The Meaning Behind “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” by Earl Scruggs

Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs stand among the most important figures in the history of bluegrass music, and one of their most enduring contributions is the instrumental “Foggy Mountain Breakdown.” Built around Earl Scruggs’s dazzling three-finger banjo style, the tune became a showcase piece for the hard-driving sound that would come to define bluegrass. Long before it was famous from movies and television, however, it began as a single studio recording session. “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” was fi