The Stanley Brothers consisted of the brother duo: Carter and Ralph Stanley. They performed alongside their band the Clinch Mountain boys who provided instrumental accompaniment. The brothers grew up on a small farm in Dickenson County, Virginia, near McClure. As typical in most early bluegrass artists lives; “music was a prominent part of Ralph and Carters childhood, and they were influenced by the Monroe Brothers, J.E Mainer’s Mountaineers and the Grand Ole Opry on local radio” (Wikipedia.) Carter the younger of the two brothers died in 1966 of Liver Cirrhosis, however Ralph kept their name and continued solo until his recent death in 2016. In 1948, on the bands second recording ever, they recorded Little Maggie on one side and The Little Glass of Wine on the flip side, under the label Rich-R-Tone. My goal is to provide an in-depth analysis of the song Little glass of Wine to help understand the meaning, context, and other pertinent information about the song.
Little glass of Wine is a love song, and murder-suicide ballad all in one. It tells the story of a man (Willie) who is in love with a fine young lady (Molly), but Molly exclaims “when we’re married, we’re bound together. Let’s stay single just one more year.” Willie eventually gets jealous and decides he will kill his true lover before he lets another man get to her. Molly asks him to have a drink (of wine) at the bar with him. Next, Willie poisons both glasses of wine resulting in death, and like the last line of the song explains “both true lovers are bound to die.” This song is in a medium tempo in a cut time tempo, and is easy to keep the beat to because of the prominent bass line in the background. Although this song has a tragic ending it keeps a moving/driving tempo, and it not terribly slow compared to other emotional songs that may be in a slower tempo in order to express sorrow, grief, or sadness in a better way. On this track Carter is playing the guitar and singing lead, while Ralph plays banjo and sings in a high tenor voice. “Their harmonies are much admired, and many consider Carter to be one of the greatest natural singers in the history of country music” (Carter Stanley Wikipedia.) The bluegrass harmonies used throughout the tune really help to keep the listener engaged, and you can feel the connection between the brothers-a very first-class duo. Additionally, this tune also includes fiddle, mandolin, and string bass (in certain recordings.) The song is in strophic form meaning the instrumentalists are playing the same chords in the background while the lyrics consist of eight verses telling the story of Willie and Molly. There are a couple of fiddle breakdowns, and a descending fiddle line played over the verses that help foreshadow that something bad is coming. The Rich-R Tone record owner James Stanton, quoted in Rounder Collective brochure notes to the Rich-R-Tone Story in 1974 said “The Stanley Brothers had a song called Little Glass of Wine and they impressed me with the fact that they actually got a big U.S mail sack of letters every day requesting them to sing it, and so naturally we hopped into a session on that.” Compared to other bluegrass music this song had a different theme that was dark but at the same time attempting to be romantic which caught my attention and obviously sparked popularity of the bluegrass community as well. However, Harley ‘Red’ Allen associated with the Osborne Brothers, and the Blue Ridge mountain boys stated that “Bluegrass is a sad music. It’s always been sad. And the people that’s never lived it, it’ll take them a long time to know what it is.” This is due to the fact that bluegrass often expresses the struggles of hard blue-collar labor and the lifestyle of the Appalachian Mountains. Most Bluegrass music is in a fast tempo and a major key portraying happiness, but as Red Allen makes clear it is the themes in the songs that are sad, and to first time listeners it can be deceiving.
While delving into the origins of this song there are evident connections that can be made with early American pre-bluegrass music, even in earlier 19th century original compositions. Thanks to the bold folklorist Alen Lomax who finds the similar themes in a song some ten years earlier in Patrick Blackmans analysis of Little Glass of Wine he states that “In October 1937, he (Alen Lomax) and his wife, Elizabeth, recorded Bill Bundy in Manchester, Kentucky singing “Poison glass of Wine.” His lyrics, again, are similar to the Satanleys’, suggesting of course some common Appalachian ancestor transplanted from Britain. It’s worth noting, however, that Harry Upton, of Sussex, rendered his traditional performance of a song by the same name for the folklorist Mike Yates in early 1970’s.” All throughout music artists are seen taking lyrics, beats, or instrumental parts from other artists and claiming it as their own. Although there may be multiple sources that Little Glass of Wine may have came from Ralph Stanly alleges that "we got part of that song from a fellow by the name of Otto Taylor… There used to be the Ritter Lumber Company around here. We met him at a camp where he lived. He had part of that song, and we finished it out and claimed it.” (Book-Lonesome Melodies: The Lives and Music of the Stanley brothers) Although most bluegrass music seems to be original compositions it can often be traced back to an earlier time and reedited for the intended audience in order to claim song rights, and turn a profit. Another big name in bluegrass- Bill Monroe was not exceptionally fond of groups like the Stanley Brothers and Flatt & Scruggs. In Rosenberg’s novel about the history of bluegrass it quotes Monroe stating, “the Stanley brothers a combo which he felt sounded too much like his own work… Monroe’s feelings in this matter were bound to be negative, for bands such as Flatt and Scruggs and the Stanley Brothers were economic threats.” (Rosenberg page 88) Since bluegrass music shares many similar characteristics there is potential for overlap between artists. Monroe is essentially trying to claim the style of music he is playing in (bluegrass) as his own which will not lead to expansion and growth of the genre. Therefore, the origins of Little Glass of Wine can be linked to multiple sources, but the Stanley Brother ultimately made it a hit.
Locating specific performances of Little Glass of Wine is difficult, but the Stanley brothers used it as a main hit in their early repertoire. According to Billboard Magazine “The Stanley Brothers had a regular gig at WNVA Norton for a few months. Then they moved to the Bristol, TN-based WCYB, where they appeared regularly on the Farm and Fun Time program. While they appeared on the show, they gained quite a following and soon signed a contract with the Rich-R-Tone label. The Stanley’s made their first records early in 1947, the same year they began playing various radio stations in the South, including ones in North Carolina, Louisiana, and Kentucky. The Brothers and their five-piece Clinch Mountain Boys were developing their style, moving from traditional string band sounds to a Monroe-inspired bluegrass style.” The Stanley brothers were broadcasting Little Glass of Wine over radio stations in order to gain publicity. The duet between Carter and Ralph was a phenomenal duo that really struck the attention of hillbilly/bluegrass fans. Since the Stanley Brothers recorded Little Glass of Wine there have been many covers of the song by other bluegrass bands. Overall Little Glass of Wine was the start of the Stanley brothers ongoing success in the bluegrass industry.
The Stanley brothers raised the bar when they released Little Glass of Wine along with Little Maggie. After this album, they were major components of the bluegrass community. They have made an impact in the life of music and have inspired and taught many through their meaning, context, and other pertinent information in their songs.
Bibliography
“Ralph Stanley,” http://www.bluegrassmuseum.org/ralph-stanley/
“Carter Stanley,” http://www.bluegrassmuseum.org/carter-stanley/
“The Stanley Brothers,” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Stanley_Brothers
“The truth to you I’ll tell,” https://singout.org/2016/01/18/the-truth-to-you-ill-tell/
“Stanley Brothers Bio,” http://www.billboard.com/artist/419185/stanley-brothers/biography
“Bluegrass: A History,” Neil Rosenberg
"Lonesome Melodies,” The Lives and Music of the Stanley brothers