''Tragic Songs of Life'' is the debut album by

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

duo

The Louvin Brothers The Louvin Brothers were an American musical duo composed of brothers Ira and Charlie Louvin (''né'' Loudermilk). The brothers are cousins to John D. Loudermilk, a Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member. The brothers wrote and performed cou ...

, released in 1956. "

Knoxville Girl "The Knoxville Girl" is an Appalachian murder ballad. Origins It is derived from the 19th-century Irish ballad "The Wexford Girl", itself derived from the earlier English ballad "The Bloody Miller or Hanged I Shall Be" ( Roud 263, Laws P35) abo ...

" was released as a single three years later and reached number 19 on the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Country Singles chart.

History

Having previously recorded one single for Apollo Records and a series of sides for

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...

, the Louvins signed with

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

in 1952. They recorded over ten singles for Capitol, with the earliest all

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

songs, before "When I Stop Dreaming" became their first secular release in 1955. ''Tragic Songs of Life'' was their Capitol debut, and served as somewhat of a concept album, drawing heavily on artists they admired such as

Bill Monroe William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre take ...

, The Monroe Brothers,

The Blue Sky Boys The Blue Sky Boys were an American country music duo consisting of the brothers Earl Bolick (November 16, 1919 – April 19, 1998) and Bill Bolick (October 28, 1917 – March 13, 2008), whose careers spanned over forty years. Biography The brother ...

, and The Callahan Brothers. The majority of the songs are tragic heartbreak and misfortune songs and classic

murder ballad Murder ballads are a subgenre of the traditional ballad form dealing with a crime or a gruesome death. Their lyrics form a narrative describing the events of a murder, often including the lead-up and/or aftermath. The term refers to the content ...

Reception

Mark Deming stated in his

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

review "...this is a landmark of traditional country music that remains powerful more than fifty years after it was recorded." Don Yates of '' No Depression'' magazine singled out the Louvins' version of “

In The Pines "In the Pines", also known as "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?", "My Girl" and "Black Girl", is a traditional American folk song originating from two songs, "In the Pines" and "The Longest Train", both of whose authorship is unknown and date back ...

” writing "It’s perhaps their most powerful rendering of traditional folk music’s bleak vision of a dark and forlorn land, where love is absent and death is the only certainty. It’s the centerpiece of what is arguably the Louvins' finest album." The album is also included in the book ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...

''.

Reissues

*In 1992, all of the tracks from ''Tragic Songs of Life'' were included in the ''

Close Harmony A chord is in close harmony (also called close position or close structure) if its notes are arranged within a narrow range, usually with no more than an octave between the top and bottom notes. In contrast, a chord is in open harmony (also c ...

'' 8-CD box set issued by

Bear Family Records Bear Family Records is a Germany-based independent record label, that specializes in reissues of archival material, ranging from country music to 1950s rock and roll to old German movie soundtracks. History The label has been in existence since ...

. *''Tragic Songs of Life'' was reissued on CD by Capitol in 1996. *''Tragic Songs of Life'' was reissued on CD by Raven records in 2007 along with ''

Satan Is Real ''Satan Is Real'' is a gospel bluegrass album by American country music duo The Louvin Brothers, released in 1959. History Producer Ken Nelson set up recording sessions in August 1958 to record enough tracks for two albums. The first was to b ...

''. Four bonus tracks were included.

Track listing

# "Kentucky" (Karl Davis) – 2:40 # "I'll Be All Smiles Tonight" (

A. P. Carter Alvin Pleasant Delaney Carter (December 15, 1891 – November 7, 1960) was an American musician and founding member of The Carter Family, one of the most notable acts in the history of country music. Biography Life A.P. Carter was born to Robe ...

) – 3:14 # "Let Her Go, God Bless Her" (Traditional) – 2:55 # "What Is Home Without Love" (Traditional) – 3:00 # "A Tiny Broken Heart" (Charlie Louvin, Ira Louvin, Eddie Hill) – 2:34 # "

In the Pines "In the Pines", also known as "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?", "My Girl" and "Black Girl", is a traditional American folk song originating from two songs, "In the Pines" and "The Longest Train", both of whose authorship is unknown and date back ...

" (Traditional, Alan Riggs) – 3:15 # "Alabama" (C. Louvin, I. Louvin, Hill) – 2:43 # " Katie Dear" (William Bolick) – 2:34 # "My Brother's Will" (Ken Nelson) – 3:16 # "

" (Traditional) – 3:49 # "Take the News to Mother" (Walter "Joe" Callahan, Homer "Bill" Callahan, W. R. Caloway) – 2:48 # "Mary of the Wild Moor" (Traditional, Dennis Turner) – 3:11

Personnel

Charlie Louvin Charles Elzer Loudermilk (July 7, 1927 – January 26, 2011), known professionally as Charlie Louvin, was an American country music singer and songwriter. He is best known as one of the Louvin Brothers, and was a member of the Grand Ole Opry ...

– vocals, guitar *

Ira Louvin Ira Lonnie Loudermilk (April 21, 1924 – June 20, 1965), known professionally as Ira Louvin, was an American country music singer, mandolinist and songwriter. He was a cousin of songwriter John D. Loudermilk. Biography Ira Louvin was born in ...

– vocals, mandolin *

Paul Yandell Paul Yandell (September 6, 1935 – November 21, 2011) was an American guitar player from Mayfield, Kentucky. Yandell played fingerstyle, a style he learned to play from his neighbors, influenced by Chet Atkins and Merle Travis. In 1955 he was hir ...

– guitar Production notes: * Ken Nelson – producer *John Johnson – reissue producer

References

External links

Rabin, Nathan. ''The Louvin Brothers’ tragic songs of Satan’s realness''
Retrieved January 23, 2010.
''Satan is Real: The Ballad of the Louvin Brothers'' interview with co-author
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tragic Songs Of Life (The Louvin Brothers Album) 1956 debut albums The Louvin Brothers albums Capitol Records albums Albums produced by Ken Nelson (United States record producer)