Photo by BILL BROWNLEE / At the Grand Emporium on Monday, Charlie Louvin took requests, told jokes and wept a little for his late brother, Ira.
A couple dozen people were treated to an audience with country music royalty Monday night at the Grand Emporium. Seventy-nine year old Charlie Louvin sang, told jokes, related stories and took requests for almost two hours.
Along with his brother Ira, the Grand Ole Opry member began his recording career in the '40s. The Louvin Brothers are widely credited for popularizing the brother harmony sound that spawned acts like the Everly Brothers.
Bridging the gap between rural American and the slick Nashville sound, they enjoyed a string of hits about sin and salvation. Ira was killed in a 1965 car accident in Jefferson City. Such is Louvin's stature that a number of stars join him on his new album, "Charlie Louvin." They include George Jones, Jeff Tweedy of Wilco, the ubiquitous Elvis Costello and a number of indie-rock hipsters.
Louvin didn't enjoy their assistance Monday night. His four-piece band was ragged and the audience was meager, but Louvin didn't seem to mind. He sang with all the passion he could muster. While age has diminished his voice, Louvin's gritty performance was nonetheless astonishing. Even though he was largely rehashing bygone sounds, there was no small measure of joy to be had seeing the legend work through vintage songs by by other brother teams like the Monroe, Wilburn and Delmore brothers.
And then there's Louvin's own material. "When I Stop Dreaming" inspired Louvin's best performance. Charlie's take on his 1955 hit revealed the impact Louvin had on countless artists, from George Jones to Johnny Cash.
Louvin Brothers compositions "Cash On the Barrelhead" and "The Christian Life" were also offered. It's an amazing experience hearing seemingly ancient songs performed by the original artist.
Louvin was in good spirits throughout the evening. He was hampered by a cough that "like to put me out of business" yet he eagerly bantered with the audience and told slightly off-color jokes and stories about milking cows, divorce and cigarettes.
"I'm keep smoking just for spite," Louvin said. "I've been smoking for 75 years." Louvin's band often seemed challenged by his spontaneous selections and eargerness to field requests.
"We're hard to get started but we're hell to stop," Louvin joked after a requested version of "The Great Speckled Bird" fizzled out. It wasn't all smiles. Before performing the Louvin Brothers hit "Knoxville Girl," Louvin welled with emotion. "It hurts when I do a song that Ira and I recorded because I can hear Ira's part," he said.
Ira was missed Monday night. But the small band of lucky people in attendance will be talking about Charlie for a long time.
| Bill Brownlee, Special to The Star
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