Curly Ray Cline - The Deputy

(Nashville Country NCLP 101) 1988

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With the exception of the final track, this album was recorded on 7th May 1986, just over a month after they'd recorded the Lonesome And Blue LP. It therefore was Charlie Sizemore's last session as a Clinch Mountain Boy.

Compared to Curly's previous Smarter Than The Average Idiot album, this effort is a return to the more straighforward mix of fiddle tunes and Curly Ray vocals (Waltz Of The Wind, I Wonder Why, She'll Be Coming Around The Mountain, Adieu False Heart).

The only really odd track is The Bee, a fiddle tune which alternates between a long drawn out fiddle notes and the full band at irregular intervals.

The final song, Verdie Let Your Bangs Hang Down, features banjo and lead vocal by John Wright. This was recorded at the end of the Lonesome And Blue session on 2nd April 1986. ^[1]

It's very odd how this album came to be released as "Ralph Stanley and His Clinch Mountain Boys". Like most of Curly's albums Ralph is largely playing back-up... Maybe Jack Lynch figured there would be more money in it... I can't help but wonder whether the band knew. Nowadays the album is relatively hard to find.

In 1994 it was reissued on CD-R (Nashville Country NCPCD101) with a inkjet printed inlay and cover. I bought a sealed copy on ebay and a speck of the reflective coating was missing, making the disk unplayable...

• Curly Ray Cline: fiddle, vocals
• Junior Blankenship: lead guitar
• Jack Cooke: bass
• Charlie Sizemore: guitar
• Ralph Stanley: banjo
• John Wright: banjo, vocal (*)

(*) on Verdie Let You Bangs Hang Down.

Other artwork / related images:

[1] See John Wright's book "Traveling The High Way Home" for more details (p. 248-249)