Carter Family - Citizendia

The Carter Family was a country music group that recorded between 1927 and 1956. Country music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains. Their music had a profound impact on bluegrass, country, southern gospel, pop and rock musicians as well as on the U.S. folk revival of the 1960s. Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and is a sub-genre of Country music. Country music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains. Southern Gospel music (sometimes marketed as Quartet music) is Music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian Popular music is Music belonging to any of a number of musical styles that are accessible to the general public and are disseminated by one or more Rock music is a genre of Popular music often though not necessarily employing Electric guitar, Bass guitar, and Drums. A roots revival ( folk revival) is a trend which includes young performers popularizing the traditional musical styles of their ancestors They were the first vocal group to become country music stars. Their recordings of such songs as "Wabash Cannonball," "Will the Circle Be Unbroken," "Wildwood Flower" and "Keep On the Sunny Side" made them country standards. " The Wabash Cannonball " is an American folk song about a fictional train thought to have originated sometime in the late Nineteenth century. " Wildwood Flower " is an American song best known through performances and recordings by the Carter Family. ^[1]

The original group consisted of Alvin Pleasant "A.P." Delaney Carter (1891-1960), his wife Sara Dougherty Carter (1898-1979), and his sister-in-law Maybelle Addington Carter (1909-1978). AP Carter ( December 15, 1891 - November 7, 1960) was an American Country music Musician and founding member Year 1891 ( MDCCCXCI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Sara Carter ( July 21, 1898 &ndash January 8, 1979) was an American Country music Musician. Year 1898 ( MDCCCXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1979 ( MCMLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1979 Gregorian calendar) "Mother Maybelle" Carter ( May 10, 1909 - October 23, 1978) was an American country Musician. Year 1909 ( MCMIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Year 1978 ( MCMLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar) Maybelle was married to A. P. 's brother Ezra (Eck) Carter and was also Sara's first cousin. All three were born and raised in southwestern Virginia, where they were immersed in the tight harmonies of mountain gospel music and shape note singing. The Commonwealth of Virginia ( is an American state Gospel music is Music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life as well as (in terms of the varying music styles to Shape notes are a music notation designed to facilitate congregational singing Maybelle's distinctive and innovative guitar playing style became a hallmark of the group.

1 History
2 Second generation
3 Extended family
4 Legacy
5 External links
6 References

History

The Carter Family made their first recordings on August 2, 1927. Events 338 BC - A Macedonian army led by Philip II defeated the combined forces of Athens and Thebes in the Year 1927 ( MCMXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[2] A. P. had convinced Sara and Maybelle the day before to make the journey from Maces Spring, Virginia, to Bristol, Tennessee, to audition for record producer Ralph Peer, who was seeking new talents for the relatively embryonic recording industry. Maces Spring is a small unincorporated community in Scott County, Virginia, United States, along State Route 614. Bristol is a city in Sullivan County, Tennessee, United States. Ralph Peer ( May 22 1892 &ndash January 19 1960) was born Ralph Sylvester Peer in Independence Missouri. They received $50 for each song they recorded.

In the fall of 1927, the Victor recording company released a double-sided 78 rpm record of the group performing "Wandering Boy" and "Poor Orphan Child". In 1928, another record was released with "The Storms Are on the Ocean" and "Single Girl, Married Girl". This record became very popular.

On May 27, 1928, Peer had the group travel to Camden, New Jersey, where they recorded many of what would become their signature songs, including:

"Meet me by the Moonlight Alone";
"Keep on the Sunny Side";
"Can the Circle be Unbroken";
"Little Darling, Pal of Mine";
"Forsaken Love";
"Anchored in Love";
"I Ain't Goin' to Work Tomorrow";
"Will You Miss Me when I'm Gone";
"Wildwood Flower";
"River of Jordan";
"Chewing Gum"; and
"John Hardy Was a Desperate Little Man". Events 927 - Simeon the Great, Tsar of Bulgaria, dies 1120 - Richard III of Capua is anointed Year 1928 ( MCMXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The City of Camden is the County seat of Camden County, New Jersey, in the United States. " Wildwood Flower " is an American song best known through performances and recordings by the Carter Family.

The group did not receive any money for this effort and left with a contract that assured a small royalty for sales of their records and sheet music. "Wildwood Flower" in both vocal and instrumental forms has endured as a signature tune for traditional country and bluegrass artists. During a February 1929 session they recorded:

"I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes";
"My Clinch Mountain Home";
"Sweet Fern";
"Grave on the Green Hillside";
"Little Moses";
"Don't Forget This Song"; and
"Engine 143". "Engine One-Forty-Three" is a song written by A P Carter and originally recorded by the Carter Family.

By the end of 1930 they had sold 300,000 records in the USA.

Realizing that he would benefit financially with each new song he collected and copyrighted, A. P. traveled around the southwestern Virginia area in search of new songs. In the early 1930s, he befriended Lesley "Esley" Riddle, a black guitar player from Kingsport, Tennessee. Lesley "Esley" Riddle (1905-1980 was an African-American musician whose influence on the Carter Family helped to shape Country music. Kingsport is a city in Hawkins and Sullivan counties in the U Esley accompanied A. P. on his song-collecting trips. Riddle's blues guitar-playing style influenced the Carters, especially Maybelle, who learned new guitar techniques from watching him play. In June 1931, the Carters did a recording session in Nashville, Tennessee along with country legend Jimmie Rodgers. Jimmie Rodgers ( September 8, 1897 – May 26, 1933) an early purveyor of Delta blues, known as "The Singing Brakeman" In 1933, Maybelle met the Cook Family Singers at the World's Fair in Chicago and fell in love with their signature sound. Biography The Cook Family Singers were originally formed in 1885 by David J Cook and his wife Martha Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. [1] She asked them to tour with the Carter Family.

Second generation

In the winter of 1938-39, the Carter Family traveled to Texas, where they had a twice-daily program on the border radio station XERA (later XERF) in Villa Acuña (now Ciudad Acuña), Mexico, across the border from Del Rio, Texas. Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. XERA is a Radio station in Mexico, broadcasting at 760 AM in San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas. The call letters XERF-AM are assigned to a licensed border-blaster radio station that was located in Villa Acuña, Coahuila, (later renamed Ciudad Acuña The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. Del Rio is a border city in and the County seat of Val Verde County, Texas, United States. In the 1939-40 season, June Carter (middle daughter of Ezra Carter and Maybelle Carter) joined the group, which was now in San Antonio, Texas, where the programs were prerecorded and distributed to multiple border radio stations. Valerie June Carter Cash ( June 23, 1929 &ndash May 15, 2003) was a Singer, Songwriter, actress, comedienne In the fall of 1942, the Carters moved their program to WBT radio in Charlotte, North Carolina, for a one-year contract. WBT (known on air as News Talk 1110) is a 50000 watt Clear-channel Radio station in Charlotte North Carolina, broadcasting on the AM dial They occupied the sunrise slot, with the program airing between 5:15 and 6:15 a. m.

By 1943, A. P. and Sara's marriage had dissolved. Sara married A. P. 's cousin, moved to California, and the group disbanded.

Maybelle continued to perform with her daughters, Anita, June, and Helen, as "Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters" into the 1960s. Ina Anita Carter ( March 31 1933 in Maces Spring Virginia – July 29 1999 in Goodlettsville Tennessee, age 66 was the Valerie June Carter Cash ( June 23, 1929 &ndash May 15, 2003) was a Singer, Songwriter, actress, comedienne Helen Myrl Carter Jones, better known as Helen Carter ( September 19, 1927 – June 2, 1998) was an American Country music A. P. , Sara, and their children Joe and Janette recorded some material in the 1950s. Janette Carter ( 22 July 1923 - 22 January 2006) was the last surviving child of A Maybelle and Sara briefly reunited, recorded a reunion album, and toured in the 1960s during the height of folk music's popularity. Folk music can have a number of different meanings including Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous (see a film clip here)

In 1987, reunited sisters June Carter Cash and Helen and Anita Carter, along with June's daughter Carlene Carter, appeared as the Carter Family and were featured on a 1987 television episode of Austin City Limits along with Johnny Cash. Carlene Carter (born Rebecca Carlene Smith; September 26, 1955) is an American country Singer and Songwriter Austin City Limits is an American Television music program and a staple of the Public Broadcasting Service. ^[3]

Revivalist folksingers during the 1960s performed much of the material the Carters had collected or written. For example, on her early Vanguard albums, folk performer Joan Baez sang "Wildwood Flower", "Little Moses", "Engine 143", "Little Darling, Pal of Mine", and "Gospel Ship". Joan Chandos Baez (born January 9, 1941 in Staten Island, New York) an American Folk singer and Songwriter known It is also interesting to note that the Carter Family Song "Wayworn Traveller" was covered by a young Bob Dylan, who wrote his own words to the melody and named it "Paths Of Victory". Bob Dylan (born Robert Zimmerman, May 24 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota) is an American singer-songwriter author poet and painter who has been a major This recording is featured on "Bootleg Series Vol. 1-3". After writing that song, he wrote new words to the melody and changed the time signature to 3/4, thus creating possibly his most famous song, "The Times They Are a-Changin'". " The Times They Are a-Changin' " is a Song written by Bob Dylan and released on his 1964 album of the same name. This became the second time an American folk singer used a Carter Family melody to create his best-known song (Woody Guthrie did it by turning "When This World's on Fire" into "This Land Is Your Land"). Woodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie (July 14 1912–October 3 1967 was an American Singer-songwriter and Folk musician Guthrie's musical legacy " This Land Is Your Land " is one of the United States ' most famous folk songs.

Extended family

This family tree shows the extended Carter family through several generations.

William Sevier Dougherty

Nancy Elizabeth Kilgore

Robert C. Carter

Mollie Arvell Bays

Margaret S. Kilgore

Hugh Jackson Addington

Sara Carter

A. P. Carter

Ezra J. Sara Carter ( July 21, 1898 &ndash January 8, 1979) was an American Country music Musician. AP Carter ( December 15, 1891 - November 7, 1960) was an American Country music Musician and founding member Carter

Maybelle Carter

Gladys Carter

Janette Carter

Joe Carter

Edwin "Rip" Nix

Kathleen Cash

Cindy Cash

Tara Cash

Legacy

As important to country music as the family's repertoire of songs was Maybelle's guitar playing. "Mother Maybelle" Carter ( May 10, 1909 - October 23, 1978) was an American country Musician. Helen Myrl Carter Jones, better known as Helen Carter ( September 19, 1927 – June 2, 1998) was an American Country music Ina Anita Carter ( March 31 1933 in Maces Spring Virginia – July 29 1999 in Goodlettsville Tennessee, age 66 was the Vivian Dorraine Liberto ( April 23, 1934 – May 24, 2005) was the first wife of Country music singer Johnny Cash, Johnny Cash (born J R Cash; February 26 1932 - September 12 2003 was a Grammy Award -winning American country Singer-songwriter. Valerie June Carter Cash ( June 23, 1929 &ndash May 15, 2003) was a Singer, Songwriter, actress, comedienne Carl Smith (born March 15, 1927 in Maynardville Tennessee) is an American Country music Singer. Rosanne Cash (born May 24, 1955) is an American Country music Singer-songwriter and occasional Author, who is known for John Carter Cash (born 3 March 1970) is an American Country music - Singer, Songwriter and producer. Rozanna Lea "Rosey" Nix ( July 13, 1958 - October 24, 2003) was an American Singer - Songwriter. Carlene Carter (born Rebecca Carlene Smith; September 26, 1955) is an American country Singer and Songwriter Nick Lowe (born Nicholas Drain Lowe, March 24 1949, Walton-on-Thames) is an English Singer-songwriter, Musician Joseph Breen (born July 5, 1958 in Katonah New York) is an American Soap opera Actor. The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles She developed her innovative guitar technique largely in isolation; her style is today widely known as the "Carter scratch" or "Carter style" of picking. While Maybelle did use a flatpick on occasion, her major method of guitar playing was the use of her thumb (with a thumbpick) along with one or two fingers. What her guitar style accomplished was to allow her to play melody lines (on the low strings of the guitar) while still maintaining rhythm using her fingers, brushing across the higher strings. Before the Carter family's recordings, the guitar was rarely used as a lead or solo instrument. Maybelle's interweaving of a melodic line on the bass strings with intermittent strums is now a staple of steel string guitar technique. Flatpickers such as Doc Watson, Clarence White and Norman Blake took flatpicking to a higher technical level, but all acknowledge Maybelle's playing as their inspiration. Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (born March 3, 1923) is an American Guitar player Songwriter and Singer of Clarence White (born Clarence LeBlanc ( June 7, 1944 – July 15, 1973) was a Guitar player for Nashville West, Norman Blake (born March 10, 1938 in Chattanooga, Tennessee) is a Grammy -nominated instrumentalist vocalist and Songwriter

The Carters were elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1970 and were given the nickname "The First Family of Country Music". The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum is located at 222 Fifth Avenue South in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. In 1988, the Carter Family was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and received its Award for the song "Will the Circle Be Unbroken". The Grammy Hall of Fame Award is a special Grammy award established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least twenty-five years old and that have "qualitative See also Grammy Grammy Hall of Fame Award List of Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients E-I List of Grammy Hall In 1993, the U. S. Postal Service issued a commemorative postage stamp honoring A.P., Sara, and Maybelle. This article lists people who have been featured on United States Postage stamps Since the United States Post Office issued its first stamp in 1847 over 4000 stamps have been issued and In 2001, the group was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor. In 2005, the group received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is awarded by the Recording Academy to "performers who during their lifetimes have made creative contributions of outstanding

External links

References

^ Heatley, Michael (2007). Rolling Stone is a United States -based Magazine devoted to Music, Politics, and Popular culture that is published The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock. London, United Kingdom: Star Fire. ISBN 978 1 84451 996 5.
^ Interview with Maybelle Carter on Wildflower Pickin, Vanguard compact disc.
^ Johnny Cash with The Carter Family, Austin City Limits, 1987

Among my klediments, June Carter Cash, Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan, 1979. ISBN 0-310-38170-3
In the Country of Country: A Journey to the Roots of American Music, Nicholas Dawidoff, Vintage Books, 1998. ISBN 0-375-70082-X
Will you miss me when I'm gone? : the Carter Family and their legacy in American music, Mark Zwonitzer with Charles Hirshberg, New York, Simon & Schuster, 2002

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