# Ray Edenton

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{{Use American English|date=June 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2023}}
{{Short description|American guitarist (1926–2022)}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name         = Ray Edenton
| image        =
| caption      =
| birth_name   = Ray Quarles Edenton
| alias        =
| birth_date   = {{birth date|1926|11|03}}
| birth_place  = [Mineral, Virginia](/source/Mineral%2C_Virginia), U.S.
| death_date   = {{death date and age|2022|9|21|1926|11|3}}
| death_place  = [Goodlettsville, Tennessee](/source/Goodlettsville%2C_Tennessee), U.S.
| instrument   = Guitar, mandolin, banjo, bass, ukulele
| genre        = [Country](/source/Country_music), [rock and roll](/source/rock_and_roll)
| occupation   = Musician
| years_active = 1949–1991
}}
'''Ray Quarles Edenton''' (November 3, 1926 – September 21, 2022) was an American guitarist and [country music](/source/country_music) session musician.<ref name=EncyclopediaOfCountryMusic-2012>{{cite book|last1=Kienzle|first1=Rich|editor1-last=Kingsbury|editor1-first=Paul|editor2-last=McCall|editor2-first=Michael|editor3-last=Rumble|editor3-first=John|title=The Encyclopedia of Country Music|date=2012|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=New York|isbn=978-0-19-539563-1|page=151|chapter=Ray Edenton|edition=2nd|oclc=778339718}}</ref>

== Early life ==
Ray Edenton was born into a musical family on November 3, 1926, and was raised near [Mineral, Virginia](/source/Mineral%2C_Virginia).<ref name="Nyt" /> His first instrument was a [banjo ukulele](/source/banjo_ukulele), and by the age of six, he was performing with his two brothers and cousins at local square dances.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ray Edenton|url=https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/ray-edenton|website=NAMM.org|access-date=January 21, 2018}}</ref><ref name="cmhof" />

After serving in the [United States Army](/source/United_States_Army) during [World War II](/source/World_War_II), Edenton and guitarist [Joe Maphis](/source/Joe_Maphis) joined the Korn Krackers, a band that was regularly featured on the [Old Dominion Barn Dance](/source/Old_Dominion_Barn_Dance) show on [WRVA](/source/WRVA_(AM)), a radio station in [Richmond, Virginia](/source/Richmond%2C_Virginia).<ref name=EncyclopediaOfCountryMusic-2012 /> In 1949, Edenton moved to [Knoxville, Tennessee](/source/Knoxville%2C_Tennessee) to work at radio station [WNOX](/source/WCYQ), but was sidelined by a 28-month hospital stay with [tuberculosis](/source/tuberculosis). Edenton later moved to [Nashville](/source/Nashville%2C_Tennessee), where he began to play acoustic guitar on the [Grand Ole Opry](/source/Grand_Ole_Opry).<ref name="cmhof">{{cite web|last1=McCall|first1=Michael|title=Nashville Cats: Salute to Ray Edenton|url=https://countrymusichalloffame.org/nashville-cats/ray-edenton|website=Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum|access-date=January 21, 2018|archive-date=September 26, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180926205917/https://countrymusichalloffame.org/nashville-cats/ray-edenton|url-status=dead}}</ref>

== Career ==
Edenton is considered one of Nashville's most prolific studio musicians, having played on more than 12,000 recording sessions as a member of [The Nashville A-Team](/source/The_Nashville_A-Team).<ref name="salute">{{cite news|last1=Friskics-Warren|first1=Bill|title=Country Music Hall of Fame Salutes 'Nashville Cat'|publisher=The Tennessean|date=October 5, 2007|location=Nashville, Tennessee|page=F3}}</ref> In 1949, he played on his first session: Red Kirk's recording of "[Lovesick Blues](/source/Lovesick_Blues)" for [Mercury Records](/source/Mercury_Records).<ref name="ateam-tn">{{cite news|last1=Roland|first1=Tom|last2=Orr|first2=Jay|title=Nashville's 'A Team': The Unsung Heroes of the Nashville Sound|publisher=The Tennessean|date=June 21, 1998|location=Nashville, Tennessee|pages=135–142}}</ref> His first appearance on a major hit was on [Webb Pierce](/source/Webb_Pierce)'s 1953 single "[There Stands the Glass](/source/There_Stands_the_Glass)".<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web|title=Ray Edenton: Biography & History|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/ray-edenton-mn0000411455|website=AllMusic|access-date=21 January 2018}}</ref> Edenton played on 26 of Pierce's 27 chart-topping country singles, and also played on other well-known recordings, such as the [Everly Brothers](/source/Everly_Brothers)' "[Bye Bye Love](/source/Bye_Bye_Love_(The_Everly_Brothers_song))" and "[Wake Up Little Susie](/source/Wake_Up_Little_Susie)", as well as [Marty Robbins](/source/Marty_Robbins)' "[Singing the Blues](/source/Singing_the_Blues)", and [Roger Miller](/source/Roger_Miller)'s "[King of the Road](/source/King_of_the_Road_(song))".<ref name="salute" />

Edenton accompanied other artists on recordings, including [Julie Andrews](/source/Julie_Andrews), the [Beach Boys](/source/Beach_Boys), [Gary Burton](/source/Gary_Burton), [Sammy Davis Jr.](/source/Sammy_Davis_Jr.), [Henry Mancini](/source/Henry_Mancini), [Reba McEntire](/source/Reba_McEntire), [Elvis Presley](/source/Elvis_Presley), [Johnny Cash](/source/Johnny_Cash), [Leon Russell](/source/Leon_Russell), and [Neil Young](/source/Neil_Young).<ref name="cmhof" /><ref name="salute" /><ref name="allmusic" />

Though Edenton could play lead guitar and a variety of other instruments, he is best known as an acoustic and rhythm guitar player. On some of his earlier recordings, he is miscredited as "Ray Eddington".

Edenton retired in 1991.<ref name=EncyclopediaOfCountryMusic-2012 /> He died on September 21, 2022, at the age of 95, in [Goodlettsville, Tennessee](/source/Goodlettsville%2C_Tennessee).<ref name="Nyt">{{cite web|title=Ray Edenton, 'A-Team' Studio Guitarist in Nashville, Dies at 95|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/27/arts/music/ray-edenton-dead.html|last=Friskics-Warren|first=Bill|work=The New York Times|date=September 27, 2022|access-date=September 27, 2022}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://countrymusichalloffame.org/nashville-cats/ray-edenton Ray Edenton] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180926205917/https://countrymusichalloffame.org/nashville-cats/ray-edenton |date=September 26, 2018 }} at [Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum](/source/Country_Music_Hall_of_Fame_and_Museum)
* {{AllMusic|id=mn0000411455|title=Ray Edenton}}
* {{discogs artist|Ray Edenton}}
* [https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/202861 Ray Edenton recordings] at the [Discography of American Historical Recordings](/source/Discography_of_American_Historical_Recordings)
* {{IMDb name|5623271}}
*[https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/ray-edenton Ray Edenton Interview] at [NAMM Oral History Library](/source/NAMM_Oral_History_Program)

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edenton, Ray}}
Category:1926 births
Category:2022 deaths
Category:Musicians from Nashville, Tennessee
Category:20th-century American guitarists
Category:American country guitarists
Category:American male guitarists
Category:American session musicians
Category:Guitarists from Tennessee
Category:People from Louisa County, Virginia
Category:Military personnel from Virginia
Category:American ukulele players
Category:American country banjoists
Category:American country mandolinists
Category:American acoustic guitarists
Category:American lead guitarists
Category:American rhythm guitarists
Category:Country musicians from Tennessee
Category:20th-century American male musicians
Category:United States Army personnel of World War II

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ray Edenton](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Edenton) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Edenton?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.