Cousin Jake, Uncle Josh, Earl Scruggs - Nobody's Business

In the film “O Brother Where Art Thou” with George Clooney there is a band called the Soggy Bottom Boys. They perform the perfect version of the song “Man of Constant Sorrow” which was recorded by a partially blind fiddle player from Kentucky named Dick Burnett sometime in the 1940’s. Decades later the song became the mega hit we all know today.

The song “Man of Constant Sorrow”/ “I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow” was written in 1913 by Dick Burnett, who claimed to have gotten the idea for the tune from a fellow musician. Originally titled “Farewell Song”, it was included in the 1913 publication of Mr. Burnett’s songs. It was recorded as early as 1928 by Emry Arthur. Many folk musicians have laid down their own version of the song over the years, but the Soggy Bottom Boys version from the film will undoubtedly go down as the best version ever recorded, or performed.

The musicians in the movie are comprised of Dan Tyminski and several others associated with Allison Kraus and Union Station. But once upon a time there was a band called the Foggy Mountain Boys, which; as you might notice; is the complete opposite of the name of the band in the movie. The Foggy Mountain Boys were together as a band from 1948-1970. That’s quite a run.

Seen here on a local TV broadcast from the 1950’s are the real Foggy Mountain Boys, composed of Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs, Paul Warren on fiddle, the great Josh Graves on dobro, with cousin Jake doing the lead singing. They only ever had a single #1 hit record; which was the “Ballad of Jed Clampett” for the TV series “The Beverly Hillbillies” in 1962. They also wrote and performed the theme song with Waylon Jennings “I’m a Good Ol’ Boy” for the TV series “Dukes of Hazard” in the 1980’s.

   

Sunday Television in rural America is something many of us from the big cities missed out on. The shows were not as sopshicated as the variety shows coming out of New York and Los Angeles, but; just as with last week’s Sunday post; they offer a very realistic look at what American’s found entertaining during the decade preceding the Second World War. We were fat and happy; and as a nation we knew no real rival.

These old TV shows are a real treat to watch. They tell us so much about who we are today. Perhaps, somewhere in these old shows, there is a hint of what began the great American decline which we are currently experiencing. But, all of that aside, they are also great entertainment from an era long gone.

Sunday Music - The Grand Ole Opry (1956)

When I was kid I always heard of this far-away place called Nashville and the Grand Ole Opry. I also had a sense that I was missing out on something that was not only different, but perhaps even better than the more staid variety shows which emanated out of New York, or even Los Angeles.

In this show from the Ryman Auditorium; which was broadcast on April 18, 1956; the cast includes Carl Smith as host, with guests Buddy Ebsen; before Jed Clampett; Chet Atkins, Collins Kids, The Jordanaires; just before the Elvis madness; June Carter; before Johnny Cash; Lester Flatt and the recently departed Earl Scruggs, with comedienne Minnie Pearl, and a few others.

The show may be irritating to some; there are people who will find this show to be annoying. I find it interesting in several ways. It’s a visual record of what was funny to middle America during the 1950’s,; and as such helps to explain the politics and culture of the times. It was; mainly; still an agricultural society, and the entertainment that the people in the rural communities may not have been as sophisticated as that of the slicker network shows; but there is something very personable, and almost noble in these shows.

These were hard working, mainly unschooled folks, who made their own everything; including entertainment. And eventually, as Elvis and Carl and Johnny, along with Jerry Lee Lewis, broke the barriers separating the entertainment business, they became us and we became them. By that I mean that this is where it all began in popular music as we know it today. These are the roots of our modern day culture; even the various reality shows’ and American Idol took something of their formats from these seemingly unsophisticated shows.

I originally was going to post Hank Williams doing “I Saw the Light”, but the powers that control such things made the video not downloadable. It’s too bad for them, and good for me. Because without the inability to show the Hank Williams video, I would never have stumbled across the many other Grand Ole Opry shows  that are downloadable.

I don’t expect that many of my fellow Americans will enjoy this type of show anymore. It will probably get more hits out of Europe, where traditional American music is still revered.