A.G. & Kate en The Bailes Brothers in ‘The Home of Strictly Country’, Harpel (mei ’84)

If you’ve ever heard the mandolin playing of Ira Louvin (of The Louvin Brothers), Jesse McReynolds (of Jim & Jesse), Bobby Osborne (of The Osborne Brothers), Buck White (of The Whites), Red Rector (with Charlie Monroe, Carl Story, and others), or Buzz Busby, indirectly you’ve heard Ernest Ferguson. In their formative years, Ira, Jesse, Bobby, Buck, Red, and Buzz, all cited having listened to, enjoyed, and being influenced (some more than others), by the mandolin playing of Ernest Ferguson before they became stylists in their own right. Ernest Ferguson began playing professionally in the spring of 1940 with Johnnie Wright, Jack Anglin, and Muriel Deason in what became the Johnnie & Jack/Kitty Wells show. At the time they were working daily radio programs in Nashville, but would soon become a full-time act the following year. They first were based in Greensboro, North Carolina, before going to Charleston, West Virginia, and later Knoxville, Tennessee. In fact, Ernest remembered being in Knoxville when Johnnie’s wife Muriel Deason acquired the stage name Kitty Wells. In September of 1944, Ernest started with the Bailes Brothers who had just moved to Nashville to work on WSM. Within a couple of weeks, they were playing at the Ryman Auditorium as members of the Grand Ole Opry. Ernest played the opening turnaround on the first song the group did on that stage, ‘Dust on the Bible’. Over the course of the next two years, along with Roy Acuff, Bill Monroe, and Ernest Tubb, the Bailes Brothers were considered to be the major stars of the show. Records weren’t a prerequisite for success at the time, because live radio was such a powerful medium in those days. The Bailes Brothers never had a chart hit recording, and thus are largely forgotten today. However, they did have many non-charting hits in the mid-late 1940’s including, ‘Searching for a soldier’s grave’, ‘As long as I live’, ‘I want to be loved’, ‘Oh, so many years’, ‘Whiskey is the devil (in liquid form)’, ‘Read Romans ten and nine’, and their most famous of all, ‘Dust on the Bible’. Ernest Ferguson played on these and all of their other Columbia and King recordings from 1945-1947. Those 44 titles showcase a very special style of mandolin playing that was uniquely that of Ernest Ferguson. He had a great sense of always knowing exactly what to play. His sound utilized a lot of chords, especially on the lower strings of the mandolin which not as many other musicians played on. The melody was always heard in his performances, as he executed the utmost taste in playing what was authentically commercial to the Bailes Brothers full-volume, open-throat style of singing. Like what Tommy Jackson’s fiddle did for Ray Price and Weldon Myrick’s steel guitar did for Connie Smith, Ernest Ferguson’s mandolin playing did for the Bailes Brothers, giving them an instrumental voice and style. It was also in this time that Ernest developed his costumed comedian role with the group as Abner Abernacky. Ernest stayed with the Bailes Brothers until late 1946 in Nashville. The act moved to Shreveport, Louisiana, where they later became the initial headlining stars on the Louisiana Hayride. Ernest rejoined the Bailes’ show there in 1948 and remained with them until early 1950. He was with the Bailes Brothers during their zenith time in Nashville and Shreveport, and sadly observed their demise in both locations as well. In between these stints in 1947, he managed to record six gospel songs on King Records with his friends Johnnie Wright, Jack Anglin, Ray Atkins, and Clyde Moody as the King Sacred Quartet. Economics forced Ernest to look elsewhere for a job. He packed up his family in early 1950 and moved from Shreveport to Northern Virginia to work with Grandpa & Ramona Jones in the Washington market. During the six months or so Ernest was with them, they cut eight titles for King Records; among them ‘Come and dine’, and ‘Dark as a dungeon’. Touring with Grandpa & Ramona at the time was a 17 year old guitar player who would go on to great heights in country music named Roy Clark. Ernest and Roy really bonded at that time, and they remained friends although it would often be years between in-person visits. Searching for more financial stability, Ernest gradually gave up music completely. He became a drywall finisher, which proved to be a successful vocation. He moved back to Fairview, Tennessee in 1968, and eventually retired from his profession in 1980. In 1977, he got reacquainted with the Bailes Brothers at Fan Fair. The brothers decided there to get back to playing some, if Ernest would come join them. It didn’t take him long to get back in shape with his mandolin playing. Audiences who recalled the Bailes Brothers from the 1940’s relished in their revived old-time sound in the 1970’s and ‘80’s. Highlights during this period featured two trips to Europe, the 1982 World’s Fair in Knoxville, a few guest appearances on the Grand Ole Opry, and numerous prominent bluegrass festival appearances. Although the Bailes Brothers never considered themselves bluegrass, but like the Blue Sky Boys, the Delmore Brothers, Johnnie & Jack, and Louvin Brothers, the Bailes’ songs, harmony, and early recordings spoke to that community. I first learned of Ernest Ferguson in the middle 1970’s, but it wasn’t until the early 1980’s that I met him. When I saw him play that day with the Bailes Brothers (Walter, Johnnie, and Kyle) at a festival in Summersville, West Virginia, it was spooky how authentic they sounded. I closed my eyes as they sang and Ernest played, and it was almost like listening to one of their old 78 rpm records. Off stage, Ernest was just a joy to be around. He was always an upbeat kind of guy, a true character, and someone you just felt good about being in the presence of. When we were annotating the session notes and musician’s biographies in 1991 for the Johnnie & Jack box set on Bear Family, Ernest was a VERY valuable resource. After I moved to Nashville in 1995, we really bonded because of our love of traditional music and those who made it. The fact that we had both worked for Johnnie Wright & Kitty Wells, only strengthened our friendship, too. In 2001, Bear Family began work on reissuing a single-cd on the complete Columbia recordings of the Bailes Brothers. Once again, Ernest was an unbelievable treasure trove to mine for information. The sidelines and back stories relating to events he witnessed with all four of the Bailes Brothers were truly one of a kind. When the International Bluegrass Music Museum (IBMM) in Owensboro, Kentucky dedicated a plaque in 2002 with its first generation performers (from 1940-1954), Ernest Ferguson was one of the names listed because of his impact on the genre as a musician. In 2003, the IBMM started documenting those surviving musicians on that plaque for their Video Oral History Project (VOHP). It was a humbling honor to interview Ernest on the front porch of his cabin in the woods of rural Fairview, Tennessee for four hours one day obtaining his life story. This video interview is not for sale, but like the others done for the VOHP, it can be seen by appointment for reference purposes at the museum in Owensboro. Close to ten years ago, Ernest came on one of the Grand Ole Opry cruises to the Caribbean. Roy Clark, Charley Pride, and Jeannie Seely were among those on board to perform. None of the 800 or so on the ship that were part of the Opry delegation knew Ernest besides Roy Clark and I, but by the end of the cruise they all knew who Ernest was. He endeared himself to everyone, and if he’d had a big box 8 x 10 photos, he would have sold every one of them! In the first few seasons of The Marty Stuart Show, Ernest came to a number of our tapings. If we happened to be running a little behind in rehearsals before we let the guests in, we never worried if we found out Ernest was there to unofficially serve as our opening act. He never failed to have all 50 of the guests out in the hall well entertained with his stories, jokes, and humor from years gone by! Assessing what he got to be a part of back in the 1940’s, Ernest looked back with pride on his contributions to traditional country music, and wished more people acknowledged the musicians of years gone by and the sacrifices they made. He said, ‘You know, if it wasn’t for us old-timers who used to go out and play for a dollar a night and travel on two-lane roads, there wouldn’t be any Music City, USA today’. Are there any questions? Ernest continued to play music informally with friends in his home area up until the last year or so when he wasn’t able to chord the mandolin to his liking. He had faced numerous health issues over the last ten years or so, but continued to live alone until February of this year. He moved to the Claiborne Hughes Health Center in Franklin, Tennessee where he received the utmost care. In return, Ernest supplied his upbeat, positive, and entertaining personality to all those he came in contact with. He celebrated his 96th birthday in grand style there at the facility in July. As usual for his annual party, there was a lot of music on hand. His body gradually weakened due the natural effects of aging, and he passed very peacefully in his sleep around 4 AM on Sunday October 19th. In the six months he was a resident at Claiborne Hughes, Ernest made an impact on everyone around him. To further illustrate that point, the staff and nurses who tended to him all wept openly when his daughter came to pick up his belongings the next day. Ernest Ferguson was an important product of his relatively short time in professional music. The live broadcasts he was part of back in the 1940’s over WSM, KWKH, and other stations, were immediately lost to the airwaves, but to those who heard them, they left a mark. The commercial recordings that Ernest took part in are all we have left now. As Bill Monroe told me once, ‘A record is forever. Those things will outlive us all’. For those who have enjoyed, admired, and learned from the playing of Jesse McReynolds, Bobby Osborne, Ira Louvin, Buck White, Red Rector, and Buzz Busby, I invite you to seek out the playing of what these great stylists enjoyed and learned from, that of Ernest Ferguson. If you just appreciate tasteful mandolin playing that embraces the melody (something largely missing) in a style unheard today in current music, check out what Ernest Ferguson gave us. His mandolin playing is timeless, and it still has a lot to say to those who listen. The two essential compact discs featuring Ernest are on Bear Family by the Bailes Brothers: ‘Oh So Many Years’ BCD 15973, and ‘Remember Me – The Legendary King Sessions – 1946’ BCD 17132. You can find the King Sacred Quartet titles in the six-cd Johnnie & Jack box set on Bear Family BCD 15553. To date, the eight sides he did with Grandpa Jones for King in 1950 have yet to be completely reissued. Ernest was a loyal evening listener to our broadcasts on WSM, and we were fortunate enough to interview him at the station on a couple of occasions. He humbly enjoyed hearing recordings that he’d been a part of and having his name mentioned over the airwaves. In fact, he went to sleep every night with WSM playing in his bedroom. I learned from his son this past week that Ernest had a WSM promotional photo I autographed for him many years ago framed in his bedroom as well. It’s hard to put into words how appreciative I truly am. A dozen or more years back, Ernest told me, ‘Now when I die, I want you to do my funeral’. We honored that request on Friday October 24th, delivering the Eulogy and officiating his service at Harpeth Hills Funeral Home, about 20 miles west of Nashville. His son Dan, and friends Gene Durham, Richard White, and Billy Henson also spoke at the service. Each of these men had heartfelt and humorous stories to share. From a musical standpoint, it was a funeral service I doubt we’ll ever attend the likes of again. Only gospel recordings that Ernest took part on by the Bailes Brothers, the King Sacred Quartet, and Grandpa & Ramona Jones were played. If you love older traditional music, you knew this was special; the most recent recording ‘Come and dine’ by Grandpa & Ramona Jones was from 1950. His casket was left open during the service at the request of his family. As we rode in the hearse to his grave, the funeral director and I agreed that we’d like to think he got to hear that wonderful music he was a part of one last time. While those approximately 40 people present mourned Ernest’s passing, hardly a tear was shed because we all celebrated the gift of his remarkable life. It was noted that as best as can be documented by the American Federation Of Musicians Local 257 in Nashville, Ernest was the second-longest lifetime member in that union. Having joined in 1945, he enjoyed 69 years of continuous membership. Sadly, the door to the era of professional country music that Ernest Ferguson was a part of starting in 1940 is quickly closing. The majority of those in the music business who know of Ernest’s work are now elder states-people themselves. At his funeral, there were only four of us present connected to the professional end of performing. Bobby Wright, the son of Johnnie Wright and Kitty Wells, was among them. Ernest was working for Johnnie and Kitty when Bobby was born in Charleston, West Virginia in 1942. Beyond WSM, the media coverage (social or otherwise) of Ernest’s passing was virtually non-existent. Only the most sharp-eyed reader would have seen the five-line death notice ‘The Tennessean’ published once as a free news service. When Ernest was born in 1918, the life expectancy was 53 years. By today’s standards (74 for a man, 79 for a woman, placing the average at 77 years), Ernest Ferguson was victorious in beating the system. Not many people will ever be that lucky. Armed with only a seventh grade education, Ernest Ferguson knew about hard times. His mother died when he was only two years old. He sacrificed and scraped to get by playing music hungry. Ernest knew that working hard was the only way to get ahead, and he did just that finishing drywall for decades. He also knew about heartbreak and loss having buried his youngest son some years ago due to an unexpected aneurysm. Through it all Ernest Ferguson was a self-made man who always managed to turn even the most negative of things into a positive situation with results for himself and others around him. He was an extraordinary person, devoted family man, a true instrumental stylist, friend to many, and a committed Christian. I loved him dearly and will forever be grateful he came into my life. ‘May God grant you eternal rest Ernest. Your 96 years on this earth represented a life truly well lived. The recordings you made and the memories you left will continue to serve us well until we meet again’.