The bi-state Upper Cumberland region includes eight counties in Tennessee and eight counties in Kentucky. It is an area uniquely rich in traditional music. The importance of family ties and a deeply ingrained sense of community led to the flourishing of a distinct musical legacy from the 1700s up to the present day. In this pathbreaking study of a region's music, William Lynwood Montell brings together an enormous trove of information about the folk practices, the transmission of musical skill and style, and the influence of traditional music on popular music (and vice-versa).