David W. Johnson

I like to think of Lonesome Melodies as an entertaining and informative alternative history of real country music -- the kind that came from hymn-singing in churches and guitars without amplifiers. For the twenty years Carter and Ralph Stanley performed together, they remained true to their sound while the world of country changed from string bands and brother duets to Elvis and electric guitars. The brothers stayed close to roots that run deep into the rocky hills of Virginia, Kentucky, West Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Here's how I came to write the book. In 2000, at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, I was spellbound by Ralph's performance of "O Death" under a single white spotlight, I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I thought about writing his biography. In 2001, a teaching job brought me to Emory and Henry College in southwestern Virginia, where I learned that Ralph had a brother. After a decade of research and writing, Lonesome Melodies is my tribute to the remarkable spirit of the people and music of Appalachia. I hope you enjoy it.