Ralph Stanley: The singer Jerry Garcia called his “all-time favourite”
For a band that has built one of the sturdiest fanbases in rock and roll, the Grateful Dead seemed to have been inspired by anything but the genre they grew up in. Jerry Garcia could certainly play rock and roll guitar better than just about anybody, but there were just as many hints of everything from gypsy jazz to bluegrass to old-school country laced throughout the way he played. Rock was just a small sample of what he was able to do, and when it came to singing, Garcia only had ears for Ralph Stanley of the Stanley Brothers.
If you listened to the kind of music that the Stanley Brothers made, you’re probably not going to hear too much Grateful Dead in their catalogue. There is certainly some fantastic musicianship and more than a few songs that stretch beyond what traditional pop songs are supposed to do, but for most people, it’s just the sound of a humble bluegrass duo.
While rock fans could certainly appreciate someone tearing it up on any instrument, their versions of ‘Orange Blossom Special’ and ‘Man of Constant Sorrow’ sounded a lot different than what you had been passed down through generations. There were already versions of those songs by people like Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan, respectively, but this was a much different tone than anything too caustic.
Cash may have spoken with authority, and Dylan may have spoken with a sarcastic tone in his voice, but there wasn’t a single cynical bone in Stanley’s body whenever he sang. Compared to the gruff rock stars who were rising in prominence in the 1960s, his voice was far more gentle, not exactly booming enough to be a crooner but relatable enough to be the kind of voice that you hear right beside you when sitting around a campfire.
Maybe it was that gentle voice that appealed to Garcia, later telling Frets, “They had a couple of really great bands in those moments back there. And also the Stanley Brothers. My favourite singers were the Stanley Brothers. Ralph Stanley was my all-time favourite singer, I think.” They may have just been a favourite for Garcia, but if you listen to the way he sings, he did take a few cues from his idols as well.
Despite his guitar playing, Garcia’s voice also tended to be fairly soft-spoken. Sure, he sounded like a musical god whenever he strapped on his guitar, but that voice was there to remind you that he was just as human as everyone else whenever he played his music.
There are also a few similarities in the way that he approached his guitar playing. Compared to other artists who pulled from the blues, Garcia seemed to adopt the same mannerisms that a bluegrass player might have, almost like he saw his instrument as another vocal melody that happened to be on guitar instead of sung.
Above all else, both Gracia and Stanley knew the importance of making works of art out of every song they sang. Everyone can hope to put a coherent melody together when they pick up a guitar, but for the auteurs, turning these pieces into works of beauty was practically second nature.
