The Carter Family was a country music group that performed and recorded bet… Read Full Bio ↴The Carter Family was a country music group that performed and recorded between 1927 and 1943. Their music had a profound impact on later bluegrass, country, pop and rock musicians, as well as on the U.S. folk revival of the 1960s.

The original group consisted of Alvin Pleasant Delaney Carter (A.P.; 1891-1960), his wife, Sara Dougherty Carter (autoharp and guitar; 1898-1979), and Maybelle Addington Carter (guitar; 1909-1978). Maybelle Carter (later popularly known as Mother Maybelle Carter) was married to A.P.'s brother Ezra (Eck) Carter. All three were born and raised in southwestern Virginia where they were immersed in the tight harmonies of mountain gospel music and shape note singing. Maybelle Carter's distinctive and innovative guitar playing style quickly became a hallmark of the group.

The Carters got their start on July 31, 1927 when A.P. convinced Sara and Maybelle (pregnant at the time) to make the journey from Maces Springs, Virginia to Bristol, Tennessee to audition for record producer Ralph Peer who was seeking new talent for the relatively embryonic recording industry. They received $50 for each song they recorded.

In the Fall of 1927 the Victor recording company released a double-sided 78 rpm record of the group performing "Wandering Boy" and "Poor Orphan Child". In 1928 another record was released with "The Storms Are on the Ocean" and "Single Girl, Married Girl". This one proved very popular.

They stopped touring and recording in 1943.

In 1987, the three daughters of Maybelle Carter - June Carter (also known as June Carter Cash, following marriage to Johnny Cash), Helen Carter and Anita Carter, along with June Carter's daughter Carlene Carter, appeared as the Carter Family and were featured on a 1987 television episode of Austin City Limits along with Johnny Cash.

The Carters were elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1970 and were given the nickname "The First Family of Country Music". In 1988, the Carter Family was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and received its Award for the song "Will the Circle Be Unbroken". In 1993, the U.S. Postal Service issued a commemorative postage stamp honoring A.P., Sara, and Maybelle. In 2001, the group was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor. In 2005, the group received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Carter Family III carries on the tradition. The group consists of A.P. Carter and Sarah Carter’s grandson Dale Jett, Maybelle Carter’s grandson John Carter Cash and his wife Laura Cash.

For more details, see the Carter Family biography at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/carterfamily/peopleevents/p_carters.html

Don't Forget Me Little Darling
The Carter Family Lyrics

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Don′t forget me, little darling
When from me you're far away
But remember, little darling
We will meet again someday

Darling, I have come to tell you
Though this message breaks my heart
At the dawning of the morning

We′ll be many miles apart

Take this little bunch of roses
That you gave me long ago
Many a time I've kissed them, darling
These I'll never kiss no more

Who is going to love you, darling
Who will fold you to their breast
Who will talk the future over
While I roam the desert west

You may meet with many changes
Driving down life′s river stream
But remember, little darling
You are always in my dream

You may meet with brighter faces
Some may say that I′m not true
But remember, little darling
None can love you as I do

At my window sad and lonely
Often do I think of you

And I wonder, oh I wonder
If you ever think of me

Overall Meaning

The lonesome ballad, Don't Forget Me Little Darling, speaks to the anguish of distance and love in the heart, conveying a sense of longing and despair. The lyrics are about a man bidding farewell to his beloved, asking her not to forget him while they are apart. The very first line of the song reveals a sense of separation that the man feels in his heart for his lover, while the subsequent lines contain messages of hope and love.

The singer assures his lover that they will meet again someday. The depth of his love for her is illuminated by his taking of a little bunch of roses, given to him by her, which he kisses often, knowing that he might never be able to do so again. As he embarks on his journey, he is deeply concerned about who will love and care for her when he is away.

As the song progresses, the singer further asks his lover not to be swayed by those who may criticize him or tempt her away from him. He asserts that none can love her the way he does, and hence she should never forget him. He conveys his own loneliness through the lines "At my window sad and lonely, Often do I think of you, And I wonder, oh I wonder, If you ever think of me."

Overall, the lyrics of the song are about the depth of love, and the feeling of separation and longing that one experiences when separated from a loved one.

Don't Forget Me Little DarlingThe Carter Family Lyrics

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Don't Forget Me Little Darling
The Carter Family Lyrics