And all those characters that hung around there captured my attention when I was a little kid. Going back to when I was a kid in Philadelphia, Mississippi, there was a Black café, juke joint called The Busy Bee Café. How did you develop that that visual presence on stage that's become so associated with the Marty Stuart brand? You have a distinct look, the whole band looks phenomenal together- The powder blue suits, I love it. Now there's the music itself, there's the living history aspect of it, and then there's the showmanship aspect of it, of which you are a brilliant representation. Especially at this point in my life, I think I'm one of the people that is kind of a bridge between, you know, the past of country music and the future. And it just kind of became a self-appointed mission for me to jump in, grab it, claim it, preserve it, promote it, and further it. And somewhere along the way, I guess it was a self-appointed mission, I thought the traditional end of country music is slipping away. Ken Burns and I agree, it's the stories that make country songs and country music kind of set apart. My wife, Connie Smith, says it's the cry of the heart. Hank Williams said, I can sum it up in one word: Sincerity. The old great songwriter Harlan Howard, when asked to describe country music, called it three chords and the truth. And you know, I think a lot of descriptions come around about country music. I grew up in Mississippi where, you know, you drive across the state line, it says “birthplace of America's music.” And that can be backed up profoundly.
What's your experience of that concept? And was there a moment where you felt like, oh, I now have the ability to actually contribute to this, or have a voice in this- And what does that responsibility mean to you?
But I understood that there's a lot of people who got a chance- But keeping it’s the other thing.Ī popular narrative about country music is this idea of it being a living history. So, but, I realized early on, I totally understood what I was doing and who I was with. Lester's one of the old pioneers and master architects of country music, and I remember thinking right after I got the job, you got the job! And then this little voice inside me said, now see if you can keep it. When I was 13, I got a job with Lester Flatt at the Grand Ole Opry. Looking back over your long and prolific career, do you feel like there was a moment early on where you felt like, wow, I'm really in it, I've settled into a practice and in a career that's going to be the rest of my life? WAMC: Now, you've been playing for decades at this point. So, Kenny Vaughan plays guitar, Harry Stinson plays the drums, Chris Scruggs plays the bass, and it's kind of a once in a lifetime band for me. And I said, well, for an extra dash of grandiosity, how about the Fabulous Superlatives. And so when we put our band together, I thought, we need a name. There used to be this old florist called Emma's, and they called it “the superlative florists.” They had great old radio spots that had orchestral music and this old Southern brogue guy who said “mums, carnations, roses, rhododendrons.” And he would always tag with it with, “Emma’s, the superlative florists.” That was just their thing, and everybody loved that phrase. STUART: Well, we were named after a catchphrase at a florist in Nashville.
As he prepares to hit the road with the Fabulous Superlatives, Stuart tells WAMC that establishing the band’s legacy has become his next great goal. From those humble origins, Stuart’s star rose to the highest heights: joining the bands of heroes Johnny Cash - who wound up his father-in-law for a time - and Lester Flatt, winning multiple Grammys, and securing a place in the Country Music Hall of Fame. Born in Philadelphia, Mississippi in 1958, Stuart starting playing professionally with a gospel band at 12. On January 30th, country music legend Marty Stuart brings his Fabulous Superlatives band to The Egg in Albany.
0 kommentar(er)
