Hoot Hester

"Hoot" Hester (born August 13, 1951, near Louisville, Kentucky, USA - died August 30, 2016) was an American country and bluegrass fiddle player, mandolin player, guitarist and songwriter. He began his career as a professional musician during the early 1970s with Bluegrass Alliance and The Whites. Upon relocating to Nashville in 1973, Hester found work backing Donna Fargo, Mel Tillis and Jerry Reed. By 1980 he began to specialize in session work. In addition to his work as a session musician, Hester played on multiple television shows, including “Nashville Alive” and "Pop Goes the Country." When the program “Nashville Now" was created in the 1980s, Hester was hired to be the house band's fiddler and utility player. After "Nashville Now" went off the air in the mid-1990s, Hester spent time in Steve Wariner's band. In 1997, he and Dennis Crouch started the Western Swing outfit The Time Jumpers. In 2000, he was hired as a member of the Grand Ole Opry staff band.