mac wiseman in 1979

You can send me pretty flowers, you can send me valentines

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Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

You can send me pretty flowers you can send me valentines
Send me letters every day but it won’t pay
Leap to my desire, nothing else will do
It’s goodbye and so long to you

You can hang around and love me you can hang your head and cry
Hang my picture on the wall but I won’t fall
Kiss me when you’re dreaming, no good that will do
It’s goodbye and so long to you

You can give me your affection you can give all your love
Give me all the things I’ll crave but I’ll be brave
All the things you offer, make me sad and blue
It’s goodbye and so long to you

You can call me your own darling you can call me what you may
Call me on the telephone I won’t be home
Keep your old love letters, I’m all through with you
It’s goodbye and so long to you

“Its Goodbye and So Long to You”
recorded by the Osborne Brothers with Mac Wiseman
The Essential Bluegrass Album, 1979

color illustration of a box of a dozen roses


Famed for his clear and mellow tenor voice, Mac Wiseman (1925-2019)  recorded with many great bluegrass bands, including those of Molly O’Day, Flatt and Scruggs, Bill Monroe, and the Osborne Brothers; his command of traditional material made him much in demand by bluegrass and folk fans alike. Wiseman, nicknamed “The Voice with a Heart,” grew up influenced by traditional and religious music and such radio stars as Montana Slim Carter.

After studying at the Shenandoah Conservatory of Music in Dayton, VA Wiseman started out working as a radio announcer in Harrisonburg in 1944. His professional music career began when he joined Molly O’Dell in 1946 as a bass player. He signed on with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs in an early edition of their group in 1948, and appeared on their first recording session. After a performance at the Louisiana Hayride he left them to become popular as solo artist.

He’s best known for his 1959 hit, “Jimmy Brown the Newsboy.” He also had a hit version of “The Ballad of Davey Crockett” in 1955. During the Folk revival in the 1960s he had successful gigs at the Hollywood Bowl and Carnegie Hall. In 1993 Wiseman was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor.

It's Goodbye And So Long To You - Mac Wiseman

sources: www.cmt.com/artists/az/wiseman_mac/bio.jhtml
http://doodah.net/bgb/MacWiseman.html

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