The brothers adopted the name Louvin Brothers in the 1940s as they began their career in gospel music. Their first foray into secular music was the minor hit "The Get Acquainted Waltz", recorded with Chet Atkins. Other hits included "Cash on the Barrelhead" and "When I Stop Dreaming". They joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1955 and stayed there until breaking up in 1963.
Their songs were heavily influenced by their Baptist faith and warned against sin. Ira Louvin was notorious for his drinking, womanizing, and short temper. He was married four times; his third wife Faye shot him four times in the chest and twice in the hand after he allegedly beat her. Although seriously injured, he survived. When performing and drinking, Ira would sometimes become angry enough on stage to smash his mandolin; otherwise his style was heavily influenced by Bill Monroe.
As of 1963, Charlie was making enough money that he was able to start a solo career, and Ira also went on his own.
Ira died on June 20, 1965, at the age of 41. He and his fourth wife, Anne Young, were on the way home from a performance in Kansas City when they came to a section of construction on Highway 70 outside of Williamsburg, Missouri where traffic had been reduced down to one lane. A drunken driver struck their car head-on, and both Ira and Anne were killed instantaneously.[4] At the time, a warrant for Ira's arrest had been issued on a DUI charge.
Country-rock band The Byrds recorded the Louvin-penned "The Christian Life" for their 1968 release Sweetheart of the Rodeo.
In 2001, the Louvin brothers were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. The tribute CD Livin', Lovin', Losin': Songs of the Louvin Brothers, produced by Carl Jackson and Kathy Louvin and released in 2003, won the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Country Album.
Although the brothers are still remembered today for their musical talent, they are also remembered for the unusual cover used for their 1959 album, Satan Is Real. Designed by Ira Louvin, the cover features the brothers standing in a rock quarry in front of a 12-foot-tall (3.7 m) plywood rendition of the Devil as several hidden tires soaked in kerosene burn behind them as fire and brimstone. While some reviewers count this as being one of the "greatest iconic album covers of all time", the cover can also be found today on several Web sites celebrating unusual or bizarre album covers. The cover has also become an Internet meme on a number of Web sites such as Fark.com, where it has been posted in discussion threads as an example of religious views of the era.
The opening bars of the album's title track "Satan is Real" can be heard at the beginning of Hank Williams III's "Medley: Straight to Hell / Satan is Real", on his Straight to Hell album of 2006. It is also excerpted in Will Ferrell's 2009 one-man Broadway show, You're Welcome America. A Final Night With George W Bush.
The Angels Rejoiced Last Night
The Louvin Brothers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For sweet little sister and me
Our daddy would frown while mother was prayin'
His heart was so hardened that he would not believe
In anger he'd swear his voice low and loud
His Sundays were spent out with the gamblin' crowd
I've never seen my daddy inside the house of God
For Satan held his hand, down the path of sin he trod
Not long ago our circle was broken
When God called on Mother one night
In a voice sweet and low her last words were spoken
Asking our daddy to raise her children right
The angels rejoiced in Heaven last night
I heard my daddy pray "Dear God, make it right"
He was smiling and singing with tears in his eyes
While Mother with the angels rejoiced last night
While Mother with the angels rejoiced last night
The Louvin Brothers' song "The Angels Rejoiced Last Night" tells a story about a family torn apart by sin and hardship. The lyrics describe the singer's experience of growing up in a broken home, with a father who was hardened in his heart and refused to believe in God. Despite his mother's devotion to prayer, the father was often absent from the home, spending his Sundays with gambling crowds. The image that Satan painted was that their house was not a home, a place where love and faith were absent and only darkness and despair prevailed.
However, the song takes a sudden turn when the singer's mother passes away, leaving the father to raise his children alone. In her last words, she asks her husband to raise their children right and to teach them to believe in God. The father's heart is softened, and he turns to prayer and singing, with tears in his eyes, for the first time in the singer's memory. The angels rejoiced in Heaven the night their mother passed away, and now they are rejoicing again, as their father has finally found his way to God.
Overall, "The Angels Rejoiced Last Night" is a powerful reminder of the transformative power of faith and the importance of family. Despite the pain and darkness that the family faced, they were able to find hope and redemption through their mother's love and their father's newfound faith.
Line by Line Meaning
A house not a home was the picture Satan painted
Satan created an image of our home as unwelcoming and unhappy.
For sweet little sister and me
My sister and I endured this hardship together.
Our daddy would frown while mother was prayin'
Father disapproved of mother's religious practices.
His heart was so hardened that he would not believe
Father's heart was closed off to the possibility of faith.
In anger he'd swear his voice low and loud
Father would often express his negative emotions with cursing and shouting.
His Sundays were spent out with the gamblin' crowd
Father preferred to spend his Sundays gambling instead of attending church.
I've never seen my daddy inside the house of God
I have never witnessed my father attending religious services.
For Satan held his hand, down the path of sin he trod
Satan tempted father into leading a sinful life.
Not long ago our circle was broken
Our family became divided when mother passed away.
When God called on Mother one night
Mother was called to Heaven by God.
In a voice sweet and low her last words were spoken
Mother's final words were gentle and comforting.
Asking our daddy to raise her children right
Mother's dying wish was for father to raise us with religious values.
The angels rejoiced in Heaven last night
The angels celebrated Mother's arrival in Heaven.
I heard my daddy pray “Dear God, make it right”
Father prayed for guidance and help from God.
He was smiling and singing with tears in his eyes
Father felt a mix of emotions, including joy and sadness.
While Mother with the angels rejoiced last night
Mother and the angels celebrated together in Heaven.
Contributed by Callie A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Fabian Pencel
I love these brothers since i was 10 years and now I'm 26 years old i still 💘 them they helped me through my challenging years as a teenager here in Jamaica... Bless them bless them. Ira even though you died way before charlie your songs still make me cry when you and charlie sing those tear jerker songs....love from Jamaica.....
Fabian Pencel
@Shayne O'Neill
Thank you!!
Shayne O'Neill
Hey, I dig your channel man! Some nice covers on there. Jamaican country, I dig it.
James Andersom
So great,makes me want to cry.
Ann Cass
Love this song. Beautiful.
Bill Brown
Good song and who knows how true it may be love it
Somberless
It's a death ballad
goldencountry
Real music by two greats
Margaret Ross
Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons do a wonderful version as well.
Daniel Mills
Take a listen to the church sisters version OMG it's beautiful