History Archives - The Birthplace of Country Music

Country Music as an Academic Probe

Education History Museum Music & Songs

June 29, 2024

Posted on June 29, 2024July 3, 2024 by Erika Barker

“Country music”, along with its variations, is not often a term you’d associate with academia, at least not until you have a good understanding of the vast field of musicology. As a historian of music, I often find myself at the crossroads trying to explain what I study and how I study it. My succinct answer is, a historian of music studies music, but not strictly musicologically, but rather uses music to scrutinize history. This, in my opinion, is disparate from music historians, or musicologists with an emphasis on history, for whom the product of music itself is the central subject. As for country music historians, country music as an art form comes first and foremost, but that doesn’t mean it’s just about the music. As a genre with humble roots, one can’t talk about country and folk music without referring to historical and sometimes political contexts.

Today, country music is a recognized, albeit small, academic discipline with international appeal. One of American folk music’s early advocates, Charles Seeger (1886-1979) helped spearhead the founding of the Society of Ethnomusicology (SEM). Seeger envisioned for music to be communicated and studied musically, instead of merely through linguistics as crutch. He advocated the role of the (ethno)musicologist to be a transmitter of music but also critic of culture. The field today has mostly evolved a long way from the days of Seeger. Musicology nevertheless still relies heavily on textual analyses of music, which, tellingly, did not necessarily become a point of concern for professionals. Currently, country music in academia is taught primarily as a form of performing arts, and less as a theory or history. The International Country Music Conference (ICMC), founded in 1983, has been held annually at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee since 1998. This year it runs from May 30^th to June 1^st.

A white man holding a baby plays a piano outside a trailer while a standing woman plays fiddle and two children sit on a bench beside her. — Ethnomusicologist Charles Seeger, Jr., with his wife, Constance, and their three sons, Charles III, John, and Pete. This photograph may be from a tour they made of the American South in a homemade trailer. Image is from the National Photo Company (1921) and is in the public domain.

For those who aspire to become professional musicians or work in the country music industry and adjacent, East Tennessee State University, Morehead State University, and Denison University offer degree programs in the genre. Other institutions in North America including the Berklee College of Music, USC Thornton School of Music, University of Miami, University of Saskatchewan MacEwan University offer, or have offered in the past, courses and an initiative on country music. The Country Music Foundation based in Nashville had published the Journal of Country Music from 1971 to 2007. The journals are archived and still accessible through many higher institutions, as well as the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum digital archive.

If you are interested in reading academic writings on country music, a good place to start is with anything by historian Bill C. Malone, professor of history emeritus at Tulane University. Country Music U.S.A. (1968) is inarguably the first academic history book on country music. The turn of the twentieth century saw the political bifurcation within country music, shown through monographs such as Charles K. Wolfe’s Country Music goes to War (2005) and Rednecks and Bluenecks: The Politics of Country Music (2007) by journalist Chris Willman. In recent years, academics have leaned more toward socio-political themes, displayed in work like Diane Pecknold’s Hidden in the Mix: the African American Presence in Country Music (2013), Nadine Hubbs’ Rednecks, Queers, and Country Music (2014), Peter La Chapelle’s I’d Fight the World: A Political History of Old-Time, Hillbilly, and Country Music (2019), and anthology Whose Country Music? Genre, Identity, and Belonging in Twenty-First-Century Country Music Culture(2022).

Just like the grassroots of country music itself, the academia of country music also reflects the debates that are present in the country music scene. The problem of “authenticity” has plagued various art forms and genres, but with a genre like country music, it is particularly prominent. Recently, philosophy professor Evan Malone published an excellent piece on the topic in the British Journal of Aesthetics in a 2023 issue. With references to a range of scholars with backgrounds from Anthropology to Aesthetics with an emphasis on country music, including Jack Bernhardt, John Dyck, Richard Shusterman, it demonstrates the versatile ways country music can be studied academically.

In my very own first year of PhD for a final’s assignment, I assembled a lecture in history on medieval Celtic and African musical traditions and their manifestations in Appalachian folk music—a connection that often surprises non-listeners. Outside of traditional academia, current events surrounding and within country music have been covered by journalists and critics, such as Emily Nussbaum’s 2023 piece for The New Yorker.

Alas, it is challenging to include a more thorough academic country music discography here. In an effort to keep this blog digestible, I am only able to give you taste of the available literature and must leave many scholars out of this post. I encourage you to start your own reading journey and dive into the academic world of country music with me. As country music enters a new phase both artistically and in popularity, we can certainly anticipate further exciting discussions in the near future!

Image of a young Chinese-American woman with long black hair and wearing a grey long sleeve shirt. — Emily Lu, PhD Candidate at Florida State University.

Guest Blogger Emily Lu is a PhD candidate in History at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida.

Who is Linda Martell? The Story of the First Commercially Successful Black Woman in Country Music

History Music & Songs

June 22, 2024

Posted on June 22, 2024June 14, 2024 by Guest Blogger

This month is African American Music Appreciation Month, to celebrate, I want to shed some light on a particularly underappreciated artist. As time passes, some artists are forgotten for their achievements until someone rediscovers them. One of these artists is Linda Martell, the first commercially successful Black female artist. A self-titled website calls her the “unsung hero of the genre,” and a Rolling Stone article refers to her as “Country’s Lost Pioneer.” Recently, Martell has reentered the public radar after being mentioned in Beyonce’s album Cowboy Carter, specifically on two songs, “Spaghetti” and “The Linda Martell Show”. After the release of the album, magazines such as The Rolling Stone soon began publishing articles with titles of “Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ Includes a Shout-Out to Linda Martell — Who Is She?” Let’s find out!

Up close image of Black woman singing into a mic. — Linda Martell in Ebony Magazine, March 1970.

Linda Martell was born Thelma Bynem on June 4, 1941, in Leesville, South Carolina. She was one of five children to parents Willie Mae and Clarence Bynem. Her mother worked in chicken slaughterhouses, while her father was a sharecropper and preacher in a Baptist Church. Her church life influenced her love of music, and her gospel roots can be heard on later recordings. She recalled that growing up, her family would listen to the radio station WLAC which was based in Nashville and played country music. Her father’s favorite song was “Your Cheatin’ Heart” by Hank Williams, and he would sing it around the house often.

In her teenage years, she formed an R&B trio with her sister and their cousin, creating “Linda Martell and the Anglos” (later spelled “Angelos”). By the early 1960s, she was touring with the group and performing at clubs. They caught the attention of a local DJ named Charles “Big Saul” Greene, who suggested Bynem use the name Linda Martell. He wrote her a note stating, “Your name is Linda Martell. You look like Linda. That fits you.” The group soon disbanded, but only after recording a few singles with reputable labels.

Bynem, now going by Linda Martell, continued as a solo act performing in nightclubs. While singing on a Charleston Air Force base in 1969, the crowd begged her to perform a few country songs and heard by William “Duke” Rayner. He offered to buy a tape of her performing. Originally, Martell thought Rayner was a “kook” and ignored him, but eventually decided to hear him out. He then introduced her to Shelby Singleton Jr., who was involved in the Nashville music industry.

During her first meeting with Singleton, he shocked her by asking her to sing country. She recounted later that she had performed mostly pop up to that point. At this point, Black country musicians, especially female ones, still had a lot of trouble getting signed onto labels and performing. Singleton signed on both black and white performers but considered Martell a risky move because she was a woman. All Black country artists who were successful up to this point were men. Nevertheless, Martell signed a management deal on May 15, 1969, and a record deal.

The next day she recorded a cover of “Color Him Father” by the Winstons. It was originally in the funk and soul style, but Martell transformed it into a mix of country and R&B. But more importantly, she focused on the storytelling aspect of the song. At the height of the Vietnam War, this song resonated with people. It is a story from a boy’s perspective after his father died during the war. His widowed mother remarried, and the song tells the boy’s view of this new father figure in his life – a very harsh reality for many in the years surrounding the song’s release.

They finished the album in a single 12-hour recording session. The album, called Color Me Country, included eleven songs, but “Color Him Father” was released on the record and as a single. It reached #22 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart, the highest a Black female country artist had reached until the release of Cowboy Carter by Beyonce earlier this year. Martell soon appeared on TV, in live shows, and even at the Grand Ole Opry. She was the first solo Black female country singer to appear on the Opry stage and received two standing ovations.

She was also invited to perform on Hee Haw, a comedy and country music show. Despite her success, racism plagued her career. After hearing her during rehearsals, a show executive approached her and attempted to correct her pronunciation of her own lyrics. She did not listen and sang the words the way she always did. She later stated, “He wasn’t too happy about it. But I did anyway.” Charley Pride, a well-known Black country artist who had been performing for almost two decades at that point, gave Martell advice during a party: “Develop a thick skin and get used to the name-calling.” She tried to ignore it but never truly got used to it and refused to learn to tolerate how she was being treated.

In the South, she was advertised as the “First Female Negro Country Artist.” Her first gig after signing with Singleton was in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. She later recounted that night, “You’d be singing, and they’d shout out names, and you know the names they would call you.” There was another instance when a promoter in Beaumont, Texas, canceled her show after discovering that she was black. He claimed that her “Fans would tell her she didn’t sound black.”

Singleton recorded her record with a separate label from his regular SSI International label. This sister label was called “Plantation Records”. When she confronted Singleton about the racism behind that name, he denied it and said he chose it with no particular meaning. She stated in later interviews that she told him, “What you are telling me is that black people belonged on the plantation!” She recorded only one album with Singleton and Plantation Records.

A black woman in a rhinestone studded outfit sits on a fence playing a guitar and smiling. — Linda Martell in Ebony Magazine, March 1970.

In May 1970, Rayner sued Martell because he believed that he deserved a higher commission from her. Singleton managed to make the issue go away, but Martell had other concerns. Singleton was focusing his attention more on another artist named Jeannie C. Riley. This was not simply a suspicion but something Singleton himself told Martell he was doing intentionally. After her year-long contract expired, Martell left Plantation Records. However, when she attempted to record with a new label, Singleton threatened to sue them, causing her deal with them to collapse. This trend continued and she was effectively blackballed, her reputation ruined, and she was forced into an early retirement in 1970.

Despite her incredible achievements, her short career caused her to be largely forgotten in country music history. After her country music career ended, Martell spent the next two decades living a nomadic lifestyle, singing in bars and clubs, and on a cruise in California. At one point, she ran a record store in Bronx, New York, and at another, she was in Florida, where she joined an R&B cover band with her brother. Eventually, she returned to South Carolina to be with her family.

After her father’s death in 1991, she became a school bus driver and later worked in a classroom helping children with learning disabilities. She became a local hero to some, but others still had no idea who she was. When magazines reached out for interviews, many remembered her as a “kindly older lady who worked for the school system.” After being diagnosed with cancer in 2004, she retired from her job. Up until 2011, she performed with a band called Eazzy, which covered R&B songs. For years, she lived alone in a mobile home until her health decreased. After that, she moved in with her daughter Tikethia Thompson.

From time to time, she has come up in the media. She was mentioned in the 2013 film A Country Christmas Story starring Dolly Parton. It follows the story of a biracial girl who aspires to be a country singer. Parton tells her the story of black musicians in the genre, including Martell, showing her the LP cover of her only record, Color Me Country. A more recently successful black country artist, Rissi Palmer, named her podcast started in 2020 after Martell’s album and plays her music on the show. In 2021, Martell was nominated for and won the CMT Music Awards Equal Play Award. That same year, her filmmaker granddaughter Marquia Thompson started a GoFundMe in honor of creating a documentary about her grandmother’s story titled “Bad Case of the Country Blues.” And, of course, most recently, she was mentioned in two tracks off of Beyonce’s album Cowboy Carter.

Guest Blogger Donna Walker is a student at King University and a Birthplace of Country Music Museum Intern.

Karma Chameleon: The Ever-Changing Muse of “In the Pines”

1927 and 1928 Bristol Sessions History Music & Songs Personalities

April 24, 2024

Posted on April 24, 2024May 14, 2024 by Charlene Baker

In February Birthplace of Country Music announced In the Pines, a new music experience coming to Historic Downtown Bristol, TN-VA June 1. Dwight Yoakam, Elle King, Paul Cauthen, and Wyatt Flores are slated to perform at the inaugural event, but the inspiration for the concert goes much deeper than the artists who will take the stage that day. It is a celebration of Bristol’s music legacy, bridging the traditions of the past with the innovation of the present.

In the Pines takes its name from a song recorded for the 1927 Bristol Sessions by the Tenneva Ramblers called “The Longest Train I Ever Saw.” From its origins of Southern Appalachia in the 1870s, “In the Pines” emerges as both a muse and a chameleon, seamlessly adapting its melody and lyrical essence to the unique styles and interpretations of every artist who dares to unravel its enigmatic allure. The song is believed to have been the combination of two songs, “In the Pines” and “The Longest Train;” the writer is unknown. It has been recorded under many titles over the years, with some artists adding their own lyrics.

“In the Pines” and all of its adaptations serve as a metaphor for Bristol’s creative music scene, which draws inspiration from the roots of Appalachia yet continuously evolves into new territory and genres. Below are a few interesting examples of the versatile tune that continues to shape-shift over time:

In 1923, King Oliver‘s Creole Jazz Band released a version for Okeh records entitled “Where Did You Stay Last Night” as a B-side for “Dipper Mouth Blues.” Louis Armstrong and his wife Lil Hardin Armstrong, both members of Oliver’s band before Armstrong left the group to pursue a solo career, are listed as composers of the track. This jazz instrumental stands out in sharp contrast to numerous other versions, showcasing a remarkable level of creativity and innovation that sets it apart as a distinctive and captivating interpretation of the timeless song.

The Tenneva Ramblers, an old-time string band based in Bristol, Tennessee, recorded “The Longest Train I Ever Saw” for producer Ralph Peer of the Victor Talking Machine Company on the iconic 1927 Bristol Sessions. The Ramblers were briefly a backing band for Jimmie Rodgers under the moniker Jimmie Rodgers Entertainers, Rodgers and the group were supposed to audition for Peer together under that name. Instead, Rodgers auditioned as a solo act. There’s some controversy as to why the band split, but Rodgers’ solo performances for Peer would be his first recordings. The Tenneva Ramblers, sometimes performing as the Grant Brothers, remained active on various radio stations until the 1950s but never achieved the level of stardom enjoyed by Rodgers.

“Father of Bluegrass” Bill Monroe recorded “In the Pines” in 1941 and 1952 as an anthem of heartache and sorrow–a man “pining” for the girl who cast him aside. The crooning “who hoo hoo hoo” vocal harmonies mimicking the sound of a train whistle in that distinct “high lonesome sound,” combined with Monroe’s innovative bluegrass instrumentation, helped elevate the song to that of a country standard for decades to come.

In 1944 Huddie Ledbetter, a.k.a. Lead Belly, first recorded “(Black Girl) Where Did You Sleep Last Night” for release on the New York-based label Musicraft Records. Though he is responsible for the wider popularization of the song, he is often incorrectly cited as its author. Lead Belly’s interpretation was inspired by the 1917 transcription collected by Cecil Sharp and he went on to record several more versions of the track. It has been documented that when performing the song live Lead Belly adjusted the lyrics to “Black girl” for black audiences and “My girl” for white. His haunting depiction of a cheating lover and a grizzly decapitation is in stark contrast to Bill Monroe’s more G-rated tale of lost love, perhaps made darker by Lead Belly’s own past as a convicted murderer.

Joan Baez is an icon and activist who, during the folk music revival of the 1960s, marched for social justice and change during a time of segregation and political unrest in the United States. Baez’s rendition of “In the Pines” shares lyrical similarities with Lead Belly’s version, yet her voice and the contemporary context in which she sang it infused the song with a novel significance for the era. Baez’s iteration was a commentary on racism and violence against Black people from a woman’s perspective. The Black girl referred to in the song is fraught with anguish over the gruesome killing of her father and the disappearance of her lover as she mourns–or pines–her life away, leaving her cold and distant from an unjust world. Joan performed the song live during her concerts from 1961 to 1963, a volatile time in the civil rights movement, but it was not released until 1982. “In the Pines” appears on the album “Very Early Joan,” which contained 23 other previously unreleased live recordings.

Kurt Cobain‘s raw interpretation of “In the Pines” not only paid homage to Lead Belly, but also served as a poignant symbol of the grunge era’s cultural ethos. Prior to the performance Kurt erroneously credits Lead Belly as the writer of “In the Pines,” while declaring him the band’s favorite performer. By infusing the song with his own emotive intensity during Nirvana‘s iconic MTV Unplugged performance in 1993, Cobain brought this traditional folk tune to a new generation. It resonated deeply with Gen X in what is known as the “grunge” era, which was defined by a sense of non-conformity and disillusionment of society norms. Tragically, Cobain’s performance of the song stands as a haunting reminder of his artistic legacy, forever tied to his untimely death at the age of 27 just a few months after the show aired.

Xavier Dphrepaulezz, a.k.a. Fantastic Negrito, recorded a searing version of “In the Pines” for his Grammy Award-winning album The Last Days of Oakland, released in 2016. Growing up in Oakland, California, Xavier was one of 14 children. After leaving home at the age of 12, he went into the foster care system. He hustled the streets of L.A. to survive and lost a brother and a cousin to gun violence. “In the Pines” resonated deeply with Xavier. In his version of the song, he added the verse “Black girl, Black girl, your man is gone/ Now you travel the road alone / And you raised that child all by yourself / Then the policeman shot him down” to emphasize the trauma Black women face when their lives are impacted by such senseless acts. The haunting video below is the accompanying “docu-narrative” featuring one such mother whose son was tragically killed.

International Guitar Month Part 1: Guitars of the Carter Family

1927 and 1928 Bristol Sessions History Instruments Personalities

April 2, 2024

Posted on April 2, 2024March 27, 2024 by Guest Blogger

By Ed Hagen, volunteer gallery assistant and guest blogger at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum.

The Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol, Virginia celebrates Bristol’s rich musical heritage surrounding the 1927 Bristol Sessions, a series of recordings that launched the careers of the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers. With April being “International Guitar Month”, this two part blog post will take a deep dive into the guitars of these famous musicians and stories surrounding these instruments.

The first Carter guitar

Maybelle Carter is remembered today as one of the most influential country guitar players of all time. Maybelle learned to play guitar on a Stella guitar. “Stella” is one of many brand names used by the Oscar Schmidt guitar company, a major manufacturer of budget guitars in the 1920s, often sold by catalog or door-to-door and were cheap and affordable instruments. Maybelle’s brother had purchased the guitar when Maybelle was thirteen. She was still playing the Stella five years later when the then unknown Carter Family made their first records at the Bristol sessions.

We don’t know much about that guitar. The pictures we have of it are quite grainy (we only know for sure that it was a Stella because Maybelle, in interviews years later, identified it as such).

Two photos of the original Carter family showing Maybelle’s Stella guitar.

Maybelle’s L-5

Shortly after the Bristol sessions, with record royalties coming in and show bookings picking up, Maybelle’s husband Eck bought her a customized 1928 Gibson L-5 guitar. Carter family reminisces and Internet sleuthing indicate that the guitar was ordered at Lamb Music, then a Gibson affiliate, in Kingsport, Tennessee.

*Maybelle and her 1928 Gibson L-5 are on the left side of this publicity still of The Carter Family from the collection of the Center for Popular Music, Middle Tennessee State University.*

This was an extraordinary purchase for a rural Virginia family in the late 1920s. Introduced in 1923, the L-5 was the very top of the Gibson guitar line and cost $275 ($5,000 in 2023 dollars).

Note the white strip between the crossbars of Maybelle’s tailpiece, something I have never seen on a Gibson archtop. I’ve exchanged emails with early Gibson guitar expert Paul Alcantara, who maintains the superb “Pre-War Gibson L-5 . He believes that it was a label or advertising insert from the music store.

Another unusual feature of Maybelle Carter’s L-5 tells us that it was a custom order. The truss rod cover on the headstock has fancy inlay with Maybelle’s name, misspelled as “Mae Bell Carter.” I had assumed that this was something done later by a local craftsperson, but Paul Alcantara has the inside story on his Web site. It was likely crafted by William C. Schrier, who did similar etchings and engravings for Gibson from 1928 to 1931, working independently from the basement of his home. Examples of his work, including Maybelle’s truss rod cover, can be found here.

A 1928 Gibson L-5 in original condition would be quite valuable today. Working musicians back in the day would be more interested in a guitar’s playing condition than its originality, though, and would replace parts on the guitar from time to time. Maybelle certainly did this. By the 1960s (and perhaps earlier) we can see that the tailpiece had been replaced with a “triple parallelogram” tailpiece (Gibson used these with midrange guitars like the L-7 and ES-175 models), and the tuners had been replaced with Kluson tulip tuners.

More Carter guitars

The original Carter family – A.P., Sara, and Maybelle – broke up in the early 1940s. Maybelle’s three daughters, Helen, June, and Anita, had sung with the original Carters over the years. Maybelle loved show business, and took her daughters out on the road as “Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters,” where they had great success, eventually landing a spot on the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.

Maybelle’s daughter Anita playing her mother’s 1928 L-5 in 1966, and a picture of the guitar now at the Country Music Hall of Fame. Note the replaced tailpiece and tuners. Source: https://www.tennessean.com/picture-gallery/entertainment/music/2016/06/21/nashville-then-mother-maybelle-highlights-park-concert-in-june-1966/86186754/

Here’s a picture of the group in 1944. Maybelle is playing a blonde Gretsch Synchromatic 400, the very top of the Gretsch guitar line. These were big guitars, 18″ wide, with “cats-eye” sound holes, stairstep bridges, harp tailpieces, gold-plated parts, and a chili-pepper inlay on the headstock.

Maybelle’s 1928 L-5 had a 16” lower bout and dot inlay. In 1934 the Gibson company “advanced” the L-5, giving it a 17” body and block inlays. This picture, taken in the late 1940s, shows Maybelle playing a post-1934 17” L-5.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland also has a Maybelle Carter guitar that they date to 1964; If that’s accurate, there were at least three L-5s acquired by the family over the years.

A 1966 photo of Maybelle on the 1928 L-5, Anita on the autoharp, and Helen on a 17” L-5. Source: https://www.tennessean.com/picture-gallery/entertainment/music/2016/06/21/nashville-then-mother-maybelle-highlights-park-concert-in-june-1966/86186754/

Part two of this blog will be posted next Tuesday, April 9th and is all about Jimmie Rodgers’ Oscar Schmidt Guitar.

Would you like to read more about Maybelle Carter’s 1928 L5? See also:

Instrument Interview: Maybelle Carter’s Guitar – The Birthplace of Country Music

Lamb’s Music Store may have sold famous guitar | Local News | timesnews.net

Letterpress and The Cardboard History of Blue Ridge Music

Education Exhibits History Museum

March 6, 2024

Posted on March 6, 2024March 7, 2024 by Guest Blogger

by David Winship, Guest Blogger

Getting the word out takes on a special significance when one talks about the method that the visual word is produced. Many have heard of the history of printing, that Gutenberg produced the first movable type in Europe. Some know that over the following five hundred years, printers used a variety of technologies, from monotype to linotype and letterpress to offset printing to our modern digital processes. Yet few recognize the threads that run through the centuries of printing that are reflected in the current exhibit at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum entitled, “A Cardboard History of Blue Ridge Music.”

A scene inside of a letterpress print shop. Posters are hung in a line against a brick wall. Wooden letters and type face are on a shelf under the posters. A black hand press and box full of type is on the table under the shelf. — *A variety of posters which have come from the Sign of the George Press at King University, Bristol, TN.*

A large black printing press inside of the print shop, a brick wall is surrounding the space. — *The Chandler and Price press, workhorse of the Sign of the George Press.*

These posters that anchor the exhibit were produced with handset and letterpress printed type, some from small local print shops and some from more established print shops, such as Hatch Show Print in Nashville. The posters used primarily wooden type, which could be up to 5” in height to grab your attention. Some of the smaller type up to 1” were metal. Both types would have been arranged and fastened together to be printed on presses that had their origins in the early days of printing, both presses that were flat bed operated manually and presses that were motorized.

In the early days of country music, hand bills that could be put up in stores and stations advertised the location of music shows. The posters of this collection are primarily from the 40s through the 70s and advertised concerts and small festivals. They were printed on thick cardboard, were cheap and easy to produce, and were expected only to last from the time of posting to the time of the show and then thrown away. The fact that many have survived is a tribute to both the stability of the printed form and the diligence of those who recognized their historical importance.

Letterpress printing is a trade that has gone out of favor with the coming of more modern techniques, but has reemerged as a craft in the art field. When many of the old shops closed or were converted, often the type was scrapped, the presses were sold for their weight in cast iron, and the typecases ended up as showcases for knick-knacks. For those materials and equipment that survived, the current recognition of hand-crafted art will prolong the legacy of the printing trade.

Letterpress refers to both the type of medium which is being printed, as well as the technique and presses which are used for printing. In this context, the letters are individual or monotype. This means that each letter has to be uniquely selected and arranged to form the words. These lines of type are then firmly locked into a frame, which is then printed on a press.

A closeup of a right hand is holding metal typeface letters. — *Composing a body of type before printing.*

Pictures that accompany the text can be made mechanically or by hand, cut from wood, linoleum or engraved. When the copy is set and prepared, ink is applied by rollers, either by hand or mechanically on the larger presses. Unique to this process is that the letters are created and set in reverse, essentially backward, so that when the impression is made it comes out right side up and readable.

Locally in Bristol at King University, the Sign of the George Press has had a resurgence with the support of the Digital Media Art and Design Department. The Press was started by Dr. George P. “Pat” Winship in the late 60s as a way to show his English students the methods that authors like William Shakespeare had to manage to get their literary works into print. Dr. Winship had a small press when he was growing up as the son of a rare books librarian and he continued the press by accumulating type and presses from the printshops that were going out of or away from the letterpress business as they modernized. The press at King is operated by Winship’s son David, a retired public-school educator who grew up with the press.

Four people are standing around a vintage printing press, looking at the press as one man operates it. — *Lee Jones, left, and Joe Strickland, right, at the press with students. Both are professors with the DMAD (Digital Media Art and Design) Department at King University.*

The Birthplace of Country Music Museum will offer a hands-on workshop at the Museum on March 16, which will allow participants the opportunity to learn about letterpress printing, produce a poster of their own, and to tour the exhibit. Participants will also have the opportunity to tour the Sign of the George Press on King University campus to get a close up look at the printing process.

From the Vault: Posters

Collections Exhibits History Museum

February 20, 2024

Posted on February 20, 2024March 7, 2024 by Julia Underkoffler

By Julia Underkoffler, Collection Specialist at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum

Come see our special exhibit, Cardboard History of Blue Ridge Music open until July 21, 2024!

Poster advertising has been used as a marketing tool since the late 1800s. Companies and businesses would advertise anything from places to shop, war propaganda and music events. Since these posters were often made of paper and glued to an outside surface, like a telephone pole or outside of a business storefront, many early posters ads did not survive and are often highly sought after by many collectors.

Letterpress is one of the most recognizable forms of concert posters in Country music styles. Letterpress printing is a technique, which has been used for centuries, of printing multiple copies of the same design by inking a raised surface and stamping it on a piece of paper. Similar to a stamp, the letters and designs are replaceable. The design is held together with a frame and is placed opposite of how the poster will be hung. To learn and make your own letterpress poster sign up for a Letterpress workshop with BCM and King University on March 16, 2024.

Learn more about letterpress locally at the Burke Print Shop at the Wayne C. Henderson School of Appalachian Arts in Marion, Virginia.

*Photo by Julia Underkoffler. On loan from the Tom Murphy Collection, a part of Cardboard History of the Blue Ridge.*

The company that would later become Hatch Show Print was founded in 1875 and became infamous in the country music industry for their work with the Ryman Auditorium and the Grand Ole Opry starting in the mid-1920s. You can join us for a Speaker Session on April 9, 2024 with guest Celene Aubry from Hatch Show Print to learn more!

Today, however, many posters are produced digitally. There is still a deep nostalgia for letterpress posters.

Fifth Annual Fiddlers Convention

Donated to BCMM in 2017, this poster advertises the fifth annual Fiddlers Convention and North Carolina State Championship held at Cool Springs School in Statesville, North Carolina on November 19, 1966. Dwight Barker, a radio and TV personality, was the M.C. for the convention. There were cash prizes for the top three best bands, best banjo players, and most promising talent, as well as trophies to the state champions.

*Photo by Ashli Linkous. Donated in honor of all the musicians that participated.*

Roy Acuff for Governor Poster

Donated at the request of the late William Wampler in 2016. The poster was produced for Acuff’s Tennessee Governor campaign in 1948, when he accepted the Republican nomination. Although he did not win the Governorship these posters survived and reproduction prints are still being sold by Hatch Show Print. The copy in our collection was signed by Acuff on August 26, 1972.

*Photo by Ashli Linkous. Roy Acuff poster donated at the request of the late William Wampler.*

Mountain Stage/BCMA

A signed poster from a partnered show between Mountain Stage, a live radio program in West Virginia, and the former Birthplace of Country Music Alliance (BCMA) organization. In 2013 BCMA and Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion merged to create the Birthplace of Country Music Inc. organization. This event was on August 21, 2011 and included Jim Lauderdale, John Lilly, Red Molly, The David Mayfield Parade, Vince Gill, and hosted by Larry Groce.

*Photo by Ashli Linkous. From the Birthplace of Country Music’s Institutional Archives*

Orthophonic Joy

Orthophonic Joy is a collection of reimagined recordings of the original 1927 Bristol Sessions songs. This album was produced by Carl Jackson, a Grammy award winner and used as a benefit for the Birthplace of Country Music Museum. The album includes Emmylou Harris singing “Bury Me Beneath the Willow”, Dolly Parton singing “When They Ring Those Golden Bells”, Sheryl Crow singing “The Wandering Boy,” and Brad Paisley and Carl Jackson singing “In the Pines.” This CD can be purchased in the museum store.

Learn more about the making of Orthophonic Joy here.

Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion Festival Posters

Starting in 2001 the Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion festival (BRRR) was created to celebrate the rich musical heritage that was popularized by the 1927 Bristol sessions. Occurring on the second weekend in September every year, BRRR has seen countless legendary musicians on the lineup, like The Del McCoury Band, Little Jimmie Dickens, Jim Lauderdale, who made his first appearance in 2004, and Marty Stuart just to name a few. Each year the organization gets a different artist to create and design the festival poster. Over the last 20 plus years we’ve had artists including Willard Gayheart, Charles Vess, and Leigh Ann Agee and many more. Only so many of these posters are printed every year and once they are gone, they are gone! Below are some of my personal favorites.

2001 Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion Poster

The first year highlights the train station which helped many artists get to Bristol in 1927 to record with Ralph Peer and make Bristol what it is today!

Photo by Julia Underkoffler. From the Birthplace of Country Music Museum’s Institutional Archives

2005 Bristol Rhythm and Roots Poster

I love all of the artists that were included in this poster. It is a great way of showing the impact Bristol has had to music.

2006 Bristol Rhythm and Roots Poster

This poster was designed by Charles Vess. I absolutely love how the colors complement each other and the tree roots making a treble clef.

2021 Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion Poster

This will always be one of my favorite BRRR posters because it was my first BRRR.

10th and 20th Anniversary Posters

These are two special posters we came out with for the 20th anniversary. This is a great way to display all of the first 20 years of festival posters.

*Photos by Julia Underkoffler. From the Birthplace of Country Music Museum’s Institutional Archives.*

Several years of Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion posters are still available for purchase at the museum store.

Ten Years and Ten Things: The Birthplace of Country Music Museum

Exhibits History Museum

February 9, 2024

Posted on February 9, 2024February 9, 2024 by Rene Rodgers

By Dr. René Rodgers

The Birthplace of Country Music Museum opened its doors to the public on August 1, 2014 with a weekend of music, history and culture, food, friends and family, and so many amazing visitors. Through the past several years, as we’ve seen changes and growth; hundreds of exhibits, outreach activities, and educational and public programs; and a pandemic, we are proud and excited to be celebrating our 10th anniversary! We’ll be sharing stories, images, and videos to mark this milestone throughout the year, but today we wanted to share ten things you might not know about the Birthplace of Country Music Museum:

1. Archaeology in a Country Music Museum?

The museum is in a historic building from the 1920s, formerly a Chrysler distributorship owned by Frank Goodpasture Sr. The building was later used for entertainments like sporting matches, musical concerts, and dances, and it also once housed a cab company, barbershop, shoe store, and newsstand. All of these different uses meant that when the building was being renovated to become the museum, the construction crew found lots of archaeological curiosities from the building’s previous lives – from an intact Edison lightbulb (now hanging in the porch area of our permanent exhibits) to pieces of china to an empty bottle of Dr. H. S. Thacher’s Cough and Croup Syrup!

*Several of the archaeological finds from the museum’s renovation: a glass inkwell, patent medicine bottle, and china handle. © Birthplace of Country Music; photographer: Ashli Linkous*

2. Local Voices

Creating a museum is a big job, and creating the content and exhibits is turned over to a company who does that work for a living. At the early planning stages, that was the intent, but it soon became apparent that we had numerous local scholars, experts, and musicians on our doorstep who had the expertise to do this work. And so a local content team was pulled together – led by ethnomusicologist Dr. Jessica Turner, the team included scholars and musicians from East Tennessee State University (Roy Andrade, Dr. Lee Bidgood, Amythyst Kiah, and Dr. Ted Olson) and King University (Ryan Bernard); former Birthplace of Country Music Alliance director Bill Hartley; and researcher/writer/editor Dr. René Rodgers (me!) and Sarah Tollie. Over the course of two years, this team met regularly – along with the museum’s architects Peyton Boyd and Michael Haslam, the exhibit design team at studioMUSarx, and Hillmann & Carr, the media producers – to discuss the textual panels, images and objects, and audio-visual elements that would fill the permanent exhibit space with engaging content. This decision to stick with local community members to tell the important history of the 1927 Bristol Sessions and our regional music heritage has resulted in a museum where these stories are explored with passion, deep knowledge, and personal connection, making the museum experience that much richer to our visitors.

3. Wax People

Lots of museums have dioramas with taxidermy animals or scenes/exhibits with wax museum figures. And early in the content development process, we considered two such scenes – one of The Carter Family recording in the makeshift studio on State Street and one of a producer or DJ and a band in a radio station. These wax figures can be wonderfully realistic but sometimes also just a little bit creepy – akin to dolls and all of the associated weirdness we feel with them! In the end, the cost of the wax people was out of our budget, but most importantly, after discussion and ambitious speculation, we decided to figure out how to turn what was meant to be a simple radio station exhibit into an ACTUAL live, working radio station – and Radio Bristol was born!

*Radio Producer Kris Truelsen, NOT a wax person. © Birthplace of Country Music*

4. Twinkle in the Eye

As we began thinking about this 10th anniversary, we started digging into our institutional archives to stir up some memories – and we found a treasure trove of stuff! One of the coolest was a stash of blueprints from past iterations of the museum design before we got to the museum we know and love today. Some things stayed pretty similar across designs, but there were also some surprises. For instance, one plan showed a second exterior marquee-style sign above the Moore Street side door bearing the words “Playing Tonight: Bill Hartley,” which would have been a great addition! Another plan illustrated a different configuration for the first-floor theater, one where there were 11 rows of seats in front of the stage in a typical theater configuration. This layout would have given the room around the same number of seats that we have today, but our current configuration is much more intimate and engaging for audiences. Finally, the biggest surprise was a plan for a third floor to be built onto the original two-story building – this space would have included offices and other administrative areas, but it was ultimately nixed as this type of construction is not allowed on buildings where historic tax credits are used to help fund the work.

*The blueprint with the marquee-style sign. © Birthplace of Country Music; photographer: Ashli Linkous*

5. Hip Hip Hooray!

Early in the museum’s life, we were excited to be recognized by peers and scholars in the museum and history fields. For instance, in 2015 the museum won the Past Presidents’ Award of Excellence from the Tennessee Association of Museums; that same year, the poster design for the Birthplace of Country Music Museum’s grand opening won in the American Alliance of Museum’s Publications Design Competition. In 2016 we were honored with an American Association for State and Local History Leadership in History Award.

*The poster from the museum’s grand opening in August 2014 is reminiscent of Hatch Show Print designs. © Birthplace of Country Music; designed and letterpress printed by Hound Dog Press*

6. Ghostly Moments?

Any historic building can be spooky at night when the lights are low and you might be the only one in a particular space – there are mysterious creaks and pops, dark corners, old photographs and objects, and often overactive imaginations at play. The display case dedicated to the story of Bristol’s own hometown musical hero, Tennessee Ernie Ford, frequently helped to put chills down our spines when an 8-track tape would regularly fall over with no real explanation as to why. Its mount had been built specifically for its dimensions, the mount’s attachment wasn’t loose on the back of the case, the case was sturdy and not easily moveable… Was the ghost of Ernie Ford communicating with us? Was it the ghost of a music geek who was sharing their contempt for the oft-maligned 8-track format? We’ll never know!

*The Tennessee Ernie Ford case with the haunted 8-track in question! © Birthplace of Country Music; photographer: Ashli Linkous*

7. Family Connections

*Georgia Warren cuts the ribbon at the museum’s Grand Opening; Roni Stoneman can be seen behind her. © Birthplace of Country Music; photographer: Angela Freese*

One of the biggest pleasures of working at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum has been the connections we have made with family members of the 1927 Bristol Sessions artists. Over the years, these relationships have helped us to tell the stories of these musicians in more detail and with more interest; they’ve shared objects and photographs with us that have enhanced our exhibits; and we’ve enjoyed spending time with them and seeing their own joy of their relatives being recognized and celebrated in the museum. At the museum’s grand opening, Georgia Warren, the last surviving member of the artists who recorded at the 1927 Bristol Sessions, and Roni Stoneman, daughter of Ernest Stoneman, participated in the ribbon cutting. Two branches of Alfred Karnes’ family connected through the museum’s Green Board, and then later held reunions at the museum. Charles McReynolds’ grandson, Jesse McReynolds, played his fiddle on Radio Bristol’s original Farm and Fun Time show. Blind Alfred Reed’s grandson brought his fiddle to the 90th anniversary of the Sessions where it was admired by Ralph Peer II, Ralph Peer’s son. The family of Jimmie Rodgers loaned us his Blue Yodel guitar in 2023, recently extending that loan through 2027 and the Bristol Sessions’ 100th anniversary! We hope these connections and relationships continue to grow, and that family members always hold the museum and the story we tell in their hearts.

8. Design Details

When designing the museum’s exhibits, the studioMUSarx team and their partners did an amazing job creating engaging displays and panels. But what’s even cooler are some of the hidden design details that can be found throughout the museum. For instance, different tonewoods were used in the downstairs theater – for those who don’t know, tonewoods are different types of wood that are used for acoustic string instruments due to their tonal qualities. Similarly, the floor of The Museum Store is made of curly maple, a wood often used when crafting guitars. Another great design detail can be seen on the reader rail in front of the radio station booth where the material used to cover speakers has been used behind the cut-outs on the rail. There are many more of these wonderful details to be found in the museum – but you’ll have to wait for a blog on another day to learn about them all!

*The speaker material on the reader rail in front of the radio station is a nice design touch. © Birthplace of Country Music; photographer: Ashli Linkous*

9. Ramped Up!

Being a historic building, there were several elements of the original construction that we had to keep in place. One of the coolest is truly behind the scenes so not experienced by our visitors, but always appreciated by staff. In the loading bay of the museum, you can see the very top of the original ramp that led from the Goodpasture building’s first floor to its second. This was the ramp that the distributorship’s workers would have used to drive cars up to the second-floor showroom. The museum’s architect and contractors were allowed to take out the majority of this ramp during the renovation, but the top of it was kept in order to preserve the physical connection to the building’s history.

*The acoustic tiles in the performance theater are both functional and striking. © Birthplace of Country Music; photographer: Haley Hensley*

10. Acoustic Engineering

As a music museum, each room is filled with music, which requires sophisticated acoustic engineering solutions – for instance, overhead acoustic panels that direct sound downward to minimize its bleed into other areas of the space (I think of these as “sound umbrellas”!). But because it is a museum, those solutions also needed to be integrated in innovative ways into the exhibits and different spaces. In the downstairs theater, some of the speakers are hidden behind patterned acoustic tiles, while the upstairs theater has acoustic fabric on the walls to help deliver the film’s sound. Sound drivers were originally attached to the backs of the acrylic panels of the foyer sculpture, turning this piece of art into a giant speaker. Similarly, sound drivers/speakers have been placed under the pews in the chapel theater space so that when you sit in there to watch the film, you can actually “feel” the music! Steve Haas, the museum’s acoustical engineer, even created a creative acoustic activity for our educational programs – a sound driver and amplifier that we often use to show how sound travels through different materials creating different levels and quality of sound.

Dr. René Rodgers is the Head Curator of the Birthplace of Country Music Museum. She has been with the organization, first as a freelance writer/editor and later on the curatorial team, since 2012.

The Carter Sisters Radio Transcriptions with Chet Atkins

History Museum

September 25, 2023

Posted on September 25, 2023December 21, 2023 by Guest Blogger

Ed Hagen is a volunteer gallery assistant and guest blogger at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum. His recent blog posts include The Carter Family on the Border Radio and Will the Circle Be Unbroken.

The original Carter family became nationally famous after being recorded in the 1927 Bristol sessions. A. P. Carter sang bass and harmonies on many songs, and very occasionally played guitar, but his principal contribution acted as a songcatcher, working to find, rewrite, and rearrange traditional songs. His wife Sara Dougherty Carter was the lead singer, co-wrote many songs, and performed playing either a guitar or autoharp. Sara’s cousin Maybelle Addington Carter, (who was married to A. P.’s brother Eck) also sang, but is remembered today as a guitar virtuoso (more on that later).

Their record sales crashed with the Great Depression of the 1930s, but an opportunity to perform on a radio station on the Mexican border revived the fortunes of the group. In those days, Mexico and the United States had a dispute over AM radio signals, and some Mexican stations were given many times the wattage of U.S. stations. That meant that the Carters’ border radio shows were heard all over the country, reviving their popularity. The border radio station XERA had a massive 500 kilowatts, and could broadcast across 48 states and into Canada. Visit my previous blog post, The Carter Family on the Border Radio, to learn more about that story.

*Carter Sisters and Maybelle September 1944. Left to right: Anita, June, Maybelle, and Helen*

A new generation traveled with the Carters to the Mexican border. A.P. and Sara brought their two children, Janette and Joe. Maybelle and Eck brought their three daughters, Helen, June, and Anita. The children sang on the radio show (but not on records). The original group continued to perform for several years, but that ended when Sara moved to California in 1943.

Maybelle and her daughters continued to perform after the original Carter Family disbanded, performing as “the Carter Sisters and Maybelle Carter” on local radio stations in Richmond, Knoxville, and Springfield, Missouri. They became local celebrities in each city with big crowds as the stars of local “barn dance” radio shows, and they took their act to every town within range of the local radio signal. They were eventually signed by the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville in 1950.

With that extended introduction, and with today being National Daughter’s Day, let’s take a look at the radio transcriptions of the Carter Sisters. Years ago, radio shows were often recorded on “transcription discs,” special high-quality recordings that would be distributed to radio station affiliates. These disks had pauses in them so that the affiliated stations could insert their own commercials. The disks were never intended to be distributed to the public, but thousands of them have survived, later archived to tape and digital recordings by “old time radio” enthusiasts. These include recordings of a dozen Carter Sisters shows from 1949 and 1950 (just before they were signed by the Grand Ole Opry) that can be listened to today via YouTube.

*Carter Family circa 1939. Standing A. P., Janette, announcer Harry Steele, Sara, Maybelle. Seated Helen, Anita, June.*

By the 1950’s, The Carter Sisters lineup included Helen, then age 22, playing the accordion and guitar; June, age 20, playing autoharp and ukulele; and Anita, age 16, playing upright bass. By this time June, a natural comedienne, introduced the songs and pitched sponsored products. Maybelle anchored the group playing her 1928 L5 guitar, which she bought with royalties from the 1927 Bristol Session recordings. What makes these recordings extraordinary is that the costar of the show was a then-unknown guitar player, Chet Atkins. Think about it; here we have recordings of perhaps the two most influential country guitar players of all time playing together just before they joined the Grand Ole Opry.

Why were Maybelle and Chet influential? Let’s start with Maybelle, the inventor of the “Carter scratch.” She would play the melody of songs such as “Wildwood Flower” and “Keep on the Sunny Side” on the bass strings of the guitar using a thumb pick, while rhythmically brushing the other strings with her fingernails or finger picks. Essentially, she played rhythm and lead guitar at the same time. This was revolutionary, because country guitar players didn’t see the guitar as a lead instrument before that.

Maybelle, an extraordinary musician, mastered other styles of playing. She can be seen on videos playing rhythm guitar up and down the neck like a jazz guitarist on some songs, and Mexican-inspired fills on others. She also played something the Carter family called the “blues.” Years later, in a wonderful documentary, Mother Maybelle’s Carter Scratch, Helen explains that Maybelle learned to play the “blues” around 1930 from Leslie Riddle, an African-American man in Kingsport. Riddle taught Maybelle guitar, and therefore played a direct impact on the early styles of country music, but due to race and discrimination was never able to reach the success the Carter Family achieved. This guitar style featured an alternating bass played with the thumb, with the melody played on the top strings (the reverse of the Carter scratch, where the melody was played on the bottom strings). Most people today call this style “Travis picking” because it was popularized by Merle Travis.

*Carter Sisters with Chet Atkins circa 1950*

If you look closely at videos of Merle Travis playing this style, you’ll see that he used a thumb pick and just one finger for the melody. He got a miraculously full sound with this technique, but Chet Atkins, using all of his fingers, took Travis picking to another level. He went on to have a long and successful career, with best-selling instrumental hits like “Mr. Sandman” and “Yakety Axe”.

The shows starts with thirty seconds of their theme song, the “Columbus Stockade Blues,” just enough for one chorus and a sizzling Chet Atkins guitar break. They close each show with “In the Pines.” In between, different sisters are featured vocals, and Chet played instrumentals (check out, for example, Peach Pickin’ Time on show 17 and Humoresque on show 39). He also sings a bit, and plays the fiddle, something he’s not known for. Check out his version of Shortnin’ Bread in show 17.

Maybelle shows off her Carter Scratch on show 17, playing and singing the old Carter Family standard, “You Will Miss Me When I’m Gone”. We sure do, but these old radio shows bring them all back to life.

East Tennessee Fiddlers and Their Fiddles

1927 and 1928 Bristol Sessions Collections History Instruments

September 14, 2023

Posted on September 14, 2023December 6, 2023 by Julia Underkoffler

By Julia Underkoffler, Collection Specialist at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum

Fiddle me this: What’s the difference between a violin and a fiddle? One has strings, and the other has strangs!

East Tennessee is known for its music, and in particular, it was home to several well-known and influential old-time and bluegrass fiddlers. The museum is fortunate to have three fiddles on loan that were owned and played by Charlie Bowman, Edd Vance, and Benny Sims, all of which are currently on special display in our permanent exhibits. Instruments – and other objects – like these help us to tell the stories of the music, people, and cultural heritage that make our region so special.

Fiddlin’ Charlie Bowman was born on July 30, 1889 in Gray Station, Tennessee. Bowman started playing music from a young age – he started recording as early as 1908 on a neighbor’s Edison Cylinder phonograph, and by the early 1920s, he was regularly being hired to play at square dances and political rallies. When Bowman started to enter fiddling contests around the area, other local fiddlers got quite mad because Bowman just kept on winning!

A black and white image of Charlie Bowman. He is seated on a small bench and holding a fiddle in his lap. He is wearing a collared shirt. The image is old and not completely clear, his face is slightly fuzzy. — *Charlie Bowman, from the Lewis Deneumoustier Collection, Archives of Appalachia, East Tennessee State University*

In 1928, when the Columbia record label came to Johnson City, Tennessee, to do a location recording session, Bowman and several other musicians, including his daughters, recorded six songs. He also traveled the East Coast vaudeville circuit with his daughters and his band – in 1931 alone, they played 249 days of the year. Bowman was later hired to perform by B. Carroll Reece, who served as representative for the first district of Tennessee. They stayed lifelong friends, and Bowman even wrote “Reece Rag” for Congressman Reece. Alongside his solo career, Bowman was also a member of the Hill Billies and the Blue Ridge Ramblers.

The museum has two Bowman family instruments on loan: Charlie’s fiddle and his daughter Jenny’s accordion, which is currently on display in the museum’s special exhibit, I’ve Endured Women in Old-Time Music.

Edd Vance – more commonly known as Red – was born on November 19, 1923 in Sullivan County, Tennessee. Red became recognized in East Tennessee for his old-time fiddling skill, and he performed at The Down Home, a well-known musical hub in Johnson City, Tennessee.

Red followed in the footsteps of his father, Dudley Vance, who was born on March 12, 1880 in Bluff City, Tennessee. During the second week of May 1925, Dudley played at the first Mountain City Fiddlers’ Convention, held at a local high school. This event featured famous fiddlers Charlie Bowman, Fiddlin’ John Carson, Fiddlin’ Cowan Powers, Charlie Powers, and G. B. Grayson. Dudley famously beat everyone with his rendition of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.” Two years later, Dudley and his brother traveled to Winston-Salem, North Carolina, to record three records for Okeh Records, under the band name Vance’s Tennessee Breakdowners. These were the last professional recordings done by Dudley. The museum has Edd Vance’s fiddle and several other items related to Dudley and Edd Vance on loan from their descendants.

*Edd “Red” Vance’s fiddle shows the wear of a lifetime of skilled fiddling. On loan from the descendants of Edd and Dudley Vance. © Birthplace of Country Music; photographer: Ashli Linkous*

Benny Sims was born on August 4, 1924 in Sevier County, Tennessee. Sims was drafted into the U.S. Army Air Corps and was stationed in Foggia, Italy during World War II. While in Italy, Sims played with the U.S. Air Force Orchestra. He played fiddle with the Morris Brothers, but he is best known for his time performing with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. Sims recorded with Flatt & Scruggs over 25 times as part of the Bluegrass Boys, including on their famous “Foggy Mountain Breakdown.”

*The cover of a music book, “Fiddle Favorite” by Benny Sims, pictured.*

After Sims left Flatt & Scruggs, he went to work for WNOX in Knoxville and WJHL-TV in Johnson City until he retired in the early 1960s. When he retired from the music industry he worked at Life & Casualty Insurance Company and gave private fiddle lessons. Just months before Sims’ death in 1995, the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance held a tribute to him at the Paramount Center for the Arts. Today, East Tennessee State University awards the Benny Sims Scholarship to one Bluegrass, Old-Time, and Roots Music Student each year.

This fiddle is on loan from Benny Sims’ family and is believed to be the one that he played on the “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” recording. On loan from the descendants of Benny Sims; © Birthplace of Country Music Museum; photographer: Ashli Linkous

The Carter Family on the Border Radio

History Museum

September 1, 2023

Posted on September 1, 2023December 6, 2023 by Guest Blogger

By Ed Hagen, volunteer gallery assistant and guest blogger at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum.

Here at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum, we celebrate the 1927 Bristol Sessions that launched the recording careers of a number of traditional music acts, notably Country Music Hall of Fame artists Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family.

Three members of the Carter Family pose for a promotion photo taken in black and white. Maybelle Carter is seated holding a guitar and facing the camera. She is wearing a unique coat with a wooden clasp at the collar. Seated beside her is Sara Carter - she is holding an auto harp instrument in her lap and pressing the keys. She is wearing the same outfit as Maybelle, a unique coat with a wooden clasp at the collar. Leaning behind them is A.P. Carter, he is wearing a dark suit jacket and tie. — *The original Carter Family: Maybelle, A. P., and Sara Carter*

The Carter Family is now considered to be the “First Family of Country Music” after gaining commercial success and stardom from their 1927 Bristol Sessions recordings. The original group was a trio made up of A. P. Carter, his wife Sara Dougherty Carter, and Sara’s cousin Maybelle Addington Carter, who was married to A. P.’s brother Ezra “Eck” Carter. All three members of the Carter Family were born and raised in SouthWest, Virginia in an area called Poor Valley, Virginia (also known as Maces Springs) and were steeped in mountain musical traditions. Sara was the lead singer of the group – unusual for the time period – singing and playing guitar and autoharp, with Maybelle singing, playing lead guitar, and creating her own style of guitar playing known as the “Carter scratch”. A.P. Carter acted as songcatcher and band leader singing harmony vocals. In November 1927 and following months, the Victor record label released all six songs from the Carter Family’s Bristol Session recordings, and by the end of the 1930’s the group had sold over 300,000 records. As their popularity grew due to the success of the 1927 recordings, for years the group then recorded over 250 songs under the RCA Victor label, Decca and the American Record Corporation, had regular performances and saw great commercial success. But business slowed a bit during the 1930s as the Depression badly hurt consumer spending for things like record players and records. In addition to a collapsing economy, the Carters’ ability to tour was also hampered by the breakup of A. P. and Sara’s marriage, which was finalized in 1936, but the group still continued to record and perform together, even after Sara’s marriage to Coy Bays (A.P.’s cousin).

During the mid- late 1930’s, the Carter Family had a unique opportunity to take a job on the border of the U.S. and Mexico on the XERA radio station in Del Rio, Texas. The Consolidate Royal Chemical Corporation had contacted them with an offer to perform on their border radio station XERA daily. XERA was a 500 kilowatt border blaster, and the station’s location in Mexico had a powerful broadcasting signal with the ability to reach much of the U.S. with its broadcasting ability. With the possibility of reaching a national audience through XERA’s station, the Carter’s took the gig, which led to their next surge in popularity. This opportunity took them from their quiet country home in Southwest Virginia to living just across the Mexican border in Texas.

This is where this story gets odd: John Romulus Brinkley was the station manager at border radio station XERA and also the infamous “goat-gland doctor.” A “doctor” with specious credentials, Brinkley achieved fame and fortune in Kansas in the early days of radio by advertising surgical clinics where he performed xenotransplantations of goat testicles into humans. This supposed cure for male impotence was the foundation of a medical quackery empire worth millions of dollars. Chased out of Kansas and other states by outraged medical boards, he set up business across the border in Mexico, where the American limits on radio station power did not apply. Brinkley’s million-watt station XERA could be heard all the way to Canada and in 48 U.S. states.

a black and white image of a women and a man looking directly at the camera performing surgery on a person laying on a table with a white sheet placed over their body. The women is wearing a surgical hat, and round glasses. The man is to her right and also wearing a surgical hat and round glasses, and is holding a surgical tool in his hand and gloves — *“Doctor” John Romulus Brinkley performing a surgical procedure, date unknown. Image via LegendsofAmerica.com.*

In 1938, Brinkley’s Mexican based border radio station XERA featured obscure hillbilly acts who played on the Good Neighbors Get Together show. That show aired for four hours every night, and again the following morning. For six months out of the year in 1938 and 1939, the Carter Family and their children lived in Del Rio, Texas performing regular spots on the radio with the sessions being recorded. They were offered $75 a week – serious money at the time. The Carters agreed and took the opportunity despite A. P. and Sara’s uncomfortable domestic situation. During a radio segment in February of 1939, Sara dedicated a song, “I’m Thinking Tonight of My Blues Eyes” to Coy Bays who was living in California – shortly afterwards the two were married and Sara moved to California. Brinkley’s empire was eventually brought down by a series of lawsuits and a federal mail fraud prosecution. He died bankrupt and penniless in 1942.

At this point the next generation of Carters appear in our story: A. P. and Sara’s children Gladys, Janette, and Joe, and Eck and Maybelle’s children, Helen, June, and Anita. The Carters did not want to disrupt their children’s schooling, so only the youngest child, five-year-old Anita, went with them the first year. Anita was part of the act and, as you can imagine, the other children, living with relatives in Virginia and listening to XERA at night, got very jealous. In subsequent years all of the children made the trip and sang on the radio shows.

A black and white image of three young girls, Anita, June and Helen Carter. The Girls are singing and dressed in the same overall dress outfit with bows at their necks. Helen is standing, singing and playing a guitar, June is in the middle touching an autoharp on a table in front of her, and Anita is smiling and singing. — *Maybelle’s daughters left to right: Anita, June and Helen during a 1941 photoshoot with Life Magazine that was never published. Image from Life.com*

The border radio shows were a great success. Young listeners to these radio programs included future country stars like Johnny Cash, Chet Atkins, Tom T. Hall, Waylon Jennings, and Buck Owens.

Each show was repeated the following morning. In those days, this was done by recording the evening show direct to “transcription disks”, a special phonograph record intended for, or recorded from, a radio broadcast. Nobody at the time thought much of the historical value of these disks. One story has it that they were sold to a Mexican contractor who used them as roofing tiles. Miraculously, seventeen disks with seventy-eight songs from the 1939 season were discovered in a San Antonio radio station in 1963 and were issued as LPs. The LPs are long out of print, but the recordings are available for purchase on the Internet in CD and mp3 formats, and are also posted on YouTube. Take a listen to these recordings here via this YouTube playlist.

The recordings are interesting alternate takes of previously recorded Carter Family songs, but also include previously unreleased songs. The border transcriptions are a bit shorter than the Carters’ commercial recordings on the Victor label, typically two minutes rather than three minutes long (perhaps shortened to save room for commercials), but the performances are flawless.

The original Carter Family disbanded in the 1940s, still performing together on occasions. Maybelle Carter and her daughters began performing as a separate act as “Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters” featuring Anita, Helen and June and also performed under the groups original name “The Carter Family”, after 1960. The musical legacy of the Carter Family is one that continues to play an impact on musicians and fans of music to this day.

This blog post is a condensation of a colorful story told at much greater length in the XERA chapter of the excellent book about the Carter Family by Mark Zwonitzer and Charles Hirschberg, Will You Miss Me While I’m Gone. Another source was Ed Kahn, The Carter Family on border radio (University of Illinois Press 1996).