| | Ralph Stanley II: Biography & Preview of This One Is Two Great record albums evolve in their own direction at their own speed, indifferent to the best-laid plans. Had it followed the original schedule, Ralph Stanley II’s This One Is Two would have been out a year or more ago. And, given the talents behind it, it would have been a good album. But it would not have been the remarkable musical achievement it has now become.
During the album’s additional year of growth, new songs were found and older choices laid aside, new musicians were added to the already sparkling lineup and new arrangements were ventured. Every element in the project was sharpened. The result is an album that stands on even ground with the best country recordings ever made.
Stanley, who’s known as “Two” to his friends (and thus the album title), has spent nearly half his 30 years as lead singer and rhythm guitarist for his father’s fabled bluegrass band, the Clinch Mountain Boys. But like the great vocalist Keith Whitley, who preceded him in that position, Stanley has always had a passion for hardcore country songs, the ones that never wear thin from repeated singing.
“I’ve always wanted to do something more traditionally country,” he says, “because that’s the music I really admired growing up. When I first signed to Lonesome Day Records, we talked about me doing a half-and-half album, half country and half bluegrass. But the country part turned out so well that we decided to do a whole album of it, nothing but country. And I’m so glad we did.”
Those who cherish a direct, unadorned and emotionally honest sound will be glad as well. Stanley’s voice resonates with the same sensitivity and conviction we hear in such masters as George Jones, Merle Haggard and John Anderson. His song choices in This One Is Two are equally persuasive. Besides the two solidly country pieces he co-wrote himself, he interprets memorable lyrics from the pens of Lyle Lovett, Tom T. Hall, Townes Van Zandt, Fred Eaglesmith, J. P. Pennington and Elton John, among others.
In this sweep, Stanley ruminates about life on the road (“Honky Tonk Way,” “If This Old Guitar Could Talk”), homicidal jealousy (“L. A. County”), the excitement of the rails (“Train Songs”), the beauties of the Peach Tree State (“Georgia”), the agony of separation (“They Say I’ll Never Go Home,” “Cold Shoulder”), his legacy as the son and nephew of the trailblazing Stanley Brothers (“Lord Help Me Find The Way,” “Carter”), the comfort of easy ladies (“Loretta”) and the irreplaceability of mothers (“Moms Are The Reason Wild Flowers Grow”). It’s an 11-course feast of pure country.
Mike Latterell produced and engineered the sessions, with an assist from Marty Raybon, former lead singer of the group Shenandoah. Lonesome Day chief Randall Deaton took the lead in finding songs and stepped in as executive producer. The players include Randy Kohrs, Tim Crouch, Adam Steffey, Cody Kilby, Harold Nixon and Ron Stewart and the background singers are Raybon, Jim Lauderdale, Darrin Vincent, Dale Ann Bradley and Steve Gulley.
Despite his deep roots in bluegrass, Stanley is no newcomer to country music. Elements of it emerged prominently in his four earlier solo albums: Carrying On (2004), Stanley Blues (2002), Pretty Girls, City Lights (2000) and Listen To My Hammer Ring (1999). He earned Grammy nominations with Stanley Blues and Carrying On and, as a member of the Clinch Mountain Boys, won a best bluegrass album Grammy in 2003 in conjunction with his father and Jim Lauderdale for Lost In The Lonesome Pines.
Raised in remote southwestern Virginia, Stanley began going out on the road with his father when he was just two years old. At four, he began learning to play guitar. By the time he was 16, he had accumulated enough time in the spotlight to take over as lead singer of the Clinch Mountain Boys, a job previously held by the likes of Carter Stanley, Larry Sparks, Keith Whitley, Ricky Skaggs and Charlie Sizemore.
“People get all caught up in labels,” Stanley observes, “what’s country and what’s bluegrass. I guess there’s a place for that. But all I look for are songs that ring true to me. I can handle it from there.” For additional information, go to drralphstaanley.com. About the band
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