Chet Atkins

Guitarist

Chet Atkins was born in Luttrell, Tennessee, United States on June 20th, 1924 and is the Guitarist. At the age of 77, Chet Atkins biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, songs, and networth are available.

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Other Names / Nick Names
Chester Burton Atkins
Date of Birth
June 20, 1924
Nationality
United States
Place of Birth
Luttrell, Tennessee, United States
Death Date
Jun 30, 2001 (age 77)
Zodiac Sign
Gemini
Profession
Audio Engineer, Classical Guitarist, Guitarist, Jazz Guitarist, Jazz Musician, Record Producer, Singer, Songwriter
Chet Atkins Height, Weight, Eye Color and Hair Color

At 77 years old, Chet Atkins has this physical status:

Height
183cm
Weight
83.0kg
Hair Color
Grey
Eye Color
Dark brown
Build
Average
Measurements
Not Available
Chet Atkins Religion, Education, and Hobbies
Religion
Other
Hobbies
Not Available
Education
Not Available
Chet Atkins Spouse(s), Children, Affair, Parents, and Family
Spouse(s)
Not Available
Children
Not Available
Dating / Affair
Not Available
Parents
Not Available
Chet Atkins Life

Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924-2001), also known as "Mr.," referred to as "Mr.

"The Country Gentleman" was an American singer, occasional vocalist, songwriter, and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, Bob Ferguson, and others, invented the country music style that came to be known as the Nashville sound, which has broadened country music's exposure to adult pop music enthusiasts.

He was best known as a guitarist.

He has appeared on mandolin, fiddle, banjo, and ukulele. Merle Travis inspired Atkins' signature picking style.

Django Reinhardt, George Barnes, Les Paul, and later, Jerry Reed were all major guitar influences, as well as Jerry Reed.

Admirers from both within and outside the country scene, both in the United States and abroad, were captivated by his unique picking style and musicianship.

Atkins spent the majority of his life with RCA Victor, Hank Snow, Porter Wagoner, Norma Jean, Dolly Parton, Dottie West, Floyd Cramer, Elvis Presley, Eddy Arnold, Eddy Arnold, Don Gibson, Jim Reeves, Waylon Jennings, and many others. Rolling Stone credited Atkins with inventing the "popwise 'Nashville sound' that saved country music from a commercial slump," and ranked him No. 21 on their list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists Of All Time" for the 'Best Guitarists Of All Time." Atkins received 14 Grammy Awards and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, among other accolades.

He has also been named in nine Country Music Association awards for Instrumentalist of the Year.

He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum.

George Harrison was also inspired by Chet Atkins' "All My Loving" is an early Beatles song that reveals the popularity.

Childhood and early life

Atkins was born in Luttrell, Tennessee, near Clinch Mountain, on June 20, 1924. His parents divorced when he was six years old, after which he was raised by his mother. He was the youngest of three boys and a girl. He started out on the ukulele and then moved to the fiddle, but it was when he was nine that he and his brother Lowell switched to a pistol and some chores for a guitar. "We were so poor and everyone around us was so poor that it was the forties before anyone even knew there had been a depression," he wrote in his 1974 autobiography. Because of a severe asthmatic disorder, Atkins was compelled to move to Fortson, Georgia, just south of Columbus, to live with his father. He was compelled to sleep in a straight chair to breathe properly due to his illness. He played his guitar on those nights until he fell asleep playing it, a habit that he maintained his entire life. Atkins attended the historic Mountain Hill School while living in Fortson. He returned in the 1990s to perform a string of charity concerts to save the school from demolition. Many people have been told of a very young Chet, who, when a friend or relative would come to visit and play guitar, jammed the musician, making it impossible for the visitor to participate.

While Atkins was in high school, he became an excellent guitarist. He used the toilet in the school to practice because it had good acoustics. His first guitar had a nail for a nut, and he was so sad that only the first few frets could be used. He later bought a semi-acoustic electric guitar and amp, but he had to travel many miles to find an electrical outlet since his house did not have electricity.

He lightheartedly gave himself (along with John Knowles, Marcel Dadi, Tommy Emmanuel, Steve Wariner, and Jerry Reed) the prestigious CGP (Certified Guitar Player) later in life. Merle Atkins Russell, his daughter, bestowed the CGP degree on his longtime sideman Paul Yandell, who was born in 2011. She then stated that no more CGPs would be permitted by the Atkins estate.

Jim, Jim's half-brother, was a prolific guitarist who performed with the Les Paul Trio in New York.

Atkins didn't have a strong style until 1939 (while still living in Georgia), when he noticed Merle Travis picking over WLW radio. This early influence had a major influence on his unique playing style. Atkins expanded his right-hand technique to include picking with his first three fingers, rather than Travis' index finger for bass notes.

Chet Atkins was a licensed amateur radio general class licensee. He began using the call sign WA4CZD in 1998 and added the CGP symbol, which allegedly stood for "Certified Guitar Picker." He was a member of the American Radio Relay League.

Atkins, who dropped out of high school in 1942, became a member of the Knoxville, WNOX (now WNML) radio in Knoxville, where he performed fiddle and guitar with Bill Carlisle and the comedic Archie Campbell and became a member of the station's small swing instrumental group. Merle Travis had served at WLW-AM in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he had previously worked.

After six months, he moved to Raleigh and worked with Johnnie and Jack before heading to Richmond, Virginia, where he performed with Sunshine Sue Workman. Atkins' shy demeanor, as well as his nimble style, led to many people to question whether he was truly "country." He was shot often but was soon able to take on a second radio station due to his extraordinary playing skills.

Leona and Lois Johnson, the Johnson Sisters, were married to Atkins and Jethro Burns (of Homer and Jethro). Leona Atkins lived outlived her husband by eight years, dying in 2009 at the age of 85.

Atkins, who was moving to Chicago, tried out for Red Foley, who was moving from WLS-AM's National Barn Dance to join the Grand Ole Opry. Atkins appeared in 1946 as a member of Foley's band for the first time. That year, he also released a single for Nashville-based Bullet Records. "Guitar Blues" was a fairly progressive record, with clarinet solo by the Nashville dance band singer Dutch McMillan and Owen Bradley on piano. Atkins had a solo spot on the Opry, but when that was cut, he went to KWTO in Springfield, Missouri. Despite executive Si Siman's help, he was fired shortly for not being "country enough."

Atkins was attracted to RCA Victor while at a Western band in Denver, Colorado. Siman had been urging Steve Sholes to sign Atkins as his style (with Merle Travis' success as a hit recording artist) was back in vogue. Sholes, A&R's country music director, followed Atkins down in Denver.

In 1947, he made his first RCA Victor recordings in Chicago, but they didn't sell. He did some studio work for RCA last year, but on WNOX's new Saturday night radio show The Tennessee Barn Dance and the famous Midday Merry Go Round were two new locations.

On KWTO, he left WNOX in 1949 to join June Carter with Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters. Maybelle Carter and her children appeared in this version of the Carter Family, including June, Helen, and Anita. The Grand Ole Opry's work was soon noticed. In the mid-1950s, the company relocated to Nashville. On WSM-AM and the Opry, Atkins began recording sessions and appearing on television programs and the Opry. In the 1950s, Atkins became an Opry member.

Though he hadn't had a hit on RCA Victory, his fame was growing. When Sholes, a New York-based producer, wanted to help organize Nashville sessions for RCA Victor artists, he started assisting Sholes as a session leader. "Mr. Sandman" was Atkins' first hit song, followed by "Silver Bell," which he released as a duet with Hank Snow. His albums have also become more popular. In 1956 and 1958 (by then renamed Jubilee USA), he appeared on ABC-TV's The Eddy Arnold Show in the summer of 1956 and on Country Music Jubilee.

Atkins, a design consultant for Gretsch, a Gretsch company that made a popular Chet Atkins line of electric guitars from 1955 to 1980, was more than just recording. He was the boss of RCA Victor's Nashville studios, eventually inspiring and seeing the completion of the legendary RCA Studio B, the first studio built specifically for recording on the now-famous Music Row. Chet and Owen Bradley will also play a part in the construction of studio B's attached building RCA Studio A later on.

When Sholes took over pop production in 1957, he put Atkins in charge of RCA Victor's Nashville division, owing to Elvis Presley's success. Atkins and Bob Ferguson took their cue from Owen Bradley and banned fiddles and steel guitars from being a way to attract pop fans, with country music album sales decreasing as rock and roll became more popular. This became popular in Nashville, which Atkins said was a media company's trademarked Nashville for a style of recording that was designed to protect the country (and their jobs) during that period.

Atkins performed "All Walls" and "He'll Have to Go" and "Blue Blue Day" by Jim Reeves, and "Blue Blue Day" by Don Gibson. The once-incredible event of a country beating cross over pop triumph has become more popular. Bradley and Henry put the producer in the driver's seat, guiding an artist's choice of music and musical history.

Atkins made his own records, mainly pop standards and jazz, in a modern home studio, often recording the rhythm tracks at RCA and adding his solo performances at home, refining the tracks until the results satisfied him. Guitarists of all sorts of genres continued to adore various Atkins albums for their unique musical suggestions and in some cases experimental electronic concepts. He became popular internationally as "Mister Guitar," spawning an album called Mister Guitar, which was engineered by both Bob Ferris and Bill Porter, Ferris' replacements.

Porter took over as chief engineer at RCA's Nashville studio in the area later identified as Studio B after the plant expanded with a second studio in 1960. (At the time, RCA's sole Nashville studio had no letter designation.) Porter was able to help Atkins get a cleaner reverberation sound from the studio's German effects unit, an EMT plate reverb. Porter found the studio's acoustics to be tense, and he created a series of acoustic baffles to hang from the ceiling, then selected microphone positions based on resonant room modes. The recordings' sound improved dramatically, and the studio's had a string of hits. The Nashville sound became more popular. Atkins told Bradley in later years, "it was Porter" when he asked how he got his sound. When recording, Porter described Atkins as respectful of musicians; if someone was out of tune, he would not single them out by name. Rather, he'd say, "We have a little tuning issue..." Instead, he'd say, "Everybody check and see what's going on." If that didn't work, Atkins would instruct Porter to bring the infractible player down from the team's roster. "The sound was never the same, never as high" when Porter left RCA in late-1964, Atkins said.

The thumb and first two or sometimes three fingers of the right hand are used in Atkins' signature "Atkins style" of playing. He developed this style after listening to Merle Travis on a primitive radio. He was certain no one could play that clearly with just the thumb and index finger (which was exactly how Travis did), and he assumed it needed the thumb and two fingers, and that was the style he invented and mastered.

He loved jamming with fellow studio musicians, and the two of them were invited to appear at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1960. The show was postponed due to rioting, but a live recording of the troupe (After the Riot at Newport) was released. Every president from John F. Kennedy to George H. W. Bush was given a ticket to the White House by invitation. During the 1980s, Atkins was a member of the Million Dollar Band. He is also known for his song "Yankee Doodle Dixie," in which he performed "Yankee Doodle" and "Dixie" simultaneously on the same guitar.

Atkins had been vice president of RCA's country division before his mentor, Sholes, died in 1968. He said in 1987 that he was "ashamed" of his work, but he also knew that they gave you titles like this in lieu of money. So be aware of those who want to make you vice president." Willie Nelson, Willie Smith, Connie Smith, Bobby Bare, Jerry Reed, Jerry Reed, and John Hartford were among the products that were introduced in the 1960s and inspired and supported many others. Charley Pride, the country's first African-American musician who sang rawer country than Atkins' smoother music, put him at a significant risk in the mid-1960s, when the civil rights movement incites brutality across the South.

"Yakety Axe," his buddy, saxophonist Boots Randolph, was Atkins' biggest hit song in 1965. He seldom worked in those days and eventually recruited other RCA engineers, such as Bob Ferguson and Felton Jarvis, to lessen his workload.

Atkins' executive careers became more strained in the 1970s. He had less success in his time as a child, but he might have produced hits like Perry Como's 1973 pop hit "And I Love You So." Jerry Reed, his close friend and fellow picker, became a hit artist in his own right, was interviewed extensively by him. After Homer died in 1971, Atkins decided to rename his position at RCA to allow others to handle administration. Atkins would hand over his administrative duties to Jerry Bradley, the son of Owen, in 1973.

After stepping down, Atkins did not do much production work at RCA, and in fact, the label had recruited designers from the 1960s, including Bob Ferguson and Felton Jarvis. Atkins, a recording artist, became dissatisfied with RCA in the late 1970s. He was angry because the record company would not encourage him to go into jazz. Lenny Breau, a mentor and protege, had also recorded late '60s jazz recordings. Les Paul, Chester & Lester, and Guitar Monsters, three of Atkins' mid-1970s collaborations, reflected that passion; Chester & Lester was one of the best-selling records of his career. At the same time, he became dissatisfied with Gretsch's (no longer family-owned)'s course and refused to give them permission to use their names and start making guitars with Gibson. Atkins ended his 35-year association with RCA in 1982 and signed with Columbia Records, for whom he released his debut album in 1983.

Jazz had always been a fan of his, and he was often mocked by "pure" country musicians for his jazz influences throughout his career. He also stated on several occasions that he did not like being called a "country guitarist," insisting that he was "a guitarist, period." Despite the fact that he performed by ear and was an exceptional improviser, he was able to read music and even performed some classical guitar pieces. Roger C. Field, a friend, suggested that he record and perform with a female singer in 1991, and he did so with Suzy Boguss.

He returned to his country roots for albums he performed with Mark Knopfler and Jerry Reed. Knopfler had long regarded Atkins as one of his earliest influences. Atkins has also collaborated with Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel. When asked to name the ten most influential guitarists of the twentieth century, Django Reinhardt ranked first and listed himself on the list.

In later years, he returned to radio, appearing on Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion radio station, as well as performing songs by Bob Wills' "Corrina" and Willie Nelson's "Seven Spanish Angels" on ABC Radio, as well as on Willie Nelson's "Seven Spanish Angels" on the University of Pomona College campus.

Source

Chet Atkins Career

Early musical career

After dropping out of high school in 1942, Atkins began playing fiddle and guitar with Bill Carlisle and the comedic comedian Archie Campbell and became a member of the station's Dixieland Swingsters, a small swing instrumental group. Merle Travis had previously worked in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he joined WLW-AM in Cincinnati, Ohio.

After six months, he migrated to Raleigh and worked with Johnnie and Jack before heading to Richmond, Virginia, where he worked with Sunshine Sue Workman. Atkins' shy personality, as well as his sophisticated style, led to several people to question whether he was really "country." He was fired often, but due to his extraordinary playing skills, he was able to land another job at a different radio station shortly.

Leona and Lois Johnson, Laverne and Fern Johnson, joined Atkins and Jethro Burns (of Homer and Jethro) as twin sisters Leona and Lois Johnson, the Johnson Sisters. Leona Atkins lived outlived her husband by eight years, dying in 2009 at the age of 85.

Atkins, who was formerly known for Red Foley on WLS-AM's National Barn Dance, auditioned for the Grand Ole Opry in Chicago. Atkins made his first appearance at the Opry in 1946 as a member of Foley's band. That year, he appeared on a single for Nashville-based Bullet Records. The single, "Guitar Blues," was fairly progressive, with clarinet solo by Nashville dance band singer Dutch McMillan and Owen Bradley on piano. He had a solo spot on the Opry, but As the Opry was cut, Atkins went to KWTO in Springfield, Missouri. Despite the company's help, Si Siman was fired soon for not being "country enough."

Atkins caught RCA Victor's attention while performing with a Western band in Denver, Colorado. Siman had been urging Steve Sholes to sign Atkins as his style (because Merle Travis' success as a hit recording artist) was now in vogue. Atkins was tracked down in Denver by Sholes, A&R's country music director.

In 1947, he made his first RCA Victor recordings in Chicago, but they didn't sell. He did some studio work for RCA this year but had to move to Knoxville for the new Saturday night radio show The Tennessee Barn Dance and the popular Midday Merry Go Round on WNOX.

He left WNOX in 1949 to join Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters on KWTO. Maylle Carter and her daughters June, Helen, and Anita were included in this incarnation of the Carter family. The Grand Ole Opry's attention was drawn immediately to their work. In the mid-1950s, the company relocated to Nashville. On WSM-AM and the Opry, Atkins began recording sessions and appearing on WSM-AM and the Opry. In the 1950s, Atkins became an Opry member.

Although he didn't have a hit record for RCA Victory, his fame was increasing. When Sholes, a New York-based producer, wanted help organizing Nashville sessions for RCA Victor artists, he began assisting Sholes as a session leader. "Mr. Sandman" was Atkins' first hit song, followed by "Silver Bell," which he released as a duet with Hank Snow. His albums have also become more popular. In 1956 and 1958, he appeared on ABC-TV's The Eddy Arnold Show and on Country Music Jubilee in 1956 and 1958 (now Jubilee USA).

Atkins, a design consultant for Gretsch, which produced a widely used Chet Atkins line of electric guitars from 1955 to 1980, was more than just an audio engineer. He became the boss of RCA Victor's Nashville studios, which culminated in the construction of the iconic RCA Studio B, the first studio built specifically for the purpose of recording on the now-famous Music Row. Chet and Owen Bradley will also be instrumental in the construction of studio B's neighboring building, RCA Studio A later today.

Atkins, the RCA Victor's Nashville division, was taken over by Sholes in 1957, as a result of Elvis Presley's success, Atkins was hired by the artist. Atkins and Bob Ferguson took their cue from Owen Bradley's departure from rock and roll, eliminating fiddles and steel guitars as a means of bringing country singers and fans to pop fans. This became known as the Nashville sound, which Atkins said was a mark of fame established by the media for a style of recording during the time that was designed to keep the country (and their jobs) alive.

Atkins performed on hits such as Jim Reeves' "Four Walls" and "He'll Have to Go" and "Blue Blue Day" and "Blue Blue Day" and "Blue Blue Day" and Don Gibson's "Oh Lonesome Me" and "Blue Blue Day" as a result. It became more popular that a country crossed over to pop triumph. Bradley and Harrison virtually put the engineer in the driver's seat, influencing an artist's choice of music and musical history.

Atkins made his own music, mainly in pop standards and jazz, in a sophisticated home studio, often recording the rhythm tracks at RCA and adding his solo performances at home, refining the tracks until the results pleased him. Guitarists of all genres were lauding various Atkins albums for their unique musical concepts and in some cases experimental electronic music. He became well-known internationally as "Mister Guitar," spawning the creation of Mister Guitar, which was conceived by both Bob Ferris and Bill Porter, Ferris' replacement.

Porter took over as Chief engineer at RCA's Nashville studio in the space later known as Studio B after the plant was expanded with a second studio in 1960. (RCA's sole Nashville studio had no letter code at the time) Porter was able to assist Atkins with a cleaner reverberation sound from the studio's German effects unit, which was followed by an EMT plate reverb. Porter found the studio's acoustics to be hazy, and he designed a set of acoustic baffles to hang from the ceiling and then selected microphone positions based on resonant room configurations. The recordings' sound improved greatly, and the studio's string of successes followed. The Nashville sound became more vibrant. Atkins told Bradley, "It was Porter" in later years as he explained how he made his sound. When recording, Porter described Atkins as respectful of musicians; if someone was out of tune, he would not single out by name. Rather, he'd say, "We have a little tuning issue... Everybody check and see what's going on." Atkins would instruct Porter to ban the offending player from the team if that did not work. "The sound was never the same, never as good" when Porter left RCA in late-1964, Atkins said.

The thumb and first two or more fingers of the right hand are used in Atkins' trademark "Atkins style" of playing. He began listening to Merle Travis, occasionally on a primitive radio. He was certain no one could play it properly with just the thumb and index finger (which was exactly how Travis did), and he assumed it needed the thumb and two fingers; and that was the style he pioneered and mastered.

He loved jamming with fellow studio players, and they were invited to appear at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1960. The show was postponed due to rioting, but a live recording of the group (After the Riot at Newport) was released. Every US president from John F. Kennedy to George H. W. Bush was attracted to the White House by invitation. During the 1980s, Atkins was a member of the Million Dollar Band. He is also known for his song "Yankee Doodle Dixie," in which he performed "Yankee Doodle" and "Dixie" simultaneously on the same guitar.

Atkins had been vice president of RCA's country division before his mentor Sholes died in 1968. He cried over his promotion in 1987: "I wanted to be known as a guitarist and I suspected, too, that they give you titles like this in lieu of money." If they want to make you vice president, be aware. In the 1960s, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Connie Smith, Bobby Bare, Dolly Parton, Jerry Reed, and John Hartford were among the brand's original product designers who inspired and supported hundreds of others. During the mid-1960s, he put himself in danger by committing violence throughout South Africa by signing Charley Pride, the country's first African-American artist who performed rawer music than Atkins' smoother music.

"Yakety Axe," an homage to his mentor, the saxophonist Boots Randolph, was Atkins' biggest hit single in 1965. He rarely excelled in those days and eventually recruited other RCA engineers, such as Bob Ferguson and Felton Jarvis, to reduce his workload.

Atkins became more strained by his executive positions in the 1970s. He had less success in the 1970s pop hit "And I Love You So" but could also have hits such as Perry Como's 1973 pop hit "And I Love You So". Jerry Reed, a close friend and fellow picker, had a long career as a hit artist in his own right, and he recorded extensively with him. Atkins' 1973 diagnosis of colon cancer led him to reimagining his position at RCA to allow others to handle administration while still playing with Reed or even Jethro Burns from Homer and Jethro (his brother-in-law) after Homer's 1971 death. Atkins will hand over his administrative duties to Jerry Bradley, Owen's uncle, in 1973 at RCA.

After stepping down, Atkins did no production work at RCA, and in fact, the label had recruited designers in the 1960s, including Bob Ferguson and Felton Jarvis. Atkins, a recording artist, became disillusioned with RCA in the late 1970s. He was angry because the record company refused to allow him to pursue jazz. Lenny Breau, a colleague and protege, had also released late '60s jazz albums. Les Paul, Chester & Lester, and Guitar Monsters' mid-1970s collaborations reflected this ardent admiration; Chester & Lester, one of Atkins' finest-selling records, represented him. At the same time, he became dissatisfied with Gretsch's (no longer family-owned)'s course and refused their permission for them to use their names and began building guitars with Gibson. Atkins ended his 35-year association with RCA in 1982 and signed Columbia Records, for whom he released his debut album in 1983.

Jazz had always been a lover of his, and he was often mocked by "pure" country musicians for his jazz influences in his career. He also stated on several occasions that he didn't like being branded a "country guitarist," insisting that he was "a guitarist, period." Despite the fact that he played by ear and was a masterful improviser, he was able to read music and even performed some classical guitar pieces. When Roger C. Field, a friend, suggested that he record and perform with a female singer in 1991, he did so with Suzy Boggs.

For albums he produced with Mark Knopfler and Jerry Reed, he returned to his country roots. Knopfler had long referred to Atkins as one of his earliest influences. Tommy Emmanuel, the Australian guitar legend, was also collaborating with Atkins. Django Reinhardt was named one of the twentieth century's top ten most influential guitarists, as well as himself on the list.

He returned to radio in later years, appearing on Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion radio station and also on American Public Media radio, as well as performing numbers like "Corrina, Corrina" and Willie Nelson's "Seven Spanish Angels" on the campus of Pomona College.

Later career

Atkins became more distraught with his executive duties in the 1970s. He released fewer records, but he could also make out hits like Perry Como's 1973 pop hit "And I Love You So" that became a hit. Jerry Reed, a close friend and fellow picker, became a hit artist in his own right, was a prolific mixer on tape. Atkins had to reimagine his position at RCA to let others handle administration while still playing with Reed or even Jethro Burns from Homer and Jethro after Homer died in 1971. Atkins would hand over his administrative duties to Jerry Bradley, son of Owen, in 1973 at RCA.

Atkins ceased manufacturing production at RCA after stepping down, but the company had recruited designers in the 1960s, including Bob Ferguson and Felton Jarvis. Atkins, who was a recording artist, became disillusioned with RCA in the late 1970s. Since the record company refused to encourage him to participate in jazz, he was furious. Lenny Breau, a Canadian guitarist, also made late 1960s jazz recordings, as a mentor and protege. Les Paul, Chester & Lester, and Guitar Monsters, two of Atkins' mid-1970s collaborations, expressed that admiration; Chester & Lester was one of Atkins' best-selling records. He became dissatisfied with Gretsch's (no longer family-owned) course, but also banned them from using their names and began making guitars with Gibson. Atkins' 35-year career with RCA began in 1982 and he signed with Columbia Records, for whom he released his first album in 1983.

Jazz had always been a huge fan of his, and he was often mocked by "pure" country musicians for his jazz influences early in his career. He also claimed that he didn't like being called a "country guitarist" on several occasions, claiming that he was "a guitarist, period." Despite the fact that he played by ear and was a masterful improviser, he was still able to read music and even performed some classical guitar pieces. When Roger C. Field, a friend, suggested to him in 1991 that he record and perform with a female singer, he did so with Suzy Bogss.

He returned to his country roots for his albums, including Mark Knopfler and Jerry Reed. Knopfler had long referred to Atkins as one of his earliest influences. Tommy Emmanuel, the Australian guitar legend, attracted Atkins also. When asked to name the ten most influential guitarists of the twentieth century, Django Reinhardt ranked first and also placed himself on the list.

On American Public Media radio, he went back to radio, appearing on Garrison Keillor's "Corrina," and Willie Nelson's "Seven Spanish Angels" on a 1985 television broadcast of the show at the Bridges Auditorium on the campus of Pomona College.

Source

According to other people's criteria, Dolly Parton DEFENDS her quirky over-the-top appearance and claims she did not want to be 'fashionable.'

www.dailymail.co.uk, October 27, 2023
Dolly Parton defended her exaggerated fashion sense, saying she did not want to be 'fashionable' in the way that other people did not. She has earned a following for her signature style, a mash-up of Las Vegas glitter and a bawdy spin on country chic, which have drew praise throughout her career. Her outfits are a complement to her soaring platinum hairdo, as well as the mighty cleavage who once caused Joan Rivers to chuckle: "She used to have ten children but she nursed them and they exploded." Dolly, 77, regretted that she was prompted to dial back her appearance early in her career, including by her friend Chet Atkins. She, on the other hand, held her guns and has now stated: "I didn't like wearing what someone else would wear, which is supposed to have good taste." But I had no taste!'