Guitarist Eddie Pennington is widely recognized as today’s foremost exponent of Merle Travis-style thumbpicking—a complex and highly intricate style distinguished by the thumb playing a rolling, alternating bass line. A native of Princeton, Kentucky, and a funeral director by trade, Pennington has displayed his “monster acoustic and electric guitar chops” (Acoustic Guitar) in such high-profile settings as the National Folk Festival, the Kennedy Center, the Kentucky Derby, the Olympic Arts festival in 1996 and the “Masters of the Steel String Guitar” tour. The recipient of a National Heritage Fellowship Award in 2001, Pennington has recorded a handful of well-received albums, including Just My Style, Atonathum', the critically acclaimed Walks the Strings and Even Sings (Smithsonian/Folkways) and his newest, Amp Noise. The son of a coal miner, Pennington is an engaging performer with a flair for storytelling and a down-home sense of humor that appeals to audiences of all ages.