We created Pandora to put the Music Genome Project directly in your hands
It’s a new kind of radio –
stations that play only music you like
Now Playing
Music Feed
My Profile
People who also like this
Also listening to:
Ralph Stanley
Born in Stratton, Virginia in 1927, Ralph Stanley and his older brother Carter formed the Stanley Brothers and the Clinch Mountain Boys. In 1946 Ralph and Carter were being broadcast from radio station WCYB in Bristol, Virginia. The music, which was inspired by their Virginia mountain home, was encouraged by their mother, who taught Ralph the clawhammer style of banjo picking. They recorded for such companies as the small Rich-R-Tone label and later Columbia, a relationship that lasted from 1949 until 1952. These classic sessions defined the Stanleys' own approach to bluegrass and made them as important as Bill Monroe. After leaving Columbia, the Stanleys were with Mercury, Starday, and King. Leaning toward more gospel at times, Carter and Ralph made a place for themselves in the music industry. In December 1966, Carter Stanley died in a Virginia hospital after a steady decline in health. He was just 41 years old. After much consideration and grief, Ralph carried on without Carter. Already their haunting mountain melodies made them stand apart from other bluegrass bands, but Ralph expanded upon this foundation and took his own "high lonesome" vocals to a new plane.
Popular at bluegrass festivals, Ralph and each edition of the Clinch Mountain Boys grew to be one of the most respected outfits in bluegrass. As far west as California and even up in the hollers of Kentucky, people were drawn to the poignant, mournful sound of Ralph Stanley's style. Different from all the rest, Ralph's ability to hit the right notes and chords made him a singer of trailblazing proportions. Ralph continued to record for a wide variety of labels, including Jalyn, Rebel, King Bluegrass, Blue Jay, Jessup, Stanleytone, his own label, and Freeland. He was a devoted family man, but Ralph's constant touring took its toll on his first marriage, a union that produced daughters Lisa Joy and Tonya and oldest son Timothy. His second wife, Jimmie, also a singer, gave him another son late in life; Ralph II followed in both his father's and uncle's footsteps and played in the Clinch Mountain Boys with his dad.
A Bluegrass Hall of Fame member along with Carter, Ralph Stanley was an inspiration to Dwight Yoakam, Emmylou Harris, the late Keith Whitley, and even Monroe acolyte Ricky Skaggs. With his raw emotions and three-fingered banjo technique, he helped bring a mountain style of bluegrass music to mainstream audiences. A full survey of the Stanley Brothers' career, including sides they recorded for several different labels, finally appeared in 2007 with Time Life's three-disc Definitive Collection box set. Stanley's brand of bluegrass was always only a half step away from the Appalachian string band and church music of his youth, and in his autumn years he continued to do what he’d always done -- sing and play in a style that could really be called “Mountain Gospel Soul.” He marked his 40th year of recording for Rebel Records with the release of A Mother’s Prayer in 2011. ~ Jana Pendragon & Steve Leggett, Rovi
Popular at bluegrass festivals, Ralph and each edition of the Clinch Mountain Boys grew to be one of the most respected outfits in bluegrass. As far west as California and even up in the hollers of Kentucky, people were drawn to the poignant, mournful sound of Ralph Stanley's style. Different from all the rest, Ralph's ability to hit the right notes and chords made him a singer of trailblazing proportions. Ralph continued to record for a wide variety of labels, including Jalyn, Rebel, King Bluegrass, Blue Jay, Jessup, Stanleytone, his own label, and Freeland. He was a devoted family man, but Ralph's constant touring took its toll on his first marriage, a union that produced daughters Lisa Joy and Tonya and oldest son Timothy. His second wife, Jimmie, also a singer, gave him another son late in life; Ralph II followed in both his father's and uncle's footsteps and played in the Clinch Mountain Boys with his dad.
A Bluegrass Hall of Fame member along with Carter, Ralph Stanley was an inspiration to Dwight Yoakam, Emmylou Harris, the late Keith Whitley, and even Monroe acolyte Ricky Skaggs. With his raw emotions and three-fingered banjo technique, he helped bring a mountain style of bluegrass music to mainstream audiences. A full survey of the Stanley Brothers' career, including sides they recorded for several different labels, finally appeared in 2007 with Time Life's three-disc Definitive Collection box set. Stanley's brand of bluegrass was always only a half step away from the Appalachian string band and church music of his youth, and in his autumn years he continued to do what he’d always done -- sing and play in a style that could really be called “Mountain Gospel Soul.” He marked his 40th year of recording for Rebel Records with the release of A Mother’s Prayer in 2011. ~ Jana Pendragon & Steve Leggett, Rovi
Selected Discography
x
Track List: A Mother's Prayer
x
Track List: Old-Time Pickin'
x
Track List: Mountain Preacher's Child
x
Track List: A Distant Land To Roam: Songs Of The Carter Family
x
Track List: Shine On
x
Track List: Poor Rambler
Disc 1
Disc 2
Disc 3
x
Track List: Live At The Smithsonian
x
Track List: Cry From The Cross
x
Track List: Clinch Mountain Gospel
x
Track List: Man Of Constant Sorrow
x
Track List: While The Ages Roll On
x
Track List: Clinch Mountain Country
Disc 1
Disc 2
x
Track List: Ralph Stanley And The Clinch Mountain Boys: 1971-1973
Disc 1
Disc 2
Disc 3
Disc 4
x
Track List: Almost Home
x
Track List: Saturday Night And Sunday Morning
Disc 1
Disc 2
x
Track List: Bound To Ride
x
Track List: Classic Bluegrass
x
Comments
#1 in the business