It's Just Gossip

Ray Charles based "Leave My Woman Alone" on this melody. A few great artists covered it as is -- The Carter Family, The Golden Gate Quartet, Sister Rosetta Tharp, among others.

I chose this setting by Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerard because they include more of the verses, and the lyrics are crystal-clear. This is one case in which you want to know exactly what's being sung.

You don't hear this one much anymore. Too bad, because it's a one-way ticket to self-preservation, if nothing else. As for those Christians who would say that gossip is no more harmful than eating shrimp, well, they're the ones this song is talking about.

This is Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerard with "Let That Liar Alone".

She performed with Mike Seeger as part of The Strange Creek Singers and, most famously, with Hazel Dickens as half of the pioneering bluegrass duo, Hazel and Alice. At age 80, Alice Gerrard scored a Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album.

This song, “Bear Me Away” is from that Grammy-nominated album, “Follow the Music”. This is how mountain singing is done; there’s no better female mountain singer working today. For vocal control, exquisite subtlety, and sheer, emotional power, Alice Gerrard is unmatched.