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| birth_name = Joseph Aquiler Thompson
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| birth_date = {{birth date|1918|12|9|mf=y}}
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'''Joseph Aquiler "Joe" Thompson''' (December 9, 1918 - February 20, 2012)<ref name="bare">{{cite book| first1= Bob| last1= Eagle| first2= Eric S.| last2= LeBlanc| year= 2013| title= Blues - A Regional Experience| publisher= Praeger Publishers| location= Santa Barbara| pages=281 | isbn= 978-0313344237}}</ref> was an American [[old-time fiddle|old-time]] fiddle player, and one of the last musicians to carry on the black [[string band]] tradition. Accompanied by his cousin Odell, Thompson was recognized with several honors for performances of the old-time style, particularly when the genre was repopularized in the 1970s. In the 1980s and 1990s, he recorded his first studio [[album]]s, consisting of a repertoire rooted in the authentic string band approach.
== Biography ==
Thompson was born in [[Orange County, North Carolina]].<ref name="bare"/> His father Walter, a fiddler, and uncle John, a [[banjo]] player, performed at local [[square dance]]s and corn shuckings.<ref name=tradition>{{cite web|url=http://www.mastersoftraditionalarts.org/artists/328|title=Joe Thompson|website=masteroftraditionalarts.org|accessdate=January 19, 2017}}</ref> At seven years-old, when Thompson took up the fiddle himself, he closely observed his father's techniques which were rooted in [[old-time fiddle|old-time]] African tradition.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qL3RkMTRx1YC&pg=PA69&dq=joe+thompson+fiddle&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiI4rW23s7RAhVC1oMKHWiaC6YQ6AEIMjAE#v=onepage&q=joe%20thompson%20fiddle&f=false|title=Historic Alamance County: An Illustrated History|author=Vincent, William|page=69|publisher=HPN Books|year=2009}}</ref> He joined his father and uncle for performances, and later formed his own [[string band]] with his older brother Nate and cousin Odell, both of whom were banjo players.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/joe-thompson-mn0000174632|title=Joe Thompson - Biography|website=allmusic.com|author=Seida, Linda|accessdate=January 19, 2017}}</ref> Much of the band's repertoire consisted of family songs past down since before the [[American Civil War]], including "Hook and Line" and "Cindy Gal".<ref name=post>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/entertainment/music/joe-thompson-93-well-respected-fiddler/2012/02/27/gIQAjuW1iR_story.html|title=Joe Thompson, 93, well-respected fiddler|website=washingtonpost.com|author=McArdle, Terence|accessdate=January 19, 2017}}</ref>
After serving in a segregated unit during the [[Second World War]] and as the popularity for traditional string band music waned, Thompson stopped playing the fiddle to work in a furniture factory as a rip saw operator for 28 years.<ref name=times>{{cite web|url=https://mobile.nytimes.com/2012/03/02/arts/music/joe-thompson-dies-at-93-fiddler-of-string-band-legacy.html|title=Joe Thompson dies at 93; Helped preserve the black string band|website=nytimes.com|author=Martin, Douglas|accessdate=January 19, 2017}}</ref> In 1973, musicologist Kip Lornell, then a recent college graduate, heard rumors about Joe and Odell Thompson's mastery of the old-time style, and urged the duo to make a comeback. Thompson and Odell began performing as the New String Band Duo across the United States and abroad, becoming popular fixtures at [[folk music|folk]] festivals. Among the notable gigs the duo played at included [[Carnegie Hall]], the [[National Folk Festival]], the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, and the Tennessee Banjo Institute.<ref name=tradition/><ref name=post/>
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