For the first release from an upcoming contemporary tribute to country music icons The Delmore Brothers, Billy Blue Records has dropped a single with Doyle Lawson and Jerry Salley singing, brother-duet-style, on When It’s Time for the Whippoorwill To Sing.
Though retired from touring, Doyle is still turning out quality bluegrass music, and even working a light schedule of shows with a reformed Quicksilver, made of primarily of former bandmates. Salley, who is producing the album, is likewise a student of early country and pre-bluegrass music.
The Delmore Brothers, Alton and Rabon, first performed together in 1926, and after joining the Grand Ole Opry in 1933, they recorded a string of extremely popular songs, right through to 1952 when Rabon died from lung cancer.
Billy Blue has put together 15 of the Delmores greatest songs, recorded anew by some of the brightest lights on today’s bluegrass and traditional country scene, to introduce these wonderful numbers to a new audience, only slightly reimagined for the current market. Many will be familiar, even to younger listeners, as these songs have been covered repeatedly since they were first released.
Included on the album, A Century of Strings, Stories & Songs: A Tribute to The Delmore Brothers, will be:
- Honey, I’m Ramblin’ Away – Junior Sisk & Don Rigsby
- I’ve Got the Big River Blues – Marty Raybon & Jimmy Fortune
- When It’s Time for the Whippoorwill to Sing – Doyle Lawson & Jerry Salley
- Gonna Lay Down My Old Guitar – Trey Hensley & Del McCoury
- Put Me on the Trail to Carolina – The Malpass Brothers
- Brown’s Ferry Blues – The SteelDrivers
- Will You Be Lonesome Too? – The Grascals (feat. Charlie McCoy)
- Field Hand Man – Wood Box Heroes
- Hillbilly Boogie – Alex Miller & Carson Peters
- The Fugitive’s Lament – Riders in the Sky
- Blue Railroad Train – Bradley Walker & Ricky Skaggs
- Life’s Too Short – The Gibson Brothers
- Blues Stay Away from Me – Chris Jones & The Night Drivers
- Bound For The Shore – Appalachian Road Show
- Sweet, Sweet Thing – Darin and Brooke Aldridge (feat. Charlie McCoy)
Lawson says that he jumped at the chance to be included in this tribute.
“I’ve been a Delmore Brothers fan for longer than I remember, and it’s an honor for me to sing When It’s Time for the Whippoorwill to Sing with Jerry. It’s a special song and it thrills me to know it’s the track that’ll be kicking off the release of this very special album.”
Salley added a bit more context to the genesis of this recording.
“When I was asked by the Athens State University Foundation to produce a tribute album to The Delmore Brothers, Doyle Lawson was the first artist I asked to sing on it. He is a lifelong Delmore Brothers fan, and I have always wanted to sing tenor to Doyle’s legendary voice. When It’s Time for the Whippoorwill to Sing was one that we have both always loved, so we chose that one for our song. It was such an honor to record this with him.”
Assisting in the studio were Jason Roller on guitar and fiddle, Justin Moses on mandolin and reso-guitar, Aaron McDaris on banjo, and Mark Burchfield on bass.
It’s a gem, just like the 1941 original. Check it out.
When It’s Time for the Whippoorwill To Sing is available now from popular download and streaming services online, and to radio programmers via Get It Played.
