And happygirl's reply:
Bill Monroe's gone, and now Johnny Cash.
They were (are) all the genuine article.
The world they represented is now, sadly, replaced by ersatz and gloss. They sang and lived both Saturday Night and Sunday Morning
There's one other true American original you haven't mentioned, who's still alive and still performing:
Doc Watson.
If anyone here has the opportunity to see him, do so before it's too late. Although Doc never achieved the level of popularity as did performers like Johnny Cash, he can stand side-by-side with them with no loss of musical stature, and they would regard the Doc as their equal....
Cheers!
- John
Thanks !