Goat-Gland Doctor!

 One of the most fascinating characters in the Carter Family's saga is Dr. John Romulus Brinkley, the man who put the Carters on Texas border radio, and beamed their music all across North America. He was so interesting, Frank wanted to give him a whole chapter of the book - to tell the story of his life, as a side story. But the number of pages allotted to our book was limited, so Dr. Brinkley appears, but not in great detail. 

Fortunately, cartoonist Emi Gennis created a biography of Dr. Brinkley in graphic form (it was actually made in 2019 and I'm just now realizing that I should post it here). Please take a look at the strange and amazing story of the "Goat-Gland Doctor"...

https://www.emigennis.com/goat-gland-doctor

art by Emi Gennis. 

https://www.emigennis.com/

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As of 2026, physical copies of "The Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song" can be purchased from used booksellers on the internet. And it is also available to read via Kindle. 

https://www.amazon.com/Carter-Family-Dont-Forget-This-ebook/dp/B00AOJE11G/ref=sr_1_1?

Robert Deeble releases a new album, including his "Carter Family" tribute song

It was a little over 12 years ago that the "Carter Family" graphic novel, co-authored by Frank M. Young and me, made its debut. And then in 2015, we were honored to have The Bushwick Book Club (Seattle) commission three songwriters to create new songs inspired by the book. Years later, one of those songwriters, Robert Deeble, is releasing a beautifully produced version of his contribution, "Orphan Song," on his new album. Hearing it gives me chills. It's a continued honor to know that the book that Frank and I co-authored has inspired such a song. Hats off to Robert Deeble!

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2049398438913944&rdid=zkAM8BaWToGC2e92 

Robert has launched a Kickstarter campaign for his new album. If you're interested, this is the link.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/505565390/robert-deeble-a-new-album-the-space-between-us?

Back in 2019, he released a more stripped down version of the song as a single. I drew this image to go with that release:

I dug up the flyer for the Bushwick Book Club event back in 2015:

It was a great night - I will always feel honored that three great songwriters made three great songs inspired by "Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song." 

-David

What Makes The Old Songs Old?

A few years ago, singer-songwriter Wes Weddell, as part of a Bushwick Book Club event, wrote a beautiful song inspired by our book "The Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song". It was called "What Makes The Old Songs Old?" and this year it was officially released on Wes's album "Somewhere in the Middle."

Give it a listen on Wes's web page.  And if you like it, please order Wes's album.

You can also find Wes on Bandcamp.

Ken Burns' "Country Music" highlights the Carter Family

I caught the first episode of "Country Music", the new epic documentary by Ken Burns, and thoroughly enjoyed it. The Carter Family was prominently highlighted, as well as Leslie Riddle. It was gratifying to see some of the historic moments that I'd drawn in the Carter Family graphic novel chronicled in the Burns style with old photos, voiceovers, interviews, and of course: music.

Positive reviews are appearing, and for anyone who missed it, I believe the episode can be viewed online here.

-David Lasky


#CarterFamily
#CountryMusic
#KenBurns

Maybelle Carter Honored on NPR

It's exciting to see a whole series of articles on NPR's website honoring Maybelle Carter as one of "8 Women Who Invented American Popular Music."

Something cool in Sacramento

It's a Johnny Cash mural by artist Shepard Fairey! Looks great.
It recently received some recognition. 

Spotted in Olympia

George Lawson spotted "The Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song" in a store in Olympia, WA. How nice to see it in the company of so many cool graphic novels. Thanks for the photo, George!