Goodness gracious, it's good stuff

Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs, "Best of the Flatt and Scruggs TV Show" -4 Stars

Before "The Beverly Hillbillies" debuted with their soon-to-be famous song as its theme, Earl Scruggs and Lester Flatt were well-known in bluegrass-loving households. From 1955 to 1969, "Flatt & Scruggs Grand Ole Opry" beamed their music and personalities into millions of homes via syndicated television.

On Tuesday, Shanachie Entertainment will release two DVDs from the series, each containing two 30-minute episodes filled with music, skits and commercials for sponsors Martha White Mills and Pet Milk Co. Watch Scruggs pick the five-string banjo or Flatt deliver his repartee, it's clear why Flatt & Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys were the most popular act in bluegrass.

The programs were fast-paced for television, and watching the artists up-close is like sitting in the front row of one of their schoolhouse concerts. Flatt and Scruggs share their talents as front man/lead singer and banjoist/guitarist. The Foggy Mountain Boys -- fiddler Paul Warren, Dobro player Josh Graves, mandolinist/tenor Curly Seckler and string bassist Jake Tullock -- also enjoy generous exposure.

Volume 1 (August 1961 and February 1962) features banjo-fiddle duets on "Shortnin' Bread," "Pig in the Pen" and other tunes. The Foggy Mountain Quartet harmonizes on the gospel songs "Brother, I'm Getting Ready to Go" and "Precious Memories," and Hylo Brown takes a guest turn on "Lovesick and Sorrow" and "John Henry."

Volume 2 (July and August 1961) includes "Fire Ball Mail," "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" and "Are You Washed in the Blood." Mother Maybelle Carter picks guitar and sings the Carter Family standard "Wildwood Flower" and plays Autoharp to Scruggs' guitar on "The Liberty Dance."

Two more volumes are scheduled for fall release with others to follow.