Alan Jabbour, Tommy Jarrell, Gerry Milnes, and Henry Reed. Musical performances were recorded in both informal home settings and at workshops, fiddling conventions, and competitions. Uncle Joe Johnson materials include a magazine article written by Bernhardt for Bluegrass Unlimited about Mount Airy, N.C., radio station WPAQ and a number of photographs of WPAQ radio personality Uncle Joe Johnson and others.

Administrative Information

Access

RESTRICTED: Sullivan family interviews (FS-1738-1748) restricted until 27 March 2005. Access permitted by permission of the donor.

Usage Restrictions

Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

Provenance

Received from Jack Bernhardt of Durham, N.C., on 11 June 1993 (Acc. 98648).

Online Catalog Terms

Bernhardt, Jack.

Bluegrass music.

Brady, Rafe.

Carpenter, Mary-Chapin.

Clark, Guy.

Conway, Cecelia.

Country music.

Crowell, Rodney.

Diller, Dwight.

East, Ernest.

Galax (Va.)--Songs and music.

Gerrard, Alice, 1934- .

Gospel music.

Grisman, David.

Hicks, Bill.

Jabbour, Alan.

Jarrell, Tommy.

Johnson, Joe, Uncle.

Jones, George, 1931- .

Judd, Wynnona, 1964- .

Kristofferson, Kris.

Mattea, Kathy.

Milnes, Gerry.

Moffatt, Hugh.

Monroe, Bill, 1911- .

Mount Airy (N.C.)--Songs and music.

North Carolina--Songs and music.

Old-time music.

Olney, David.

Radio broadcasters--North Carolina.

Radio stations--North Carolina.

Redbone, Leon.

Reed, Henry.

Stewart, Marty.

Sullivan family.

Sullivan, Jerry, vocalist.

Sullivan, Tammy.

Thompson, Joe, 1918- .

Travis, Randy.

Van Zandt, Townes.

Virginia--Songs and music.

West Virginia--Songs and music.

WPAQ (Radio station : Mount Airy, N.C.).

Biographical Note

Jack Bernhardt was born in Canton, Ohio, on 23 July 1944. As an anthropology student, he received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees from Kent State University. In the mid-1970s, he studied at Columbia University where he received his M.Phil. in anthropology. In January 1980, Bernhardt moved to Chapel Hill, N.C. He had developed a strong interest in country music and playing guitar. He began making trips to Galax, Va., and Mount Airy, N.C., interviewing musicians and recording musical performances. In 1987, he was hired by the Raleigh News and Observer as their correspondent covering country and traditional music. In the early 1990s, Bernhardt began coursework in University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Curriculum in Folklore, where he studied southern religious traditions. In 1993, he joined bluegrass gospel musicians Jerry and Tammy Sullivan on their tour of small churches in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.

Collection Overview

Jack Bernhardt's collection includes materials on contemporary country artists; the Jerry and Tammy Sullivan Bluegrass Gospel Project; old-time music and musicians; and Uncle Joe Johnson, radio personality at WPAQ in Mount Airy, N.C.

The contemporary country artists materials are interviews conducted by Bernhardt with many of America's leading country music stars, including Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Guy Clark, Rodney Crowell, David Grisman, George Jones, Wynnona Judd, Kris Kristofferson, Kathy Mattea, Hugh Moffatt, Bill Monroe, David Olney, Leon Redbone, Marty Stewart, Joe Thompson, Randy Travis, and Townes Van Zandt.

The Jerry and Tammy Sullivan Bluegrass Gospel Project materials include interviews with Jerry Sullivan, Tammy Sullivan, and other members of the Sullivan family and field recordings of performances by the group in small churches in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. Background information on the Sullivan family, photographs of performances, and concert posters are also included.

Old-time music and musicians materials consist of interviews with and performances by many notable old-time musicians and scholars, some from the Galax, Va., and Mount Airy, N.C., areas. They include Rafe Brady, Cecelia Conway, Dwight Diller, Ernest East, Alice Gerard, Bill Hicks, Alan Jabbour, Tommy Jarrell, Gerry Milnes, and Henry Reed. Musical performances were recorded in both informal home settings and at workshops, fiddling conventions, and competitions.

Uncle Joe Johnson materials include a magazine article written by Bernhardt for Bluegrass Unlimited about Mount Airy, N.C., radio station WPAQ and a number of photographs of WPAQ radio personality Uncle Joe Johnson and others.

Organization of Collection

1. Contemporary Country Artists
2. Jerry and Tammy Sullivan Bluegrass Gospel Project
2.1. Audio Cassettes
2.2. Background Information
2.3. Photographs
2.4. Posters
3. Old-time Music and Musicians
4. Uncle Joe Johnson

Series Descriptions

Items Separated

Items separated include an artist file (NF-3815), audio cassettes (FS-1688-1750, FS-4685-4742), a magazine article (WPAQ Radio File), photographs (P-3987-3994), and posters (SFC Oversize).