An Unbroken Circle of Sisterhood On the Country-Music Scene

Mother Maybelle and The Carter Sisters

COUNTRY MUSIC’S first family, and the most influential sister-act in Americana history, would have to be The Carter Family. The first generation of The Carter Family, which consisted of A.P. Carter, his wife, Sara Carter, and his sister-in-law Maybelle Carter (married to A.P.’s brother, Ezra), made their first recording in 1927. In that recording, the trio performed many of the songs that would become their signatures for a decade to come—songs like Can the Circle be Unbroken and Wildwood Flower. By the early 1930s, The Carter Family was nationally known, and had sold more than 300,000 records.

When A.P. and Sara’s marriage crumbled in 1943 the group disbanded, but Maybelle continued performing and recording. She recruited her three daughters—Anita, June and Helen—to become the family band’s next generation, Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters. The group was built around Helen’s musicianship, Anita’s lead vocals, and June’s gregarious, comic stage presence.

Mother Maybelle and The Carter Sisters enjoyed much success: They were regulars on two prominent radio stations, in Richmond, Virginia, and Knoxville, Tennessee.

In 1948, The Carter Sisters discovered a brilliant guitar accompanist, Chet Atkins, who at that time was just beginning to make his mark. In the mid-1950s they toured with Elvis Presley, performing as his opening act.

Mother Maybelle and Sara

Mother Maybelle and The Carter Sisters took back the name The Carter Family in 1960, shortly after A.P. Carter’s death, and joined Johnny Cash as his backup singers (June would later marry Johnny, in 1968). Mother Maybelle reunited with her sister-in-law Sara Carter for a few performances during the height of folk music’s popularity, but the duo didn’t stick together.

In the 1970s The Carter Family performed often with June’s daughter Carlene Carter. In the 1970s The Carter Family recorded two albums, Travelin’ Minstrel Band, and Three Generations. Mother Maybelle died in 1978; her daughters and granddaughter reunited ten years later to record a collection of Carter Family standards, Wildflower.

The Burns Sisters

Perhaps because Mother Maybelle and The Carter Sisters blazed the trail, other contemporary sister groups have found success in the country-music industry. In the latter half of the 1980s, The Forester Sisters, comprising Kathy, June, Kim and Christy Forester, recorded four number one hits. Anne, Marie, and Jeannie Burns (the seventh, eighth, and ninth of 12 children) make up The Burns Sisters. Their sound redefined the boundaries of folk and country music in the 90s, with their gospel-infused 1995 album Close to Home, and their country-rock release In This World (produced by E Street Band bassist Gary Talent in 1998). The Burns Sisters are currently touring with Arlo Guthrie.

Allison Moorer

In the past eight years, the face of country-music sisters, particularly in the alt-country sphere, has most likely been Shelby Lynne and Allison Moorer. While these sisters have made names for themselves as solo artists (Lynne won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 2001 and Moorer, who is married to master musician Steve Earle, has released seven solo albums), they occasionally perform together—recordings of their joint projects can be heard on Moorer’s 2003 album Show.

Up and coming sisters on the scene include The Watson Twins, who first became popular singing backup for Jenny Lewis’s 2006 album Rabbit Fur Coat, have recently released their first full length album, Fire Songs (listen to their single “How Am I to Be” here ). The twins, Chandra and Leigh Watson, have an alt-country sound with harmonies “sweeter than sugar-dipped honeysuckle.”

The Peasall Sisters

Sarah, Hannah, and Leah Peasall of The Peasall Sisters may be young (21,17, and 15, respectively), but they’ve already won a Grammy for their track on the Oh Brother Where Art Thou soundtrack. The sisters describe their latest album, Home to You, as “a family album,” which features the work of members from other famous families—guitarist Randy Scruggs and producer John Carter Cash (June Carter’s son). And so the circle of Carter influence continues.–Anastasia Smith

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