Ernest Stoneman
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Ernest Van "Pop" Stoneman (May 25, 1893 – June 14, 1968) was an American musician, ranked among the prominent recording artists of
country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...
's first commercial decade.


Biography

Born in a log cabin in Monarat (Iron Ridge), Carroll County,
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
, United States, near what would later become
Galax, Virginia Galax is an independent city in the southwestern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,720. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Galax with neighboring Carroll County for statisti ...
, Stoneman was left motherless at age three and was raised by his father and three musically inclined cousins, who taught him the instrumental and vocal traditions of
Blue Ridge Mountains The Blue Ridge Mountains are a Physiographic regions of the United States, physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Highlands range. The mountain range is located in the Eastern United States and extends 550 miles southwest from southern ...
culture. He became a singer and songwriter, and proficient musician on the guitar,
autoharp An autoharp or chord zither is a string instrument belonging to the zither family. It uses a series of bars individually configured to mute all strings other than those needed for the intended chord. The term ''autoharp'' was once a trademark of t ...
, harmonica, clawhammer
banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...
, and
jaw harp The Jew's harp, also known as jaw harp, juice harp, or mouth harp, is a lamellophone instrument, consisting of a flexible metal or bamboo tongue or Reed (mouthpiece), reed attached to a frame. Despite the colloquial name, the Jew's harp most like ...
. When he married Hattie Frost in November 1918, he entered another musically involved family. He and Hattie had 23 children, 13 of whom survived to adulthood: *Eddie Lewis (died 2001) *Irma Grace (died 2003) *John Catron (died 2001) *Pattie Inez "Patsy" (died 2015) *Joseph William (Billy) (died 1990) *Jack Monroe (died 1992) *Gene Austin (died 2005) *Dean Clark (died 1989) * Calvin Scott (Scotty) (died 1973) *Donna LaVerne *Oscar James (Jimmy) (died 2002) * Veronica Loretta (Roni) (died 2024) *Van Haden (died 1995) Stoneman worked at a variety of jobs, in mines, mills, but mostly carpentry, and played music for his own enjoyment and that of his neighbors, but when he heard a
Henry Whitter William Henry Whitter (April 6, 1892 – November 17, 1941) was an early old-time recording artist in the United States. He first performed as a solo singer, guitarist and harmonica player, and later in partnership with the fiddler G. B. Grays ...
record in 1924, he determined to better it and changed his life. Stoneman went to New York City in September 1924 and cut two songs for the
Okeh Records OKeh Records () is an American record label founded by the Otto Heinemann Phonograph Corporation, a phonograph supplier established in 1916, which branched out into phonograph records in 1918. The name originally was spelled "OkeH" from the init ...
label. The record was shelved and he had to return for another recording session in January 1925. The resultant debut single release, "Sinking of the Titanic," went on to become one of the biggest hits of the 1920s. One historian noted that the recording sold over two million copies.
Ralph Peer Ralph Sylvester Peer (May 22, 1892 – January 19, 1960) was an American talent scout, recording engineer, record producer and music publisher in the 1920s and 1930s. Peer pioneered field recording of music when in June 1923 he took remote re ...
directed him through several sessions for Okeh and Victor, and he freelanced on other labels such as Edison,
Gennett Gennett Records () was an American record company and label in Richmond, Indiana, United States, which flourished in the 1920s and produced the Gennett, Starr, Champion, Superior, and Van Speaking labels. The company also produced some Supertone, ...
and
Paramount Records Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson (guitarist), Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Early years Paramoun ...
. In 1926, he added family musicians to his group for a full string band sound. In July and August 1927 , Stoneman helped Peer conduct the
Bristol sessions The Bristol Sessions were a series of recording sessions held in 1927 in Bristol, Tennessee, considered by some as the "Big Bang" of modern country music. The recordings were made by Victor Talking Machine Company producer Ralph Peer. Bristol ...
that led to the discovery of the
Carter Family The Carter Family was an American folk music group that recorded and performed between 1927 and 1956. Regarded as one of the most important music acts of the early 20th century, they had a profound influence on the development of bluegrass, c ...
and
Jimmie Rodgers James Charles Rodgers ( – ) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who rose to popularity in the late 1920s. Widely regarded as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Country Music", he is best known for his di ...
. He continued to be active in recording through 1929. Between 1925 and 1929 Stoneman recorded more than 200 songs. Falling on hard times during the Depression, the Stonemans and their nine surviving children moved to the Washington, D.C. area in 1932, after losing their home and most of their possessions. There they had four more children and struggled through dire poverty, with Stoneman taking whatever work he could find and trying to revive his musical career. In 1941, Stoneman bought a lot in Carmody Hills,
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
, where he built a shack for the family, and eventually obtained a more or less regular job at the Naval Gun Factory. In 1947, the Stoneman Family won a talent contest at Constitution Hall that gave them six months' exposure on local television. In 1956, Pop won $10,000 on the
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
-TV quiz show '' The Big Surprise'' and sang on the show. That same year, the Blue Grass Champs, a group composed largely of his children, were winners on the CBS-TV program ''
Arthur Godfrey Arthur Morton Godfrey (August 31, 1903 – March 16, 1983) was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer. At the peak of his success, in the early to mid-1950s, Godfrey was heard on radio and seen on television up to six days ...
's Talent Scouts'', and Mike Seeger recorded Pop and Hattie for Folkways. Stoneman retired from labor and the Champs went full-time to become the Stonemans. They recorded albums for Starday in 1962 and 1963 and in 1964, went to
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
and
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, cutting an album for World Pacific, playing at
Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It was the first theme park opened by the Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney, ...
, on some network shows and at several folk festivals. This included an appearance at the Monterey Folk Festival in 1964. Ernest appeared at the 2nd Annual
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
Folk Music Festival in 1964. https://archives.etsu.edu/repositories/2/archival_objects/130170M Interview with Ernest V. Stoneman at the Second UCLA Folk Festival in 1964 In 1965, the Stonemans went to
Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
, where they worked with
Jack Clement Jack Henderson Clement (April 5, 1931 – August 8, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, record producer, film producer and music executive. He was producer and engineer for Sam Phillips at Sun Records in its early days, discovering ...
, signing a contract with MGM Records and starting a syndicated TV show. They received CMA's "Vocal Group of the Year" in 1967. They appeared in the 1967 film '' Hell on Wheels'' and in '' The Road to Nashville'' (1967).


Death

Pop Stoneman died in 1968 at age 75. He is interred in the Mount Olivet Cemetery in Nashville.


Honors

On February 12, 2008, Ernest "Pop" Stoneman was inducted into the
Country Music Hall of Fame The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the world's largest museums and research centers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of American vernacular music. Chartered in 1964, the museum has amass ...
and in 2009 he and his wife Hattie Frost Stoneman were enshrined in the Gennett Records Walk of Fame. The first major retrospective of his musical career, ''Ernest Stoneman: The Unsung Father of Country Music 1925–1934'' (5 String Productions) was issued in 2008 by the
Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...
award-winning reissue team of Christopher C. King and Henry Sapoznik and was nominated for a 2009 Grammy award for "Best Album Notes."


The Stonemans discography


Albums


Compilations


Singles


References


External links

*
''Ernest V. Stoneman remembered'' – Patsy Stoneman Murphy interviewed by Jerry Fabris
on ''Thomas Edison's Attic'' radio program, WFMU, November 15, 2005.
Early recording (1926) of ''When the Work's All Done This Fall''.Early recording of (1926) ''Wild Bill Jones''.
Retrieved August 5, 2015
2008 inductee in the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Retrieved August 5, 2015
Ernest V. Stoneman cylinder recordings
from the UCSB Cylinder Audio Archive at the
University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...
Library.
Ernest V. Stoneman recordings
at the
Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database catalog of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The 78rpm era was the time period in which any flat disc records were being played at ...
. * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stoneman, Ernest 1893 births 1968 deaths American country singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Virginia Musicians from Appalachia American television personalities People from Carroll County, Virginia Gennett Records artists Starday Records artists Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Members of the Country Music Association 20th-century American singer-songwriters Burials at Mount Olivet Cemetery (Nashville) Singer-songwriters from West Virginia