Angel Band
Bobby Hicks 9/4/1953 - 12/19/2007
Renowned Florida Original Songwriter, Robert Orr"Bobby" Hicks, 54, Tampa died Wednesday, December 19, 2007, following a short illness. Descended from a pioneer family of the Tampa Bay area, Bobby was born in Tampa on September 4, 1953.
Dash Moore 1926 - 1/24/2007
Dash Moore passed on Jan 24, in St Augustine, at age 71. Many of the old timers in FOFF will remember Dash, a street musician on St George St and attendee of many folk festivals around the state. Dash was known to be a musical associate of Will McLean and wrote many Florida folk songs. He traveled throughout Florida singing his songs for people at festivals and around the campfires. A memorial service will be held on the banks of the Suwannee in May of this year.
Bill Hewitt 8/9/26 - 1/24/07
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Bill Hewitt, FOLKSINGER Aug. 9, 1926 - Jan. 24, 2007
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| William Hewitt, 80, Sarasota, died Jan. 24, 2007. He was born Aug. 9, 1926, in Chester, Pa., and came to Sarasota in 1951. He was a finish carpenter and a Navy veteran of World War II. He was a member of Friends of Florida Folk and Sarasota Folk Club. |
Don Grooms 1930 - 1998
Don Grooms 1930 - 1998
Don Groom was a Cherokee Indian and Florida songwriter. Born in Cherokee, North Carolina, Don later went on to study journalism and traught at the University of Florida in Gainesville. His songs are song at festivals and campgrounds throughout Florida. He wrote songs about Native Americans, Florida and about being a good human being. He was appreciated for his original songs, as well as his wit, humor and sincerity.
Born in 1930, Don Grooms was raised in Cherokee, North Carolina. He came from a family with Cherokee and Appalachian heritage. As a child, he played a cornstalk fiddle, a cigar-box banjo, and a $3 Silvertone guitar. At age 10, Grooms began playing for square dances and at 14 he belonged to a dance band that played pop tunes. Grooms became a professional journalist and moved to Florida to teach journalism at the University of Florida. While in Gainesville, Grooms was influenced by Will McLean, which motivated him to return to songwriting and playing guitar. He became a fixture at the Florida Folk Festival, where he performed on stage alongside Florida Folk Troubadours Gamble Rogers, Jim Billie and Will McLean. Grooms received the Florida Folk Heritage Award in 1996.
