Sunshine Sisters

In the late 1800's, Robert Amburgey and Gertrude Quillen would become man and wife in the eastern hills of Kentucky near the Virginia state line. They lived less than 50 miles from the now famed Carter family. Nonetheless, the Amburgey children would go on to make musical history of their own.

Robert Amburgey was a skilled banjo player, and most of the Amburgey's were noted for their ability to play stringed instruments. The Quillen family was noted for their vocal abilities performing religious concerts in churches and school houses throughout Kentucky. The joining of these two musical families produced a unique bread of musician, singer, and performer that radiated like the sun--The Sunshine Sisters.

Berthy Amburgey (Berthy Woodruff, aka, Minnie), Irene Amburgey (Martha Carson, aka, Martha), and Opal Jean Amburgey (Jean Chapel, aka, Mattie), born in that order, went on to form one of the very first all sister female string bands in the country. In a male dominated age, these three pioneers blazed a trail in music history.

The Amburgey sisters would become known as the Sunshine Sisters during their debut in early 1936. They were performing at many social functions well before the famed Coon Creek Girls who made their debut in October of 1937. Yet, more publicity has been often given to the Coon Creek Girls and their pioneering work. This is due largely frequent name changes that took place with the Amburgey family.

In 1936 the Amburgey's chose "The Sunshine Sisters" as their stage name, in 1939 they would become part of the Coon Creek Girls with Lily May Ledford, and in 1940 John Lair would bill them as Minnie, Mattie, and Martha "The Hoot Owl Holler Girls" in the Atlanta Journal as they started the WSB Barn Dance program.

Music historian, Wayne W. Daniel says, "The band composed of the three Amburgey sisters was performing in public prior to the Coon Creek Girls debut which took place on October 9, 1937. To Martha, Minnie, and Mattie belongs the distinction of being the first all sister string band to perform widely on stage, radio and records."

In early 1938, hillbilly performer, Asa Martin, would recruit the Amburgey sisters to work at WLAP radio in Lexington, Kentucky. "He told us he couldn't pay us anything, but he would pay our rent and pay for our food. We didn't get any money at all while we were there," says Berthy. For almost a year they performed daily on the radio and did shows in many of the little towns around Lexington. The sisters would return home in January of 1939, but not for long.

The trio would win an Amateur Hour contest at WHIS radio in Bluefield, West Virginia and get their very own daily radio show for the next several months. While at WHIS, promoter John Lair would hear the talent of the Sunshine Sisters and invite them to join the Renfro Valley Barn Dance.

"John Lair tracked us down and called us to come to Renfro Valley to join Lily May Ledford as replacements for two of the Coon Creek Girls who had left the band," recalls Martha. "He booked us at all the fairs and other places as the Coon Creek Girls."

In 1940, John Lair was hired by WSB radio in Atlanta to line up a new format of entertainment for their radio station. Lair moved many of his Renfro Valley entertainers to Atlanta including the Amburgey sisters.

It was here that John Lair decided to change the Amburgey sisters' names to Minnie, Mattie, and Martha; and bill them "The Hoot Owl Holler Girls". He did this without telling them first. "He didn't tell us he was changing our names," Martha says, "We got into Atlanta and picked up the Atlanta Journal (which carried a picture of the trio) and here we are Minnie, Mattie, and Martha.

Martha and husband James Roberts would become one of the most popular country music acts on the WSB Barn dance. Their growing popularity lead to a recording contracts with Whites Church and Capitol Records.

Berthy would marry in 1941 and move with husband Charles Woodruff to Cincinnati, Ohio where she would work for about a year as a fiddler at WKRC and perform at the Saturday night Barn Dance. Berthy worked shows with the likes of Bradley Kincaid, Cowboy Copas, Red Herron, and Skeeter Davis. She would appear on the Grand Ole Opry with sister Martha on several occasions and other performers of her day.

Jean would marry Salty Holmes. Salty (Floyd) Holmes was a harmonica virtuoso, and a member of the Prairie Rambler Band who recorded with Patsy Montana from 1933 to 1940. Together, they made numerous Grand Ole Opry appearances as "Mattie and Salty". Jean would become one of the first ladies of Rock-a-Billy music, record on several different labels, and write many hits for literally hundreds of Nashville artists.

The three would record an album together in 1950 for the King label entitled "The Sunshine Sisters."