Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. I Am the Man, Thomas
2. Take Your Shoes Off, Moses
3. Death Is Only a Dream
4. Brand New Tennessee Waltz
5. Two Coats
6. Bright Morning Star
7. Come on Little Children
8. Prettiest Flowers Will Be Blooming
9. Cry from the Cross
10. Step Out in the Sunshine
11. You're Drifting On
12. Gloryland
13. Stairway to Heaven
14. Will He Wait a Little Longer?
15. Sinner Man
16. Shotgun Slade
17. Old Time Pickin'
18. I'll Remember You Love in My Prayers

Disc 2:

1. John Henry
2. Pretty Little Indian
3. Little Birdie
4. Cripple Creek
5. East Virginia Blues
6. Little Glass of Wine
7. Somebody Touched Me
8. Sally Goodin'
9. Working on a Building
10. Roll in My Sweet Baby's Arms
11. Bound to Ride
12. Mississippi Sawyer
13. Going to Georgia
14. All the Love I Had Is Gone
15. Will You Miss Me?
16. Katy Daley
17. Little Boy Called Joe
18. Six More Miles
19. Cluck Old Hen
20. That Lonesome Old Song

Disc 3:

1. Man of Constant Sorrow
2. Pretty Polly
3. Maple on the Hill
4. Clinch Mountain Backstep
5. Lisa's Joy
6. Don't Ask Me Why
7. All I Ever Loved Was You
8. God Gave You to Me
9. Little Maggie
10. Flood of '57
11. Old Country Church
12. When I Get Home
13. These Men of God
14. My Lord's Been A-Walkin'
15. Green Pastures in the Sky
16. Give Me the Roses Now
17. Honey in the Rock
18. Hide Me, Rock of Ages
19. 10,000 Angels
20. Standing by the River
21. Village Church Yard
22. I Hold a Clear Title
23. Bill Cheatham
24. On and On
25. What About You?
26. Gonna Paint the Town
27. I Wonder How the Old Folks Are at Home
28. Who Will Sing for Me?

Disc 4:

1. Love Me Darling Just Tonight
2. Love Me Darling Just Tonight
3. Poison Love
4. Ridin' That Midnight Train
5. Loving You Too Well
6. Nobody's Love Is Like Mine
7. Cumberland Gap
8. Shout Little Lulie
9. Rocky Island
10. Old Time Pickin'
11. John Henry
12. Little Bridie
13. Bound to Ride
14. Lonesome River
15. Fields Have Turned Brown
16. Hard Times
17. Train 45
18. Gold Watch and Chain
19. You Kow I'll Be Lonesome
20. Orphan Girl
21. I'm Going That Way
22. Brighter Mansion
23. Who Is That?
24. Going up Home to Live in Green Pastures
25. I Wanna Make Heaven My Home
26. Rank Strangers
27. Angels Band
28. I Want to Preach the Gospel
29. Dark and Thorny Is the Desert
30. Great High Mountain
31. Rose Among the Thorns

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #110590 in Music
• Released on: 1995-07-11
• Number of discs: 4
• Format: Box set

Amazon.com
Considering the tremendous role that family has played throughout his life, it was by no means a foregone conclusion that Ralph Stanley would persevere in music following his brother Carter's death in 1966. Not only did the younger Stanley choose to carry on (at the age of 40) the tradition of the Stanley Brothers, he was able to build on it. The Clinch Mountain Boys circa 1971--Stanley, Curly Ray Cline, Roy Lee Centers, and Jack Cooke--already ranked among the elite ensembles in bluegrass before Stanley added the talents of young bucks Keith Whitley and Ricky Skaggs. This glorious four-CD box is at once a celebration of Stanley's return to peak form and a thorough and thoroughly rewarding investigation of this classic period in Clinch Mountain Boys history. All facets of this band are revealed: breakneck traditional fiddle and banjo tunes, scintillating a cappella gospel harmonies, rousing live cuts from their 1971 Japanese tour, old-time favorites from the Carter Family, and, of course, a full slate of Stanley Brothers classics. If anything, Stanley's own mountain whang became even more spine-shivering as time passed. --Marc Greilsamer

Customer Reviews

Classic Stanley Sound Lives On
Dr. Ralph Stanley spent two decades as one of the Stanley Brothers and is now in his fourth decade, since Carter Stanley's death in 1966, of his solo career. This collection contains eight LPs that highlight the early years of the Ralph Stanley era. An excellent book contains contemporary reviews of the LPs, a discography,and photos from the early seventies.

The 96 cuts include Stanley's clawhammer and three-finger banjo picking, his unique a cappella gospel singing, over 25 songs originally recorded by the Stanley Brothers, and great instrumentals. The Clinch Mountain Boys of this era included Roy Lee Centers, whose vocals were as close to Carter Stanley's singing as anyone will ever get. The last of these LPs was cut shortly before Centers' senseless murder. Jack Cooke remains the bassist to this day. The late Curly Ray Cline played fiddle for Ralph until his retirement in the early nineties. Teenaged Keith Whitley and Ricky Scaggs also perform on several cuts as they begin their careers.

My favorites in this collection are THE LONESOME RIVER, LOVING YOU TOO WELL, and SIX MORE MILES. This version of THE LONESOME RIVER displays the Stanley Sound at its best. It features the high baritone trio harmony Carter and Ralph introduced on Columbia Records in the late forties. The similarity between Ralph and Roy Lee harmonies and the Stanley Brothers harmonies doesn't get any better than in LOVING YOU TOO WELL. Both songs are classic examples of Carter Stanley's writing talents. Ralph's solo on SIX MORE MILES is the best I've heard of this Hank Williams classic.

No matter what type of bluegrass or traditional mountain music you like, you'll find it here and you'll find it done right. Dr. Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys don't know any other way to do it!

Look no farther
In my opinion, this is the best representation of Ralph Stanley music available to the public. Ralph Stanley played the banjo during this period like no other picker nor frailer. Both right-hand styles are well-represented on these 4 discs. Please be aware, and this may go unnoticed by the uninitiated, but Dr. Stanley's right-hand style is akin to the phenomenon of why bee's fly, but physically shouldn't. He applies an extra grace note with his forefinger within both his clawhammer and three-finger styles making him unique among the species, known as banjo players. The result is more sound and rhythm with his phrases. The earlier frailers he was exposed to no doubt influenced this style. It is really amazing! It invokes the goal most old time banjo and fiddle players seek which is to create the sound of bagpipes. The bass drone occurs along with the tenor melody simultaneously. The dual voice fiddle is also well-represented on these discs. Seriously, dual voice fiddle is a real deal we should appreciate more when we listen to so-called bluegrass. I suggest this isn't bluegrass. This is old time music, please.

The unaccompanied ballads are haunting and truly a vista to the old Baptist rule of no instrumentation for the hymns in church. I play these discs so often, I'm worried about wearing them out. The instrumentals on disc 4 are great examples of Dr Stanley on his game!

This label and period is my favorite version of Ralph Stanely. Thank you Ralph Stanley!

THE BEST traditional mountain music you could ever hope for!
It get's no better than this 4 cd set. If you want a true mountain music sound, this is a must have purchase. Most people know how haunting and authentic Dr. Stanley's vocals are thanks to the "O'Brother" soundtrack and you will get the same heartfelt sound on these CD's. What you may not know is that Ralph shares lead singing responsibility with Roy Lee Centers, perhaps the finest Bluegrass singer to ever step in front of a microphone. You may not know the name but Roy Lee was the lead singer and guitar player for The Clinch Mountain Boys from 1971 until his death in 1974. This is a huge portion of the best work the band ever did.

In addition to Ralph and Roy Lee's singing you get the added bonus of musicians like Curly Ray Cline, Jack Cooke and the Kentucky teenagers the world would later know as Keith Whitley and Ricky Skaggs. If you want to throw around the term supergroup, this would be the perfect opportunity to do so.

This is Mountain Music based on the religion and heartache of Southern Appalachia. If you have never had the opportunity to sit in a holler and listen to the old folks harmonize and pick tunes on a cool fall night, this is a close as you will ever get. BUY IT TODAY!