"So, we started hanging out together and listening to records together and learning Carter Family songs and Charlie Poole songs and...everybody tried to learn how to play the fiddle at that time. And... Dave Edmondson kind of went further along that direction than the rest of us so he became the fiddler. Suzanne stuck to the guitar and I played the banjo. And...somewhere along the line we got a gig so we needed a name. And...we went to astrology and found that our astrological signs were earth, water, and fire, which combined gives you hot mud. And we chose "family" because we were singing so much Carter Family material, and we just became the Hot Mud Family [...] but the name ended up following us for the next fourteen years all over the world, basically. And that’s how that started."
One of the founders of the famous string band, The Hotmud Family, Rick Good is an accomplished guitarist, banjo player, singer and songwriter. A performer of traditional and original music, Good's career has spanned nearly four decades. He started playing traditional music at age twelve. After The Hotmud Family (1970-1983) he moved on to Rhythm in Shoes (1987-2010), a touring dance and music ensemble that combined clogging, tap dancing and original choreography with traditional and original music. Since Rhythm in Shoes, Good has more recently played with ShoeFly (an offshoot of Rhythm in Shoes), the Red Clay Ramblers, Good & Young and The Elements. With his partner Sharon Leahy, a professional dancer and choreographer, Good has captivated Dayton, Ohio, and the rest of the United States with his versatility, musical innovation, and storied career.
Rick Good's Traditions episode.
Contents of the Collection
- Collection of clippings related to Good and The Hotmud Family
- Narrative history of The Hotmud Family
- Pictures of The Hotmud Family and Good's gradeschool band "The Freewheelers"
- Live performance of Rhythmn in Shoes at Cityfolk, 2010.