LEXINGTON, Ky. — Bobby Osborne, a mandolin player who with his brother Sonny Osborne formed the bluegrass music duo The Osborne Brothers, has died. He was 91.
Bobby Osborne’s clear tenor voice has been associated with “Rocky Top,” the state song of Tennessee, since The Osborne Brothers first recorded it in the 1960s. They were inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1964 and went on to the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame and Kentucky Music Hall of Fame.
Bobby Osborne and Sonny Osborne, a banjo picker, performed together for more than 50 years, until Sonny’s retirement in 2005. Sonny Osborne died in 2021 at age 83.
Bobby Osborne’s career spanned more than 70 years, and he was still performing at the Grand Ole Opry with his band, Rocky Top X-Press this year, according to recent posts on his Facebook page.
“We’re so thankful the Opry was home sweet home to you, Bobby Osborne,” the Grand Ole Opry said in a Facebook post. “Thank you for all the cherished memories and dedication. We love you.”
The International Bluegrass Music Association called Bobby Osborne “a treasure amongst our music and to the world.”
“The high, lonesome sound of his music paved a path that we are so very grateful for. A true pioneer, there is no way to overstate the influence of Bobby Osborne on bluegrass music,” the association said in a Facebook post.
Osborne grew up on a farm in the Thousandsticks community outside Hyden, Kentucky. His parents were schoolteachers, he said when Gov. Andy Beshear and the Kentucky Arts Council honored him at the Governor’s Awards in the Arts in January.
He made is first professional appearance as a musician in Ohio in the late 1940s and served in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Korean War before joining with his brother to form The Osborne Brothers after his return home in 1953, according to the Kentucky Arts Council.
In 1971, they won the Country Music Association award for Vocal Group of the Year.
“Rocky Top” might have been their most popular tune, but the brothers were still proud Kentuckians who supported their home state.
Bobby Osborne taught students at the Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional Music at Hazard Community and Technical College beginning in 2007.
“We are deeply saddened to learn about Bobby’s death,” said HCTC President Jennifer Lindon said in a statement shared on Facebook. “He was a pioneer in the Bluegrass music industry and a champion for Eastern Kentucky.”
Each year, Hyden holds the Osborne Brothers Hometown Festival.
“I’ve been very fortunate to have been able to always do what I’ve wanted to do with my life, and that’s make a living playing bluegrass music,” he said in the interview posted on the Kentucky Arts Council’s website.
———
