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Ralph Stanley

American bluegrass musician and singer (1927–2016)

Ralph Edmund Stanley was an American bluegrass artist, known for his distinctive singing and banjo playing. He began playing music in 1946, originally with his older brother Carter Stanley as part of the Stanley Brothers, and most often as the leader of his band, the Clinch Mountain Boys.

He was also known as Dr. Ralph Stanley.

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Ralph Stanley

what: one person
from: McClure
born: 1927
until: 2016
on the air here: 1 song

File card: Ralph Stanley

real name: Ralph Edmond Stanley

labels: Columbia Records

genres: bluegrass music, old-time music

awards: National Medal of Arts, Library of Congress Living Legend, Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, honorary doctor of Yale University

plays: banjo

member of: The Stanley Brothers, American Academy of Arts and Sciences

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bluegrassold-timebluegrass gospelcheck recordings

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Political career

About 1970, Ralph Stanley ran for Clerk of Court and Commissioner of Revenue in Dickenson County and said:

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Musical style

Stanley created a unique style of banjo playing, sometimes called "Stanley style". It evolved from the Wade Mainer style two-finger technique and was later influenced by the Scruggs style, which is a three-finger technique. "Stanley style" is distinguished by incredibly fast "forward rolls", led by the index finger (instead of the thumb, as in Scruggs style), sometimes in the higher registers using a capo. In "Stanley style", the rolls of the banjo are continuous, while being picked fairly close to the bridge on the banjo, giving the tone of the instrument a very crisp, articulate snap to the strings as the player plays them.

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American bluegrass banjoist, singer, and songwriter, born February 25, 1927 in Big Spraddle Creek, Virginia - died June 23, 2016 in Sandy Ridge, Virginia. Brother of , father of , grandfather of . In 1976, Ralph Stanley received an Honorary Doctorate of Music from Lincoln Memorial University, Harrogate, Tennessee and in 2014, an Honorary Doctor of Music from Berklee College of Music, Boston, Massachusetts. Growing up in rural southwestern Virginia, Stanley learned to play the banjo, claw-hammer, style from his mother. It was her inspiration, coupled with Stanley's natural ability, which led Ralph and his older guitar-playing brother Carter, to form the their band, the Clinch Mountain Boys, in 1946. Drawing heavily on the musical traditions of the area - the holiness singing of the Primitive Baptist Church and the sweet down home family harmonies of the Carter Family- the Stanleys began honing their own special style of music by singing at local events in the early 1940s. Ralph and Carter performed as The Stanley Brothers with their band, the Clinch Mountain Boys from 1946 to 1966. After Carter's death in 1966, Ralph Stanley continued to perform, eventually reviving the Clinch Mou Also known as: C. Stanley, Dr. Ralph Stanley, R Stanley, R., R. Stanley From Discogs (free to use). Their entry