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NauenThen

The Blue Sky Boys

When I've written about other musicians—the Nu-Grape Twins, Henry Thomas, Pink Anderson—it's that something in the way they sing caught me & didn't let go, & eventually I wanted to know more about them. Sometimes that was easy (Pink Anderson) & sometimes not (the Nu-Grape Twins—although people continue to track down bits of info about them & I know considerably more than I once did).

The Blue Sky Boys follow the same pattern. I found I couldn't stop listening to a couple of their songs ("I'm Just Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail," "Are You from Dixie") & then more & more till I could hardly listen to anyone else. They are the ultimate in blood harmony, although like many brother acts, they weren't so friendly offstage. There's a funny anecdote in Charlie Louvin's autobiography, Satan Is Real,when he introduces himself to Bill Bolick, one of the two brothers that made up the Blue Sky Boys. They were having a friendly chat until Louvin asked about his brother. Bolick stood up & said, This conversation is over, & showed him to the door.
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