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James Benton Flippen, born July 18, 1920 in Mount Airy, North Carolina, was an American fiddle player and composer. Raised on a farm in Surry County, he began playing the banjo as a child before switching to the fiddle under his uncle John's influence. In the late 1960s, Flippen joined the Camp Creek Boys. From the 1970s, he was part of the Smokey Valley Boys, recording albums like The Smokey Valley Boys (1972) and Benton Flippen: Old Time, New Times (1993). His unique style earned him the North Carolina Folk Heritage Award in 1990. He won multiple fiddle contests and performed at notable events such as the Newport Folk Festival. Original compositions include "Benton's Dream" and "Fiddler's Reel". Flippen continued performing into his late 80s, headlining the Berkeley Old Time Music Convention in California in 2008. He passed away on June 28, 2011.
