The Prettiest Smile In Music: Janette Carter

Photo by Rick Rouse.
Janette Carter is a very special lady with a unique mission: to honor, preserve and perpetuate the great music and appreciation of the original Carter Family. For over 31 years, Janette has done her very best to complete the mission left for her by her father A.P. right before he passed away in 1960.

Week in and week out she personally opens every show at the Carter Family Fold by extending a heartfelt welcome to all who are in attendance, then she sings a couple of Carter Family standards. And for all of those years her brother "Little Joe" was by her side singing with her. But no more...

Joe Carter passed away in March 2005, and his larger-than-life persona is deeply missed up on the stage by all who had the pleasure of seeing him up there. But more importantly, he is missed very much by Janette, a fact that she mentions every time she takes the Carter Fold stage. Janette and Joe were sister and brother, partners and confidants - Janette was a major part of Joe's life and Joe was a major part of Janette's.

Just a few months after Joe's passing, Janette's son Don succumbed to complications of surgery, compounding the ache in her heart from losing Joe. As to be expected, you can see the pain and tears in her eyes as she talks about Don. Losing a child is one of the most painful events that can take place in life, and Janette has experienced that pain. My heart and prayers go out to her.

But while Janette deals with her personal losses and her body grows weaker with age and illness, her spirit and dedication to completing the mission assigned to her by her dad are as strong as ever. She still loves that old-time Carter Family music and the powerful legacy her famous elders left behind...

A.P., Sara and Maybelle Carter literally gave the world the gift of Country music as we know it today. They blazed the trail leading to the commercial success and widespread appreciation of a genre of music that previously had been confined to the hills and "hollers" of the Appalachians. Janette Carter's mission is a simple one, but one that requires rock-solid determination and a deep love for the Carter Family legacy. She still has both after all these years and everything that has happened.

Yes, Janette misses Joe and Don and she probably always will, but her strong faith that God will reunite them some glad day keeps her driving forward. And that faith also allows her to enjoy the performances at the Carter Fold, including her own. Want proof? Well just look at that beautiful smile in today's picture!

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