Chappaqua Library, January 28, 2023 “Setting the Woods on Fire” (Hank Williams, 1952) Written by Fred Rose and Edward G. Nelson, this is a great example of why many people said that Fred Rose could write a Hank Williams song better than anyone, even Williams himself. Since the song first hit the airwaves, people have … Continue reading Program Notes: Tennessee Walt’s The Other Great American Songbook
Carter Family
Sing Me a Sad Song
“What is it you like so much about the sad songs?” One of the things I enjoy the most about the country shows I’ve been doing for the past few years is the opportunity to talk to audience members afterward. People come up to tell me that they’ve enjoyed the show, to take issue with … Continue reading Sing Me a Sad Song
‘The Most Important Event in the History of Country Music’
On August 6, 1927, Ralph Peer left Bristol. By Monday, August 8, there weren’t many people who even remembered that the Bristol Sessions had happened. Most of the musicians who had auditioned for him were already back in their everyday lives, scrambling to get by. Peer returned to New York, Bristol went about its business … Continue reading ‘The Most Important Event in the History of Country Music’
Straight from Clinch Mountain
It’s easy enough to see why Jimmie Rodgers caught Ralph Peer’s eye in Bristol. A show-business veteran with the gift of the gab and a zest for self-promotion, Rodgers was a dapper dresser with a fine, flexible voice, brimming with self-confidence, and he had that yodel to set him apart from the crowd. The songs … Continue reading Straight from Clinch Mountain
If You’ve Got the Money: The Economics of the Bristol Sessions
The Bristol Sessions looms large in history for artistic reasons: They launched the careers of Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family, whose music would define the parameters of country music for generations to come. However, the Sessions were not primarily an artistic exercise, but rather an economic one. Ralph Peer wasn’t in Bristol looking for … Continue reading If You’ve Got the Money: The Economics of the Bristol Sessions
Why Bristol?
Today “the Bristol Sessions” is a portmanteau phrase in its own right, so much a given to country-music aficionados that it hardly seems necessary to ask questions such as “why were there sessions in Bristol?” or, more relevant to this discussion, “Why were the sessions in Bristol?” They didn’t have to be. In the 1910s … Continue reading Why Bristol?
2 States, 12 Days and 90 Years: It’s Time for a Party
I spent a chunk of last summer toying with the idea of staging a country-music festival this summer to mark the 90th anniversary of the Bristol Sessions, aka the Big Bang of Country Music. Sadly, Country 90 NYC (as it was provisionally called) didn’t come together; we’ll just have to wait for 2027 and Country … Continue reading 2 States, 12 Days and 90 Years: It’s Time for a Party
Hank Williams’ Apostrophe: A Quest for Authenticity
The title of the song is “Your Cheatin’ Heart.” That much is clear. It’s right there on the cover of the sheet music, as published by Williams’ own publisher, Acuff-Rose, in 1952. Of that there is no possible doubt whatever. Thereafter, though, things get murky. It seems obvious that, if you’re singing the song, the … Continue reading Hank Williams’ Apostrophe: A Quest for Authenticity
Squaring the `Circle’
If you visit the Grand Ole Opry in Music Valley, which I highly recommend, and if you get there early, you’ll have the chance to see a promotional video of past Opry highlights. Prominently featured is a clip from Sept. 28, 2010, the night the Opry reopened after being seriously damaged by the Nashville flood … Continue reading Squaring the `Circle’
An Overlooked Country Gem
Aficionados of classic country acknowledge the original Carter Family as among the wellsprings of country music. The hundreds of songs recorded by A.P., Sara and Maybelle Carter in the 1920s and 1930s are considered foundational works. Most discussion of the Carters, however, then slides effortlessly along to June Carter and her work with Johnny Cash … Continue reading An Overlooked Country Gem
Tennessee Walt 