More Information - Ralph Stanley II
This One Is Two
Cut by Cut"Cold Shoulder" (Kent Blazy, Kim Williams, Garth Brooks)—"A few years ago, Ron Rigsby was planning to do some kind of truck-driving album, and he asked me to record this song for it. I loved Garth Brooks’ original recording. But Ron never released my version. I played it for Marty and the people at Lonesome Day Records, and they liked it. They found the same fiddle player—Tim Crouch—who had played on the version I’d done for Ron. The musicians we had in the studio found ways to improve the arrangement I’d done, and me, being a little older, I think I did a better job singing it this time.
"Georgia" (Elton John, Gary Osborne)—"I’d never heard the song until Randall Deaton, the head of my label, played it for me. I was more familiar with Elton’s ‘Crocodile Rock’ and things like that. At first, I didn’t know if I could do it justice. Elton’s version is slower paced and real piano driven, and he sings it in a higher register. I’m more of a baritone. But Randall said, ‘We’re going to do it your way.’ We started fooling with it, and it turned out to be one of my favorite cuts on the album."
"They Say I’ll Never Go Home" (Wayne Davis)—"Wayne Davis, this songwriter who lives in Kentucky, had sent in some songs for us to listen to. And as soon as I heard this one, I knew it was right up my alley. It’s a ballad that tells a good story."
"L. A. County" (Lyle Lovett)—"Lyle Lovett’s a great songwriter. I’ve always been a fan. This is about as dark a song as I’ve ever recorded. It’s kind of like my ‘Pretty Polly.’" ("L. A. County" and "Pretty Polly" are both murder ballads.)
"Train Songs" (Tom T. Hal and Dixie Hall)—"Tom T. fell in love with what I was doing on my last album, Carrying On. In fact, he wrote "Welcoming Tomb" for that album. I got hold of him and told him I needed a song or two. And he sent me ‘Train Songs’ and another real good tune we just didn’t have room for. This one’s real catchy—and it’s the one we picked to be our first single."
"Moms Are The Reason Wild Flowers Grow" (Elmer C. Burchett Jr.)—"This song was meant to be. The first night we got together at the studio, this guy by the name of Elmer Burchett brought in a whole book full of songs. We walked through the door, and as soon as we sat down, he started singing them. None of the songs really seemed to be what we were looking for. I’d say he sang 5 or 6 songs within a half hour. I’m not the type of guy to just come out and say, ‘I’m sorry. I just don’t care for your songs.’ Luckily for me, I’m not that way, because if I was, I wouldn’t have found this one. I said, ‘Could I see your book?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ And as soon as I turned the first page, I saw the song ‘Moms Are The Reason Wild Flowers Grow.’ What tells me this was meant to be is that he didn’t even have to sing it. I took it, and Tim Crouch grabbed a guitar, and we started singing it right off the bat. It became my favorite song on the record.”
"Carter" (Fred Eaglesmith)—"Randall and I were still negotiating our deal when this package of songs from Fred [Eaglesmith] came in. The very day we agreed on our terms, Randall finally got around to opening Fred’s package, and he found ‘Carter,’ which Fred had written in tribute to my uncle, Carter Stanley. Randall said he felt that getting the song was destiny."
"Honky Tonk Way" (Jake Jenkins, Ralph Stanley II)—"We play a lot of dates with Karl Shiftlett. One time I went on his bus and started talking to one of his band members, Jake Jenkins. He said, ‘Ralph, you’re a pretty good country singer, and I’ve got this song I’m working on.’ He had a lot of the words, but he didn’t have a melody. So I put in a word here and there and helped with the melody. My experience on the road, I guess, prepared me to help him out."
"If This Old Guitar Could Talk" (J. P. Pennington, Bernie Faulkner)—"Both of these guys are from the group Exile, which has always had strong songs. This one is somewhat in the same territory as ‘Honky Tonk Way.’ I think it expresses what most performers feel."
"Loretta" (Townes Van Zandt)—"I was only slightly familiar with Townes Van Zandt's songwriting from hearing "Pancho and Lefty" and "If I Needed You." Randall suggested this one. I liked it as soon as I heard it, but I didn’t know if I could get it to work for me. But it fell right into place."
"Lord Help Me Find The Way" (Ralph Stanley II and Marty Raybon)—"This one came to me just about the time [the movie and album] O Brother, Where Art Thou? became real popular. Dad got real busy promoting the movie, and there were 17 shows he had booked he thought he might have to cancel. But he had someone contact the promoters and ask if I could come on in his place—with the Clinch Mountain Boys. I think 14 of the 17 agreed. I had a lot of pressure on me because Dad had suddenly hit this high level of fame. People were driving 300 miles to our shows just to see him. A lot of them didn’t even know who I was because they had just discovered him. I really had to prove myself hard. I had people come up and complain, ‘We’ve never heard of you, and we’ve driven this far.’ What could I say? Luckily, a lot of these same people came back after the show and said, ‘We’d love to have seen your dad, and that’s why we came. But we’re a fan of you now. We think you really handled yourself well.’ This was all happening about the same time Stanley Blues came out, and I think it kind of helped me get noticed as a separate artist from Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys. I began having some trouble with my blood pressure because I was stressed and had to go to the hospital. I came out of the hospital, even though they wanted to keep me another day, and played this show in Paintsville, Kentucky. It was real cold that night, probably 10 or 12 below zero. Maybe a hundred people showed up. I really got discouraged a little bit and started feeling down and out. So I went back into Dad’s room on his bus, sat down by myself and the words to this song just started flowing to me. Later, I sang it to Marty, and he helped me change the melody around a little bit—and I think it was a change for the better."
In this sweep, Stanley ruminates about life on the road (“Honky Tonk Way,” “If This Old Guitar Could Talk”), homicidal jealousy (“L. A. County”), the excitement of the rails (“Train Songs”), the beauties of the Peach Tree State (“Georgia”), the agony of separation (“They Say I’ll Never Go Home,” “Cold Shoulder”), his legacy as the son and nephew of the trailblazing Stanley Brothers (“Lord Help Me Find The Way,” “Carter”), the comfort of easy ladies (“Loretta”) and the irreplaceability of mothers (“Moms Are The Reason Wild Flowers Grow”). It’s an 11-course feast of pure country. (See album cuts under More Information)
