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Joe Thompson
Joe Thompson
American musician
1
John Dee Holeman
John Dee Holeman
American Piedmont blues guitarist, singer and songwriter
2
Tommy Jarrell
Tommy Jarrell
American fiddler and banjo player
3
T. Viswanathan
T. Viswanathan
Indian musician
4
Chesley Goseyun Wilson
Chesley Goseyun Wilson
Native American artist
5
Mike Seeger
Mike Seeger
American singer
6
Clifton Chenier
Clifton Chenier
American accordion player and Zydeco musician
7
Etta Baker
Etta Baker
American Piedmont blues guitarist and singer
8
Richard Hagopian
Richard Hagopian
American musician
9
Kevin Locke
Kevin Locke
American musician
10
Ali Akbar Khan
Ali Akbar Khan
Hindustani musician
11
Dewey Balfa
Dewey Balfa
American musician
12
Melvin Wine
Melvin Wine
American fiddler
13
Michael Doucet
Michael Doucet
American musician
14
Sonny Terry
Sonny Terry
American Piedmont blues musician
15
Kenny Baker
Kenny Baker
American fiddle player
16
Marc Savoy
Marc Savoy
American musician; builder and player of the Cajun accordion
17
Howard Armstrong
Howard Armstrong
African American string band and country blues musician
18
Narciso Martínez
Narciso Martínez
Recorded in 1936 for Blue Bird Records one week before the now famous Robert Johnson. Also recorded under the name Louisiana Pete.
19
Doc Watson
Doc Watson
American guitarist, songwriter and singer
20
Shirley Caesar
Shirley Caesar
American gospel singer, evangelist
21
Pops Staples
Pops Staples
American musician
22
Drink Small
Drink Small
African American soul blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter
23
Ralph Stanley
Ralph Stanley
American singer
24
John Jackson
John Jackson
American blues musician, born 1924
25
Luderin Darbone
Luderin Darbone
American fiddler
26
Pedro Ayala
Pedro Ayala
American musician
27
Bessie Jones
Bessie Jones
American folk musician and gospel singer
28
Mike Auldridge
Mike Auldridge
American Dobro player
29
Doyle Lawson
Doyle Lawson
American musician
30
Lily May Ledford
Lily May Ledford
American musician
31
Del McCoury
Del McCoury
American musician
32
Whistlin' Alex Moore
Whistlin' Alex Moore
American blues pianist, singer and whistler
33
Jack Owens
Jack Owens
American Delta blues singer and guitarist
34
Michael Alpert
Michael Alpert
American clarinetist
35
Rafael Cepeda
Rafael Cepeda
Puerto Rican musician
36
Zakir Hussain
Zakir Hussain
Indian tabla player, musical producer, film actor and composer.
37
Othar Turner
Othar Turner
American fife player
38
Don Walser
Don Walser
American musician
39
Francisco Aguabella
Francisco Aguabella
Cuban master percussionist
40
Elizabeth Cotten
Elizabeth Cotten
American blues and folk musician, singer and songwriter
41
Bua Xou Mua
Bua Xou Mua
Hmong spiritual leader
42
Kevin Burke
Kevin Burke
British-Irish fiddler
43
Sunnyland Slim
Sunnyland Slim
American blues pianist
44
Cephas & Wiggins
Cephas & Wiggins
American blues duo
45
Jim & Jesse
Jim & Jesse
American bluegrass duo
46
Bill Monroe
Bill Monroe
American bluegrass musician, songwriter
47
Ledward Kaapana
Ledward Kaapana
American musician
48
Raymond Kāne
Raymond Kāne
American musician
49
David Edwards
David Edwards
American blues guitarist and singer
50
Cyril Pahinui
Cyril Pahinui
American musician
51
Clyde Sproat
Clyde Sproat
American musician
52
D. L. Menard
D. L. Menard
American musician
53
Clyde Davenport
Clyde Davenport
Old-time fiddler and banjo player
Walker Calhoun
American musician

Walker Calhoun

Intro
American musician
Music

Walker Calhoun (May 13, 1918 – March 28, 2012) was a Cherokee musician, dancer, and teacher. He was known as a medicine man and spiritual leader who worked to preserve the history, religion, and herbal healing methods of his people.

Calhoun was the youngest of 12 children born to Sally Ann Calhoun and Morgan Calhoun. His father died when Calhoun was nine.

At the age of 12, Calhoun attended a boarding school in Cherokee, North Carolina, where he learned the English language. Before that time, he had rarely heard English since his mother did not speak it. During World War II, he was drafted and served as a combat engineer in Germany.

Calhoun started learning Cherokee songs from an early age. He had learned most of the social, hunt, and sacred songs from his uncle, Will West Long, by the time he was nine years old.

Calhoun founded the Raven Rock Dancers in the 1980s, to help keep traditional Cherokee dances alive within his Big Cove, North Carolina community.