Despite early reports teasing something far more contentious, most sources paint the March 11, 1969, split of Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs' Foggy Mountain Boys as a case of creative differences. And while it’s hard to spin the breakup of a legendary act as a completely positive development, there are certainly reasons to be thankful that Flatt and Scruggs parted ways.
Throughout their 20-plus-year partnership, Flatt and Scruggs took former boss Bill Monroe’s creation, bluegrass music, to a global audience. Flatt’s guitar-picking and vocal delivery and Scruggs’ innovative banjo skills won over a broad radio and television following through their longstanding relationship with their sponsor, Martha White Flour. Their widespread fan base grew even larger thanks to "The Ballad of Jed Clampett," the