The Stanley Brothers’ classic 1960 recording of Rank Stranger has been chosen by The Librarian of Congress as one of the culturally-significant audio recordings to be added to their National Recording Registry for preservation. Each year 25 new pieces of audio are added to the archive – some from commercial recordings, others from radio broadcasts or field recordings.

This archive was created in 2000 and now contains 275 audio files, some dating from the late 19th century, though not all are actually housed at the Library of Congress. You can see the complete list, presented in chronological order on the National Recording Preservation Board web site.

Bluegrass fans have cherished both this song and the Stanleys’ recording of it for nearly 50 years. It is still played all over the world by amateur and professional bluegrass bands, and almost always using the arrangement that The Stanley Brothers recorded.

Here is a video of Ralph and Carter performing Rank Stranger on television, with the definitive George Shuffler kickoff. It would appear to be from the early ’60s – maybe our bluegrass historian friends can shed some more more light on that question.

UPDATE 12:40 p.m. -  As I suspected he might, British Bluegrass News editor Richard F. Thompson has some more information about Rank Stranger. From Richard’s update:

Gary Reid, the person to ask about matters relating to the Stanley Brothers, has this comment on hearing the news …………

(It) is among the best-known of their many recordings. It is, to me, perhaps the song that best captures the highly emotive quality of the Stanley Brothers singing. I think a lot of things conspired to make this recording a classic.

First, and foremost, is the singing of the brothers. Carter Stanley’s lead vocals are strong and self-assured, yet full of ache. You believe the sadness in his lyric is painfully real. And on the choruses, Ralph delivers an equally expressive, yet haunting, counterpoint.

Curly Lambert’s mandolin intro, and his work throughout the song, has been cited as his best work on record. And, there’s the quality of the recording itself. (more…)

We got a note last week from our friend Big Mike Ramsey about an event that many of our readers will want to support. It’s a benefit show scheduled for this weekend (5/9) for John Shuffler, one of the unsung heroes from the early days of bluegrass music.

His brother George may be better known to bluegrass fans for his crosspicking guitar playing with the Stanleys, with whom John also spent time on bass. John suffered a stroke in February, and was hospitalized for almost 2 months. The show this weekend is to help with the unreimbursed medical expenses.

The show will be held at The Old Rock Schcool in Valdese, NC from 7:00-10:00 p.m. Scheduled to perform in a round robin concert are The John Shuffler Band, Strictly Clean and Decent, The Laurel Creek Band, Eric Ellis, David Johnson, Les Deaton, Alan Johnson, Rick Norris, Herb Lambert, David Wiseman and David Carswell. Russ Jordan will serve as M.C.

Ramsey, who played bass with Linville Ridge – and sired Mountain Heart’s scary good mandolinist, Aaron – shared a few thoughts about John…

“In Louisville, KY, during the IBMA, about 1999 or maybe 2000, Sonny Osborne came up with the idea of recognizing the notable ’sidemen’ in bluegrass music’s relatively short history. This was done during the awards show.

As they were fading out at the end of each presentation/performance segment, to the gaps for radio advertising, they were scrolling names of these musicians being recognized. I squalled great big when I saw the name John Shuffler scroll by. I think Aaron & Perry Woodie about jumped out of the boxed seat section where we were seated.

I was glad they recognized John for his time spent with Ralph & Carter.

According to Ron Shuffler, this will be a donation only event, with rotating musicians in many and varied combinations with ALL the funds collected going to John Shuffler. If you come, you’ll probably get to see big old me playing bass for a bit and then if you watch closely, you’ll see big old me contribute to John’s funds as well.

The Rock School seats 473. We can get 500 people in there if they pull out chairs. Now, if the place was full, and everyone gave a $20 bill, that would generate $10,000 towards helping John with his medical bills.”

Anyone who is unable to attend, but who would like to make a contribution towards John’s medical expenses,you can send them to the following address:

Jamming in the lobby is both encouraged and expected.

Bob Webster, the WAMU/bluegrasscountry presenter of the Sunday morning programme Stained Glass Bluegrass, and regular contributor Richard F Thompson have collaborated to bring this story about the origins of the song The White Dove, the Stanley Brothers’ favourite.

An abridged version of the story will appear in a forthcoming edition of British Bluegrass News magazine.

On this date (1 March) 60 years ago the Stanley Brothers recorded the now classic The White Dove for Columbia Records.

It was a song that Carter Stanley wrote while on the road according to what he told Mike Seeger, shortly before he passed away,

"I have done the most songs that I have written at night. A lot of times travelling; you know, nobody saying much, your mind wanders, one thing to another. I guess  you’d call it imagination. I remember very well when I wrote ‘The White Dove’. We was coming home from Ashville, North Carolina, to Bristol, Tennessee, and I had the light on because I wanted to write it down and Ralph was fussing at me for having the light on. He was driving and he said the light bothered him, but he hasn’t fused any more about that."

About 10 years later Ralph confirmed that, when speaking to Bob Cantwell,

"It was one of his first songs. He was in the back seat of the car writing that and by the time we got to the radio station near home we had a verse and chorus worked out. I don’t know what caused him to think of the white dove except that he was studying on it, how it could affect you‚Ķ"

The White Dove was the second song recorded, among eight that they did that day during a session at Castle Studio, in the Tulane Hotel, in Nashville, Tennessee.

Three out of the four, including The White Dove, were given different treatment from the normal Stanley Brothers’ approach to their trio arrangement.  At the suggestion of Art Wooten, they introduced a high baritone vocal, with Pee Wee Lambert and Ralph Stanley singing above Carter Stanley’s lead.

The White Dove was paired with Gathering Flowers for the Master’s Bouquet on a Columbia 78, No. 20577, released on 4 April, 1949. In addition to Carter Stanley (guitar), Ralph Stanley (banjo) and Lambert (mandolin), the recording featured ‚ÄòJay’ Hughes (bass) and Bobby Sumner (fiddle).

We know from symbolic traditions that white doves are associated with love and devotion, peace and unity. They mate for life and strive to return home. Although we’re not sure exactly what Biblical reference Crarer Stanley may have had in mind in writing the White Dove, there are several connections with scripture from the Holy Bible.

We learn in the Book of Genesis, Chapter 8, that after forty days of the great flood, Noah was still on the ark when he first released a raven to search for land.  Then Noah sent forth a dove to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground, but the dove found no place to set her foot and returned to the ark.  Noah waited another seven days and again sent out the dove.  This time the dove returned with a freshly plucked olive leaf, a sign the waters were receding.  Noah waited another seven days and sent forth the dove again and she did not return, an indication of having found land. (more…)

In the course of two days just over fifty years ago, the Stanley Brothers began an era that was to last on-and-off right through and beyond Carter Stanley’s premature passing on December 1, 1966.

Carter and Ralph along with the Clinch Mountain Boys of the day began their association with King Records of Cincinnati, Ohio, on September 30 with their first recording session after signing for the label earlier in the year.

The sessions on that date and the following day produced all 12 recordings that ultimately came out on the eponymous LP album with the catalogue number King 615.

The personnel involved in the sessions, which took place at the multi-functional King headquarters, supporting Carter and Ralph, were Bill Napier (mandolin), Al Elliott (bass and baritone vocals) and the recently recruited fiddler Ralph Mayo.

The Stanley brothers had long been noted for writing their own material, but these sessions marked an unusual departure from the norm. Carter certainly wrote many of the songs for the sessions except Love Me, Darling, Just Tonight, a song that the brothers learned from fellow entertainer on the Farm & Fun Time program in Bristol, Virginia-Tennessee, Red Malone. However, for the first time Carter used the name Ruby Rakes, who was his half-sister and lived in Michigan, if I recall correctly, for copyright purposes. Two other songs, Heaven Seemed So Near and Your Selfish Heart, were written by Elliot, although Carter had a share in the composer credits.

The latter song was about Elliott’s niece and her boyfriend, as Elliott told Stanley brothers’ historians Doug Gordon and Roy Burke III…

“It’s just a little story that come in my mind and I just wrote it. It gave me a real good feeling to know that they [the Stanley brothers] were gonna record two of my songs for a big recording company like that.” [King]

How Mountain Girls Can Love and The Memory Of Your Smile, the last two songs from the session were what Carter described during a live performance at New River Ranch earlier that month as “new ones.” However, for some reason when the brothers cut The Memory Of Your Smile they left out a verse that they had sung during that aforementioned appearance.

The following day, a Wednesday, as was October 1 this year, the quintet cut four instrumental numbers; Ralph’s Mastertone March and Train 45, which was learned from old-time fiddler G B Grayson. The brothers added a spoken exchange that resembled that of Bill Monroe’s on his Victor recording of Orange Blossom Special. Other two instrumental pieces, Clinch Mountain Backstep and Midnight Ramble were re-arrangements of the breakdown Lost John and Monroe’s first mandolin tune Tennessee Blues, respectively. (more…)