Legendary fiddler Gordon Terry died Sunday (April 9) in Spring Hill, Tenn., at age 74 following a lengthy battle with diabetes and emphysema. Born in Decatur, Ala., Terry won the Alabama Fiddling Championship at 14. He was working in a chicken processing plant in Decatur when he joined Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys. During a stint in the U.S. Army, he worked with Faron Young in the Circle A Wranglers and continued to work with the singer after their discharge in 1954. Terry began a solo career as a singer and instrumentalist in 1956. He recorded for several labels, including Columbia, RCA Victor and Capitol but charted only one single -- the 1970 Johnny Cash tribute, "The Ballad of J.C." As a studio musician, Terry recorded with Young, Cash, Jimmy Martin, Wanda Jackson, the Osborne Brothers, Merle Haggard and Neil Young. He also toured extensively with Cash and Haggard and acted in several films and the '50s TV series, Sky King. Funeral services will be held Wednesday (April 12) at 2 p.m. at Trinity Baptist Church in Trinity, Ala.