Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mt. Boys - Answer The Call - Live at Helsinki October 13, 2007
10.20.07
Ralph Stanley making a rare small club appearance in the Berkshires, at Gt. Barrington, MA's wonderful Club Helsinki.
I had this hauntingly beautiful song resonating in my head since I first heard Dr. Stanley deliver a version on an Austin City Limits over 15 years ago. Try as I might I was unable to find its name, much less the CD on which it might have appeared. Being privileged to watch sound check and spend some time with the band as they setup on Saturday afternoon, I asked lead guitarist James Shelton if he knew the song with the lyric "I may not sing like the angels".
What a special treat it was to not only learn its name, but to have James assure me that Ralph would be sure to do it for me!!
I must apologize for that spontaneous whoop of delight you might hear early into my recording, but WOW, what a moment when I realized just where the band was going!! An absolute high point in my 7+ years as Helsinki's webmaster.
Later that night, the wonderful driver of Ralph's bus dug into the merch bin and found the only copy of the 1984 CD on the bus.
We at Club Helsinki were honored to have had Dr. Stanley request to perform for our audience in the very special space of our tiny venue (several years ago Helsinki presented Ralph and the Boys in the 350 seat Mahaiwe Theatre). A capacity house was treated to a rare evening in the presence of a Living American Treasure.
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