Can The Circle Be Unbroken: Country Music's First Family

Can The Circle Be Unbroken: Country Music's First Family

Like so many Americans during the Depression, the Carter Family found themselves forced to stay in motion throughout the 1930s. Rural economies, the locales where country music had taken root, were hit unusually hard by the economic crash. The Carters left their original record label just prior to recording the first 17 of the 20Â tunes on Can the Circle Be Unbroken, joining ARC for long enough to prodigiously churn out material they'd previously recorded. The 17Â ARC songs here were recorded over 3 days in May 1935, and all reveal a Carter Family growing musically comfortable with their execution on these tunes--especially the slight dronelike quality in Sara's voice, which sounds settled and at times almost languid. Maybelle's voice and guitar emphasize the appropriately unhurried pacing (this was the Depression, after all). As for the closing trio of tracks, they come from a post-Decca session during their short tenure at Columbia, and all bear the mark of greater vocal harmonies between Sara and Maybelle, as well as an increased pitch in the vocals that quickens the pace a tad. These are vitally important recordings, to be sure, a fine, more multihued complement to the band's '20s-era recordings. --Andrew Bartlett
Country USA
Manufacturer Sony Legacy
Binding Audio CD
ReleaseDate 2000-07-04
UnitCount 1
Format Original recording remastered
UPCs 074646570722
EANs 0074646570722

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Sony Legacy
Binding	Audio CD
ReleaseDate	2000-07-04
UnitCount	1
Format	Original recording remastered
UPCs	074646570722
EANs	0074646570722

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