Ralph Stanley, a patriarch of bluegrass musician, died Thursday at the age of 89 years old.
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The news was confirmed by Stanley’s nephew, Nathan in a Facebook post, who revealed the elder Stanley died peacefully in his sleep.
“Ralph Stanley accepts the Grammy Award for Best Male Country Vocal Performance for his song “O Death“, from the album and soundtrack from the film ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou?” during the pretelecast show at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles February 27, 2002. He and his brother Carter would eventually form the Stanley Brothers, a pivotal bluegrass duo.
In 1951, they popularized “Man of Constant Sorrow”, which was later recorded by Bob Dylan.
When Columbia signed the Stanley Brothers, Monroe left the label in protest, telling Columbia that if it wanted these new bluegrass guys that badly, there obviously wasn’t room for him.
“‘O Brother’ has done wonders for me and anyone who plays this style”, Stanley told CNN in 2001. He was the last surviving original pioneers of bluegrass music since the death of Earl Scruggs in the spring of 2012.
After his brother’s death in 1966, Ralph was apprehensive about performing on stage alone, but due to his fan following and requests, he finally made a decision to go ahead with it. Ralph Stanley songs are pretty famous because it has a distinctive tune and sound to it, no wonder he was loved by his fans and in the music industry. Ralph then went on to have a successful solo career after his brother’s death in 1966 and helped to direct the careers of everyone from Ricky Skaggs to Keith Whitley.
“I didn’t think the song needed a banjo”, Mr. Stanley said in his memoir. Stanley began playing music in 1946, originally with his brother Carter as part of the “Stanley Brothers”, and most often as the leader of his band, the “Clinch Mountain Boys”.
“Within weeks of his passing, I got phone calls and letters and telegrams and they all said don’t quit”.
The movie soundtrack, which also featured a vintage Stanley Brothers recording, “Angel Band”, received the 2001 Grammy Award for album of the year and sold millions of copies.
John Wright, who wrote a book on Stanley called Traveling the High Way Home, says that tension between minor and major, plus what he called Stanley’s unearthly smokey vocal tone, “gives this old-time mysterious flavor to the singing”.
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Virginia and bluegrass lost a lost a legend Thursday night. He had three children, seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild, according to the AP. President George W. Bush presented the National Medal of Arts to Stanley in 2006. Funeral arrangements have not been announced. So I’m saying, look, could you do this in 4/4?
