From 1961 to 1981, millions of viewers tuned in every Friday for The Porter Wagoner Show. While the program’s main draw was ostensibly its namesake country star host, Wagoner insisted on the show as a collaborative effort between the guests and members of his band. During the ’60s, fiddler Mack Magaha was a crucial piece of that band. Known for his fiery onstage presence and flamboyant showmanship, many dubbed Magaha the “Dancing Fiddleman”.
Today, we’re diving into the life of legendary bluegrass fiddler Mack Magaha.
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Who Was Mack Magaha?
Born in Honea Path, South Carolina, on this day (August 1) in 1929, Magaha got his start playing backup for Reno and Smiley.
Consisting of Don Reno and Red Smiley, the pair became one of the most highly-acclaimed bluegrass duos of the 1950s and early 1960s.
After coming aboard in 1955, Magaha teamed up with Reno to write the well-known tune “I Know You’re Married but I Love You Still”.
Reno and Smiley originally recorded the song. Since then, artists such as Bill Anderson, Rodney Crowell, Jan Howard, Patty Loveless, Jimmy Martin, and Travis Tritt have put their spin on it.
The Porter Wagoner Show
Reaching more than three million viewers in nearly 100 markets, The Porter Wagoner Show helped broaden country music’s appeal to a more mainstream audience.
It also introduced some of the genre’s most enduring stars, including Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings.
His dance-like movements onstage made Mack Magaha a fan favorite during his time on The Porter Wagoner Show. He joined the Wagonmasters in 1964.
Wagoner himself had high praise for the South Carolina native. In fact, he once described him as “a ball of fire” and “a first-class showman.”
“When he was on that show, in the ’60s and ’70s, I think it’s a pretty safe assumption that he was the most visible fiddle player in country music,” WSM-AM air personality Eddie Stubbs told The Tennessean.
His Later Career
In addition to his work on The Porter Wagoner Show, Mack Magaha later worked with the show’s “female” singer, Dolly Parton.
He wrote a number of songs in his later career, including “We’ll Get Ahead Someday”. That song turned into one of Wagoner and Parton’s first duet hits, peaking at number five on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
In the 1970s, Magaha regularly performed with his band at the now-defunct Opryland USA theme park.
On August 15, 2003, Mack Magaha died of pneumonia at Nashville’s Veterans Hospital at age 74.
Featured image courtesy of Facebook
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