ED BENTLEY: FULL CIRCLE



In 1956 the music of Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash was humming over the airwaves and into the homes & hot rods of teenagers across the nation.

Many adults figured the sounds were just a passing fad. The kids, including 14-year-old Ed Bentley, knew better!

For Ed, Johnny Cash's "I Walk the Line" was a life-changing experience. He loved the music of Cash, Carl Perkins & Jerry Lee Lewis so much he would shamelessly beg his sister for money to buy their records. He also began to realize he was destined to become a musician.

Edward Bentley was born February 5, 1942 to Edward and Esther "Pat" (Graham) Bentley. They lived on a farm in Belmont, a rural community in western New York state.

His mother - who was later re-married to a man named Loveless - was a well known performer in her own right. Ed smiles when he says his mom "is the original Patty Loveless."

The teenage Ed enlisted her to teach him to play guitar. He took to the instrument like a duck takes to water.

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