Great Voices of Bluegrass VII: Rose Maddox Sings "Dark As A Dungeon"

Описание: Rose Maddox (1925-1995) has never got the recognition she deserved. Part of the problem is that she came to Bluegrass somewhat late, having spent a large part of her career singing with her brothers in a West Coast venue, where they were obliged, in order to make a living, to do "hillbilly" music, with all the clowning around and crude stereotypes that went with it. Much of it, in the 40's, was not too far removed from what Black entertainers had to do in the old days, when they were expected (by some) to shuffle and flash grin. It is to Bill Monroe's great credit that he, developing an old Celtic tradition native to the mountain country, would never participate in anything like that, which he despised, and rightfully so. Being poor and without opportunities does not make a person a clown. He insisted from the beginning that all the Bluegrass Boys dress up in jackets and ties, in a conscious effort to dispel, once and for all, the degrading "hayseed" image. Ralph Stanley did the same thing, especially at folk concerts, where torn blue jeans and colorful t-shirts were the common mode of dress. He came in suit and tie. Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs also dressed up, especially on their long-running TV show. This piece, one of the real classics of "coal mine" music, shows what Maddox could do at her Bluegrass best, and also shows off her haul-back-and-cut loose vocal style that works perfectly well in this music, and never comes close to "hillbilly" music.