Rosa Lee Carson

Moonshine Kate (born Rosa Lee Carson, October 10, 1909, Atlanta, Georgia - 1992, Bainbridge, Georgia) was an American country and folk guitarist and banjo player who is best known for recording with her father Fiddlin' John Carson and his band, the Virginia Reelers. Kate was among the earliest recorded women in country music, and arguably her best remembered song was a rendition of her father's composition "Little Mary Phagan".

Carson was born the youngest of nine children in Atlanta, Georgia. As early as the age of five, she appeared as a vocalist and dancer at stage shows and political rallies as an accompaniment to her father's musical act. By age 14, Carson proficiently performed with the guitar and banjo as she played alongside her father on Atlanta's flagship radio station, WSB, and toured with him and the Virginia Reelers throughout Georgia. When Carson graduated from high school, she became a permanent member of the band.

In June 1925, Carson made her recording debut accompanying her father on guitar on four sides for OKeh Records. In the same session, she also recorded two solo efforts, "The Lonely Child", which was about a lonely wandering orphan, and "Little Mary Phagan". The somber ballad was composed by Fiddlin' Jon Carson in 1915, as a response to the notorious, and highly publicized murder of 13-year-old Mary Phagan, which was allegedly perpetrated by her manager, Leo Frank. She played and recorded with the Virginia Reelers until 1934, adopting the stage name Moonshine Kate in 1928 at the suggestion of Okeh Records man Polk Brockman. Many of Kate's recordings for Okeh play up her name, consisting of short musical passages interspersed with quick-witted dialogues revolving around the moonshine trade.

The Great Depression ended the Carsons' recording days, and she continued to perform intermittently, also working with Eugene Talmadge on his 1932 bid for Governor of Georgia and for the Atlanta Department of Recreation. She married in 1944 and retired in Georgia. In 1983, both she and her father were inducted into the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame.

Birth and Death Data: Born October 10, 1909 (Atlanta), Died 1992 (Bainbridge)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1925 - 1934

Roles Represented in DAHR: guitar, vocalist, speaker, banjo, songwriter, composer, lyricist, yodeling

Notes: Daughter of John Carson ("Fiddlin' John Carson"). Also known as "Moonshine Kate."

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 76-100 of 131 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
OKeh W402554 10-in. 8/5/1929 Welcome the travelers home, no. 2 Fiddlin' John Carson Instrumental trio, with female-male vocal duet instrumentalist, guitar, vocalist  
OKeh W402555 10-in. 8/5/1929 You'll never miss your mother until she's gone, no. 2 Fiddlin' John Carson Instrumental trio, with female-male vocal duet instrumentalist, guitar, vocalist  
OKeh W402556 10-in. 8/5/1929 John makes good licker Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with talk and female-male vocal duet instrumentalist, guitar, speaker, vocalist  
OKeh W402557 10-in. 8/5/1929 John makes good licker Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with talk and female-male vocal duet instrumentalist, guitar, vocalist, speaker  
OKeh W402558 10-in. 8/5/1929 She's more like her mother everyday Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with talk and male vocal solo instrumentalist, guitar, speaker  
OKeh W402559 10-in. 8/5/1929 Times are not like they used to be Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with talk and male vocal solo instrumentalist, guitar, speaker  
OKeh W402988 10-in. 9/24/1929 The medicine show Fiddlin' John Carson ; Emmett Miller Descriptive scene, with vocal and instrumental ensemble instrumentalist, guitar, speaker  
OKeh W402989 10-in. 9/24/1929 The medicine show Fiddlin' John Carson ; Emmett Miller Descriptive scene, with vocal and instrumental ensemble instrumentalist, guitar, speaker  
OKeh W402992 10-in. 9/25/1929 The medicine show Fiddlin' John Carson ; Emmett Miller Descriptive scene, with vocal and instrumental ensemble instrumentalist, guitar, speaker, vocalist  
OKeh W402997 10-in. 9/25/1929 The medicine show Fiddlin' John Carson ; Emmett Miller Descriptive scene, with vocal and instrumental ensemble instrumentalist, guitar, speaker, vocalist  
OKeh W402998 10-in. 9/25/1929 The medicine show Fiddlin' John Carson ; Emmett Miller Descriptive scene, with vocal and instrumental ensemble instrumentalist, guitar, speaker, vocalist  
OKeh W402999 10-in. 9/25/1929 The medicine show Fiddlin' John Carson ; Emmett Miller Descriptive scene, with vocal and instrumental ensemble instrumentalist, guitar, speaker, vocalist  
OKeh W403446 10-in. 12/17/1929 Pa's birthday party Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with dialogue and mixed vocal trio speaker, instrumentalist, banjo, vocalist  
OKeh W403447 10-in. 12/17/1929 Corn licker and barbecue Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with dialogue and mixed vocal trio speaker, vocalist, instrumentalist, banjo  
OKeh W403448 10-in. 12/17/1929 Corn licker and barbecue Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with dialogue and mixed vocal trio speaker, vocalist, instrumentalist, banjo  
OKeh W403449 10-in. 12/17/1929 Who's the best fiddler? Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with dialogue speaker, instrumentalist, guitar  
OKeh W403500 10-in. 12/17/1929 Who bit the wart off Grandma's nose? Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with dialogue and male vocal solo speaker, instrumentalist, banjo  
OKeh W403501 10-in. 12/17/1929 Kate's snuff box Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Instrumental trio, with dialogue speaker, instrumentalist, banjo  
OKeh W403502 10-in. 12/17/1929 Sunny Tennessee Fiddlin' John Carson Male vocal solo, with fiddle (violin), banjo, and guitar instrumentalist, banjo  
OKeh W403503 10-in. 12/17/1929 Whatcha gonna do when your licker gives out? Fiddlin' John Carson Male vocal solo, with fiddle (violin), banjo, and guitar instrumentalist, banjo  
OKeh W403916 10-in. 4/24/1930 The last old dollar is gone Fiddlin' John Carson ; Moonshine Kate Female vocal solo, with 2 guitars and talk vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar  
OKeh W403917 10-in. 4/24/1930 Texas blues Moonshine Kate Female vocal solo and yodeling, with 2 guitars composer, lyricist, vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar, yodeling  
OKeh W403918 10-in. 4/24/1930 Raggedy Riley Moonshine Kate Female vocal solo, with 2 guitars composer, lyricist, vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar  
OKeh W403919 10-in. 4/24/1930 The dying hobo Moonshine Kate Female vocal solo, with 2 guitars vocalist, instrumentalist, guitar  
OKeh W403920 10-in. 4/24/1930 The raccoon and the possum Fiddlin' John Carson ; Virginia Reelers Instrumental ensemble instrumentalist, guitar  
(Results 76-100 of 131 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Carson, Rosa Lee," accessed March 28, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/201619.

Carson, Rosa Lee. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/201619.

"Carson, Rosa Lee." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 28 March 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/201619

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