Staring Back

Sometimes, you just shake your head over how good a song is. This is one of those songs.

The recorded version (from Stanley’s wonderful, award-winning double CD, “Saturday Night and Sunday Morning”) is slower, with the lilting rhythm of half-spoken, half-sung children’s taunts. This version -- from the must-see bluegrass documentary, Gather At the River -- is faster than any of those speeding bullets, suggesting that maybe the family ran away from the hate to greener pastures.

Then again, maybe they just learned to stare right back at the bigots who so scornfully referred to them as “Mountain Folks”.

Ralph Stanley is introduced by former Clinch Mountain Boy, Ricky Skaggs, who provides some historical context, and coaxes some humor out of his notoriously-reticent ex-boss. That, and Junior Blankenship rips a screamin’ hot guitar break. I’m assuming I don’t have to tell you what decade this is from.

Here’s Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys with “Nobody’s Love Is Like Mine”.