15 Facts About Riley Puckett

George Riley Puckett was an American country music artist, best known as a member of Gid Tanner and the Skillet Lickers.

Riley Puckett's dynamic single-string guitar playing, featuring dramatic bass runs, earned for him an enviable reputation as an instrumentalist.

Riley Puckett had his formal education at the Georgia School for the Blind in Macon, Georgia.

Riley Puckett was first heard on the radio as a part of Clayton McMichen's Hometown Band.

Riley Puckett's vocalizing was a regular feature at the Georgia Old-Time Fiddlers Conventions.

For several years, Puckett played and sang with the Home Town Boys, a string-band ensemble composed of Atlanta-area musicians.

In 1924, Riley Puckett accompanied fiddler Gid Tanner to New York, where, on March 7 and 8, they recorded twelve songs and tunes for the Columbia Phonograph Company.

Riley Puckett was a charter member of the influential string band Gid Tanner and His Skillet Lickers, and continued to record with the group through their last session in 1934.

Riley Puckett recorded as a solo artist into the early 1940s, creating a discography of more than 200 records on such labels as Columbia, Decca, and Bluebird.

Riley Puckett's repertoire included novelty songs, religious songs, traditional folk songs, cowboy songs, and ballads from the field of popular music.

Riley Puckett was one of the nationally known pioneer country music artists, who gained experience and exposure at the Georgia Old-Time Fiddlers Conventions, held in Atlanta between 1913 and 1934.

Riley Puckett died of blood poisoning on July 13,1946, in East Point, Georgia.

Riley Puckett had developed a pimple on his neck which turned into a boil.

Riley Puckett ignored medical attention and continued to work until he became very ill.

Riley Puckett was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 1986.