Ralph Stanley, II Carrying On CD

 Smooth vocal delivery with definite country overtones
Playing Time – 35:05 -- “Carrying On” is Ralph Stanley II’s song about those mighty big shoes that he has to fill as he builds a name of his own in the footsteps of his famous father and uncle. But why does Ralph Stanley II give us yet another version of “Mountain Dew”? I reckon that he just likes that ol’ classic, and it’s one that he and his dad enjoy singing together. Other traditional bluegrass songs like his father’s “Ain’t it Hard” and “Pretty Woman,” the Stanley Brothers’ “Map of God’s Highway,” and A.P. Carter’s “Single Girl” are very palatable fare. Kentuckian Steve Sparkman is definitely the man who supercharges the more uptempo songs with his adept banjo playing. The real standouts on the slower numbers are Tim Crouch with his twin fiddles, and James Alan Shelton’s tasty guitar leads. Other contributors include John Rigsby, Ron Rigsby, David Smith, Lona Heins and Ralph Stanley. Kenny Smith, Josh Williams, Dave Roe jon the mix for Tom T. and Dixie Hall’s song, “Welcoming Tomb,” and Junior Blankenship picks guitar on “Carrying On.” The younger Stanley has a lot of talent. His vocal delivery is smooth with definite country overtones. He seems more comfortable crooning a slower ballad or waltz than belting out a bluegrass barnburner. That’s why one of my favorites on this project is Hargis Kelly’s “Devil’s Little Angel,” sung with his father and Lona Heins’ harmonies. As a songwriter, his three originals on this project (You Will Never Be Mine, I Am the Way I Am, Arizona Line) demonstrate another of his proficiencies. “I Am the Way I Am” has a common theme of the loneliness a music-making man encounters on the road. “Arizona Line” is an instrumental which gives Ralph a chance to impress us with his lead guitar work. Only in his twenties, Ralph II started playing on stage with his dad when he was only 14. He’s recorded four solo albums, as well as another with another Clinch Mountain Boy, John Rigsby. We’ve been able to witness Ralph’s musical growth and maturity on such projects as Listen to My Hammer Ring, Pretty Girls City Lights, Clinch Mountain Echoes, and Stanley Blues. Now in full blossom, I have the feeling that “Carrying On” is the album that is going to further launch his career to a greater height. Ralph Stanley II has a long and propitious career ahead of him. It will be interesting to see if he sticks with the bluegrass genre, or whether he might even pursue fame and fortune in country music. He could do either successfully. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)
Submitted by rossjoe (Roseburg, OR, USA)
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