With the death of Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) today, Washington lost a singularly quirky presence. Many a Capitol Hill denizen will miss Byrd’s loving tributes to his late wife, Erma, on the Senate floor, his jovial cries of “Make way for liberty!” as he barreled through crowds of reporters and his jaunty leopard-print vests.

And although Byrd’s health prevented him in recent years from making music, HOH likes to remember Byrd as the country musician he was. In this video, he’s introduced at the Grand Ole Opry as “a politician by trade, but a fiddler at heart.”

Byrd’s album “Mountain Fiddler,” is out of stock on Amazon but occasionally pops up on eBay.

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