"Highways and Heartaches: How Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, and Children of the New South Saved the Soul of Country Music" by Michael Streissguth, Hachette Books, 304 pages
The title of Streissguth’s 10th book about country music is the same as that of the 1982 album by Ricky Skaggs, a platinum seller, and is thus a tribute to the mandolin player and singer who promised Bill Monroe never to let bluegrass die. Monroe is revered by fans as the father of this genre of mountain music that developed in the 1940s in Appalachia.
Though Skaggs and Stuart are given equal time in the detailed comparison of their musical development and evolution, the title gives a clue as to the author’s estimation of which star contributed most to saving country music’s soul. Skaggs has never wandered too far from his early bluegrass identity formed by playing with the Stanley Brothers and is conceded to be the face of bluegrass in recent decades.
Stuart has had, however, a significant role to play in the preservation of bluegrass. The musicians of the 1980s and '90s who he frequently collaborated with helped him bring together traditional country music with rockabilly and blues. This forestalled the capitulation to rock that record companies had insisted upon in their effort to appeal to younger audiences and record buyers.
Likewise, his collaborations with Travis Tritt and association with Johnny Cash’s band allowed him to maintain his bluegrass identity while introducing him and the music to larger audiences.
Of considerable importance also was Stuart's successful crusade to save the original home of the Grand Ole Opry, Ryman Auditorium, when it was threatened with demolition. Having moved to quarters in Opryland that are more spacious, modern and comfortable than the original Opry theater in a former church building, the owners had seen no advantage in keeping the old building. Stuart was among the most vocal and active of the preservationists who protested and prevailed in saving it.
The early musical experiences of Skaggs and Stuart bear many resemblances, as explained by Streissuth. Both came from musical families in which both parents played country music and were proficient in several instruments. Precocious in their mastery of instruments essential to country music, Skaggs mastered the mandolin well enough to allow him to play and sing on the stage with Monroe when he was only 6. Stuart early mastered the guitar and mandolin, and, like Skaggs, played in his family's band, which performed for church and community events.
Stuart’s professional career was launched at the age of 14 when he was invited to join Lester Flatt’s touring band. Though his parents urged him to finish school first, they reluctantly gave permission when they realized music was of primary importance in his life. Skaggs joined Ralph Stanley’s band in 1970 while in his 20s.
Streissguth’s exhaustive research details the years they passed with the respective bands and other groups until they launched their solo careers.
Long before Skaggs and Stuart came on the scene, the survival of bluegrass had been threatened. With the advent in the 1950s of Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, the Everly Brothers and other early rockers, Nashville and country music underwent a crisis that saw the livelihood of traditional artists and the viability of country labels severely challenged. Through succeeding decades, producers introduced a series of subgenres of country music, The Nashville Sound and Countrypolitan among them, in efforts to sell records and develop new stars.
While the Opry company continued to broadcast the older music to its loyal WSM audience, many of its performers were aging. Thus, the critical issue was to find younger musicians who could capture audiences who appreciated the talent and vitality that had always been associated with bluegrass. This is where Skaggs and Stuart found their roles as the “saviors” Streissguth has built his book around.
Even though the focus is on Skaggs and Stuart, the reader will find in this 304-page book extended forays into the social, political and cultural life of the times of which he writes. It provides a view of the music industry in recent decades and tells of the other “children of the South” that his subtitle refers to.
One interesting sidelight delves into the family dynamics that produced two popular Country Music Hall of Fame members — Skaggs and Stuart.