Together with brother Charlie in the late ’30s, Monroe’s cross-pollination of traditional Celtic reels and southern American gospel assured him immortality as the founding father of bluegrass.

The title song of the new gospel album by the “Father of Bluegrass Music,” Bill Monroe, is “Cryin’ Holy Unto the Lord,” which Monroe first recorded on his debut bluegrass album 51 years ago.

The town might be small, but it was there that a young Bill Monroe first began utilizing the rhythms of old-time country, blues, and gospel music to create something new: bluegrass.

William Smith Monroe was born in Rosine, Ky., on Sept. 13, 1911. He formed a popular duo with his brother Charlie, often augmented by their fiddle-playing brother Birch.

Bill Noonan: The Monroe Brothers (Bill and Charlie Monroe) got the start of their career right here in Charlotte, and to this day, Bill Monroe is famous as the father of bluegrass.

I only got to see Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys perform once. It was at a festival in Illinois, where I grew up, in the summer of 1981.

What: Bill Gaither and the Gaither Vocal Band concert When: 7 p.m. Thursday, Monroe Civic Center Cost: $72.50, $36.50, $26.50; 12 and under and 60 and above $22.50 at price Level 3 only (upstairs).