For immediate release: July 20, 2004 COLUMBIA LEGACY HONORS BLUEGRASS MUSIC WITH THE MOST EXTENSIVE COLLECTION EVER COMPILED "Can’t You Hear Me Callin’; Bluegrass: 80 Years of American Music" available September 28, 2004 Whether they’re grizzled veterans or youthful newcomers, bluegrass fans will be able to explore the full range of this rich musical style – from its oldest roots to its latest blossoms – through a single collection for the first time when Columbia Legacy releases Can’t You Hear Me Callin’;Bluegrass: 80 Years Of American Music on September 28, 2004. With more than 100 selections on 4 discs, compiler Gregg Geller has assembled a portrait of bluegrass built around a solid core of indispensible songs, together with neglected regional favorites, historical antecedents and recordings that demonstrate the powerful hold the genre has exerted across the musical spectrum. Drawn from the vaults of Columbia Records (one of the first and most important labels to offer rural southern music to listeners in the 1920s) and other key bluegrass sources such as Mercury, RCA, Capitol and Rounder, Can’t You Hear Me Callin’ stands as a remarkable historical document. Yet it also offers hours of pure musical pleasure, trading strict chronological entries for a sequence that is as entertaining as it is informative. At the center of the collection is a healthy dose of cuts from the music’s first generation giants. Signature material from Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys, Flatt & Scruggs, the Stanley Brothers, Jim & Jesse, Jimmy Martin, Don Reno and the Osborne Brothers – all members of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Hall of Honor – accounts for almost half of the set. The rich vein of primary material includes such staples as "Blue Moon Of Kentucky," "Foggy Mountain Breakdown," and "I’m A Man Of Constant Sorrow," all presented in their original versions. Here, too, are the roots of bluegrass, captured in rare recordings by early country stars like Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers, whose songs such as "White House Blues" would be picked up by later generations of bluegrass musicians. Wisely, Geller includes contrasting versions of several songs, such as "Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down," recorded both by Poole and by Flatt & Scruggs, and "Uncle Pen," recorded by Bill Monroe and later by Ricky Skaggs, enabling listeners to understand – and enjoy – the ways in which these enduring songs have fed creativity while keeping the chain of tradition unbroken. The influence of bluegrass on other musical forms can be heard here as well. The set explores the way in which bluegrass roots nourished the music of country-rock pioneers like the Byrds, classical musicians like Edgar Meyer and Joshua Bell, ‘80s era visionaries such as Skaggs and the O’Kanes, and contemporary country stars such as the Dixie Chicks and Patty Loveless. Current bluegrass favorites such as Rhonda Vincent and the Del McCoury Band make their appearances, too, demonstrating the music’s ongoing vitality and sense of history. From the energetic string band clamor of Gid Tanner and His Skillet Lickers to the sophisticated sounds of Alison Krauss & Union Station, Can’t You Hear Me Callin’ is a sweeping yet detailed musical document that will rest at the center of any bluegrass collection.
Can’t You Hear Me Callin’? BLUEGRASS: 80 YEARS OF AMERICAN MUSIC Streetdate: September 28, 2004 4 cd set Columbia / Legacy Contacts: Kay Clary / Donica Christensen COMMOTION PR 615.467.6677 kay@commotionpr.com | donica@commotionpr.com Disc One 1. GidTanner and His Skillet Lickers Soldier’s Joy (2:56) (traditional) public domain Recorded October 29, 1929; Atlanta Released as Columbia single #15538-D Riley Puckett, vocals and guitar; Clayton McMichen, vocals and fiddle; Gid Tanner, fiddle or banjo; Lowe Stokes, fiddle; possibly Bert Layne, fiddle; possibly Fate Norris, banjo 2. Charlie Poole and The North Carolina Ramblers Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down Blues (2:50) (C. Poole) public domain Recorded July 27, 1925; New York Released as Columbia single #15038-D Charlie Poole, vocals and banjo; Posey Rorer, fiddle; Norman Woodlief, guitar 3. Charlie Poole and The North Carolina Ramblers White House Blues (3:25) (traditional) public domain Recorded September 20, 1926; New York Released as Columbia single #15099-D Charlie Poole, vocals and banjo; Posey Rorer, fiddle; Roy Harvey, guitar 4. Charlie Poole and The North Carolina Ramblers Bill Mason (2:59) (traditional) public domain Recorded May 6, 1929; New York Released as Columbia single #15407-D Charlie Poole, vocals and banjo; Lonnie Austin, fiddle; Roy Harvey, guitar 5. The Carter Family Cannonball Blues (2:52) (A.P. Carter) APRS, BMI Recorded May 10, 1935; New York Produced by Ralph Peer Released as ARC/Perfect single #7-05-55 and Conqueror single #8816 Sara Carter, vocals and guitar; Maybelle Carter, vocals and guitar; A.P. Carter, vocals 6. The Blue Ridge Ramblers D Blues (2:48) (unknown) public domain Recorded February 14, 1935; New York Released as Vocalion single #02911 Probably Chick Hurt, mandolin; Tex Atchison, fiddle; Salty Holmes, guitar; Jack Taylor, bass 7. The Carter Family Keep On The Sunny Side (2:49) (A.P. Carter) APRS, BMI Recorded May 8, 1935; New York Produced by Ralph Peer Released as ARC/Perfect single #6-07-56 and Conqueror single #8692 Personnel same as Disc One, Track 5 8. The Monroe Brothers What Would You Give In Exchange (For Your Soul)? (3:11) (J.H. Carr-F.J. Berry) Universal MCA Music, ASCAP Recorded February 17, 1936; Charlotte Produced by Eli Oberstein Released as Bluebird single #B-6309 Charlie Monroe, lead vocals and guitar; Bill Monroe, tenor vocals and mandolin Courtesy of the RCA Records Label Nashville, under license from BMG Special Projects 9. The Carter Family I’m Thinking Tonight Of My Blue Eyes (2:52) (A.P. Carter) APRS, BMI Recorded May 10, 1935; New York Produced by Ralph Peer Released as ARC/Perfect single #35-09-23, Conqueror single #8539 and Vocalion/OKeh single #04442 Personnel same as Disc One, Track 5 10. Roy Acuff and His Crazy Tennesseans Great Speckle Bird (2:53) (Rev. G. Smith) Universal Duchess Music, BMI Recorded October 20, 1936; Chicago Produced by William Calaway Released as ARC single #7-01-59 and Vocalion single #04252 Roy Acuff, vocals and fiddle; Jess Easterday, guitar; Clell "Cousin Jody" Summey, steel guitar; Red Jones, bass 11. Roy Hall and His Blue Ridge Entertainers Orange Blossom Special (2:21) (E. Rouse) Northern Music, ASCAP Recorded November 7, 1938; Columbia, S.C. Produced by Art Satherley Not originally released Roy Hall, guitar; Bob Hopson, guitar; Tommy Magness, fiddle; Clato Buchanan, banjo; 12. Roy Acuff and His Smoky Mountain Boys Ida Red (2:47) (traditional) public domain Recorded July 5, 1939; Memphis Produced by Art Satherley Released as Vocalion single #05359 Roy Acuff, vocals and fiddle; Beecher (Pete) "Bashful Brother Oswald" Kirby, vocals and banjo; Lonnie "Pap" Wilson, guitar; Jess Easterday, bass 13. The Coon Creek Girls Pretty Polly (2:48) (traditional) public domain Recorded May 30, 1938; Chicago Released as Vocalion single #04659 and OKeh single #04659 Lily Mae Ledford, vocals and banjo; probably Rosie Ledford, guitar 14. Roy Acuff and His Smoky Mountain Boys Lonesome Old River Blues (2:47) (traditional) public domain Recorded April 12, 1940; Dallas Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20626 Roy Acuff, vocals and fiddle; Beecher (Pete) "Bashful Brother Oswald" Kirby, vocals and dobro; Lonnie "Pap" Wilson, guitar; Jess Easterday, bass 15. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Mule Skinner Blues (2:43) (G. Vaughn-J. Rodgers) APRS, BMI Recorded October 7, 1940; Atlanta Produced by Frank Walker and Dan Hornsby Released as Bluebird single #B-8568 Bill Monroe, vocals and guitar; Clyde Moody, mandolin; Tommy Magness, fiddle; Bill "Cousin Wilbur" Westbrooks, bass Courtesy of the RCA Records Label Nashville, under license from BMG Special Projects 16. Roy Acuff and His Smoky Mountain Boys Wreck On The Highway (2:45) (D. Dixon) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded May 28, 1942; Hollywood Produced by Art Satherley Released as OKeh single # 6685 Personnel similar to Disc One, Track 14 17. The Bailes Brothers The Drunkard’s Grave (2:39) (W. Bailes-J. Bailes) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded February 17, 1945; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #37341 Walter Bailes, lead vocal and guitar; Johnny Bailes, tenor vocal and guitar; Ernest Ferguson, mandolin; Del Heck, fiddle; Evelyn "Evy Lou" Thomas, bass 18. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Rocky Road Blues (2:34) (B. Monroe) APRS, BMI Recorded February 13, 1945; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20013 Bill Monroe, vocals and mandolin; Tex Willis, guitar; David "Stringbean" Akeman, banjo; Chubby Wise, fiddle; Wilene "Sally Ann" Forester, accordion; Bill "Cousin Wilbur" Westbrooks, bass 19. The Bailes Brothers Searching For A Soldier’s Grave (2:58) (R. Acuff) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded February 17, 1945; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #36932 Personnel same as Disc One, Track 17 20. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Blue Moon Of Kentucky (3:00) (B. Monroe) APRS, BMI Recorded September 16, 1946; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20370 Bill Monroe, vocals and mandolin; Lester Flatt, guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Chubby Wise, fiddle; Howard Watts (Cedric Rainwater), bass 21. The Bailes Brothers Dust On The Bible (2:52) (W. Bailes-J. Bailes) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded February 17, 1945; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #37154 Personnel same as Disc One, Track 17 22. Molly O’Day and The Cumberland Mountain Folks I Heard My Mother Weeping (2:41) (C. Story-R.L. Blanchard) Fort Knox Music/Trio Music/Universal Songs of Polygram Int., BMI Recorded December 28, 1947; Nashville Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20494 Molly O’Day, vocals and guitar; Lynn Davis, guitar; George "Speedy" Krise, dobro; Carl Smith, bass 23. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Will You Be Loving Another Man? (2:52) (B. Monroe-L. Flatt) APRS, BMI Recorded September 17, 1946; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20189 Bill Monroe, tenor vocal and mandolin; Lester Flatt, lead vocal and guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Chubby Wise, fiddle; Howard Watts (Cedric Rainwater), bass 24. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Blue Grass Breakdown (2:40) (B. Monroe) Unichappell Music, BMI Recorded October 27, 1947; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Alternate take of Columbia single #20552 Bill Monroe, mandolin; Lester Flatt, guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Chubby Wise, fiddle; Howard Watts (Cedric Rainwater), bass 25. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys It’s Mighty Dark To Travel (2:52) (B. Monroe) Unichappell Music, BMI Recorded October 27, 1947; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20526 Personnel same as Disc One, Track 23 26. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Molly And Tenbrooks (The Race Horse Song) (2:44) (B. Monroe) APRS, BMI Recorded October 28, 1947; Chicago Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20612 Personnel same as Disc One, Track 20 27. Roy Acuff and His Smoky Mountain Boys Black Mountain Rag (2:51) (traditional) public domain Recorded January 15, 1949; New York Released as Columbia single #20558 Tommy Magness, fiddle; other personnel unknown Disc Two 1. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Can’t You Hear Me Callin’ (3:16) (B. Monroe) Unichappell Music, BMI Recorded October 22, 1949; Nashville Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20676 Bill Monroe, tenor vocals and mandolin; Mac Wiseman, lead vocals and guitar; Rudy Lyle, banjo; Chubby Wise, fiddle; Jack Thompson, bass 2. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys Foggy Mountain Breakdown (2:39) (E. Scruggs) APRS, BMI Recorded December 11, 1949; Cincinnati Produced by Murray Nash Released as Mercury single #36247 Lester Flatt, guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Curly Seckler, mandolin; Benny Sims, fiddle; Howard Watts (Cedric Rainwater), bass Courtesy of Mercury Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises 3. Molly O’Day and The Cumberland Mountain Folks Poor Ellen Smith (2:38) (traditional; arranged by L. Davis-M. O’Day) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded April 4, 1949; Nashville Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20629 Molly O’Day, lead vocals and banjo; Lynn Davis, vocals and guitar; probably Jimmie Selph, steel guitar; James "Slim" Martin or Cecil "Skeets" Williamson, fiddle; H.E. "Aytchie" Burns, bass 4. The Stanley Brothers and The Clinch Mountain Boys The Drunkard’s Hell (2:36) (C. Stanley) APRS, BMI Recorded November 20, 1949; Nashville Released as Columbia single #20735 Carter Stanley, lead vocals and guitar; Ralph Stanley, tenor vocals and banjo; Darrell "Pee Wee" Lambert, high baritone vocals and mandolin; Les Woodie, fiddle; Ernie Newton, bass 5. The Stanley Brothers and The Clinch Mountain Boys The Lonesome River (2:43) (C. Stanley) APRS, BMI Recorded November 3, 1950; Nashville Released as Columbia single #20816 Personnel same as Disc Two, Track 4 6. Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper with Their Clinch Mountain Clan On The Banks Of The River (2:45) (unknown) Dixie Music Publishing Recorded April 9, 1949; Nashville Released as Columbia single #20607 Wilma Lee Cooper, vocals and rhythm guitar; Stoney Cooper, fiddle; Blaine Stewart, mandolin; Bill Carver, dobro; Ab Cole, bass 7. The Stanley Brothers and The Clinch Mountain Boys The Fields Have Turned Brown (2:32) (C. Stanley) APRS, BMI Recorded November 20, 1949; Nashville Released as Columbia single #20667 Personnel same as Disc Two, Track 4 8. The Stanley Brothers and The Clinch Mountain Boys The White Dove (3:12) (C. Stanley) APRS, BMI Recorded March 1, 1949; Nashville Released as Columbia single #20577 Carter Stanley, lead vocals and guitar; Ralph Stanley, tenor vocals and banjo; Darrell "Pee Wee" Lambert, high baritone vocals and mandolin; Bobby Summer, fiddle; Jay Hughes, bass 9. Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper with Their Clinch Mountain Clan Sunny Side Of The Mountain (2:57) (B. Gregory-H. McAulife) Janon Music, ASCAP Recorded July 13, 1951; Nashville Released as Columbia single #20861 Wilma Lee Cooper, rhythm guitar; Stoney Cooper, vocals and fiddle; Joe Stuart, mandolin; Josh "Buck" Graves, dobro; unknown bass 10. The Stanley Brothers and The Clinch Mountain Boys I’m A Man Of Constant Sorrow (2:55) (C. Stanley) APRS, BMI Recorded November 3, 1950; Nashville Released as Columbia single #20816 Ralph Stanley, vocals and banjo; Carter Stanley, guitar, Darrell "Pee Wee" Lambert, mandolin; Les Woodie, fiddle; Ernie Newton, bass 11. Mac Wiseman I Wonder How The Old Folks Are At Home (2:50) (A.P. Carter) APRS, BMI Recorded March or April, 1952; Gallatin, Tennessee Released as Dot single #194 (78 rpm) and #1115 (45 rpm) Mac Wiseman, vocals and guitar; Russell Vass, banjo; Jim Williams, mandolin; Tommy Jackson, fiddle; Ernie Newton, bass Courtesy of MCA Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises 12. Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys Uncle Pen (2:44) (B. Monroe) Unichappell Music, BMI Recorded October 15, 1950; Nashville Released as Decca single #46283 Bill Monroe, lead vocals (verse), tenor vocals (chorus) and mandolin; Jimmy Martin, lead vocals (chorus) and guitar; Rudy Lyle, banjo; Merle "Red" Taylor, fiddle; Joel Price, baritone vocals (chorus) and bass Courtesy of MCA Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises 13. Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper with Their Clinch Mountain Clan Stoney, Are You Mad At Your Gal (2:54) (Cousin Emmy) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music-Universal Duchess Music, BMI Recorded July 13, 1951; Nashville Released as Columbia single #21049 Wilma Lee Cooper, vocals and rhythm guitar; Stoney Cooper, fiddle; Joe Stuart, mandolin; Josh "Buck" Graves, dobro; unknown harmonica and bass 14. Molly O’Day and Lynn Davis When The Angels Rolled The Stone Away (2:50) (J. Moore) APRS, BMI Recorded August 4, 1951; Nashville Produced by Art Satherley Released as Columbia single #20937 Molly O’Day, lead vocals and banjo; Lynn Davis, vocals and guitar; Clell "Cousin Jody" Summey, steel guitar; Grady Martin, fiddle; Joe Zinkan, bass 15. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys Earl’s Breakdown (2:59) (E. Scruggs) APRS, BMI Recorded October 24, 1951; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #20886 Lester Flatt, guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Everett Lilly, mandolin; Howdy Forrester, fiddle; Jody Rainwater, bass 16. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys Don’t Get Above Your Raising (2:43) (L. Flatt-E. Scruggs) APRS, BMI Recorded May 9, 1951; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #20854 Lester Flatt, vocals and guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Everett Lilly, mandolin; Chubby Wise, fiddle; Jody Rainwater, bass 17. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys Are You Missing Me? (2:22) (I. Louvin-C. Louvin) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded June 13, 1952; Nashville Produced by Ken Nelson Released as Capitol single #2233 Jim McReynolds, tenor vocals and guitar; Jesse McReynolds, lead vocals and mandolin; Curly Seckler, guitar; Hoke Jenkins, banjo; James Loden (Sonny James), fiddle; Bob Moore, bass Courtesy of Capitol Nashville, under license from EMI Music Special Markets 18. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys Why Did You Wander? (2:44) (L. Flatt-B. Monroe) APRS, BMI Recorded November 9, 1952; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21091 Lester Flatt, lead vocals and guitar; Earl Scruggs, baritone vocals and banjo, Curly Seckler, tenor vocals and mandolin; Benny Martin, fiddle; Jody Rainwater, bass 19. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys Flint Hill Special (2:45) (E. Scruggs) APRS, BMI Recorded November 9, 1952; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21054 Lester Flatt, guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Curly Seckler, mandolin; Benny Martin, fiddle; Jody Rainwater, bass 20. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys I’ll Go Stepping Too (2:53) (T. James-J. Organ) APRS, BMI Recorded August 29, 1953; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21179 Lester Flatt, lead vocals and guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Curly Seckler, tenor vocals and mandolin; Benny Martin, fiddle; Louis Innis, rhythm guitar; Bob Moore, bass 21. Carl Story and The Rambling Mountaineers Love And Wealth (2:45) (I. Louvin-C. Louvin) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded June 1, 1953; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21137 Carl Story, lead vocals and guitar; Red Rector, vocals and mandolin; Ray "Duck" Atkins and Claude Boone, guitars; Jerry Rivers, fiddle; Ernie Newton, bass 22. Jimmy Martin and The Osborne Brothers 20/20 Vision (2:41) (M. Estes-J. Allison) Golden West Melodies, BMI Recorded November 16, 1954; Nashville Produced by Steve Sholes Released as RCA Victor single #20-5958B (78 rpm) and #47-5958B (45 rpm) Jimmy Martin, lead vocals and guitar; Bobby Osborne, high baritone vocals and mandolin; Sonny Osborne, tenor vocals and 5-string banjo; Merle "Red" Taylor, fiddle; Howard Watts (Cedric Rainwater), bass Courtesy of the RCA Records Label Nashville, under license from BMG Special Projects 23. Carl Story and The Rambling Mountaineers My Lord Keeps A Record (2:16) (C. Story-W. York) Fort Knox Music/Trio Music, BMI Recorded June 1, 1953; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21205 Personnel same as Disc Two, Track 21 24. Carl Story and The Rambling Mountaineers I Love The Hymns They Sang At Mother’s Grave (2:54) (C. Story) APRS, BMI Recorded February 2, 1954; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21399 Carl Story, lead vocals and guitar; Red Rector, vocals and mandolin; Ray "Duck" Atkins and Eddie Hill, guitars; Jerry Rivers, fiddle; Claude Boone, bass 25. Carl Story and The Rambling Mountaineers Reunion In Heaven (2:48) (L. Flatt-E. Scruggs) APRS, BMI Recorded March 11, 1955; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21399 Carl Story, lead vocals and guitar; Red Rector, vocals and mandolin; Chet Atkins, electric guitar; Ray "Duck" Atkins, guitar; Dale Potter, fiddle; Claude Boone, bass 26. Carl Story and The Rambling Mountaineers Don’t You Hear Jerusalem Mourn (2:08) (J. Martin) Golden West Melodies, BMI Recorded March 11, 1955; Nashville Produced by Don Law Previously unreleased Personnel same as Disc Two, Track 25 27. Jack Youngblood Hitch Hiker’s Blues (2:23) (J. Youngblood) Driftwood Music, BMI Recorded May 22, 1954; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21298 Jack Youngblood, fiddle; Jim Smoak, banjo; Sammy Pruett, guitar; Buddy Killen, bass Disc Three 1. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys The Martha White Theme (1:36) (unknown) Troy Martin Music, BMI Recorded December 8, 1962; New York Produced by Don Law and Frank Jones Released on the album Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs At Carnegie Hall (Columbia CS 8845) Lester Flatt, lead vocals and guitar; Earl Scruggs, vocals and banjo; Josh "Buck" Graves, vocals and dobro; Billy Powers, vocals and guitar; Paul Warren, fiddle; Jake Tullock, vocals and bass 2. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down (2:13) (L. Certain-G. Stacey) Universal Cedarwood Publishing/Universal Songs Of Polygram, BMI Recorded March 24, 1957; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #40990 Lester Flatt, lead vocals and guitar; Earl Scruggs, baritone vocals and banjo; Curly Seckler, tenor vocals and mandolin; Josh "Buck" Graves, dobro; Paul Warren, bass vocals and fiddle; Roy Huskey Jr., bass 3. The Webster Brothers Seven Year Blues (2:46) (I. Louvin-C. Louvin) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded October 27, 1954; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21421 Audie Webster, vocals and mandolin; Earl Webster, vocals and guitar; Jack Shook, rhythm guitar; Don Helms, steel guitar; Dale Potter, fiddle, Ernie Newton, bass 4. Bill & Mary Reid and The Melody Mountaineers Get Down On Your Knees And Pray (2:39) (B. Reid-M. Reid) EMI Blackwood Music, BMI Recorded November 8, 1955; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21529 Bill Reid, vocals and guitar; Mary Reid, vocals and guitar; Sammy Pruett, guitar; Johnny Sibert, steel guitar; Curley Lambert, mandolin; Swanson Walker, banjo; Les Woodie, fiddle; George Shuffler, bass 5. Carl Butler and The Webster Brothers Somebody Touched Me (2:12) (J. Reedy) Fort Knox Music/Trio Music, BMI Recorded November 9, 1955; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #21563 Carl Butler, lead vocals and guitar; Earl Webster, vocals and guitar; Audie Webster, vocals and mandolin; Sammy Pruett, guitar; James Smith, rhythm guitar; Johnny Sibert, steel guitar; Dale Potter, fiddle; Roy Huskey Jr., bass 6. Arthur Smith with Don Reno Feudin’ Banjos (1:56) (A. Smith) Combine Music, BMI Recorded 1955 Produced by Arthur Smith Released as M-G-M single #12006 Arthur Smith, 4-string tenor banjo; Don Reno, 5-string banjo Courtesy of Mercury Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises 7. The Osborne Brothers & Red Allen Ruby, Are You Mad (2:57) (Cousin Emmy) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music-Universal Duchess Music, BMI Recorded July 1, 1956; Nashville Produced by Wesley Rose and Jim Vienneau Released as M-G-M single #12308 Bobby Osborne, lead vocals and banjo; Sonny Osborne, vocals and banjo; Red Allen, vocals and guitar; Tommy Jackson and Art Stamper, fiddles; Ernie Newton, bass Courtesy of MCA Nashville under license from Universal Music Enterprises 8. The Louvin Brothers Knoxville Girl (3:47) (traditional) public domain Recorded May 3, 1956; Nashville Produced by Ken Nelson Released as Capitol single #4117 Ira Louvin, vocals and mandolin; Charlie Louvin, vocals and guitar; Paul Yandell, lead guitar; George McCormick, rhythm guitar; Floyd "Lightning" Chance, bass; Buddy Harman, drums Courtesy of Capitol Nashville, under license from EMI Music Special Markets 9. The Osborne Brothers & Red Allen Once More (2:40) (D. Owens) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded October 17, 1957; Nashville Produced by Wesley Rose and Jim Vienneau Released as M-G-M single #12583 Sonny Osborne, vocals and banjo; Bobby Osborne, high lead tenor vocals and mandolin; Red Allen, vocals and guitar; Shot Jackson, dobro; Ernie Newton, bass; Buddy Harman, drums Courtesy of Universal Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises 10. Joe Maphis (King Of The Strings) Twin Banjo Special (2:11) (J. Maphis) EMI Blackwood Music, BMI Recorded August 23, 1956; Hollywood Produced by Don Law Released on the album Fire On The Strings (Columbia CL 1005) Joe Maphis, banjo; Rose Lee Maphis, guitar; Billy Hill and "Fiddlin’ Kate" Warren, fiddles; Bud Dooley, bass; "Pee Wee" Adams, drums 11. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys Gosh, I Miss You All The Time (2:15) (J. Long) Universal Duchess Music Corporation, BMI Recorded December 7, 1960; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #41938 Jim McReynolds, tenor vocals and guitar; Jesse McReynolds, lead vocals and mandolin; Grady Martin, guitar; Allen Shelton, banjo; Vassar Clements, fiddle; Don McHan, baritone vocals and bass 12. Jimmy Martin and The Sunny Mountain Boys You Don’t Know My Mind (2:53) (J. Skinner) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded January 14, 1960; Nashville Produced by Owen Bradley Released as Decca single #31157 Jimmy Martin, vocals and guitar; Paul Williams, mandolin; J.D. Crowe, banjo; Benny Martin, fiddle; Roy Huskey Jr., bass; Buddy Harman, drums Courtesy of MCA Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises 13. The Stanley Brothers Rank Stranger (3:08) (A. E. Brumley) Bridge Building Music, BMI Recorded May 1960; Jacksonville Released as Starday single #506 Carter Stanley, vocals and guitar; Ralph Stanley, vocals and banjo; Ralph Mayo, guitar; Curley Lambert, mandolin; Audie Webster, bass Courtesy of 14. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys My Empty Arms (2:20) (R. Gosdin) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded May 5, 1961; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Epic single #9508 Jim McReynolds, tenor vocals, lead vocals on verse, and guitar; Jesse McReynolds, lead vocals and mandolin; Grady Martin, guitar; Allen Shelton and Don McHan, banjos; Vassar Clements, fiddle; Joe Zinkan, bass 15. Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs featuring Mother Maybelle Carter and The Foggy Mountain Boys Foggy Mountain Top (2:25) (A.P. Carter) APRS, BMI Recorded February 10, 1961; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released on the album Songs Of The Famous Carter Family (Columbia CS 8464) Lester Flatt, lead vocals and guitar; Earl Scruggs, baritone vocals and banjo; Maybelle Carter, autoharp; Curly Seckler, tenor vocals and mandolin; Josh "Buck" Graves, dobro; Paul Warren, bass vocals and fiddle; Jake Tullock, high baritone vocals and bass 16. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys Beautiful Moon Of Kentucky (2:10) (J. McReynolds-J. McReynolds) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded May 5, 1961; Nashville Produced by Don Law Released as Columbia single #42180 Personnel same as Disc Three, Track 14 17. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys Stoney Creek (1:54) (J. McReynolds-J. McReynolds) Sure-Fire Music, BMI Recorded June 22, 1962; Nashville Produced by Don Law and Frank Jones Released on the album Bluegrass Special (Epic BN 26031) Jim McReynolds, guitar; Jesse McReynolds, mandolin; Don McHan, lead guitar; Allen Shelton, banjo; Jim Buchanan, fiddle; Dave Sutherland, bass; Douglas Kirkham, drums 18. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys She Left Me Standing On The Mountain (2:11) (A. Delmore) Lois Music, BMI Recorded June 22, 1962; Nashville Produced by Don Law and Frank Jones Released on the album Bluegrass Special (Epic BN 26031) Personnel same as Disc Three, Track 17, with Jim McReynolds, tenor vocals; Jesse McReynolds, lead vocals 19. Jimmy Martin and The Sunny Mountain Boys Sunny Side Of The Mountain (2:32) (B. Gregory-H. McAulife) Janon Music, ASCAP Recorded August 13, 1964; Nashville Produced by Owen Bradley Released as Decca single #31748 Jimmy Martin, vocals and guitar; Grady Martin, guitar; Mike Miller, banjo; Vernon Derrick, mandolin; Roy Huskey Jr., bass; Buddy Harman, drums Courtesy of MCA Records under license from Universal Music Enterprises 20. Arthur Smith Just Joshing (2:02) (J. Graves-J. Tullock) Paul Craft Music, BMI Recorded February 1963; Nashville Produced by Fred Foster Released on the album Battling Banjos (Monument Z 32259) Arthur Smith, 4-string tenor banjo; Bobby Thompson, 5-string banjo; other personnel unknown 21. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys (It’s A Long, Long Way) To The Top Of The World (2:33) (D. Wayne) Sony/ATV Tree Publishing, BMI Recorded March 2, 1964; Nashville Produced by Billy Sherrill Released as Epic single #9676 Jim McReynolds, tenor vocals and guitar; Jesse McReynolds, lead vocals and mandolin; Allen Shelton, banjo; Jim Brock, fiddle; Floyd "Lightning" Chance, bass 22. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys Cotton Mill Man (2:45) (J. Langston) Screen Gems-EMI Music, BMI Recorded March 2, 1964; Nashville Produced by Billy Sherrill Released as Epic single #9676 Personnel same as Disc Three, Track 21 23. Don Reno Since Wedding Bells Have Rung (2:32) (D. Reno) Fort Knox Music/Trio Music-Sony/ATV Tree Publishing, BMI Recorded March 1966; Nashville Produced by Fred Foster Released on the album A Song For Everyone (Monument SLP 18048) Don Reno, vocals and banjo; other personnel unknown 24. Grandpa Jones Rosalee (2:03) (J. Lair) M.M. Cole, BMI Recorded August 12, 1963; Nashville Produced by Fred Foster Released on the album Grandpa Jones Sings Real Folk Songs (Monument SLP 18021) Grandpa Jones, vocals and banjo; Harold Bradley, guitar; Ray Edenton, rhythm guitar; Rita Faye Sinks, autoharp; Jerry Byrd, bass; James Isbell, drums; Ramona Jones, backing vocals 25. Sara & Maybelle Carter No More Goodbyes (3:00) (A.P. Carter-L.B. Leister) APRS, BMI Recorded June 16, 1966; Nashville Produced by Don Law and Frank Jones Not originally unreleased Sara Carter, lead vocals and guitarro; Maybelle Carter, vocals and guitar; Joe Carter, vocals 26. Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and The Foggy Mountain Boys The Ballad Of Jed Clampett (2:03) (P. Henning) Carolintone Music Company, BMI Recorded September 24, 1962; Nashville Produced by Don Law and Frank Jones Released as Columbia single #42606 Lester Flatt, vocals and guitar; Earl Scruggs, banjo; Josh "Buck" Graves, dobro; Paul Warren, fiddle; Jake Tullock, bass; Buddy Harman, drums 27. Jim & Jesse and The Virginia Boys Rabbit In The Log (2:42) (P. Kirby) Fort Knox Music/Trio Music, BMI Recorded December 30, 1964; Nashville Produced by Billy Sherrill Released on the album Y’all Come (Epic BN 26144) Jim McReynolds, tenor vocals and guitar; Jesse McReynolds, lead vocals and mandolin; Ray Edenton, rhythm guitar; Allen Shelton, banjo; Jim Brock, fiddle; Floyd "Lightning" Chance, bass; Buddy Harman, drums 28. The Osborne Brothers Rocky Top (2:34) (F. Bryant-B. Bryant) House of Bryant Publications, BMI Recorded November 16, 1967; Nashville Produced by Harry Silverstein Released as Decca single #32242 Bobby Osborne, lead vocals and mandolin; Sonny Osborne, harmony vocals and banjo; Dale Sledd, harmony vocals and guitar; Grady Martin, guitar; Ray Edenton, rhythm guitar; Hal Rugg, steel guitar; Hargus "Pig" Robbins, piano; Ronnie Blackwell, bass; Jerry Carrigan, drums Courtesy of MCA Nashville under license from Universal Music Enterprises 29. Grandpa Jones Mountain Dew (1:57) (B.L. Lunsford-S. Wiseman) Sony/ATV Tree Publishing-Tannen Music, BMI Recorded July 29, 1969: Nashville Produced by Fred Foster Released on the album Grandpa Jones Sings Hits From "Hee Haw" (Monument SLP 18131) Grandpa Jones, vocals and banjo; Harold Bradley, guitar; Ray Edenton, rhythm guitar; Roy Huskey Jr., bass; Buddy Harman, drums 30. Eric Weissberg & Steve Mandell Dueling Banjos (2:18) (A. Smith) Combine Music, BMI Recorded May 16, 1971; Clayton, Ga. Released as Warner Bros. single #7659 Eric Weissberg, banjo; Steve Mandell, guitar Courtesy of Disc Four 1. Grandpa Jones Turn Your Radio On (2:57) (A. Brumley) Bridge Building Music, BMI Recorded December 8, 1965; Nashville Produced by Fred Foster Released on the album Grandpa Jones Remembers The Brown’s Ferry Four (Monument SLP 18041) Grandpa Jones, lead vocals and banjo; Merle Travis, vocals and guitar; Jerry Byrd, guitar; Red Rector, vocals and mandolin; Ramona Jones, tenor vocals 2. The Byrds Black Mountain Rag (Soldier’s Joy) (1:11) (B. Berline; arranged by C. White-R. McGuinn) Recorded February 28, 1970; New York Not originally released Clarence White and Roger McGuinn, guitars 3. The Byrds Pretty Boy Floyd (2:34) (W. Guthrie) Fall River Music, BMI Recorded March 12, 1968; Nashville Produced by Gary Usher Released on the album Sweetheart Of The Rodeo (Columbia CS 9670) Roger McGuinn, vocals and banjo; Gram Parsons and Clarence White, guitars; Chris Hillman, mandolin; John Hartford, fiddle; Roy Huskey Jr., bass 4. The Byrds Bristol Steam Convention Blues (2:38) (G. Parsons-C. White) Byrdland Publishing, BMI Recorded July 27, 1971; London Produced by The Byrds Released on the album Farther Along (Columbia KC 31050) Gene Parsons, 5-string banjo; Clarence White, guitar and mandolin; Skip Battin, bass 5. The Byrds Farther Along (2:57) (traditional; arranged by C. White) Byrdland Publishing, BMI Recorded July 25, 1971; London Produced by The Byrds Released on the album Farther Along (Columbia KC 31050) Roger McGuinn, vocals and guitar; Clarence White, vocals and mandolin; Gene Parsons, vocals and rhythm guitar; Skip Battin, vocals, piano and bass 6. Don Reno, Bill Harrell & The Tennessee Cutups Contentment (2:44) (D. Reno) Combine Music, BMI Recorded March 1975; Charlotte Produced by Arthur Smith Released on the album Bi-Centennial Bluegrass (Monument PZ 33804) Don Reno, vocals and banjo; Bill Harrell, vocals and guitar; Dale Reno, mandolin; Buck Ryan, fiddle; Ed Ferris, bass 7. Herb Pedersen Can’t You Hear Me Callin’ (2:58) (B. Monroe) Unichappell Music, BMI Recorded May 1976; Hollywood Produced by Mike Post Released on the album Southwest (Epic PE 34225) Herb Pedersen, vocals, banjo and guitar; Josh "Buck" Graves, dobro; Roy Dean Webb, mandolin; Ray Park, fiddle; Leland Sklar, bass; Mike Baird, drums 8. Herb Pedersen Cora Is Gone (3:49) (O. McLeod) Sony/ATV Acuff Rose Music, BMI Recorded May 1977; Hollywood Produced by Mike Post Released on the album Sandman (Epic PE 34933) Herb Pedersen, lead vocals, banjo and guitar; Dolly Parton, harmony vocals (courtesy of RCA Records); Larry Carlton, electric guitar; Josh "Buck" Graves, dobro; Ray Park, fiddle; Larry Muhoberac, keyboards; Leland Sklar, bass; Mike Baird, drums; Gary Coleman, percussion 9. Don Reno, Bill Harrell & The Tennessee Cutups Choking The Strings (2:10) (D. Reno) Fort Knox Music/Trio Music, BMI Recorded March 1975; Charlotte Produced by Arthur Smith Released on the album Bi-Centennial Bluegrass (Monument PZ 33804) Personnel same as Disc Four, Track 6 10. Ricky Skaggs Uncle Pen (2:25) (B. Monroe) Unichappell Music, BMI Recorded June 28, 1983; Nashville Produced by Ricky Skaggs Released on the album Don’t Cheat In Our Hometown (Sugar Hill/Epic FE 38954) Ricky Skaggs, vocals and guitar; Lou Reid, high harmony vocals and banjo; Ray Flacke, electric guitar; Bruce Bouton, steel guitar; Bobby Hicks, fiddle; Mickey Merrit, piano; Jesse Chambers, bass; George Grantham, drums 11. Earl Scruggs Till The End Of The World Rolls Round (2:59) (N. Thomas) Universal Cedarwood Publishing, BMI Recorded August 9, 1982; Nashville Produced by Randy Scruggs and John Thompson Released on the album Top Of The World (Columbia FC 38295) Earl Scruggs, banjo; Ricky Skaggs, vocals, mandolin and rhythm guitar; Randy Scruggs, lead guitar; Jerry Douglas, dobro; Bobby Hicks, fiddle; Gene Sisk, Rhodes piano; Paul Uhrig, bass; Clyde Brooks, drums 12. Ricky Skaggs A Vision Of Mother (3:21) (C. Stanley) APRS, BMI Recorded 1979; N. Hollywood and Nashville Produced by Ricky Skaggs Released on the album Don’t Cheat In Our Hometown (Sugar Hill/Epic FE 38954) Ricky Skaggs, lead and harmony vocals, guitar, mandolin and fiddle; Dolly Parton, harmony vocals (courtesy of RCA Records); Brian Ahern, S-400 guitar; Emory Gordy, Jr., bass 13. Edgar Meyer with Bela Fleck and Mike Marshall Big Country (4:00) (B. Fleck) Fleck Music, BMI Recorded 1996, 1997; Nashville Produced by Edgar Meyer and Bela Fleck in association with Mike Marshall Released on the album Uncommon Ritual (Sony Classical SK 62891) Edgar Meyer, bass; Bela Fleck, low banjo (courtesy of Warner Bros. Records); Mike Marshall, guitar (courtesy of Windham Hill Records) 14. The O’Kanes If I Could Be There (3:19) (J. O’Hara-K. Kane) Cross Keys Publishing, BMI Recorded November 10, 1987; Nashville Produced by Kieran Kane and Jamie O’Hara Released on the album Tired Of The Runnin’ (Columbia CK 44066) Jamie O’Hara, vocals and guitar; Kieran Kane, vocals and mandolin; Richard Kane, fiddle; Roy Yeager, drums 15. Alison Krauss + Union Station So Long, So Wrong (3:22) (P. Brayer-W. Dahl) Church Teeth Music, admin. by Bug Music, BMI Recorded 1996; Nashville Produced by Alison Krauss + Union Station Released on the album So Long So Wrong (Rounder o365) Alison Krauss, lead vocals and fiddle; Dan Tyminski, baritone vocals and guitar; Ron Block, low tenor vocals and banjo; Adam Steffey, mandolin; Barry Bales, bass Courtesy of 16. Joshua Bell & Edgar Meyer with Sam Bush & Mike Marshall BP (3:25) (E. Meyer) Eggbert Music, BMI Recorded August 25-29, 1998; Purchase, N.Y. Produced by Edgar Meyer Released on the album Short Trip Home (Sony Classical SK 60864) Joshua Bell, violin; Edgar Meyer, bass; Sam Bush, mandolin; Mike Marshall, guitar 17. Alison Krauss + Union Station The Boy Who Wouldn’t Hoe Corn (4:39) (traditional; arranged by Alison Krauss + Union Station and P. Brayer) Moist N Fudgy Music/Church Teeth Music, admin. by Bug Music, BMI Recorded 2001; Nashville Produced by Alison Krauss + Union Station Released on the album New Favorite (Rounder 0495) Dan Tyminski, lead vocals and guitar (courtesy of Doobie Shea Records); Alison Krauss, high baritone vocals and fiddle; Ron Block, tenor vocals and banjo; Jerry Douglas, dobro (courtesy of Sugar Hill Records); Barry Bales, bass Courtesy of 18. Bluegrass Reunion Little Maggie (3:00) (traditional; arranged by R. Allen-H. Pedersen-D. Grisman) Dawg Music, BMI Recorded May 27-29, 1991; Mill Valley, CA. Produced by David Grisman Released on the album Bluegrass Reunion (Acoustic Disc ACD-4) Herb Pedersen, vocals and banjo; Red Allen, guitar; David Grisman, mandolin; Jim Buchanan, fiddle; James Kerwin, bass Courtesy of 19. Steve Earle and The Del McCoury Band Carrie Brown (4:18) (S. Earle) South Nashville Music/WB Music, ASCAP Recorded 1998; Nashville Produced by the twangtrust and Ronnie McCoury Released on the album The Mountain (E Squared 1064) Steve Earle, lead vocals and guitar; Del McCoury, tenor vocals and guitar; Ronnie McCoury, mandolin; Jason Carter, fiddle; Mike Bub, bass Courtesy of 20. The Dixie Chicks Tortured, Tangled Hearts (3:39) (N. Maines-M. Maguire-M. Stuart) Scrapin’ Toast Music, ASCAP-Wooly Puddin’ Music/Irving Music/Glittterbilly Music, BMI Recorded 2002; Austin Produced by The Dixie Chicks & Lloyd Maines Released on the album Home (Open Wide/Monument/Columbia CK 86840) Natalie Maines, lead vocals; Emily Robison, harmony vocals and banjo; Martie Maguire, harmony vocals and fiddle; Bryan Sutton, guitar (courtesy of Sugar Hill Records inc., a Welk Music Group company); Adam Steffey, mandolin; Byron House, bass 21. Ricky Skaggs Walls Of Time (4:19) (B. Monroe) Bill Monroe Music, BMI Recorded 1998; Nashville Produced by Ricky Skaggs Released on the album Ancient Tones (Skaggs Family SKFR-CD 1001) Ricky Skaggs, lead vocals, mandolin and guitar; John Cowan, tenor vocals; Bryan Sutton, lead guitar; Jerry Douglas, Weissenborn guitar; Stuart Duncan, fiddle; Mark Fain, bass Courtesy of 22. Rhonda Vincent Is The Grass Any Bluer (2:44) (C. Batten-B. Moore-T. Seals) Honky Tonk Heart Music/Princetta Music/Songs Of Nashville DreamWorks, BMI Recorded 2001; Nashville Produced by Rhonda Vincent Released on the album The Storm Still Rages (Rounder 11661-0474-2) Rhonda Vincent, lead vocals and mandolin; Darrin Vincent, harmony vocals and bass; Bryan Sutton, guitar; Tom Adams, banjo; Stuart Duncan and Mike Cleveland, fiddles Courtesy of 23. Patty Loveless Daniel Prayed (2:45) (R. Stanley) Shelby Singleton Music,/La-Car Publishing, BMI Recorded 2001; Franklin, TN Produced by Emory Gordy, Jr. Released on the album Mountain Soul (Epic EK 85651) Patty Loveless, lead vocals; Ricky Skaggs, background vocals and mandolin; Carmella Ramsey, background vocals; Emory Gordy, Jr., guitar; Rob Ickes, dobro; Deanie Richardson, fiddle; Clarence "Tater" Tate, bass 24. Ralph Stanley Twelve Gates To The City (1:55) (traditional; arranged by R. Stanley-T B Burnett-L. Ehrlich-B. Neuwirth) Neoeon Music, BMI Recorded 2002; Nashville Produced by Bob Neuwirth, Larry Ehrlich and T Bone Burnett Released on the album Ralph Stanley (DMZ/Columbia CK 86625) Ralph Stanley, vocals 25. Mark O’Connor Soldier’s Joy (4:05) (traditional; arranged by M. O’Connor) Mark O’Connor Musik International, BMI Recorded 1997; Nashville, New York, and Carlisle, Mass. Produced by Mark O’Connor Released on the album Liberty! Original Soundtrack (Sony Classical SK 63216) Mark O’Connor, violin; Russ Barenberg, guitar; Mark Schatz, banjo; Jerry Douglas, dobro; John Jarvis, piano; John Mock, pennywhistle Compiled and produced by Gregg Geller Mastered by Vic Anesini at Sony Music Studios, New York Disc transfers by Matt Cavaluzzo, Andreas Meyer and Ken Robertson
VARIOUS ARTISTS - "Can't You Hear Me Callin' - Bluegrass: 80 Years of American Music" (Columbia/Legacy) Arrives in stores September 28, 2004 For more information contact: Kay Clary at Commotion PR, 615.467.6677 (kay@commotionpr.com), Tom Cording at Legacy Media Relations, 212.833.4448, or Randy Haecker at Legacy Media Relations, 212.833.4101 Email: LegacyMediaRelations@sonymusic.com "When my brother Carter and I started singing our version of the traditional Southern mountain songs and ballads in a style that would later come to be called Bluegrass, we could not begin to envision that people all over the world would come to embrace both us and our music. It has been a long journey from our Clinch Mountain home and that little radio station in Bristol, down many winding mountain roads playing at rural school houses and churches, to the major recording studios and world stages where I now have the privilege to perform the music I have always tried to keep true. It has been a journey shared with the many musicians I have sung and played with and the countless others who walked similar paths, all for the love of, and respect for, the music. A life in this music has been a wonderful life for me. I gave it all that I had and I got more than I gave." Ralph Stanley 2004 It is said that radio announcer George Hay, who founded the Grand Ole Opry at Nashville's WSM in the mid-1920s and guided it to national prominence as the "Mother Church" of country music, was known for continually advising performers, newcomers or veterans, to remember one basic tenet when they appeared on his program. "Keep it close to the ground," the man called "The Solemn Old Judge" would say, reflecting his belief that the legions of listeners who tuned in every week expected entertainment that, like their lives, was down to earth: no gimmicks, no poses, no artifice; just straight ahead country music played with honesty and integrity. Just about eighty years have passed since those first Opry broadcasts, yet despite the myriad fads and trends that have impacted upon its long and complex history, one branch of the country music tree has maintained a root system that remains amongst its deepest and well-tended - and not only in country, but in all of American music. It is bluegrass, a genre borne of a string band tradition as bedrock as the Appalachian Mountains and as fertile as the foothills of the Southeast. That this ever vibrant music's origins lay in places on the map where generations spent their days not only living but working "close to the ground" - on farms, and in places like textile mills and coal mines - only underscores the genre's accompanying value system, in which individual skills (instrumental dexterity and/or vocal ability) must also fit into a whole (ensemble playing and singing). If that last analogy sounds like a description of a sports team, that's no accident; after all, bluegrass' prime architect, the venerable Bill Monroe, barnstormed around the country for many years with a group that not only played music for money, but sandlot baseball, too. (Fields of dreams, indeed.) Of course, the history of country string band music dates back to well before even as institutionalized a pastime as baseball, for its story begins at the very birth of America itself. When the earliest settlers began coming to this country in the 17th century, they brought with them both the songs (ballads and topical narratives) and the tunes (reels, jigs, hornpipes) passed down from their English, Scottish and Irish ancestors, as well as their most easily transportable instrument, the violin. Small and light, the fiddle went everywhere, providing pleasure in family homes and public gatherings - most notably, local square dances (where the fiddler generally served as music provider and dance caller) - and, eventually, regional fiddle contests that attracted players from surrounding towns to compete for rewards donated by sponsors that ranged from goods to livestock and even, occasionally, money. By the latter part of the 1800s, the fiddle was augmented at dances, concerts and other forms of (now) professional entertainment by several other key stringed instruments whose backgrounds reflected the growing country's social and ethnic diversity. Introduced to the U.S. via the slave trade, the African-derived banjo grew increasingly prevalent in the South through exposure in travelling blackface minstrel shows. Long a fixture in British and Spanish cultures, the guitar also became quite popular - especially once high-end manufacturers, such as the C.F. Martin company, were joined by more mass-oriented producers like Sears, which sold readily affordable models through their mail order catalogues. Finally, there was the Italy-origined mandolin, used primarily as a classical instrument until 1890s furniture maker Orville Gibson developed a flatter, longer-necked and more resonant model that appealed to American fiddle and guitar players alike. While homegrown, homemade music was for generations an integral part of rural life throughout the hills, dales, hollows and valleys of Kentucky, Tennessee, the Virginias, the Carolinas and Georgia, interest in so-called "mountain music" for commercial purposes - recordings - was virtually non-existent during the first twenty or so years of the recording industry. In the decade after the end of World War I, though, as radios and phonograph machines became cheap enough to be fixtures in even modest households, everything changed. As with another important form of music heard all over the South, the blues - which, significantly, exploded into public consciousness at precisely the same time - country music was suddenly "discovered" by record companies in the 1920s as a marketable genre. That the target audience was seen as essentially nostalgic in its tastes was evident by the title with which the biggest labels - Columbia, Okeh and Victor - identified such music in their catalogues: "Familiar Tunes," "Old-Time Tunes," and "Old Familiar Tunes." Significantly, though, even the earliest country recordings revealed that performers and listeners alike were attracted to a broad musical spectrum reflecting influences both traditional and contemporary. Take the Skillet Lickers, whose members were responsible for the first "hillbilly" records ever released by Columbia. Leader Gideon "Gid" Tanner was a Georgia chicken farmer by trade and a local fiddle contest champion by hobby when Columbia invited him to New York to cut some sides in 1924. For support, Tanner brought along blind guitarist and singer Riley Puckett, a mainstay on Atlanta's streets and a regular performer on that city's WSB, the South's first commercial radio station. Between Tanner's exuberant fiddling and Puckett's smooth vocals, the duo were an immediate success, and by 1926, their session lineup had expanded to include banjoist Fate Norris and fiddlers Lowe Stokes and Clayton McMichen, the latter a trained musician as interested in jazz and pop as old-time music. Recorded at the height of their popularity in 1929, their version of the 18th century British fiddle tune "Soldier's Joy" neatly captures the group's energy and barndance- ready spirit. Another key figure in the shaping of string band music during this era was Charlie Poole, who left life as a Piedmont region cotton mill worker to seek fame and fortune as a full-time touring musician leading his Carolina Ramblers. With an eclectic repertoire that mixed blues (the topical "White House Blues," about President McKinley's assassination), ballads (the train themed narrative, "Bill Mason") and breakdowns (his debut hit, "Don't Let the Deal Go Down," which reportedly sold over 100,000 copies), Poole also helped establish the image of the carefree rover found in his trio's name. In Poole's case, the image was all too real, as his reckless lifestyle and hard drinking put him (as he sang about McKinley) in an early grave in 1931 before he'd reached the age of forty. By that time, of course, another eclectic rambler, Mississippi's Jimmie Rodgers, had emerged as a country superstar, as had the Carter Family, the mythic family group who were discovered at the same historic 1927 Bristol, Tennessee audition session as Rodgers by then Victor Records executive Ralph Peer. The Virginia threesome - fruit tree salesman/song collector A.P. (Alvin Pleasant) Carter, his wife, guitarist/autoharp player Sara, and her cousin (and A.P.'s sister-in-law), guitarist Maybelle Carter - further expanded the emerging sound and scope of string band music, and profoundly so. The Carters' trademark vocals - generally featuring solos by Sara, duets between her and Maybelle and/or A.P., and chorus work by all three ? featured "shape note" styled harmonies that were familiar to churchgoing Southerners but theretofore little heard on commercial recordings. Their material ran the gamut from religious and inspirational tunes (such as their longstanding theme, "Keep On The Sunny Side") to blues ("Cannonball Blues," which borrowed part of its melodic structure from Poole's "White House Blues"), and neo-Gothic mountain ballads of tragedy and loss, such as the aching "I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blues." Finally - and for the purposes of discussing the evolution of country string band music, perhaps most importantly - there was Maybelle Carter's distinctive instrumental technique (heard to excellent effect on "Sunny Side"), whereby she picked a song's melody on her guitar's bass strings with her thumb while downstroking the higher strings with her fingers to maintain the rhythm. Almost as influential to country music's development was the dignified formality inherent in the Carters' presentation of their music, as well as their seemingly close-knit family image. (In truth, Sara and A.P., married in 1915, had a difficult relationship that fell apart by the early '30s - though they did continue to record and at times perform together until the 1940s.) As radio and recordings brought the music of the Carters and Rodgers to mass audiences (when the latter died of tuberculosis in 1933, mourning fans reportedly lined the tracks of the train that carried his body from New York down to Mississippi), record executives such as the Peer (Okeh, Victor, ARC), Eli Oberstein (Victor), and Art Satherley (Okeh, ARC, Columbia) scoured the land for performers who might find similar success. The result was that the nascent country field burst open on a variety of fronts throughout the 1930s. Following the call of Jimmie Rodgers' footloose yodels and at times jazz-tinged accompaniments, Southwestern styles including cowboy music and Western swing became part of the country vocabulary. So strong was the pull of this approach that when the Kentucky Ramblers, who'd started as a straightforward string band, headed off to join the National Barn Dance on Chicago's WLS in 1933, they renamed themselves the Prairie Ramblers and soon, dressed in appropriate garb, were backing singer Patsy Montana on "I Want to be A Cowboy's Sweetheart," the first major hit by a female country performer. The Ramblers, who recorded for a variety of labels and under a variety of names, are heard here as the "Blue Ridge Ramblers" on the swinging "D Blues," highlighted by Chick Hurt's skittering mandolin and Jack Taylor's slapping standup bass. Rodgers' fondness for the sliding Hawaiian guitar on some of his recordings helped inspire the development of the steel guitar and was also greatly responsible for the addition to the country string band lineup of the dobro - the unique-sounding metal-disced guitar created in the late 1920s by the Dopera brothers of California. Both instruments turn up on the early recordings of Roy Acuff, whose mingling of hoedowns ("Ida Red"), rags ("Lonesome Old River Blues"), and religion ("Wreck on the Highway") would ultimately help get him crowned the "King of Country Music." The East Tennessee native, a preacher's son who turned to music after a promising career as a (here it comes again) pro baseball player was cut short by a near-fatal bout with sunstroke, became the first real singing star of the Opry in 1937 - and you can hear the clear influence of the Carter Family in Acuff's breakthrough hit, "The Great Speckle Bird," whose melody comes straight from "I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes" and whose delivery by Acuff carries a decidedly Carter-like sobriety. The success of the Carters also spawned a host of performers that gave new meaning to the term homemade music - mostly in the form of numerous "Brother Acts" featuring siblings who'd grown up playing for recreation around the hearth before consciously making the leap (especially once the Great Depression hit) to try and become "professional" musicians. Popular brother acts proliferated throughout the South during the 1930s: Tennessee's Allen Brothers; North Carolina's Dixon Brothers; South Carolina's Bolick Brothers (aka the Blue Sky Boys); Alabama's Delmore Brothers; and, last but certainly not least, Kentucky's Monroe Brothers, Charlie and Bill. Growing up on the 650 acre family farm just outside Rosine, Kentucky, Bill Monroe was surrounded by music. While his father James farmed, operated a sawmill and mined coal, his mother Melissa encouraged her eight children to sing, dance and learn instruments. Bill especially loved the old-time fiddle tunes he heard whenever his mother's brother Pendelton Vandiver came to visit, and longed to play the fiddle, but that was his brother Birch's instrument. Guitar was his next choice, but another brother Charlie was the family's guitarist. The remaining stringed instrument in the house was mandolin, and so he began teaching himself to pick out fiddle tunes. As he got better, Charlie let him play his guitar, and it was on guitar that Bill Monroe made his first public appearances when he was barely a teenager, accompanying his Uncle Pen at dances and learning melody and timing. During this time, young Monroe also came to know a black guitarist named Arnold Schultz who lived in the area for a few years and whose earthy blues showed Bill another way to approach music - allowing one's emotions to spill freely into one's playing and singing. Both of Bill Monroe's parents had died by the late '20s, and at the turn of the decade he followed Birch and Charlie to Indiana, where he joined them at their job working at an oil refinery. To supplement their meager incomes, the three began playing dances and parties on weekends, and eventually joined the WLS National Barn Dance cast, where Monroe blossomed as a mandolinist and also listened with a keen ear to the progressive sounds of his fellow Kentucky natives, the Prairie Ramblers. By 1935, Birch had dropped out, and Bill and Charlie were back east pursuing careers as a full-time musical duo. Based at Charlotte's powerful WBT radio, they drew the attention of RCA-Victor's Eli Oberstein, who signed them to the company's Bluebird subsidiary, leading to their haunting 1936 hit recording of the spiritual, "What Would You Give in Exchange (For Your Soul)?" The Monroe Brothers made music that bristled with energy and verve, and audiences also were fascinated by the duo's personal chemistry - affable, outgoing Charlie, the lead singer with the ever-present grin, and shy, reserved Bill, the harmony singer and lightning-fingered soloist with the always serious look. When assorted differences - economic, artistic and personal - led the Monroe Brothers to go their separate ways in 1938, it was generally assumed that Charlie would lead another group and Bill would probably join one as an accompanist. While Charlie retained the Victor contract and formed the Kentucky Pardners, Bill went to Little Rock, Arkansas, where his first stab as a bandleader of a group he dubbed the Kentuckians, was unsuccessful. He then travelled to Atlanta, where he ran an ad in the paper for musicians and put together a new band he called the Blue Grass Boys. In the fall of 1939, Monroe and his band auditioned for George Hay and the Grand Ole Opry, leading to his debut there with a souped-up version of Jimmie Rodgers' "Mule Skinner Blues," wherein he not only sang lead - something he'd never once done with Charlie - but also played guitar rather than mandolin so as to make absolutely certain of the driving new rhythm he heard in his head. (A year later, when it came time to record the tune, perfectionist Monroe again played guitar.) The performance just about brought the house down, and Monroe was asked immediately to be regular on the show by a duly impressed Judge Hay, who told him that "If you ever leave the Opry, it'll be because you fired yourself." (Monroe would to stay an Opry member for the remainder of his long life.) Bill Monroe was now on his way to establishing not only a name for himself as a headliner, but as a true musical pioneer. He and his Blue Grass Boys sounded different because they *were* different. Playing virtually all their material - even their slowest numbers - at much faster tempos than other groups of the day, and in keys previously viewed as unthinkable for most groups that included a fiddle, Monroe's meticulously rehearsed crew began to revolutionize the way country string band music was played. They even *looked* different: Determined to be taken seriously on all levels, Monroe dressed his group accordingly - in starched white shirts, neckties, jodhpurs, riding boots and narrow-brimmed Stetsons. ("I suppose some folks thought we were the law," Monroe once dryly commented.) It's generally agreed that the full realization of Monroe's vision came in 1946, after a succession of personnel changes, some related to World War II and the draft and some attributable to his musical curiosity (witness the accordion on '45's "Rocky Road Blues"), resulted in a lineup that, while it lasted less than three years total, is still regarded - better than half a century removed - as the greatest in country string band history. Tennessee native and former textile mill worker Lester Flatt had, interestingly enough, been a member of Charlie Monroe's band - and as mandolin player and harmony singer no less - prior to his joining Bill to replace departing singer/guitarist Clyde Moody. Earl Scruggs, meanwhile, was a 21-year-old phenom from North Carolina who'd mastered a rolling three-fingered style of banjo playing associated with Piedmont pickers, most notably DeWitt "Snuffy" Jenkins. Looking for a banjo player to replace clawhammer-styled player David "Stringbean" Aikman (later to become well-known as a stonefaced comedian on the Hee Haw TV show, as would another clawhammer banjoist, Louis "Grandpa" Jones), Monroe auditioned Scruggs, whose virtuosity and adventurousness as an instrumentalist just about matched his own. With Flatt and Scruggs on board, as well as nimble fiddler Chubby Wise and bassist Howard Watts (Cedric Rainwater), Monroe began working up material to record for his new label, Columbia. That material, recorded at three sessions from 1946-48, would forever change the course of acoustic country music. Chief among the still-enduring treasures is the old-timey waltz, "Blue Moon of Kentucky," highlighted by Monroe's piercing tenor in a vocal performance that virtually defines what would later be called bluegrass' "High Lonesome Sound." (That term, by the way, which came into common usage after the New Lost City Ramblers' John Cohen used it as the title of his 1963 documentary about Kentucky mountain music, actually stemmed from a Country Gentleman song called "High Lonesome," in which the word "high" was used by composer John Duffey as a synonym for "really.") Another evergreen, "Will You Be Lovin' Another Man" features Lester Flatt's ever-inviting lead vocals on the verses, brother-styled harmonies from Monroe on the choruses, bluesy fiddle work from Wise and jump rhythms from Watts during the breaks, while "Molly and Tenbrooks (the Race Horse Song)" finds Scruggs' banjo and Monroe's mandolin fairly galloping along. And then there's perhaps the definitive instrumental of the genre, "Blue Grass Breakdown," with Monroe pushing the group into a frenetic pace that's positively jaw dropping, featuring thrilling solos from him, Scruggs and Wise that would become the holy grail to countless generations of aspiring musicians. It seemed the sky was the limit for Monroe and this edition of the Blue Grass Boys, but near the end of 1948, Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, tired of both a gruelling touring schedule and Monroe's often suffocatingly tight reins (both musically and financially), left the mandolinist and formed their own group, the Foggy Mountain Boys (named after a Carter Family song). Their first recordings away from Monroe yielded the signature instrumental, "Foggy Mountain Breakdown," propelled by Scruggs' almost stuttering banjo and Flatt's patented bass string runs. (The recording would re-surface in the late 1960s through its use in the film Bonnie and Clyde.) Leaving Mercury for Columbia in 1951, Flatt and Scruggs were soon eclipsing Monroe as the major stars of string band music on the strength of such definitive recordings as "Don't Get Above Your Raisin,'" "I'll Go Steppin' Too," "Earl's Breakdown" and "Flint Hill Special" - the latter two showcasing virtuoso Scruggs' inventive use of his tuning pegs for flashy effect. The proud and unflappable Monroe, meanwhile, simply went about his business, presiding over a long succession of ever-changing Blue Grass Boys, many of whom, following Flatt and Scruggs' example, would strike out on their own after "apprenticeships" with him. Virginian Mac Wiseman spent 1949 with Monroe - long enough to be heard on lead vocal on "Can't You Hear Me Callin'" - and by '52 was registering solo hits such the A.P. Carter evergreen, "I Wonder How The Old Folks Are At Home." Tennessee native Jimmy Martin replaced Wiseman, and spent the first half of the 1950s working on and off with Monroe - he's heard taking the lead on the chorus of "Uncle Pen," Monroe's tribute to his fiddler mentor - while also pursuing a solo career with recordings such as '54's "20/20 Vision" and 1960's "You Don't Know My Mind." In 1949, Monroe left Columbia Records for Decca, in part because the label had signed an act that Monroe felt sounded too much like him - the Stanley Brothers. While the Stanleys and their Clinch Mountain Boys (named in honor of their Virginia home), were undeniably influenced by Monroe and his band, they were no mere copycats. Guitarist Carter Stanley and his banjo-playing younger brother Ralph were more traditionally oriented than Monroe, especially in terms of the subject matter of their material, which often dealt with moral issues, both sacred and secular. On songs such as "The Fields Have Turned Brown" and "the White Dove," the Stanleys explored the hard choices faced by those who yearned to travel and experience life but who in the process were disconnecting from their families and long-held values. Moreover, their stately musicianship, which featured intricate trio harmonies and Ralph Stanley's unique blend of clawhammer and three-fingered banjo techniques - not to mention his other-worldly singing voice (heard in a rare lead on the folk standard, "I'm A Man of Constant Sorrow") - enabled the Stanleys to establish their own identity. Nonetheless, the Stanley's instrumental lineup and overall image, as well as that of another excellent brother-led group that began recording in the early 1950s, Jim and Jesse McReynolds and the Virginia Boys, and yet one more Virginia-based outfit, the husband and wife team of Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper and their Clinch Mountain Clan (featuring skillful dobro player Josh "Buck" Graves), gave strong evidence that Bill Monroe had indeed altered both the face and the direction of country string band music. By the middle of the decade it had grown sufficiently as a recognizable form to warrant its very own, appropriately Monroe derived handle: bluegrass. Bands began to pop up everywhere playing in the emerging style: North Carolina's Carl Story, a onetime Monroe fiddler, became heralded as the "Father of Bluegrass Gospel" by concentrating on religious material such as "My Lord Keeps A Record," "I Love the Hymns They Sang at Mother's Grave," "Don't You Hear Jerusalem Moan" and "Reunion in Heaven," the last two of which sported the rarity of electric guitar solos, courtesy of the inimitable Tennessean Chet Atkins, himself a former accompanist to Maybelle Carter and the Carter Sisters. Meanwhile, another electric guitarist (and like Story, a North Carolinian) Arthur Smith, manned a four string tenor banjo and teamed up with South Carolina five-string banjo ace Don Reno for "Feudin' Banjos," a novelty number that would later be resurrected by Eric Weissberg and Steve Mandell for the 1971 hit, "Dueling Banjos," from the movie Deliverance. Recording for MGM, the same label that released "Feudin' Banjos," Dayton-by-way-of-Kentucky brothers Sonny and Bobby Osborne turned in their own memorable double banjo recording with "Ruby, Are You Mad," a song originally written and recorded by their homestate's "Cousin Emmy" Carver and previously covered by Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper - but which, thanks to Bobby Osborne's spectacular high-pitched lead vocal, would forever be associated with them. While the Osbornes scored a top twenty country hit with 1958's "Once More," charting singles by bluegrass artists were few and far between - in part because mainstream country music began to change drastically after the mid-'50s rise of rock and roll (and let's not forget that the B-side of Elvis Presley's debut Sun Records recording in 1954 was a revved-up re-working of Bill Monroe's "Blue Moon of Kentucky" that shocked old-schoolers but not its author, who after all had similarly dared to shake up icon Jimmie Rodgers' "Mule Skinner Blues"). The country establishment's response to the raucousness of rock was the decidedly pop-oriented "Nashville Sound," which sought to smooth out country's edges with sophisticated arrangements and slick production values introduced by studio heads such as Decca's Owen Bradley and RCA's Chet Atkins. As country went uptown - and as Atkins later lamented regarding the music's identity crisis during this era, "It was the wrong uptown" - acoustic string band music was all but abandoned by radio stations and concert promoters who progressively regarded it as too old-fashioned. The Opry continued to feature bluegrass, but by 1959 it was fast becoming an endangered species. And then a remarkable thing happened: bluegrass became folk music. That the folk enthusiasts of the late 1950s began embracing bluegrass for precisely the reasons country music wanted to disown it is, in hindsight, one of the great musical ironies of all time. The downhome, plain-folk honesty of acoustic string band music, free of commercial trappings and artifice and teeming with a deep rooted sense of tradition, attracted a brand new audience for the genre - especially on college campuses, a circuit that was brand new to bluegrass musicians, too. Even though the sociopolitical viewpoints of left-leaning folkies and the mostly conservative bluegrassers couldn't have been more opposite, the shared excitement, of performers reaching fresh ears and listeners finding fresh sounds, broke down all manner of barriers. Key figures in bringing the folk and bluegrass universes together were Pete Seeger's younger half-brother, Washington, D.C.'s Mike Seeger, a gifted multi-instrumentalist whose band the New Lost City Ramblers faithfully played "old-timey" music and who in 1958 put together for Moses Asch's Folkways Records the groundbreaking American Banjo Scruggs Style album, and New Jersey native Ralph Rinzler, the mandolin player for the New York-based Greenbriar Boys who with Seeger helped bring bluegrass musicians to the Newport Folk Festivals of the 1960s and also helped Bill Monroe regain his perch as bluegrass' patriarch after becoming his manager in 1963. Even as bluegrass endeared itself to the folk crowd by celebrating its Appalachian roots - witness the Stanley Brothers' rendition of "Rank Stranger," highlighted by Ralph's spine-tingling lead on the choruses, and Maybelle Carter's ringing autoharp behind Flatt and Scruggs on their version of "Foggy Mountain Top" - the genre continued to evolve. Drums snuck in seamlessly into tracks like "Stoney Creek" and "Rabbit in the Log" at sessions by Jim and Jesse, while the Osbornes' "Rocky Top," an old-sounding new song penned by the legendary husband and wife songwriters Felice and Boudelaux Bryant, utilized not only drums, but steel guitar and piano as well. And even as the folk revival wound down in the mid to-late '60s, genre-centric bluegrass festivals - a concept inaugurated by Carlton Haney in Roanoke Virginia in 1965 and sealed with a stamp of approval two years later when Bill Monroe started his own annual gathering in Bean Blossom Indiana - helped the music maintain its commercial and artistic viability. By the end of the 1960s, a new generation of musicians from all across the country were carrying the bluegrass tradition forward. Inspired by a Doc Watson performance at a Los Angeles club, Clarence White developed into one of the most renowned guitarists in the entire genre as a member of Southern California's Kentucky Colonels. After he shifted to electric guitar and joined the folk rock group the Byrds at the turn of the decade, White brought bluegrass elements into their repertoire with breakneck-paced versions of "Black Mountain Rag (Soldier's Joy)" and his own "Bristol Steam Convention Blues," co-authored by the group's drummer and banjo player Gene Parsons. (White's untimely death at age 29 in 1973 - he was run over by a drunk driver in an L.A. parking lot - robbed the world of one of its most talented and innovative instrumentalists.) The Byrds' original bassist Chris Hillman was another Southern Californian who'd begun his career in bluegrass, and he dusted off his old mandolin for the Byrds' version of the Woody Guthrie classic, "Pretty Boy Floyd," found on their landmark country-rock album, Sweetheart of the Rodeo. Farther up the West Coast, San Francisco area native Herb Pedersen helped spearhead the progressive bluegrass movement of the 1970s with albums such as '76's Southwest, which featured a bracing new version of Bill Monroe's "Can't You Hear Mr Callin'," and the following year's Sandman, the source of "Cora Is Gone," a track sporting supporting vocals by country diva Dolly Parton. An especially fine harmony singer, Pedersen (who later would team with Chris Hillman in the hit '80s country group, the Desert Rose Band) contributed vocals to numerous recordings by Emmylou Harris, who helped bring the talents of Ricky Skaggs to the public's attention. A child prodigy who grew up in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky - at age five he appeared onstage at a Bill Monroe show in 1959 singing the Osborne Brothers' "Ruby" - Skaggs replaced Rodney Crowell in Harris' Hot Band after compiling an impressive resume that included stints with Ralph Stanley's Clinch Mountain Boys, the Country Gentleman, and J.D. Crowe's New south, as well as his own own band, Boone Creek, which featured young dobro master Jerry Douglas. Rising to stardom in Nashville as a solo artist in the early '80s, Skaggs, dubbed a "new traditionalist," proudly recorded material from the catalogues of mentors Stanley ("A Vision of Mother") and Monroe ("Uncle Pen") - and, in the process, was pivotal in bringing bluegrass music back within the pervue of country music proper. Another precocious youngster, Illinois' Alison Krauss, gathered so much attention winning fiddling championships while still in elementary school that Rounder Records signed her at sixteen expecting her to make her mark as an instrumentalist. Then they heard her sing. Krauss' disarmingly pure voice made her such a sensation that in 1993, at the ripe old age of twenty-one she was asked to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry - the first bluegrass musician to be so honored since the Orbornes and Jim and Jesse back in the early '60s. With her fine band, Union Station - featuring stellar guitarist/singer Dan Tyminski, top-notch banjo picker Ron Block, and the ubiquitous Jerry Douglas - and such distinctive recordings as the smoldering "So Long, So Wrong" and the intricate "Boy Who Wouldn't Hoe Corn," Krauss paved the way for an emerging group of female bluegrass musicians. Their ranks over the last decade have including the sprightly Missouri-bred singer and mandolinist Rhonda Vincent (heard here on 2001's "Is the Grass Any Bluer," a tribute to Bill Monroe, who passed away in 1996), and Texas' Dixie Chicks - Natalie Maines and sisters Emily Robison and Martie Maguire, whose platinum-selling music (represented on this collection by "Tortured Tangled Hearts") is, beneath the sassy, envelope-pushing image, firmly rooted in the guitar/banjo/fiddle acoustic string band tradition. In recent years, the bluegrass scene has been as healthy as it's been since the days of the folk revival. The Mountain, for example, singer-songwriter Steve Earle's self-described 1998 "bluegrass fantasy camp" collaboration with thr well-travelled Del McCoury, helped introduce countless listeners to a performer who forty years ago was duetting with Monroe, and it's hard to understimate the impact of the monumentally successful bluegrass and mountain music-filled 2001 O Brother Where Art Thou film soundtrack. Recent years have even seen classically-tinged bluegrass works emanating from ambitious artists including bassist Edgar Meyer, banjoist Bela Fleck and fiddlers Joshua Bell and Mark O'Connor. At present (summer 2004), legends such as Jimmy Martin, Mac Wiseman, Earl Scruggs and, especially the ever-noble Ralph Stanley (who, with Monroe's passing, has finally been receiving the mass recognition he's so long deserved), continue to be active - serving as vital representatives of this enduring all-American music. Those "ancient tones," as Bill Monroe once described the genesis of his muse, still resonate wherever bluegrass is played. And yes, even after some 80 years, we can still hear them calling loud and clear - and, Judge Hay would no doubt be pleased to know, still close to the ground. BILLY ALTMAN CREDITS Compiled and produced by Gregg Geller Mastered by Vic Anesini at Sony Music Studios, New York Disc transfers by Matt Cavaluzzo, Andreas Meyer and Ken Robertson
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