Rita Forrester
Rita at A.P. Carter's cabin
Rita Forrester is the granddaughter of Sara and A.P. Carter, from the original Carter Family. She is the daughter of Janette Carter, who was the middle child of A.P. and Sara. The original Carter Family consisted of Sara, A.P. and Sara's cousin Maybelle Carter. They are considered the first family of country music. The Carter Family began their musical journey in the rural foothills of Appalachia, in the southwest area of Virginia. Music was a very big part in the lives of people from the Appalachian region. The Carter's were very hard working and religious folks, and performed music at churches, town events and local house parties. At first, Sara and Maybelle would sing and perform on autoharp and guitar at these events. A.P. would sing at church and play the fiddle. One day in A.P.'s travels, he heard a wonderful voice singing songs from inside a house. This was the voice of Sara. A.P. knocked on the door to introduce himself. He would eventually join in singing with Sara and Maybelle. Sara became his wife and Maybelle married A.P.'s brother Ezra. The three of these talented singing musicians had an intangible and magical chemistry, and A.P. was aware of this.
In 1927, a record producer from New York, Ralph Peer, placed an ad in the local Bristol newspaper seeking talent from the area to record. A.P. persuaded Sara and Maybelle to make a rugged trip over tough terrain, on a hot summer day, to audition for Victor Records and Mr. Peer. These sessions are now dubbed "The Bristol Sessions" and are considered the birth of country music. Peer was so impressed by the Carters, he had them record six sides. When the records were released from these sessions, The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers went on to be major stars and had great success as recording artists. The original Carter family's recording career spanned from 1927 through 1956. When they stopped performing together in 1942, Maybelle continued performing with her three talented daughters. Joe and Janette Carter - Sara and A.P.'s son and daughter - were talented musicians as well. Gladys was the oldest daughter.
A.P. Carter passed away in 1960 and just prior to this he asked his daughter Janette to try to make sure that this wonderful music would not be forgotten. After completing her tasks as a hard working single mother, bringing up children with very little money, she took whatever resources she had and started a little performance hall in A.P.'s former grocery store. This idea not only helped preserve The Carter Family's music but turned out to be a very popular spot for locals to listen to great old time and bluegrass music. This success led to the construction of a wonderful larger performance hall, built by Joe Carter with the help of local volunteers. This was dubbed "The Carter Fold" by Joe. Janette ran the operations at the Fold and put on many, many wonderful events. Johnny Cash and June Carter performed there on numerous occasions. When Janette passed away, the torch was passed to another hard working person, her daughter Rita.
Today Rita Forrester continues to be the director of The Carter Fold, which showcases highly talented acts that perform old time and bluegrass music every Saturday night. These reasonably priced events feature dancing, great food and a fun time for all. I recently talked with Rita about the history of her important musical family and she reflected on her life as a Carter.
R.V.B. - What was it like for you growing up in rural Appalachia?
R.F. - Well up here in the mountains of Appalachia, it's kind of what you imagine it to be. People here are not extremely wealthy. The folks that live here have lived here for several generations... most of them. So if you’re not kin to folks who are right around you, you might as well be because you've known them for four to five generations. Their families go back that far. You tend to know almost everyone. It's becoming a little different now, in that there are other people who may move in that you don't really know. People here tend to hold on to their land and stay here if they can. Some people leave because of job opportunities. They are not plentiful here. It's at least 20 to 30 miles to go to work. There's not a lot of work close to us.
R.V.B. - Did you go to a one room schoolhouse?
R.F. - No. There was only one of those in Virginia until a few years ago. It closed about 10/15 years ago. My granddad went to a one room school. My mom, very early on, went to a one room school, but mine was multiple rooms. I went to grade school in Hiltons, which is three miles from where I live. There was no kindergarten... I started in 1st grade and went through 8th grade there. There was no middle school at the time here. Grades 9 though 12, I went to Gate City... which is the county seat and is probably 10/12 miles from us.
R.V.B. - Did you have busing transportation in grade school?
R.F. - Yes... we rode the school bus. We didn't have a car at the time.
R.V.B. - What was your average class size?
R.F. - There might have been 20. It was very small and you knew everyone. The years went by very quickly.
R.V.B. - Sounds like your typical average American school.
R.F. - Yes... very much so - except we didn't have the resources that big city schools did.
R.V.B. - Did you have certain chores that you had to do around the house?
R.F. - Always! I grew up doing chores. We didn't really have a working farm but we would help my aunt and uncle with farm chores. They had a big farm. By the time I was about 12, I knew how to drive a tractor... help put up hay... help kill hogs... kill chickens... and can fruits and vegetables. We had big gardens, and we would can our food for the year. I did household chores from the time I was old enough to hold a broom or a dish rag. I washed dishes and swept the house... made the beds... did the laundry. Whatever needed doing, I wanted to help for Mom’s sake.
R.V.B. - Was your mother's life different than yours? Did the fact that she was in an older generation have any difference with chores?
A.P. Carter birthplace
R.F. - She had many more chores than I did. There were three of them. My mom was the middle child. There was Gladys, Janette and Joe. They were A.P. and Sara's children. When my grandmother separated from my grandfather, my mom was only six... so they lived with my granddad. My grandmother Sara went back to the home where she grew up, which was my aunt and uncles... across the mountain. So they had more chores than most children because their mother wasn't there with them.
R.V.B. - Your mother was six when they separated. Did she go to the border radio?
R.F. - She did. I think she was there for two to three years. She left a little bit before they finished because she married early. She was 16 when she came back home to get married.
R.V.B. - Was this the first time your grandmother and grandfather and Aunt Maybelle went?
R.F. - The very first time they didn't take any of the children. The 2nd time, the children went, too. They missed their parents, and their parents missed them. Maybelle's children were smaller than my grandparents’ children. Anita was only four. She was just a baby, and she would often cry for her mom. Most all of the children went back with them. Gladys was already married, so she didn't go. Uncle Joe went, but he was so little that he wasn't on border radio. Helen, June and my Mom and four-year old Anita went on border radio from the earliest times almost until the end.
R.V.B. - Did your mom learn to play music from someone in the family?
Janette and Sara Carter
R.F. - Yes. She played the autoharp like her mom. She also played guitar. Maybelle's oldest daughter Helen, and her sang together. Maybelle was pregnant with Helen when they did the sessions in Bristol. Mom and Helen would sing in church together when they were four to six years old. My mom's parents and Aunt Maybelle taught her how to play instruments.
R.V.B. - I guess everyone in the family got involved with music in one way or another.
R.F. - Well there wasn't a whole lot of entertainment in the mountains. Music was pretty much it - that and church activities filled the time they weren’t working on the farm.
R.V.B. - Do you remember any special times with your Mom - like maybe a vacation?
R.F. - We didn't have a lot of money to do that sort of thing. Everything we did together was special. I always loved being with my Mom. I tried to do everything she did. She taught me how to cook... all the things that country girls learn... quilting... sewing – the way to run a household.
R.V.B. - Did you get involved with singing or music?
R.F. - I don't do a lot of singing. Sometimes if my cousins or old friends are here for a show I will - people I'm comfortable with and have sung with before. It took me a while. I didn't do it right away because I was married with children. I did a little harmony singing when they were shorthanded. Mom would do a lot of things solo because she didn't have a lot of folks to perform with. My Granddad died when I was only six years old. Her brother Joe would help her if he wasn’t working. She would fill in with Aunt Maybelle when one of her girls was pregnant or sick. She was always happy to go.
A.P. Carter
R.V.B. - Do you have any fond memories of your grandfather?
R.F. - Oh the most fond memories. When my parents divorced, I was only three. We lived in Bristol. Of course we ended up coming back here to Hiltons. My Granddad moved us into a little house he had and moved in with us. In my early formative years, he was my father figure.
R.V.B. - I guess he told you stories and things.
R.F. - Oh yes! He was everything a grandpa should be and more. By the time I came along, they were done with border radio. I was born in 54. They had left border radio in 42, I believe. They went on to do some things in Charlotte and a couple of other places. Their last show as a trio was the Meridian festival for Jimmie Rodgers. They would still do music as a trio, but not that often. Of course Maybelle did more with her girls. She first went on to Richmond - to the Old Dominion Barn Dance. Later they went to St. Louis, Missouri... a considerable distance from Richmond. That was Maybelle’s husband Ezra’s idea in order to keep Helen from getting married; he thought she was too young. Her boyfriend (later her husband) said, "Eck forgot that I could fly." Glenn was a pilot. They worked on the Louisiana Hayride. Later they went to Knoxville where they met Chet Atkins. Chet went to Nashville with them to The Grand Old Opry.
R.V.B. - Approximately how far away from your granddad did Sara live when he had to make the trips over the mountain to court her?
R.F. – Walking was the only way he had to go, so he walked across Clinch Mountain – maybe 10 miles. It would take a day to walk across. Now you can drive around it or across it. The road directly across the mountain is narrow and unpaved. It would take you about 30 minutes to get to the other side of the mountain now. Back then it was an all day thing. You took your lunch. They would spend the night with someone and walk back the next day. That's how big Clinch Mountain is. It's a good sized mountain.
R.V.B. - It sounds like a tough time but if you're in love, you got to do what you got to do.
R.F. - For him it was probably an enjoyable journey. He didn't seem to mind it. There was a trail that they took across the mountain. Most people didn't have cars. You couldn't ride a horse across the mountain. He could have rode the horse into Gate City and then on to Nickelsville. He just chose to walk; he loved walking.
Clinch Mountain
R.V.B. - Was there any wild animals to watch out for?
R.F. - Lord yes! They're still here. We have bob cats.. mountain lions... snakes.
R.V.B. - Have you ever personally seen any?
R.F. - I've seen lots of snakes. (Haha); I don't like snakes. My granddad was bitten by a snake. There are coyotes here now, and there are bears. I imagine there were bear when I was little, but I didn't encounter any. You could hear them at night. My immediate family didn’t do much hunting, but several cousins and other relatives did.
R.V.B. - When did you become aware that something special happened in your family?
R.F. - It took me a little while. I grew up thinking that every family in Hiltons had regular visitors to their house they had never met. I didn't know until I was probably around 12... that no, not everybody had visitors that they didn't know. We did on a regular basis... especially during the summer. We'd have visitors all the time looking for the Carters to talk to them about music or college kids doing research. My first true realization that they had made a huge impact on music was when one of my friends pointed out an article in Rolling Stone magazine about Aunt Maybelle's influence on guitar players in different genres... not just country. It occurred to me that it was a pretty big deal for a teenager to see their family member written about in Rolling Stone. That was kind of a turning point for me. They were so modest and humble, and they never called attention to themselves. Actually, they never thought that they had done anything that great. I’m sure they realized it more as they got older. They were proud of their music and made it a part of all that they did. It was always part of our lives. They were the most humble, down to earth, best Christian people you've ever known. They would get together and play some, but primarily they caught up on family happenings when they visited each other. "She had had a baby, and how's this friend or relative doing? - who had gotten married?" We did just what normal families do.
The Carter Family
R.V.B. - The chemistry and the amazing harmonies, with the three of them, are unbelievable. When they first got together, they must have known that they had something special.
R.F. - Maybelle and Sara probably did at an early age because they lived next door to each other and grew up, sort of like sisters. They were surrounded by that music. It was part of their lives. It was part of my granddad's life from early on, too. The music that he was used to was a lot more gospel-based. Of course they had gospel across the mountain, too. I believe they had a little more fun on the other side of Clinch Mountain. They'd throw back the rugs and have dances. Maybelle's dad was a bootlegger; lots of our relatives were. Grandma Carter... Molly, (A.P.'s mother) was a devoutly religious woman. She actually discouraged him from signing a solo contract with Brunswick Records. They offered him one, but she preferred that he didn’t accept it because she thought the fiddle was the devil's instrument. So he turned Brunswick down. He later went to do the sessions in Bristol. Going to the sessions was more about making some extra money than anything else. I don't think they ever counted on a music career. They may have been hopeful that they might, but they weren't sure that they would.
R.V.B. - The Bristol sessions sure made their mark in music.
R.F. - Oh Heavens... it changed the face of American music.
R.V.B. - The sheer output of music that the Carter Family recorded after that event was incredible.
R.F. - If you think about, in those days, around here, music was a shared activity and it was a way of passing down your history. It wasn't something that was copyrighted. The industry wasn't advanced like it is today. The Carter Family, Ralph Peer and Jimmie Rodgers laid the groundwork for the industry standards - the length of the songs... the topic of songs... what they were called... copywriting of the arrangements. My granddad would take a handwritten paper that maybe had lyrics or a chorus or just a poem and add the music to it. If it didn't have enough material for a three minute song, he would add a verse or a chorus. He was an arranger, so he did whatever he felt was needed to complete the song. Most all of their songs conveyed a life lesson, a moral lesson; a handful they did just for fun. Papaw also wrote many songs outright - the music as well as the words. "The Cyclone of Rye Cove" he wrote after he happened to be near there when the cyclone occurred. He helped recover the bodies of the dead children. It moved him so, that he came home and wrote “Cyclone of Rye Cove.”
R.V.B. - I also understand he did it in reverse order where he would collect songs that had 12 verses and the three of them would have to break them down into three minute format.
R.F. - Yes. It was not uncommon for songs to be very lengthy. The nature of the recording process made it necessary to shorten extremely long songs. A song could not be more than three to three and a half minutes long. They would have to work them out to where they had enough verses to tell the story... had the chorus... and do the musical turnaround... the instrumental part of the song.
R.V.B. - Sometimes they had to travel to Camden, New Jersey to record. I guess somebody would have to watch the children?
RCA Victor New Jersey
R.F. - They went to New Jersey, New York and sometimes to Louisville, Kentucky. Whatever children they could take, they would. That was one of the things the Carter family objected to was going on the road and being away from their children. If you think about the fact that Sara and Maybelle were the first two ladies inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, it’s pretty amazing. In that day and time in the mountains of Virginia, women stayed home and had babies. They cooked, cleaned and raised a garden. They didn't have careers. They certainly didn't do music concerts – except for church. It was just not common or something that happened every day.
R.V.B. - But they had the incredible talent.
Bristol Sessions site.
R.F. - They had the talent. My Granddad wanted them to use that talent and preserve what they’d been taught. When they went to Bristol, Aunt Maybelle was eight months pregnant and it was in August in blistering heat. She said "A.P., must I take my guitar?" Papaw said "Well, I guess you better. We are going to cut a record." I know he wanted her to learn to pick out the melodies... which is something that had not been done in the music they learned. He saw things a certain way and was very adamant about it. Papaw had a very high standard for their music; all three did. They always dressed professionally and looked so classic. He didn't like the term "Hillbilly music." Papaw took their music very seriously and didn't think that "Hillbilly music" had a good connotation.
R.V.B. - With America's racial history in the past... in the south, it was amazing that A.P. befriended an African American traveling companion to collect songs.
R.F. - If you knew our family, they were just the most loving and accepting people. They are to this day. We are Christians, and we generally love everybody. They didn't look at things in the way that other people did. They had open minds about so many things that other people might not. I always loved that about my Grandfather. He didn't know the term stranger. Kindness and helping not just your family but your fellow man was a way of life for him. If you needed the shirt that he was wearing worse than him, you got the shirt. That’s what a good Christian man he was.
R.V.B. - That's a great trait to have.
A.P. Carter
R.F. – He lived his entire life that way. I will always believe God blessed him because of it. He was a Godly man. I never heard him say bad things about people, and I never saw him do a bad thing. Even though he and my Grandmother split, he never had anything bad to say. He was just a loving, giving person. At their concerts, he would admit anyone with a handicap or mental disability free of charge. (It’s a practice we still follow today at the Fold.) They kept their open minds – Papaw, my Mom, John... all of them.... until the day they died. John had a lot in common with the Carters. He was open to everything and everyone until the day he died. All of them were willing to try new things. They loved meeting people and traveling to new places. They were concerned about being good Christians, but they didn't worry about what people had to say. They were very strict about the girls being married. There were no dates until they were a certain age. They were very strict about the way they brought their children up. Their moral standards were high. My Grandma Carter held everyone to a high standard. I never knew her because she died before I was born, but she will always be my gold standard. Everything I do - in terms of my religion and my family, cooking, dealing with people - I always ask myself "Would Grandma Carter have done it this way?"
R.V.B. - Do you still go to the church services up the street?
Mount Vernon United Methodist Church
R.F. - When I can, I do except when I have overnight guests from the Fold or commitments on Sunday. I try. It's still very much a family church. The seventh and eighth generations of Carters are members at Mount Vernon United Methodist. My Granddad and his father and brothers helped build it in 1906, and it’s an historic landmark. The majority of my Mom’s family is buried there. Uncle Eck and Aunt Maybelle are buried in Hendersonville, Tennessee. My grandparents are at Mt. Vernon - my great grandparents, my mother, my Uncle Joe and my Aunt Gladys. Our preacher is a Carter. She became a Carter when she married one of our cousins.
R.V.B. - I had visited the graves when I went there.
R.F. - The graveyard dates back to when the church was built in 1906.
R.V.B. - In the music industry in general, there are a lot of good points about it. The money... the fame... the special performances... some people like it and some people don't. Your grandmother Sara wasn't so thrilled about it.
R.F. – She liked playing and singing, but a music career was not something she seemed to want. My granddad was the one it seemed to mean more to when they first started performing. His goal was to preserve the musical heritage of the mountains. He loved the music... yes he did! Most of his early interest in music was the singing schools in the churches. That was where he was first exposed to the music. I don't think he ever cared about the notoriety. Aunt Maybelle loved the music. June and John loved the music. Anita was not so enthusiastic about it - nor was my grandmother. Sara was good at it, and she knew it. She was comfortable with it, but wasn't something that she minded if she did or didn't do.
R.V.B. - I want to say that with my circle of friends, I make sure they know the importance of the Carter Family. I praised Sara on her great voice and what a marvelous singer she was.
R.F. - Well that's what sold Ralph Peer. The fact that they recorded six songs at the sessions was unheard of. Most of the acts didn't do six. All six came out on 78's. Mr. Peer said that when he heard her sing, he had to sign them with Victor. Her singing captivated him.
R.V.B. - It was a good move for Victor and a good move for the world.
R.F. - They had baby Joe, who was nursing. Maybelle was eight months pregnant. They had to take Joe out to nurse. Mr. Peer probably thought "What in the world?" He had to be a patient man. He... my Granddad, my Grandmother, Aunt Maybelle and the Peers were all very good friends. They all remained good friends until they died. In fact, our families are still connected and remain good friends.
R.V.B. - Your mother and her brother established the Carter Fold and continued the music because of your grandfathers wish.
The Carter Fold
R.F. - Yes. She and her brother did. Her sister helped, too. Uncle Joe was instrumental in building it.
R.V.B. - What was the time frame of this project?
R.F. - I know my Mom thought about it probably from the time my Granddad died. She promised him as he was dying, in 1960, that she would see that his music lived on. At that time, she told him she didn't know how she was going to accomplish it because she was basically a single mother – divorced with children. She said "Daddy, I have three children to raise," and he said "So did I." I think that it stayed with her in that she knew something needed to be done, but she wasn’t sure what. He left her the little house that he moved us into. He also left her the little grocery store that he ran. In 1974, my brother finished high school, and that's when Mom started the music shows. She had us through school, so her commitment as a mom was not as time-consuming. I went on to college. She started the music shows as a way of fulfilling that promise. She didn't start them for money, acclaim or to boost tourism. She just wanted to pay honor and tribute to her father and family.
R.V.B. - That's a very honorable thing for a daughter to do.
R.F. - Well she loved him that much. In fact, she worshipped the ground that her father walked on, as I did. I worshipped her as well. They were two of the best people I've ever known.
R.V.B. - What college did you go to?
R.F. - East Tennessee State University. That's who I work for now.
R.V.B. - What are you personally proud about, about the Carter family legacy?
Rita inside the Carter Family Museum
R.F. - All of it. I know there are down sides. There was some pain associated with the music. My parents and later my grandparents divorcing was difficult for all of us. I saw a lot of the sadness. There were multiple family divorces. June and Anita were divorced twice. Some people balance their music career and their marriage, but there is sacrifice involved. I'm honestly proud of everything they did. I'm proud of the music... the legacy they left. They were some of the best people I’ve ever known.
R.V.B. - Now you've taken the torch and it's up to you.
R.F. - I'm trying.
R.V.B. - Well the Fold seems to be thriving. You're doing a good job. You got something going on every week. That's not an easy task, I would think.
R.F. - No... not when you work all week and you're tired. Fridays I get to bed around two after I get the cooking done. There are ladies who will come early Saturdays to help get the kitchen ready. Another volunteer (who’s also on our board) comes in around noon so that everything is ready by six. Mom wanted everybody to feel like they were in her living room at Fold concerts. She wanted them to experience all the good things about the culture of Appalachia - the good food, the warmth of the people, the feeling of being in the mountains, the unique and wonderful music, the Christian values of mountain people. She wanted them to see it all. When she built the Fold, she worried that it would be too large and lose the feel of Papaw’s one room store. The closeness of that one room was so special. But I think anybody who comes today will say that it's just as warm and welcoming of a place that the one room store was.
R.V.B. - What is entailed in preparing food for the Fold? How many people do you cook for?
R.F. - Oh Lord, honey, it could be anywhere from a couple of hundred to several hundred... we can seat 820 some. During the festival, you're cooking for 1,000 to 1,500 people. Food vendors help during those times. I just can't do all of that.
R.V.B. - For a typical winter show, what do you have on the menu?
Janette Carter preparing food
R.F. - We always have hot dogs with homemade chili from a family recipe every Saturday. We have pulled pork barbecue sandwiches and homemade egg salad sandwiches. We have nachos with cheese, or with cheese, chili and onions. We pop fresh popcorn, serve ice cream, sweet tea, coffee, and other drinks. I often have specials.
R.V.B. - I gather you have to cook up a fairly big batch?
R.F. - Honey, I have pots that will come up to your knees. Handling them when they’re full is the trick. We use crock pots to keep everything warm. It takes about four or five people just to run the kitchen during a show.
R.V.B. - What is the process of booking acts there? Do you handle that?
R.F. - Yes.
R.V.B. - Do they submit music to you to check out?
R.F. - They do, but we do things a little bit differently because we're rural, and been going for so long. When we first started, we couldn't pay the artists what they could get at a lot of other places. We would cook for them and keep them overnight. They would get enough gas money to get them back home and a little extra. We give first preference to those bands. We have two that have been playing the whole 45 years that we've been open. Naturally, they're going to get first priority. They came because they loved the music – not for money. After I get dates booked for our past bands, I just go down the line. In 45 years, lots of folks have played the Fold.
R.V.B. - Oh I see.
R.F. - I try to keep it down to about two dates a year. Some may get a few more dates, if it happens to work out that way. We might work in two new acts a year. We're closed for a couple of Saturdays during the Christmas break, so basically we have 50 dates. Our rules are that it has to be a full band with a fiddle. We ask that they have two professional CD's. Naturally, we want people to see the very best quality old time and bluegrass acoustic music. We've bent the rules on acoustic a little bit a time or two. Johnny Cash got to bend the rules because he was family and that’s what he played. He was the first to play electric. The second one to break the rules was Marty Stuart. That has really been it.
R.V.B. - Those are two guys who have the weight to do that.
R.F. - Well Marty is part of our extended family, too. He asked us to plug in and we didn’t see how we could say no. Marty was a part of Johnny's band. He married John's daughter Cindy and later Connie Smith - whom we also consider to be part of our family. Once you are part of our family, it tends to remain that way.
R.V.B. - Johnny Cash had his last performance there... correct?
R.F. – Performances - probably the last 10 or 12. I'm not sure if anyone has counted, but yes they were right here on our stage.
R.V.B. - What was the general vibe of those performances?
Johnny Cash at the Fold
R.F. – Magical! John was very sick, but he had come here to visit after June's death. Despite the fact that she was gone, he followed their tradition of coming back to Poor Valley for her birthday. They bought her home place and visited as often as they could. Most Saturdays they were in Hiltons, they’d come to the Fold for the show and perform a few songs or join in with our family and often the band that was playing that night. John was grief-stricken, and it was obviously hard for him to perform without her. If everybody loved each other like they loved each other, the world would be a much better place. John adored June. In fact, he loved her entire family - and we're a rather formidable bunch. First of all, we are a huge family. He embraced all of June’s family with all the love, warmth and acceptance in the world. John seemed to love everything about the Carter family.
R.V.B. - What a nice addition to have him. We all know the story that he had some issues and June helped him through them.
R.F. - So did Aunt Maybelle and Uncle Eck. They basically moved in with him. They tried to help a lot of folks. Hank Williams was one of them. Aunt Maybelle and June were good friends with him. June was Godmother to Hank Jr. June and John were Godparents to Roy Orbison's children. There's a lot of musical connections. Aunt Maybelle sponsored Dixie Hall. Our friend Bill Clifton called and asked her to as England was Dixie’s home and moving to the U.S. required sponsorship. Dixie lived with Aunt Maybelle’s family. Tom T. Hall married Dixie and has become an extended part or our family as a result in the same way Marty did. As June would always say, "Her son-in-laws could form the greatest band ever." There's Rodney Crowell, Marty Stuart, Nick Lowe ... the list is a long one. There's a lot of wonderful folks that have come into our lives.
R.V.B. - Congratulations on your continuing the tradition of the Fold and congratulations on your professional career.
R.F. - Thank you honey. I always wanted to be independent. When my mom divorced, she worked so hard. When I was a young girl she would work odd jobs for 25 cents an hour so that she could be a stay at home mom. We got a little child support. At that time there was no public assistance. Mom would have been too proud to take it. She would supplement her income by ironing, grading tobacco, cooking, canning... whatever job opportunity arose, she was glad to do it. She would make a little money when she could until she reached the point that she could pick up her music again.
R.V.B. - Did you go to any high school social functions, like dances and that kind of activity?
R.F. - Being out in the country, not many people had cars. We kind of made our own fun. The kids went to places together. It wasn't like it is today. I didn't go to a lot of places because we didn't have the ability to. I didn't start dating until I was about 16. I went to proms and football and basketball games when I could.
R.V.B. - Did you have any childhood buddies?
R.F. - Oh bunches - mostly cousins. One good friend that is my best friend still lives nearby. We've been friends since we were infants. God has truly blessed me with more friends than any one woman deserves.
R.V.B. - The people of Appalachia have great values. It's a great story. I can't wait to share it with my readers.
R.F. - I definitely want folks to know how proud we are of our family and of John being part of it. One of the most heart-warming things was when he came to do his last concerts. He was here for three weeks, and he did two concerts during that time. We didn't announce it. The last show, we turned people away. Word had spread John was in the valley.
Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash
A reporter at one of the shows said "Mr. Cash, I don't understand. Your wife has passed and you're visiting here in Hiltons, but you were born in Arkansas." He said "Son, you really don't understand do you?" I was standing near him in the green room. He said "This is my home!" (gets a little emotional). That can't help but touch you. It’s amazing. I think he found in the Carter family the love and acceptance he longed for. Yes he had problems, but we didn't judge him harshly because of it or love him any less. In fact, we probably loved him more. I think he couldn't believe that there were people like that in the world. The Carter and Cash families were both poor. "Walk the Line" was incredibly accurate. I only found one mistake in the whole movie, and it was something that even some family members wouldn’t notice.
R.V.B. - Did you see the TV movie production from the June Carter side "Ring of Fire?"
R.F. - I saw the one with Jewel in it and I think she did a good job in her portrayal. It and Walk the Line were painful to watch. When Aunt Maybelle’s family moved to Nashville, their lives became vastly different than ours. My cousin Lorrie - Anita's daughter - came to live with us for a couple of years. She saw the Nashville lifestyle, and she saw the mountain lifestyle. They dedicated a Bristol Sessions monument in 1969. Lorrie and Anita came up for the monument dedication. When her mom got ready to go, Lorrie said "I'm not going back home with you." She was maybe 10/11 years old. Her mom said "What do you mean you're not going home with me?" She said "I'm staying here." Anita said, "You can't stay here." She said, " Yes I can. I already asked if I can and Janette said I could." So she came to live with us for two years. She just decided to and she did.
R.V.B. - Wow. Interesting story. I guess she liked the mountain lifestyle.
Lorrie Carter Bennett, Janette, Rita and Carlene Carter
R.F. - Well you know Anita was on the road. Her mom was gone much of the time, and I'm sure she was greatly affected by that. She didn't get to be with her mom. Lorrie’s dad was in Gulf Shores, and they were divorcing. I know it was painful for her. Here she had all kinds of wonderful cousins. Her cousins in Nashville were spread out, and they didn't get to spend as much time together because John and June were on the road. They did when they were with Aunt Maybelle on the road. They're close... all of us are close. The music has us tied in ways that other people aren't tied. Like Carlene, John Carter... all of us try to present a united front.
R.V.B. - It's great that you had that opportunity to have a couple of years with her.
R.F. - Well it is. She's like the sister I didn't get. She will tell you that the happiest two years of her life were here. She got to experience things that she couldn't in Nashville.
R.V.B. - Nashville... It has all the glitter and it's the center of country music. It's a different world.
R.F. - Now it is. The old Nashville that Aunt Maybelle knew was a much nicer place. Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Chet Atkins, and Hank Snow weren’t just performers they knew from the Opry. They were a family. They weren't competitors... they were friends! That was evident because when you would go to Aunt Maybelle's, there they’d be. We were surrounded by them.
R.F. - Did you visit them in Nashville?
R.V.B. - Yes. Every year my Grandmother would come here from California for the summer. Most of the time she would go to Nashville on the way here and on the way back home. But sometimes she would just go there and I would go along... yes.
R.V.B. - Did you have a nice time there?
R.F. - Oh Lord yes! I love my cousins and it was a whole new world for me. You could imagine a little country girl going to Nashville. I didn't know that life existed. I remember I had gone to Carlene's for the day... at John and June's. Carlene and I were just hanging out. I was about 15 or 16. John was there at the time. The guard called in and said, " Mr. Cash there's some people here who want to meet you." John said he wasn’t expecting anyone.
Steppenwolf
Armando (the guard) said, "They say they're Steppenwolf." They had the hit "Born to be Wild" at that time. Carlene and I went ballistic. We thought "There's Steppenwolf on the other side of the gate. We could meet them." They were the hottest thing going. We were screaming and hollering, "Please let them in!" John got down on the floor and laughed... and rolled. He told the guard "We're gonna have to let them in. If I don't, I think Carlene and Rita are going to kill me." So they came in and we met them. What are the odds of a little country girl getting to meet the hottest rock group in the country? It opened up a world to me that I didn't know anything about. They regularly crossed paths with some of the best-known people the world over. That day was a great experience - and one I'll never forget.
R.V.B. - Have you ever been in a studio with your family?
R.F. - I've been in the studio, and I've been to concerts that they did. We would always go when they were nearby. Of course they did a lot of concerts here at the Fold.
R.V.B. - Do you have any favorite songs from the family?
R.F. - That's a hard one. As I grow older, I guess my favorites are the gospel songs. Some of my special favorites are the ones that my Granddad did solo. He only did a handful. "Working on a Building" is one of them. "It'll Aggravate Your Soul" was another one. I’ve always been partial to those. There were so few, and I always loved it when he sang. He tended to feature the ladies and let them take the lead. There are so many that are beautiful - “The Shadow of Clinch Mountain,” "My Clinch Mountain Home." It's hard to say which is my favorite because they all mean so much to me. I do live in the shadow of Clinch Mountain.
Carter Family publicity photo
Everything in those songs is personal to me. They're all my favorites. A lot of their catalog is religious songs. Of course "Circle Be" is very special. What better song in the world could there be? They said Mick Jagger sang it at his mom's funeral by her graveside. They asked him why he chose to sing that song and he said "It's the right thing to do." It's part of the fabric of our lives, whether we recognize it or not. There isn’t a musician performing that hasn’t been influenced by the Carter Family. Jerry Garcia, Emmylou Harris, Cheryl Crow... they will all acknowledge it. The members of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band are some of the greatest people I know. I adore them. They changed the face of music by combining the music they did with the music from Nashville.
R.V.B. - The circle is not going to be unbroken.
R.F. - The circle is not going to be unbroken. John McEuen came to the Fold when I was working in an out building, cleaning it for the festival. I had met him before, so I knew who he was. I saw these people come across the parking lot and I was dirty and I thought "Oh Lord... I can't deal with people now." I said "Ronnie, can you go over and tell them that we're not open now?"- not yet recognizing who it was. He and his wife Marilyn came over. He held his hand out, and I said “I'm embarrassed because you’ve seen me at my worst." I was ashamed even to shake his hand. I have met many wonderful people, but he and his wife rank at the top.
R.V.B. - Hahaha
R.F. - He said, "You should never be embarrassed of hard work." We’re big buddies now. My life has been so enriched growing up as I did. Music played a very big part in that.
R.V.B. - Do you plan on retiring anytime soon?
R.F. - I plan on retiring from my day job. The Fold is just a labor of love. It's not something I take money for. I do it because I love my family. There is no one else to take on the mantle of the Fold right now. It's a huge undertaking. You do everything from cleaning out buildings to digging ditches and snaking out toilets. People ask me my job description and I say "Which one do you want?" I sweep, cook, emcee, do accounting – you name it. A lot of times I'll keep people who'll have to stay over. Family, friends, and bands will stay. Sometimes I cook or we'll go out to eat. We visit. I have made some wonderful friends.
R.V.B. - Can you tell me the story about the white dog that I saw when I visited there?
Belle
R.F. - Her name was Belle, and she lived down the road. Her owner was divorcing so she got the dog for her children. They moved in and were immediately away often. The dog was by itself a lot, so it just came over and moved to my house. I didn't know whose dog it was. Like every stray that ever came to our house, we kept it. Belle was a Great Pyrenees. I don't know if it was because she knew I was happy when old time musicians came, but she only came to the Fold for old time concerts. Old time music is my favorite. I like bluegrass... it's nice. It's more polished compared to old time, though. I like the music that I grew up with, which is old time. I don't know if she knew old time musicians were just more down to earth, but she only came down for old time concerts – not bluegrass. That is the Gospel truth. I was at the podium one night, and the green room door was open. She walked in and stood behind me. I heard the audience let out a roar. I thought "What in the name of ???" Belle had walked in and was just standing there like "Mom, it's old time night." All I could say was, “I guess it’s time for old time music... Belle's here.” She’d stay right with the band. My other dog Lefty came down for all the performances and stayed right on the stage. He didn't discriminate... he liked bluegrass and old time. Haha
R.V.B - Haha. How many pets do you have now?
R.F. - Lefty and Belle have died, but I have another Pyrenees. She is more rambunctious. I can't turn her loose down there. She's more of a baby and still too young. She might just leave with somebody. When my youngest son married and moved, Lefty was the only dog I had. Someone tried to break into my house. Lefty might have licked them, but he would never have hurt them. I realized I needed a dog that could be more protection for me, so I got another Pyrenees. They can kill a bear or a mountain lion if they need to. They’re normally left with livestock in the fields, and aren’t meant to be people dogs. My new Pyrenees is a people dog. She guards me with a vengeance and would never let anybody get near me if she thought they might hurt me. I feel much safer.
R.V.B. - On your professional job, do people put two and two together and figure out who you are?
R.F. - I don't tell them, but a lot of them know. If they know, I talk to them about it and if not, I don't... I don't broadcast it. A lot of them do know that I have two kind of separate lives.
R.V.B. - You're an administrative assistant between a hospital and a College?
Bristol Regional Medical Center
R.F. Yes. I make sure all the computer codes are in order and that everything’s up to hospital and university standards. I have to keep up with both sets of guidelines. I have to make sure that the hospital maintains university standards and vice versa. I’m actually a den mother to hundreds of medical students, residents, and fellows. I wear a lot of hats. I help with another system hospital in Bristol too. We're merging so I hope they give me a little help relatively soon. (Hahaha)
R.V.B. - Bristol has a Nascar track. Do you get a bump at the Fold when they have an event?
R.F. - Sometimes we do. There is some spillover. Some people come for curiosity... some come for the love of the music. They bring their family members and friends because they want to show them what Appalachian music is like. They can experience the culture of Appalachia. If they come to the Fold, they can see the best of all of it.
R.V.B. - Have you ever traveled?
R.F. - Yes, I've traveled both in and outside the U.S. I used to travel a lot to places my husband worked because he seemed to always be on the road. I also traveled with Mom overseas for the 75thanniversary celebration of the Bristol sessions. Now I'm happiest here. I sometimes go to performances of friends or to family functions, but I'm normally here every Saturday.
R.V.B. - Rita and Flo Wolfe
R.V.B. - I thank you for the in depth conversation, I'm looking forward to visiting there on the last weekend in March.
R.F. - That's fine. On the 24th I'll be attending the celebraton of the Ken Burns documentary on country music. There will be eight segments and part of the first segment will premiere at the Paramount theatre in Bristol. We did help out on it a lot. This past weekend we had an independent film producer with us. He’s planning to do a pilot for PBS hoping that they will pick up a series on different musical venues.
R.V.B. - I love visiting old theaters.
R.F. - You'll enjoy the Paramount. It’s in downtown Bristol on State Street – close to where the sessions were held.
R.V.B. - Thank you Rita for your time.
R.F. - You're very welcome.
Interview conducted by Robert von Bernewitz
This interview may not be reproduced in any part or form without permission from this site.
Prior to this posting "Lefty" the dog passed away
For more information on Rita and the Carter Fold visit their website www.carterfamilyfold.org
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