June Moon: Blue Moon of Kentucky

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Dandruff?? In my ears? That’s what the dermatologist said. Otherwise, she said I had “the best skin today.” That’ll put a smile on my face! This song will, too, another one of the songs I’m using to celebrate the month of June with. Here’s one a lot of people know. Pick a version! (In this case, Linda? NO!!!!!) Blue Moon of Kentucky - Bill Monroe This began as a slow waltz in 1946. Then along came Elvis. As I mentioned with yesterday’s song, a lot of slow songs got a completely different treatment in doo wop, R&B, and rock. Elvis took the slow waltz out of this song completely. You had to know Bill Monroe, or at least his reputation, to appreciate this. (For reference, Emmylou Harris told a story on the Live at the Ryman album about how Monroe would always harp on Sam Bush to get a haircut. ) He was quite the traditionalist, in many ways. As a result, he was none too pleased when he heard Elvis’ version. Worse, the Stanley Brothers (chief rivals of Monroe in bluegrass at the time) covered the song…using Elvis’ arrangement! Then something happened: the royalty checks started arriving. As Elvis’ popularity increased, so did his version of this song. If it sold a million copies, that means Monroe got $30,000 in royalties. That’s a nice chunk of change now, but it was a LOT in the mid-50s. So Monroe’s attitude softened to the point where he re-recorded the song, beginning as he’d originally recorded it then speeding it up to 4/4 speed in an obvious nod to his bankroll from Tupelo. That’s the version I’m using here. You can also hear it by Patsy Cline, John Fogerty, and pretty much any bluegrass band on earth. It’s a staple of bluegrass. Thanks to Elvis, it became a staple, period. Blue Moon of Kentucky Written by Bill Monroe Recorded by Bill Monroe Released as a single, 1955 (Originally recorded 1946) The stars were shining bright: