1949-52

Anyone interested in bluegrass music or its history should own this CD. It includes twenty-four tracks, several of which are alternate versions of the same song. Modern noise cancellation techniques consistently make each track sound better than its original counterpart.I believe that each of the tracks is equally well performed with help from The Clinch Mountain Boys, but all are not equal as examples of bluegrass music. Carter Stanley is the lead singer on almost every track, with his brother Ralph Stanley playing the banjo and singing the high-part tenor harmony.Carter Stanley reveals himself as a much better soloist than his brother Ralph. Carter proves this with his perfect bluegrass voice which is mellower, less scratchy and deeper than Ralph's. When the Stanley Brothers sang together, Carter stole the audience. Ralph played the exceptional background specialist who could play the banjo and sing the high notes.Carter also was the incomparable songwriter of the two brothers. This made Carter's early death so tragic for Ralph and for everyone who loved bluegrass music. The CD reviewed here brings back memories of the two brothers together with Carter's perfect voice rising above great background music. For insight into Ralph Stanley's more recent career without Carter, see my review of the CD titled "Man of Constant Sorrow."Several songs written by Carter and performed by the Stanley Brothers with The Clinch Mountain Boys were classics that will live forever in bluegrass music history. Four of the best are on this CD. They are "A Vision of Mother," "The White Dove," "Too Late To Cry" and "The Fields Have Turned Brown."

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This is an incredible collection of relatively early Stanley Brothers tracks. This is a must have for any serious fan of the Stanley Bros., as well as for the more casual fan of bluegrass, folk, or early country music. The recording quality is exceptional . . . the Stanley's legendary harmony vocals come through loud and clear. As far as content goes, this includes some of the best bluegrass ever recorded. It includes some great gospel or "sacred" numbers like "The White Dove," "The Angels are Singing," and "Have You Someone." "Angels are Singing" is particularly powerful. But, unlike some other Stanley collections, it is not one-sided on the religious material. Classic folk tunes like "Little Glass of Wine," "The Fields Have Turned Brown," and "Pretty Polly" are all given the consumate Stanley treatment. One of the highlights of the album is the early recording of Ralph's standard, "Man of Constant Sorrow." In short, this is in incredible collection, and well worth purchasing.

Classic, beautiful bluegrass. A great collection of early Stanley Brothers recordings made for Columbia Records at the dawn of their career. Bill Monroe's influence is obvious -- they made no secret of their debt to him -- but the Stanleys were still remarkably original, particularly because Carter Stanley was such a prolific and deeply talented songwriter. Almost all of the tunes they recorded for Columbia were new material, and every one of them is now a standard in the bluegrass canon. What's also surprising about these early tracks is the tone: over the years we've grown used to hearing these songs in typical, blistering bluegrass "drag racing" renditions -- interesting, then, to hear how mellow the first versions actually were. A great collection with Bear Family's usual fab sound quality. A must-have for Stanley Brothers fans.