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The Goins Brothers - Take This Hammer

(Rebel SLP-1568) 1977

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The Goins Brothers third album for Rebel was recorded at Track Studio, Silver Spring, Maryland 13-15th Jan 1976 along with their previous LP, On The Way Home. It remained unissued until sometime in 1977 & was reviewed in the December 1977 issue of 'Bluegrass Unlimited'.

A couple of songs (She's Just A Cute Thing and My Blue Eyed Darling) had previously been recorded by The Goins Brothers for their unreleased Jessup LP Bluegrass Blues. Both numbers were first recorded by Jimmy Martin and Bobby Osborne in 1951 with Curly Ray and Charlie Cline.^[1]

You Left Me To Cry is also an old Lonesome Pine Fiddler chestnut which Ray Goins had helped to record back in 1952.

Two numbers, Preachin' Prayin' Singin' and I'd Rather Be Alone are drawn from the classic Flatt & Scruggs repertoire, and there's also a couple of standards with Nine Pound Hammer and Sitting On Top Of The World.

More interesting, perhaps, is the bluegrass treatment of Harlan Howard's The Deepening Snow (mis-credited as Deep In The Snow), which is sung by Conley Goins. Burl Ives originally cut the song in 1964 and subseqently was recorded by several country artists. This tells a story of how a recently widowed husband wants the winter to end, so that his buried wife (who hated the cold) can be surrounded by flowers...

Another noteworthy effort is the instrumental version of Gold Watch And Chain with Buddy Griffin on autoharp & fiddle.

R & C Rag is another fine mid-tempo instrumental written by Ray Goins / Curley Lambert. I think this may also feature the studio engineer Ronnie Bucke on drum and has some smooth fiddle from Buddy Griffin.

Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain which finishes the LP, is an excellent version of a song which Roy Acuff & Hank Williams had recorded. It was also Willie Nelson's first No. 1 hit as a singer in October 1975, a few months before the Goins Brothers recording session for the album.

Liner notes for this one are by another ex-Lonesome Pine Fiddler, Bobby Osborne...

The Appalshop Archive has some video footage of the Goins Brothers with Curley Lambert from the Wise County Shriners Bluegrass festival: including a 1975 performance (also with Country Comfort and the Outdoor Plumbing Co.); a 1976 performance (also with The Marshall Family); and a 1977 performance featuring a young Charlie Sizemore on lead guitar. Although the video windows are quite small, they can be viewed full-screen once a video has started playing.

My copy of this album (which I've only just ordered & is still in the post), is signed by Ray Goins, Curley Lambert, Charlie Sizemore & Gene Hurd. I'll be replacing the pictures in this entry, once I've got the LP!

• Melvin Goins: guitar
• Ray Goins: banjo
• Conley Goins: bass
• Buddy Griffin: fiddle, lead guitar, autoharp
• Curley Lambert: mandolin
• Bill Rawlings: bass / guitar
• Ronnie Bucke: drum

^{[1] Gary Reid's liner notes to 'The Best Of King and Starday Bluegrass' 4xCD box set (King/Gusto KG-0952-4-2) 2004.}