Bluegrass legend Ralph Stanley, grandson at Juanita's

After having been a bluegrass legend as well as a family patriarch, Ralph Stanley, 88, is still leading the charge, and right by his side is his 22-year-old grandson, Nathan Stanley, who is as dedicated to keeping bluegrass alive as his beloved "Papaw."

"I started out when I was 2 years old, playing the spoons onstage at the Grand Ole Opry," Nathan Stanley says from the family compound in southwest Virginia, near the Kentucky and Tennessee state lines. "So I guess I've always known what I would do with my life. I later moved on to mandolin when I was 10 and then rhythm guitar and lead singing.

"Of course at the time I played those spoons, I had no clue as to what that stage represented and how important it was."

Ralph Stanley is known and loved for his versions of such songs as "Man of Constant Sorrow" and "O Death." Grandson Nathan has more than a faint resemblance to the young Elvis Presley, which he is not uncomfortable with.

"I don't try to look like him," the younger Stanley notes. "I guess I have the same taste in clothes that he had. He was the ultimate entertainer and I have watched videos and studied what he did but no one should expect to see me swiveling my hips. I had a car wreck once and broke my hip, so that ended my swiveling days before they ever began."

In addition to Elvis, Nathan Stanley cites George Jones and Dolly Parton as his primary influences in the musical decisions he has made.

"I don't try to copy anyone, and I just want to be myself," Stanley adds. "I sing the way I feel it, even if it's someone else's song. There has never been a time when my Papaw has given me a critique of what I've done, just a few that I've recorded that he said he could have never done justice to, like 'Beulah Land.' That really made me proud."

The younger Stanley, whose Papaw was the only father figure he ever knew, has released eight albums under his own name, plus the ones he has done with his grandfather and the Clinch Mountain Boys. His albums have been evenly divided between bluegrass and gospel.

"Our latest is The Legacy Continues, where I do a couple of duets with Papaw -- 'Rank Stranger' and 'Where Could I Go But to the Lord' -- and a tune with Brad Paisley: 'Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone.' The album we did previous to that, Every Mile, won the [2014] Dove Award for Best Bluegrass Album."

The Clinch Mountain Boys are Dewey Brown on fiddle, Mitchell Van Dyke on banjo and Randall Hibbitts on bass. Ralph and Nathan Stanley sing lead vocals.

Ralph Stanley had planned to retire a year ago, and even embarked on his farewell tour, Nathan explains, but he changed his mind and intends to continue as long as he can.

"He still wants to get out and perform, so after a lot of praying, that's what he decided. No one is forcing him to stay out on the road. For 69 years, that's all he's ever known, so it was his own decision to keep going."

Nathan Stanley says that Stanley Brothers concerts feature a special gift to fans -- free Bibles and DVDs about the life of Jesus.

"I speak my faith everywhere I go," he says.

Weekend on 04/16/2015