Today’s post was written by Paul.
Charlie Louvin
For a while now, I’ve been uploading tribute songs on the birthdays of the late musical masters: Ira Louvin, Charlie Louvin, and Hank Williams, Sr.
I’m not from Alabama. It just happens that all three of them were.
July 7 was Charlie’s birthday. It slipped up on me. I didn’t think of it until 9 o’clock that night.
I hadn’t sung much in months; my guitar strings were dead from playing two recent shows with The Pressley Girls, and my Flip Cam was also dead!
I charged the Flip Cam for about 30 minutes, which gave me just enough juice for one take. Apparently, it’s a slow charging battery.
The song “Will You Visit Me On Sunday?” has always been one of my favorites of the songs that Charlie recorded as a solo artist, and it was one of his most popular as well, popular enough to later be covered by folks like Merle Haggard. I believe the song was written by Dallas Frazier.
I tried to emulate the piano run featured in the intro and break of Charlie’s original recording, which was a bit awkward, especially when I switched to D position.
When I was lucky enough to spend the day with Charlie Louvin back in 1998, I got to ask him, during lunch, a question relating to this song that I had wanted to ask for a long time. The question was: How many parts did you sing on this song? I was surprised when he quickly answered, “one.” Until he told me otherwise, my ears had me convinced that he sang lead, tenor, and baritone on the recording, which he was certainly capable of doing. It turns out, however, that the Jordanaires sang those parts and simply did an excellent job of sounding like Charlie.
This was of course in the days back before a computer program could just automatically create harmony vocals based on the lead vocal, a practice common in Nashville now but never as good as the real deal.
Thanks for watching! If you like my cover of the song, you should definitely check out Charlie’s original version.
Paul
Well done indeed, Paul. You really nailed that one. I’ll also check out Charlie’s version. Thanks
Great job singing Paul, I think its commendable that you would show tribute ,to these talented singers on their Birthday’s. Charlie Louvin was a great artist no doubt, would have been something special to have meet him.The Jordaniars did do a great job in singing backup with him,they sung backup for alot of good entertainers, even Elvis Presley. Thanks Paul,for sharing your singing and playing talent with us .
Great job on the song, Paul!
That’s beautiful Paul, you did a really nice job. You have an ability/gift of bringing out the feeling of any song that you are singing! It’s a real talent!
Lovely song. I really enjoyed the guitar playing.
Nice job Paul! It’s a great thing that you knew him.
Well done, sir.
Haven’t heard singing this good in a month of Sundays.
I have never heard that song. It sure is a sad one, but I like sad songs they make me think about what the person is singing about. Paul sure has a good singing voice. You can understand every word he says and you can’t say that about a lot of singers.
I enjoyed watching the video about your trip to Garden City. That is my favorite beach. It has a nice family atmosphere and no high rise buildings. My former church used to take our youth to Chapel by the Sea at Garden City. The last time I drove by there Chapel by the Sea was still there. My family and my mother, brother and sister went there every summer for many years when the children in our family were young; it was a family reunion for our people. You are right, it sure takes a long time to get to the beaches at the Outer Banks. My high school reunion group went to Ocracoke (I hope that is spelled right) Island on one of our reunion trips and really enjoyed it. As you know the people who are native to Ocracoke have their own accent and I enjoyed hearing it. I don’t know if they enjoyed our Flat Creek accent or not. I can be somewhere and hear some one talk and tell if they are from Flat Creek. Tipper I am so blessed to have grown up where I did. I have life long friends who are “my people” One things that I don’t think people understand today is that I had more than one set of parents; no matter whose house you were at you had a set of parents who felt comfortable treating you like you were one of their children. Thank you for listening to me ramble!
I sure enjoy your channel and the Pressley Girls’ channel. Dennis Morgan
Dennis-so glad you enjoy what we do! Thank you for sharing-I feel the same way I grew up with more than one set of parents 🙂
This is for both Dennis and Tipper, I too had many parents when growing up. If I got to showing out or misbehaving while at their home they would tear my rear end up just like my parents would and nothing would be said about it except to get another one when your real parents found out. They also loved and treated me just like I was one of their own. Just think what would happen now if the neighbors spank someone else’s child.
Good job, Paul! I didn’t know Charlie had a hit with that song. Conway Twitty’s recording is the one I used to sing along with.
Another awesome Sunday with awesome Paul singing a really great song! He’s got a voice of an angel. Thanks as I enjoyed it a lot. Now about people born in July’s beginning. You know they don’t call them CRABS for nothing. My husband and eldest daughter are both crabs and it shows. I love them but they can both be crabby and poo poo ish…
Dallas Frazier did write that song. I knew him when we both wrote for Acuff-Rose in Nashville. And the Louvin’s real last name was Loudermilk. My cousin married on of their cousins from Murphy. They were cousins also to songwriter John D. Loudermilk….
Lovely, haunting song and lovely job. I realloy enjoyed this and hadn’t heard the song in a ‘coon’s age.
Jim Casada