Sunday, September 18, 2011

"Bluegrass Cafe" Playlist - 9/18/2011

Hi Folks,

Wade Mainer
Wilma Lee Cooper













During the week since the last show, we celebrated the actual 100th anniversary of Bill Monroe's birth.  Amy covered Bill's vast catalog quite well over the past two weeks to honor the event.  There was sadness during the week as well as we learned of the passing of Wade Mainer (4/23/1907 - 9/12/2011) and Wilma Lee Cooper (2/7/1921 - 9/13/2011), so my bittersweet mission was to pay tribute to these two pioneering musicians.

Maple On The Hill - 1935
Now a little self-disclosure:  I have a bit of a personal connection to the Mainers.  J.E. Mainer (1898-1971) and and his younger brother Wade were born in Buncombe County, NC (near Asheville) but eventually found themselves in Concord, NC, chasing textile work when J.E.'s fiddling caught the ear of the Crazy Water Crystals marketeers.  A daily radio program on nearby Charlotte powerhouse radio station WBT ensued followed by recording sessions beginning in 1935 on RCA's Bluebird label.  The 19th century song "Maple On The Hill" by Gussie L. Davis but with new music by Mainers' Mountaineers was recorded at that first session and went on to be one of the biggest selling country/folk/hillbilly records of the 1930s.

J. E. Mainer, Jr.
J. E. Mainer







My connection with this is that Concord is my hometown, and J.E.'s son J.E. Mainer, Jr. (1924-present) is a close personal friend.  Wade had been working in the Gibson Mill card room in Concord, possibly with my grandfather as foreman, when J.E. enlisted him in his fledgling band in the early 1930s.

New music on this show included songs from Wayne Taylor and Appaloosa, Larry Gillis and Alex Leach, Suzy Bogguss, Dale Ann Bradley, Larry Perkins, Connie Leigh, and Rodney Dillard.
Ham & Scram

Marty Robbins "Good 'n Country"

As a special treat, in addition to the two tributes, the Heritage Corner archives turned up two interesting recordings from which we shared tracks -- "Ham & Scram Country Comedy" with Buzz Busby (and possibly Don Stover or Pete Pike), and a little known 1974 album from Marty Robbins called "Good 'n Country" that was very grassy.

For those traveling to IBMA's World Of Bluegrass in Nashville, Amy and I hope to see you there.  Amy will be hosting Bluegrass Cafe before WOB, and I'll catch it afterwards.

Keep on pickin'

Jim Beaver

requests in blue

 Title / Artist / Album / Label
  • Fire On The Mountain / Michael Cleveland / Sawing On The "C" String / Self-released         
  • Mash Your Finger / Wayne Taylor and Appaloosa / It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Day / Self-released      
  • She's More To Be Pitied / Larry Gillis feat. Alex Leach / Dr. Swampgrass Gillis Live on WDVX Radio / Tinman         
  • Pardon Me / Tommy Brown & The County Line Grass / Hard Drivin' / Lavenir
  • Big Midnight Special / Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper / 22 Wilma Lee Cooper Hits / K-Tel
  • Come Walk With Me / Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper / 22 Wilma Lee Cooper Hits / K-Tel
  • Cheated Too / Wilma Lee Cooper / 22 Wilma Lee Cooper Hits / K-Tel             
  • There's A Big Wheel / Wilma Lee & Stoney Cooper / 22 Wilma Lee Cooper Hits / K-Tel     
  • This Ole House / Wilma Lee Cooper / 22 Wilma Lee Cooper Hits / K-Tel             
  • Sweetheart You Done Me Wrong / Bill Monroe / 16 Gems / Columbia         
  • Ol' Dan Tucker / Suzy Bogguss / American Folk Songbook / Self-released         
  • Yellow-Backed Fly / Steve Martin and The Steep Canyon Rangers / Rare Bird Alert / Rounder         
  • When The Golden Leaves Begin To Fall / Audie Blaylock and Redline / I'm Going Back To Old Kentucky / Rural Rhythm         
  • Come Home Good Boy / Dale Ann Bradley / Somewhere South Of Crazy / Compass         
  • Rabbit In A Log / The Stanley Brothers / Live At Chicago Folk Festival / Self-released         
  • You Won't Be Satisfied That Way / Dave Evans & River Bend / Goin' 'Round This World / Rebel      
  • Little Bird / Becky Buller / Little Bird / Bell Buckle         
  • Sophronie / Jimmy Martin / You Don't Know My Mind / Rounder
  • Deep Freeze Mama Blues / Ham & Scram feat. Buzz Busby / Country Comedy / Mount Vernon (LP)       
  • I Heard The Bluebirds Sing / Marty Robbins / Good 'n Country / MCA (LP)         
  • Two Chord Charlie / Rick Pardue & Timmy Massey / The Ghost Of Noah Hayes / Lizard Records    
  • Wade Mainer Interview / Wade Mainer / Live For Collectors / Old Homestead                    
  • Little Pal / Wade Mainer / I'm Not Looking Backward / Gusto
  • Maple On The Hill / J.E. Mainer's Mountaineers feat. Wade Mainer / Wade Mainer's Mountaineers Vol. 1 / Old Homestead
  • I Can't Sit Down / Wade & Julia Mainer / In The Land Of Melody / JuneAppal
  • The Fox / The Blue Sky Boys / In Concert, 1964 / Rounder
  • I Couldn't Believe It Was True / Marty Robbins / Good 'n Country / MCA (LP)         
  • Lonesome Road Blues / Eddie Adcock - Don Reno / Sensational Twin Banjos / Rebel         
  • I'm Still Learning / Lonesome River Band / I'm Still Learning / Rural Rhythm         
  • Pick Like Earl / Larry Perkins & Friends / I Just Want 2 Pick Like Earl / Self-released         
  • Storms Are On The Ocean / Taylor's Grove / Keep On The Sunny Side / Fishtraks         
  • Stepping Stones / Terry Baucom w. Paul Williams / In A Groove / John Boy & Billy         
  • Open Up Your Heart / Terry Baucom w. The Gibson Brothers / In A Groove / John Boy & Billy  
  • Soldier's Joy (bed) / Tommy Jackson / The Legendary Session Fiddler / BACM         
  • Fiddlin' Rag (bed) / Tommy Jackson / The Legendary Session Fiddler / BACM         
  • Behind Those Big Closed Doors / Connie Leigh / New Cuts of Bluegrass Vol. 4 / New Cuts         
  • Final Farewell / Chris Jones & The Night Drivers / New Cuts of Bluegrass Vol. 4 / New Cuts    
  • A Time To Fly / Wayne Taylor and Appaloosa / It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Day / Self-released         
  • Branded Wherever I Go / Allerton & Alton / Black, White and Bluegrass / Bear Family         
  • The Death Of Bad Burch Wilson / Larry Cordle / Pud Marcum's Hangin' / Mighty Cord         
  • Whitewater / Bela Fleck / Drive / Rounder         
  • I Shall Not Be Moved / The Lewis Family / Born Of The Spirit / Starday         
  • Lord Lift Me Up / Darin & Brooke Aldridge / So Much In Between / Mountain Home         
  • Hear Them Thunders Roarin / Rodney Dillard & The Dillard Band / Don't Wait For The Hearse To Take You To Church / Rural Rhythm         
  • He Lived His Life That Way / Paul Williams & The Victory Trio / Satisfied / Rebel         
  • Mansion God Is Building / Jay Armsworthy / I Couldn't Make It Without Him / Blue Circle         
  • Save Me / Mountain Faith / Save Me / Mountain Home         
  • I'll Sail For Higher Ground / John Bowman / Family Chain - The Songs of Joe Isaacs / Pisgah Ridge    
  • Precious Moments / Blue Sky Boys / Are You From Dixie / Gusto         
  • Me And Jesus / Acoustic Blue / Timeless / Self-released         
  • Gathering Flowers For The Master's Bouquet / The Stanley Brothers / 1949-52 / Bear Family         
  • Walking In A Dream / Fred Etheridge w. Nick Anderson & Mark Doyle / Pickin' And Singin' / Self-released

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