A brother bluegrass act formed in 1953 by Melvin (b. Melvin Glen Goins, 30 December 1933, Bramwell, West Virginia, USA; guitar, bass fiddle, vocals, comedy) and his brother Ray (b. Ray Elwood Goins, 3 January 1936, Bramwell, West Virginia, USA; banjo, vocals). The Goins came from a musical family and grew up influenced by the major bluegrass acts that played in their locality. In the late 40s, Melvin was a member of the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers and in 1951, he was joined in the band by his 15 year old brother. In 1952, they played on RCA Victor recordings with the Fiddlers but the following year, when the Fiddlers moved to Detroit, they formed a trio with fiddler Joe Meadows. About 1954, the Fiddlers returned to West Virginia and the brothers made further recordings and worked at different venues, including WLSI Pikeville, Kentucky, with them, until 1955. For some years they toured on their own before rejoining the Fiddlers in 1961. They stayed until 1964, during which time they made Starday recordings with the band and played regularly on television with them in Bristol, Virginia. Ray left the music in 1964 and Melvin worked with other bluegrass artists, including Hylo Brown and notably with the Stanley Brothers, where he sang lead vocals, played guitar and also did comedy as Big Wilbur. When Ray returned to the music, they formed the Goins Brothers band and started a long period of playing bluegrass festivals, some of which Melvin promoted, that continued into the 90s. Their younger brother Conley later became their bass player and at times, Melvin’s wife, Willa and her three sisters, billed as the Woodettes, sang harmony gospel numbers with them. The Goins Brothers also appeared at schools and colleges and from the mid-70s, they presented a weekly television show on WKYH-TV at Hazard, Kentucky. Melvin and two other band members, performing as the Shedhouse Trio, sang cowboy and comedy songs as part of their regular show. They first recorded for Rem in 1969 but later recorded albums for Jalyn, Jessup, Rebel and Old Homestead. In the late 80s, they recorded for Vetco and have issued their own cassette recordings, including one recorded live at the University of Chicago Folk Festival. Ray retired in the late 90s but Melvin continued recording and performing with his new band, Windy Mountain. In 1999, they released Bluegrass Blues on the Hay Holler label.