Clinch Mountain Echo

CMB Birthdays this month:

07 Oct 1877 - Midland County Chicken String Band. Born 'James Cowan Powers' in Russell, Virginia.

28 Oct 1981 - Dewey Brown.

31 Oct 1930 - Lindy Clear. Born 'Lindbergh Hugh Clear' in Washington, Rappahannock, Virginia.


In Memoriam:

06 Oct 1986 - Art Wooten. Alleghany, North Carolina.

11 Oct 2007 - Benny Williams. Nashville, Tennessee.

17 Oct 2024 - Claude 'Buddy' Moore. Crum, West Virginia.

22 Oct 1982 - Curley Lambert. Florida.


For the Official Ralph Stanley II and the Clinch Mountain Boys site, visit:

Ralph II ralph2.com


CME Recommends...

A Life Of Constant Sorrow
alifeofsorrow.com

CME Recommends...

Ralph Stanley Museum
ralphstanleymuseum.com

CME Recommends...

Hills Of Home Festival
drralphstanleyfestival.com

CME Recommends...

Rebel Records
rebelrecords.com

CME Recommends...

Bluegrass Unlimited
Bluegrass Unlimited
Clinch Mountain Echo

The Stanley Brothers - Memory Of Your Smile / Suwannee River Hoedown

(King 5210) Jun 1959


Memory Of Your Smile

This 7" was released about three months after the classic The Stanley Brothers And The Clinch Mountain Boys LP (King 615), which featured The Memory Of Your Smile.

'Billboard' magazine reviewed the disc in their 1st June 1959 edition, with Memory... getting 3-stars and being described as:- "Plaintive vocalising on a moving weeper. Worth rural spins". The flpside, Suwannee River Hoedown got 2-stars and was summed up as:- "Bouncy hoedown is wrapped up in lively fiddle solo work."[1]

The Memory Of Your Smile is a splendid bar-room bluegrass tale of the pain of being dumped by your gal, with soulful vocals from Carter. As with all the previously unpublished songs released on the early King period, it was credited to Ralph and Carter's half-sister Ruby Rakes, but was later credited to Ralph and Carter on Ralph's 1981 The Memory Of Your Smile LP and to Carter alone on the 2001 Clinch Mountain Sweethearts CD. The instrumental, Suwannee River Hoedown, was similarly credited to Ruby Rakes but written by Chubby Anthony and Carter Stanley.

Suwannee River Hoedown, was recorded at the end of the sessions for the gospel LP Hymns And Sacred Songs in Feb 1959. It was later included on the Stanley's In Person album in Nov 1960.

Both sides of the 7" can now be found on The Early Starday/King Years, 1958-1961 4xCD box set.

PS: For the banjo players, Suwannee River Hoedown is in 'D' tuning (f# D F# A D)... and there's good banjo tab for it on Gary Bates's (aka Stanleytone) page on the banjohangout.

 

For a detailed breakdown and background to the Stanley's sessions, check Gary B. Reid's The Music Of The Stanley Brothers book, 91-92, 94-95, 139 and 140-141.

 

Track:
Title:
Time:
Date:
Original Release:
A-1
The Memory Of Your Smile
02:19
30 Sep 1958
Stanley Bros. & The Clinch Mtn Boys

Ruby Rakes
  Ld Vcl - Gtr Tn Vcl - Bjo Fid Mnd Bt Vcl - Bs    
  Carter Stanley
Ralph Stanley
Ralph Mayo
Bill Napier
Al Elliot
 
 
B-1
Suwannee River Hoedown
02:36
11 Feb 1959
King 5210

Ruby Rakes
  Gtr Bjo Fid Mnd Bs    
  Carter Stanley
Ralph Stanley
Chubby Anthony
Al Elliot
George Shuffler
 
 
Other artwork / related images:
Suwannee River Hoedown

[1] https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=CiAEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA50&dq=billboard+stanley+brothers+Memory+of+your+smile&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjd0feN0O3UAhWiLsAKHX20DKsQ6AEILDAB#v=onepage&q=billboard%20stanley%20brothers%20Memory%20of%20your%20smile&f=false

For the Official Ralph Stanley II and the Clinch Mountain Boys site, visit:

Ralph II ralph2.com

Spotlight on:-

Best Of Grand Old Gospel 2008
(Gusto GT-0623-2)


CME Recommends...

A Life Of Constant Sorrow
alifeofsorrow.com

CME Recommends...

Ralph Stanley Museum
ralphstanleymuseum.com

CME Recommends...

Hills Of Home Festival
drralphstanleyfestival.com

CME Recommends...

Rebel Records
rebelrecords.com

CME Recommends...

Bluegrass Unlimited
Bluegrass Unlimited