Biography:Darley Fulks

DARLEY FULKS (1895-1990) was a native of Wolfe County, east-central Kentucky. Fulks had a large repertoire that encompassed blues, breakdowns, waltzes, schottisches, jigs two-steps, song tunes and slow, listening pieces. Many were pre-Civil War pieces that he learned from his grandfather, Stephen Tutt, and others of his generation. John Harrod, who collected many tunes from Fulks and whom he considered "the most remarkable fiddler [he] ever knew", says that the fiddler had traveled to Michigan and Texas in his youth, working on oil rigs, and had picked up tunes in his travels. Fulks had a somewhat atypical repertory that included archaic pieces, but also blues, rags, waltzes, schottisches and two-steps as well as breakdowns/reels. Alan Jabbour described his style of playing as "up-bow" style, rather unusual for the region.