At the Ryman
Encyclopedia
At the Ryman is a 1992 live album by Emmylou Harris
and her then-newly formed acoustic backing band, The Nash Ramblers, recorded at the Ryman Auditorium
, most famously known as the one-time home of the Grand Ole Opry
, in Nashville, Tennessee
. Harris had by this point disbanded her legendary Hot Band.
The Nash Ramblers:
Though the album received almost no airplay on commercial country radio, it charted and was critically well received. It was credited with helping renew interest in restoring the Ryman, which had essentially remained vacant since the Opry relocated to their current location in 1974.
A companion video recording of the concert was released on VHS
.
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
and her then-newly formed acoustic backing band, The Nash Ramblers, recorded at the Ryman Auditorium
Ryman Auditorium
The Ryman Auditorium is a 2,362-seat live performance venue, located at 115 5th Avenue North, in Nashville, Tennessee and is best known as the historic home of the Grand Ole Opry....
, most famously known as the one-time home of the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
, in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. Harris had by this point disbanded her legendary Hot Band.
The Nash Ramblers:
- Sam BushSam BushSam Bush is an American bluegrass mandolin player considered an originator of the Newgrass style.- History :...
– FiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
and vocals - Roy Huskey, Jr.Roy Huskey, Jr.Roy Milton Huskey was a prominent American upright bass player in country music from Nashville, Tennessee. Huskey performed alongside musicians such as Chet Atkins, Garth Brooks, Johnny Cash, Vince Gill, George Jones, Steve Earle, Doc Watson and many others...
– Double bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
and vocals - Larry Atamanuik – DrumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Al PerkinsAl PerkinsAl Perkins is a Texas-born American guitarist. The Gibson guitar company called Perkins "the world's most influential Dobro player", and even began producing an "Al Perkins Signature" Dobro in 2001 - designed and autographed by Perkins....
– BanjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, resonator guitarResonator guitarA resonator guitar or resophonic guitar is an acoustic guitar whose sound is produced by one or more spun metal cones instead of the wooden sound board . Resonator guitars were originally designed to be louder than conventional acoustic guitars which were overwhelmed by horns and percussion...
and vocals - John Randall Stewart – Guitar, mandolin and vocals
Though the album received almost no airplay on commercial country radio, it charted and was critically well received. It was credited with helping renew interest in restoring the Ryman, which had essentially remained vacant since the Opry relocated to their current location in 1974.
A companion video recording of the concert was released on VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
.
Track listing
- "Guitar Town" (Steve EarleSteve EarleStephen Fain "Steve" Earle is an American singer-songwriter known for his rock and Texas Country as well as his political views. He is also a producer, author, a political activist, and an actor, and has written and directed a play....
) – 2:56 - "Half as Much" (Curley WilliamsCurley WilliamsCurley Williams was an American country and western musician and songwriter from Georgia. His best-known song is "Half As Much". He was admitted to the in 1999.-Life & Career:...
) – 3:00 - "Cattle Call" (Tex Owens) – 3:11
- "Guess Things Happen That Way" (Jack ClementJack ClementJack Henderson Clement is an American singer, songwriter, and a record and film producer.Raised and educated in Memphis, Jack Clement was performing at an early age...
) – 2:25 - "Hard Times" (Stephen FosterStephen FosterStephen Collins Foster , known as the "father of American music", was the pre-eminent songwriter in the United States of the 19th century...
) – 3:25 - "Mansion on the Hill" (Bruce SpringsteenBruce SpringsteenBruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
) – 4:25 - "Scotland" (Bill MonroeBill MonroeWilliam Smith Monroe was an American musician who created the style of music known as bluegrass, which takes its name from his band, the "Blue Grass Boys," named for Monroe's home state of Kentucky. Monroe's performing career spanned 60 years as a singer, instrumentalist, composer and bandleader...
) – 2:57 - "Montana Cowgirl" (Ray Park) – 3:08
- "Like Strangers" (Boudleaux Bryant) – 4:56
- "Lodi" (John FogertyJohn FogertyJohn Cameron Fogerty is an American rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist, best known for his time with the swamp rock/roots rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival and as a #1 solo recording artist. Fogerty has a rare distinction of being named on Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest...
) – 3:06 - "Calling My Children Home" (Doyle LawsonDoyle LawsonDoyle Lawson is an American bluegrass and gospel musician. Doyle is best known as an accomplished mandolin player, vocalist, producer, and leader of the 5-man group Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver.-Biography:...
/Charles Waller/Robert Yates) – 3:14 - "If I Could Be There" (Kieran KaneKieran KaneKieran Kane is an American country music artist, as well as the owner of Dead Reckoning Records, an independent record label. Between 1986 and 1990, he and Jamie O'Hara comprised The O'Kanes, a duo which charted seven singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles charts, including the Number...
/Jamie O'HaraJamie O'Hara (singer)Jamie O'Hara is an American country music artist. Between 1986 and 1990, he and Kieran Kane comprised The O'Kanes, a duo which charted seven singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles charts, including the Number One single "Can't Stop My Heart from Loving You"...
) – 3:30 - "Walls of Time" (Bill Monroe/Peter Rowan) – 4:45
- "Get Up John" (Bill Monroe/Marty StuartMarty StuartJohn Martin "Marty" Stuart is an American country music singer-songwriter, known for both his traditional style, and eclectic merging of rockabilly, honky tonk, and traditional country music...
/Jerry SullivanJerry SullivanJerry Sullivan is the current Wide Receivers/Senior Assistant Coach for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. He was the offensive coordinator for the Arizona Cardinals in 2003....
) – 4:25 - "It's a Hard Life Wherever You Go/Abraham, Martin and JohnAbraham, Martin and John"Abraham, Martin and John" is a 1968 song written by Dick Holler and first recorded by Dion. It is a tribute to the memories of icons of social change, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr., John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy...
" (Nanci GriffithNanci GriffithNanci Griffith, is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter from Austin, Texas.-Biography:...
/Richard HollerDick HollerDick Holler is a songwriter, pianist and performer. He is best known as the writer of the folk-pop standard "Abraham, Martin and John" which has been recorded by numerous artists including Dion, Ray Charles, Kenny Rogers, Emmylou Harris, Andy Williams, Marvin Gaye.-Early life :He moved with his...
)/(Richard Holler) – 7:07 - "Smoke Along the Track" (Alan Rose) – 4:16
Chart performance
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 32 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 184 |