Watch Marty Stuart Perform a Flatt & Scruggs Classic Backed by Lester Flatt’s Guitar

Marty Stuart has one of the most impressive resumes in country music. He started playing guitar and mandolin at a young age. When he was only 14 years old, he joined bluegrass legend Lester Flatt’s touring band. The teenage prodigy toured with Flatt for six years. Recently, Stuart went back to his roots during a ceremony at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum when he performed the Flatt and Scruggs classic “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down.”

The ceremony took place earlier this week to celebrate Stuart merging his collection of country music artifacts with the CMHoF Museum’s collection. The other artists who performed during the event used historic instruments. For instance, Chris Stapleton played Hank Williams’ guitar and Vince Gill performed with George Jones’ guitar.

[RELATED: Marty Stuart’s Massive Collection of Country Music Artifacts Joins the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum]

While performing “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down” Stuart played his mandolin. Shawn Camp who was part of the evening’s backing band, however, took up Lester Flatt’s Martin D-28. The historic instrument is part of the museum’s permanent collection. The performance begins at the 50:41 mark in the video above.

Marty Stuart Joins an All-Star Band to Cover a Bluegrass Classic

The evening’s backing band included Mike Bub (bass), Shawn Camp (guitar), Jimmy Stewart (dobro), Johnny Warren (fiddle), Jeff White (Mandolin), and Charlie Cushman (banjo).

Stuart didn’t take on lead vocal duties for most of the performance. Instead, he fell into the position he would have played while on tour with Flatt all those years ago. He played mandolin and sang harmony on the song’s choruses. Then, after a round of lead breaks, Stuart sang the song’s final verse. Then, they closed the show with the Flatt & Scruggs instrumental song “Flint Hill Special.”

Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers were the first to record “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down” in 1925. However, like many folk songs, the song’s origins are obscured by history. However, it was the bluegrass duo Flatt and Scruggs that introduced Stuart to the song. According to CMHoF CEO Kyle Young, he heard the song on the first Flatt and Scruggs album he owned as a child. So, this performance was a full-circle moment for Stuart on multiple levels.

Featured Image by Daniel DeSlover/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock