Curly Ray Cline, born Ray Cline on January 10, 1923, in Mingo County, West Virginia, was an American bluegrass fiddler. He learned to play the fiddle from his father and was inspired by Fiddlin' Arthur Smith of the Grand Ole Opry. At 15, Cline formed the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers with his cousin Ezra and brother Ned in 1938. The group played on radio station WHIS in Bluefield until 1952, during which time Curly Ray and his brother Charlie also performed with Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys. In early 1963, Cline joined the Stanley Brothers, playing part-time until Carter Stanley died in 1966. He then became Ralph Stanley's full-time fiddler from 1967 until his retirement in 1993. During this period, Curly Ray released several solo albums, including Boar Hog (1980) and The Old Kentucky Fox Hunter Plays Gospel (1982). He passed away on August 19, 1997.
