The Music of the Stanley Brothers

313 Pages·2014·2.835 MB·English

by  Gary B. Reid, Neil V. Rosenberg

The Music of the
S S
tanley Brother
GARY B. REID
Foreword by Neil V. Rosenberg
S The Music of the s
tanley Brother
Music in AMericAn Life
A list of books in the series
appears at the end of this book.
The Music of the
S s
tanley Brother
GAry B. reid
foreword by neil V. rosenberg
uniVersity of iLLinois Press
urBAnA, chicAGo, And sPrinGfieLd
© 2015 by the Board of Trustees
of the University of Illinois
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
p 5 4 3 2 1
∞ This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Library of Congress Control Number 2014956949
isbn 978-0-252-08033-3 (pbk.)
isbn 978-0-252-09672-3 (e-book)
ContentS
Acknowledgments vii
Getting to Know Gary reid | neil V. rosenberg xi
format of the discographies xv
1. death is only a dream: 1947–1948 1
discography 17
2. to us, that Would have Been the impossible:
columbia records, 1949–1952 20
discography 36
3. some of our Best recordings Were the Mercurys: 1953–1958 40
discography 71
4. “how Mountain Girls can Love”: the early King/starday years,
1958–1962 86
discography 137
5. “stone Walls and steel Bars”: the Later King years, 1963–1966 165
discography 201
numerical Listing of releases 225
notes 237
Bibliography 251
General index 259
song index 279

ACknowledgmentS
In many respects, compiling a history on the recordings of the Stanley Brothers has been a
collaborative effort. The first person to attempt to do this was Pete Kuykendall, who con-
ducted interviews with Carter and Ralph Stanley and published his research in a 1961 issue
of Disc Collector magazine (issue no. 16). A revised version was printed several years later. The
Stanley Brothers Fan Club, under the leadership of Fay McGinnis and Norma Fannin, issued
a 1966 publication called Meet the Stanley Brothers: Introductory Book, Biography, Discography,
Club Staff. The discography was “Reprinted from Disc Collector Publications: with thanks
to Pete Kuykendall, Lou Denumoustier [sic] & Jerry Mills, foreign releases credit of Dave
Crisp, Charles Benson, Charles Newman & Rodney McElrea.” From 1967 until 1970, a
group of dedicated researchers—Walter V. Saunders, Norm Carlson, Robert Ronald, and
Nick Barr—under the banner of the Ralph Stanley Fan Club, worked tirelessly to further
refine the discography. Their efforts appeared in several Fan Club journals during this time
period. It was a circa 1973 Ralph Stanley International Fan Club Journal, which I received in
1975, that sparked my interest in the recorded legacy of the Stanley Brothers.
As I began to study the material presented in the Journal, I started making notes in the
margins . . . tidbits of information I came across that I didn’t see listed in the discography. On
Thanksgiving Day in 1975, I decided to become proactive about my research. The December
issue of Bluegrass Unlimited arrived a few days ahead of its issue date, and an article by Frank
and Marty Godbey about fiddler and disc jockey Paul Mullins whetted my appetite. The
article briefly touched on the tours of duty that Mullins pulled with the Stanley Brothers.
But I had to know more. So, I dashed off a letter to Paul, hoping he would reply with a
more in-depth description of his time as a Clinch Mountain Boy. I never heard back from
him . . . not from this letter anyway. But the process had begun.
Over the years, I have contacted numerous individuals in an attempt to compile a con-
cise as possible Stanley Brothers discography. These have included Ralph Stanley, former
Clinch Mountain Boys and guests who appeared on the recordings, label owners and session
producers, songwriters, and bluegrass historians. I’ve also made use of research materials at
various libraries, museums, and universities.
From the beginning, Neil Rosenberg has been a supporter, enthusiast, and role model for
my endeavors. His 1974 book, Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys: An Illustrated Discography,
served as a template for much of my research, as did his later collaboration with Charles
Wolfe, The Music of Bill Monroe. Other scholars and writers have provided much useful in-
formation: Mary Katherine Aldin, Bob Artis, Fred Bartenstein, Roy Burke III, Bob Carlin,
Eddie Dean, Wayne Erbsen, Nate Gibson, Douglas Gordon, Clarence Green, Scott Hambly,
Lance Leroy, Penny Parsons, Dave Samuelson, Ivan Tribe, Bill Vernon, Joe Wilson, Charles
Wolfe, and John Wright, as well as the Country Music Foundation’s Danny Hatcher, Rob-
ert K. Oermann, Ronnie Pugh, and John Rumble, and the staff of the Roanoke, Virginia,
Public Library.
This story would not be complete without the remembrances of the Clinch Moun-
tain Boys and guest artists who performed on the various recordings: Chubby Anthony,
Johnnie Bonds, Roger Bush, Charlie Cline, Jack Cooke, Vernon Derrick, Henry Dockery,
Al Elliott, Howdy Forrester, Barry Glickman, Melvin Goins, Jay Hughes, Curley Lambert,
Hazel (Mrs. Pee Wee) Lambert, Bill Lowe, Vernon McIntyre Jr., Red Malone, Benny Martin,
Ralph Mayo, Gene Meadows, Joe Meadows, Sonny Miller, Doug Morris, Paul Mullins, Bill
Napier, Bobby Osborne, James Shelton, George Shuffler, John Shuffler, Charlie Sizemore,
William “Bill” Slaughter, Larry Sparks, Art Stamper, Harold “Red” Stanley, Ray Tate, Earl
Taylor, Little Roy Wiggins, Benny Williams, Jim Williams, Lester Woodie, and Art Wooten.
Songwriters likewise added their own insights with commentary about how their songs
came to be written or passed to the Stanley Brothers. Among those who shared their rec-
ollections with me were Jim Eanes, Cuddles Newsome, Mac Odell, Lance Spencer, Buddy
Starcher, and E. P. Williams.
People from the recording industry—label owners, producers, recording engineers, pro-
duction staff, and Musicians’ Union representatives—provided a lot technical information
such as recording dates and session locations as well as personal insights. These included
Rich-R-Tone’s Jim Stanton; Mercury’s D. Kilpatrick and Tom Pile; Starday’s Martin Haerle;
King’s Ron Lenhoff and Chuck Seitz; Magnum Recording Studio’s Tom Markham and
Tom Rose; Gusto/IMG’s Moe Lytle, Lawrence Bailey, Virginia Biggs, Amy Brakefield, Judy
Larson, Randall Merryman, Dorothy McCormick, and Chuck Young; Wango’s Ray Davis;
The World of Folk Music’s Oscar Brand; Cabin Creek’s Ola Belle Reed; Rimrock’s Wayne
and Loys Raney; Rebel/County Records owner David Freeman; and Bonita Maynard of
the Musicians’ Union Pension Fund.
Tapes of live concert performances provided source material that was issued on albums
and CDs. The documentation of these releases added significantly to the discography. The
live tapes also provided information about a number of the songs that were recorded in
studio settings. In his introductions to these and other songs during live performances, Carter
Stanley was fond of offering background information about the selections. In numerous
instances, this commentary served as the basis for the song histories that appear throughout
the discography. Among those who recorded live shows or made material available were
viii Acknowledgments
Benny and Vallie Cain, Larry Ehrlich, Alice Gerrard, Lamar Grier, Don Hoos, Pete Kuyken-
dall, Bill Offenbacher, Mike Seeger, and Peter K. Siegel.
Musicians (in addition to the Clinch Mountain Boys), associates, and friends helped to
shade and color the discography. Some were contemporaries of the Stanley Brothers and
offered personal recollections. Others were young devotees of the Stanley Sound who pro-
vided perspectives, enthusiasm, moral support, and—in some instances—companionship on
research road trips. These include Johnnie Bailes, Stephen Brandt, Bill Breazeale, Bill Clifton,
John Cohen, Dudley Connell, Lars Deijfen, Bob Ensign, Tom Gray, Gary Henderson, James
Leva, David McLaughlin, Frankie Moore, Tracy Schwarz, Mike Seeger, James Stiltner, Eddie
Stubbs, Dick Spottswood, and Roland White.
I have been privileged to have a variety of experts serve as readers of the manuscript. Each
was invaluable in pointing out errors, suggesting form and substance, and asking probing
questions about topics I had overlooked. Grateful appreciation to Heather Brush, Hank
Edenborn, Kerry Hay, Johnny Martin, Neil Rosenberg, Peter Thompson, and Richard F.
Thompson.
Members of the Stanley families have been very supportive of my efforts over the years
to document the music of the Stanley Brothers. Special thanks to Carter and Ralph Stanley
for making the music, and to Jeanie Stanley Allinder, Doris Bradley, Bill Stanley, Carter Lee
Stanley, and Mary Stanley.
The Stanley Brothers’ years in Florida are a separate subset of their overall career. A lot
of their recording activities during the late 1950s and early ’60s took place there. Helping to
put this era in perspective were Charles R. Bisbee Jr. of Jim Walter Homes, Aubrey Fowler,
Red and Murphy Henry, Clarence “Cousin Clare” Parker, and Bill Savitz.
Last, and by no means least, as I have navigated through life, my family has been very
gracious in affording me time and space in my pursuit of the Stanley Sound. Special thanks
to Susan Jordan, Bonnie Leder, Brice Reid, Corey Reid, and Maureen “Mosie” Welch.
Acknowledgments ix