Song:The Fields Have Turned Brown
Album:The Complete Columbia Stanley Brothers
Along with Bill Monroe, The Stanley Brothers were pioneers in popularizing bluegrass music. This comp has everything they recorded for Columbia from 1949-52. Most bluegrass fans will be familiar with Ralph Stanley but older brother Carter died prematurely or he would be better known. The Stanley Brothers are from the mountains of Virginia. Carter Stanley was born Aug. 27, 1925. Ralph Stanley was born Feb. 25, 1927. They grew up interested in music and persued it after WWII ended. They called themselves The Clinch Mountain Boys and appeared regularly on the Farm and Fun Time program on radio station WCYB in Bristol, TN. They signed with Rich-R-Tone Records in 1947. Carter played guitar and sang lead and Ralph played banjo and sang in a high tenor to contrast. They signed with Columbia in 1948 and wrote and recorded many bluegrass standards. Ralph was injured in a car crash in 1951 and Carter went to work for Bill Monroe. But they got together after Ralph recovered. They moved to Mercury Records in 1953. Those records were more commercial. They moved to Florida in 1960 and signed with Starday Records and then King Records and continued to perform regularly on radio and occasionally on TV. But Carter Stanley was an alcoholic and died of cirrhosis on Dec. 1, 1966 at age 41. Ralph Stanley wasn't sure if he wanted to continue in music but King Records owner Syd Nathan urged him to record as a solo artist. He still tours today and is one of the most respected names in bluegrass music. This CD is a must for bluegrass fans. Here's The Stanley Brothers performing Worried Man Blues on The Pete Seeger Show in 1964.
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