Ralph Stanley and The Clinch Mountain Boys Concert

Helen (aka the Bluegrass Widow) and I booked a short getaway package with our friends Ed & Becky Betts to go see Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mountain Boys in a little town called Brownfield, Maine on Sunday, July 8, 2007. The concert was held at the Stone Mountain Arts Center, a humble 200 seat timber frame music hall nestled in the foothills of the White Mountains. We stayed at a quaint little place called Inn at Crystal Lake in Eaton, New Hamshire, about 15 minutes from the Stone Mountain Arts Center. It was a good 6 hour or better drive from our starting point of Saint John, New Brunswick - Canada.

I figured if I was ever going to have an opportunity to see Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mountain Boys, this might very well be as close as they would ever get to my part of the world, so a few months earlier I asked Ed and Becky if they might be interested in going as well and they said yes.

Ralph Stanley is a living legend and a pioneer of Bluegrass music - mountain style. Among the many awards that have been bestowed upon him, he did actually receive the Living Legend Award, two years ago if memory serves. I had never seen Ralph Stanley in a live performance so I jumped at the opportunity when it came along. I'm real happy Ed & Becky decided to go as well, for Helen and I might not have made the trip on our own. Thank you Ed and Becky.

We checked in at the Inn at Crystal Lake. It was a real old place with tons of "old stuff." Everyting seemed old. The building was old, the pictures on the walls were old, all of the ornaments and decorations were old. The owners were not old however, but everything else was definitely old or old fashioned. Actually, it was very nice and I would stay there again without hesitation, although I must admit I didn't care for the separate cold and hot water faucets in the bathroom.

The getaway package included a meal at the inn before the concert. We had a small amount of time to pass before dinner so Ed and I decided to practice a few tunes in my room for about 45 minutes while the ladies suffered it out. Well, they should have known better!

Near the end of our little jam session as Ed was finishing up Banks of the Ohio, out of our window we saw a turquoise colored bus go by the inn. We noticed the letters "RS" on the back and concluded that it must be Ralph Stanley & the Clinch Mountain Boys on the way to the arts center. Quite the detectives aren't we?

The inn served up a beautiful meal. The menu was printed just for the occasion and read Ralph Stanley Menu at the top - a nice touch. Helen, Becky and I had salmon with some kind of "special rice" while Ed opted for some kind of pork dish. I do remember the meal being very satisfying, something I don't often experience in a restaurant setting.

Okay, a small mention about the photos in this post is in order. The first photo at the top is one of Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mountain Boys on stage near the beginning of the performance. The next picture is Dr. Ralph Stanley putting his autograph on what I call the banjo head of fame. It's a banjo head that I purchased at the Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival two years ago especially for collecting the signatures of great banjo players. I was able to get two signatures on this trip - Dr. Ralph Stanley himself and Steve Sparkman, Ralph's current banjo player.

The third photo is one of Ed & Becky Betts standing in front of Ralph Stanley's tour bus, and the next photo is of my wife, Helen, in front of the same bus.

I took a few group pictures of Ed, Becky and Helen in front of the bus, but Helen decided to close her eyes for most of the pictures. In the one picture where Helen decided to keep her eyes open, Becky decided she would close hers. I just thought I'd explain that in case you were wondering why you don't see the three of them together. Now that I think about it, I'm feeling quite confident those thoughts never crossed your mind at all.

The next photo is Ed Betts posing with Ralph Stanley in what you might term "not the ideal lighting conditions" for taking a photo. Picture #6 is the great Steve Sparkman, a master of Stanley style banjo picking. Interestingly enough, Steve did not play a Stanleytone banjo at the concert, but instead was playing a Gibson archtop banjo with a neck made by Frank Neat.

The last picture is in fact a picture of Helen, Ed, and Becky standing on the stage after the concert was over. By the way, you can click on each image to view a larger version of the same.

Back to the subject at hand. The getaway package also included a shuttle service from the inn to the concert and back, but we decided to forgo the shuttle service. We had different plans for after the concert, like getting to know Dr. Ralph Stanley and Steve Sparkman a little better. We didn't want to be forced to leave early because of the shuttle service.

Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys put on a great performance. Dr. Ralph's voice was exactly like I've heard him on television several times before. He's got an old sounding, yet smooth voice that reminds you of the mountains themselves. One thing to note about Dr. Ralph Stanley is that even though he may be getting on in years, he is always on key when singing, at least that's what I've noticed.

Ralph's 14-year old grandson, Nathan Stanley filled in on guitar for the missing James Shelton whose mother had passed away the day before. Nathan did a great job and he's quite a singer and songwriter in his own right, and at a very young age.

Of course, one of my key interests was in Steve Sparkman, the banjo player. I was watching every move he made as he played all of the signature Stanley style licks on his archtop banjo. Like all other great players, he makes it look so easy.

Playing fiddle was Dewey Brown, a very good fiddler indeed and a good harmony singer as well. I was really impressed with the bass playing of Jack Cooke who has been with Ralph Stanley for an amazing 37 years! Jack really adds life to all of the tunes with his bass style and his onstage antics.

During the concert, Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys played several of the most popular tunes in the Ralph Stanley repertoire, of which there are many. I was very surprised when they ended the show with Orange Blossom Special, simply because I had never heard Ralph Stanley do a rendition of that tune before.

We were able to speak with the band members both before and after the show. I found Ralph Stanley to be very humble and obliging and Steve Sparkman was equally so. We didn't really spend much time with the other band members. I guess you have to be a banjo player to get any attention.

Before the show I had asked Steve Sparkman about a lick used in Pretty Polly and he said "come see me after the show and I'll be happy to show you how it's done." That's exactly what I did, and it's for reasons like that opportunity that we opted out of the shuttle service. I didn't realize it at the time, but Becky captured the Pretty Polly lesson on video with her digital camera. Becky sent a copy of the video to me and I have received permission from Becky and Steve to post the video. The Pretty Polly video (8 MB) is on the Bluegrass Friends web site.

The following morning we had a nice breakfast at the Inn at Crystal Lake before departing. We packed up our belongings and prepared for the 6 plus hour drive home, listening to the sweetest sounds on earth all the way home - Bluegrass music. We had a good time.

I Need a Stanleytone

I need another banjo to play all those Ralph Stanley tunes; I mean in addition to the Deering Deluxe that I currently play and the Huber Jim Mills model which hasn't made it to my doorstep yet. By the way, I guess I'm looking at another three weeks minimum before the Huber arrives.

A nice Stanleytone just like the one Steve Sparkman (shown in photo at left with his Stanleytone) plays for Ralph is what I'm thinking of. I can't help myself, every time I hear Pretty Polly or some other Ralph Stanley tune I get banjo fever all over again. It's true, I'm addicted to banjo sounds. My name is Mike and I am a banjoholic in serious need of a 12-step program to help me learn how to play all those banjos! Before I'm done I'll have a great banjo collection of some of the highest quality banjos around. It's a shame that I'll probably never be able to play a single one of 'em, but it'll be a dandy collection nonetheless!

I like my Deering and I know I'm going to love the Huber, but a Ralph Stanley tune just doesn't sound right when played on a flathead banjo. You've got to have an archtop style banjo, which is exactly what a Stanleytone is. Oh sure, I know I can play close to the bridge to try to simulate the Stanleytone sound, but it just doesn't cut it. You've got to have the real thing. One of my biggest problems? I'm a sucker for quality and authenticity.

A well known banjo builder by the name of Frank Neat builds Stanleytone banjos and I just happen to have his telephone number nearby so I've got to run and make a phone call. Ed Betts, if you're reading this post, we may have to plan for a second road trip. I sure hope my wife isn't reading this!

Who Would You Like to See in a Live Performance?

Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mountain Boys - that's who I'd like to see.

I get the feeling there are a lot of people that think Ralph Stanley couldn't sing his way out of a wet paper bag - I don't know why, that's just the impression I get. If that's the impression you have, you need to listen a little closer.

Ralph Stanley was born in Stratton, VA, in 1927. He is a living legend in Bluegrass and old time mountain music. I never paid Ralph all that much attention myself until recently, but I find the more I listen to him and learn about him, the more I appreciate him and his band members.

The sound of Ralph Stanley is unique. He has the sound of centuries past, with incredibly soulful undertones. His high lonesome sound makes you feel like you're in the Appalachian Mountains, standing right beside him. Patty Loveless describes Ralph Stanley as the "King of Mountain Soul."

I was looking at his tour schedule to see how close to this part of the world he might be travelling. The closest place I could find was at a place called the Stone Mountain Arts Center in a rural town called Brownfield, in the state of Maine. Brownfield is a little more than an hour past Portland, Maine. Curious as I was, I typed "Stone Mountain Arts Center" into the Google search engine and sure enough, I hit pay dirt.

Once at the Stone Mountain Arts Center web site, I was intrigued; so much so that I read much about its history, background and owners. From the Stone Mountain Arts Center web site:

Nestled in the foothills of the White Mountains, the Stone Mountain Arts Center is a beautiful timber frame barn hosting national acts up close and personal in an equally beautiful setting.

This unique space is located just over the border from NH in Brownfield, Maine. Drive up a country road, with the mountains as your guide. When you reach the top there with it’s red clapboards, this special performance space towers over Noonan’s 200 year old farmhouse providing you with a dramatic audience experience you will not soon forget.

The timber frame barn is what really caught my attention. The more I read, the more I couldn't stop.

It just happens that Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mountain Boys are doing a concert at this 200 seat location on Sunday, July 8, 2007. This may very well be the road trip of the year for me. If you think there is a possibility that you too might like to go this event, I wouldn't hold off reserving tickets.

There's a host of other well known names appearing at this venue as well. The Grascals, Kathy Mattea, Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives, Crooked Still, Suzy Bogguss and Béla Fleck and the Flecktones to mention a few. Visit the Stone Mountain Arts Center web site to view their complete calendar of events.