Customer Reviews

Chiseled in Stone

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Like George, Vern sometimes sings more upbeat material (Tight as twin fiddles, on this album, being a prime example), but both singers have a particular way with the kind of very sad songs that dominate this album, especially the title track.

For those who are unfamiliar with it, the title refers to the inscription on a gravestone and the song points out that don't understand loneliness until somebody you love has died. It is the kind of song that you expect to hear George Jones sing, but I doubt if George could improve on Vern's version of this song.

Tight as twin fiddles, the one upbeat track here, is a slice of western swing in the tradition of Bob Wills. Of the other songs, all of which are excellent, my favorites are Do you believe me now and Set em up Joe.

If you enjoy traditional country with absolutely no frills, this is for you. Just be sure to have those tissues ready.

Vern Gosdin has one of those voices that can only be described as pure velvet that wraps itself around a lyric until it becomes a gift from his throat to your ears. Yes, it's country from the steel guitar to the wailing fiddles all blended into that Gosdin soul. This album showcases the sounds that have been left behind in a cloud of crossovers; but when traditional country fans come looking for substance, this one fills the bill. I sincerely wish country music could one day return to this type of artist, and make it profitable for him to do what he does best and that is sing a song from the heart and not rely on gimmicks. Listen to this one and enjoy a piece of heaven.

This CD is not quite up to the exceptional beauty of Vern's "Ten Years Of Greatest Hits". However, most of the songs, except for two(Nobody calls from Vegas & Set Em up Joe), are superb. Special mention is due for Mr. Gosdin's renditions of "There Aint Nothing Wrong" and "Chiseled In Stone". The vocal quality and depth of the work is very good. It is truly lamentable that artists such as Mr. Gosdin are not given air time on country stations today. Take it from me folks, if you want the down home country sound, don't pass up this CD. Like myself, you will listen to it numerous times. Thank you Mr. Gosdin !!

This album made me realize that Vern is up there with Goerge Jones, as far as "pain" songs go. The recording quality is excellent - the bass guitar booms and the high guitar notes sound crystal clear. It made me pick up my accoustic guitar and play along with the entire album. I howled after every slow song!

If you love real country music, you have to listen to this one! Every song is full of soul, and the voice of Vern Gosdin is one you'll never forget. Try it out!

"Set 'Em Up Joe" (a honky-tonker about a man wearing out an Ernest Tubb 45 -- remember them?) was the hit, and sounded just right coming out of a jukebox at 1:00 AM. But the prime cut here is "Chiseled In Stone," which to my mind rivals Jones's "He Stopped Loving Her Today" as the most heart-breaking recording of all time. In between there's lots of filler, but Vern Gosdin's filler beats out just about anything you're likely to hear on country radio in these benighted times. Stone country -- snap it up while it's still in print.

A real old first time discovery for me; but, Amazon found me a copy. So, pleased. Thought it would be late coming cause another vendor; but, it was here so quickly. Much to the chagrin of my daughter, lol, because have not stopped listening to it.

Dear Powers That Be: Please, please, please bring back real country music and get this kind of music on the radio, tv, whatever - Youtube and an audience hip enough to track the late Vern Gosdin is not enough. This man is absolutely one of my favorite singers, and this is my favorite CD of his; I've mentioned in a Johnny Cash review that I owe my father for turning me onto country music, and I hope Dad still looks down once in awhile, hears me playing "Set 'Em Up, Joe" for him from this CD, and realizes that his girl did listen to him every now and then. From Vern's heartbreaking and plaintive "Is It Raining" (-"at your house, like it's rainin' at mine?") to "Chiseled In Stone" ("You don't know about lonely, til its' chiseled in stone"), Vern is the preacher having gone through those heartaches and fires himself, and he's willing to tell you about it if you pull a stool up to the bar, let him bum a cigarette and keep crankin' those quarters into the jukebox. This is the kind of music that played on the jukeboxes that were always tucked into a corner of whatever bar and grill my dad was running, whether in Chicago, Kansas or Texas; it found complete recognition wherever it was given three or four minutes of play time, because everybody's been hurt, everybody's been used, everybody's done their own hurting and using. Regret and lessons learned are heavy on this CD, and some might think it's too depressing, but Vern Gosdin is another George Jones: He's best when he's singing about the country blues, and although he does have a couple of more upbeat tunes on "Stone" ("Who Are You Gonna Blame It On This Time?" is my favorite of those), many of Vern's fans ain't happy unless he's making them miserable. He gives you the okay to cry it out, and hopefully, get on with your life; as a poet, I say this with complete awe and a little bit of envy - the lyrics are poems, not songs. Vern has passed away after a few years of poor health, and it is a real loss to the country music world; I hope that his music does keep getting discovered through download, Amazon, Youtube, etc., because he was a real talent. And I hope my dad's had a chance to pull up a stool and tell Vern that, well, he has to be honest (you gotta follow the rules in Heaven, right?), and that Johnny Cash might still be King, but Vern's earned the title The Prince of Pain, damn straight.

This CD by Vern Gosdin is FANTASTIC. Vern Gosdin sang traditional music, well worth listening to. You won't be disappointed in this CD.

This is definitely Vern at his peak, the title song is on a par with George Jones' "He stopped loving her today". Highly recommended!