Sound Advice
by Dr. Brett Matheson

The Steeldrivers

The Steeldrivers

Rounder 11771-0598-2

Pop in the Steeldriver’s self-titled debut album and you’re in for something exciting. What immediately grabs you is guitarist Chris Stapelton’s voice.  Somewhere between an east Kentucky growl and a shout, this soulful singer headlines an edgy, hard-driving bluegrass band that’s grabbing the attention of the national media.  Think of Detroit rocker Bob Seger fronting a bluegrass band and you’ll get a sense of the sound of the Steeldrivers.  But the band is more than just Stapleton.  All five band members are veteran songwriters and contribute to this eleven-track album of original songs.  Tammy Rogers’ lonesome fiddle adds dimension to each song and her harmony singing blends beautifully with Stapleton. Richard Bailey’s banjo, and Mike Henderson’s mandolin punctuate each song.  People talk a lot about “roots music” these days.  I think these guys define it.  This is blue collar, raw, earthy bluegrass.  Highly recommended. 

Larry Cordle and Lonesome Standard Time

Took Down and Put Up

Lonesome Day Records 011

My favorite new discovery of 2008 is the Dixie Bee-Liners.  This Abingdon, Virginia band’s sophomore album Ripe blew me away with its originality and creativity. Vocalists/guitarists Brandi Hart and Buddy Woodward have written all twelve songs on Ripe, and I’m impressed with the depth and maturity of their writing.  “Down on the Crooked Road” is a travelogue homage to Virginia’s rich bluegrass history. “Dixie Grey to Black” is a sad Civil War ballad based on a true story the band read about in the Kentucky Explorer.  “Grumble Jones” was inspired by their seeing a portrait of scowling Confederate General W.E. “Grumble” Jones hanging in the old train station in Abingdon.  “Lord, Lay Down My Ball & Chain” is a bluesy tune that started out as a “get us outta here” prayer that Brandi used to sing in the shower back in the days she lived in New York.  “Bugs in the Basement” demonstrates some nimble picking, and although I’m still trying to figure out the lyrics, I love the song! Brandi has a sultry, killer voice that rivals any other female vocalist in bluegrass today. The tongue-in-cheek liner notes instruct us that Ripe was “sweet-pick’d for freshness.”  This album is fresh indeed—and highly recommended. 

The Dixie Bee-Liners

Ripe

Pinecastle Records 1163

My favorite new discovery of 2008 is the Dixie Bee-Liners.  This Abingdon, Virginia band’s sophomore album Ripe blew me away with its originality and creativity. Vocalists/guitarists Brandi Hart and Buddy Woodward have written all twelve songs on Ripe, and I’m impressed with the depth and maturity of their writing.  “Down on the Crooked Road” is a travelogue homage to Virginia’s rich bluegrass history. “Dixie Grey to Black” is a sad Civil War ballad based on a true story the band read about in the Kentucky Explorer.  “Grumble Jones” was inspired by their seeing a portrait of scowling Confederate General W.E. “Grumble” Jones hanging in the old train station in Abingdon.  “Lord, Lay Down My Ball & Chain” is a bluesy tune that started out as a “get us outta here” prayer that Brandi used to sing in the shower back in the days she lived in New York.  “Bugs in the Basement” demonstrates some nimble picking, and although I’m still trying to figure out the lyrics, I love the song! Brandi has a sultry, killer voice that rivals any other female vocalist in bluegrass today. The tongue-in-cheek liner notes instruct us that Ripe was “sweet-pick’d for freshness.”  This album is fresh indeed—and highly recommended. 

Tim Hensley

Long Monday

Rural Rhythm Records 1035

Tim Hensley has spent the past six years touring as a guitarist and harmony vocalist with Kenny Chesney, after earlier stints with Patty Loveless and Ricky Skaggs.  After Chesney’s rockin’ country shows, Hensley often sings bluegrass tunes for the band back stage.  Ultimately, Chesney decided to produce this debut album for his band mate.  Long Monday has a couple of driving bluegrass numbers—”Fox Run the Henhouse”, and “Shady Grove”—but it is his slower, acoustic tunes like “Ridin’ Out the Storm,” and “Hard Rains Lately” that I like best on this album.  In “Dear Departed”, Hensley’s voice reminds me of one of my favorite bluegrass singers Peter Rowan.  Hensley gathered some of the best musicians in Nashville to accompany his tenor voice on these eleven tracks.  This is a pleasant debut from a journeyman musician with his hand in country and bluegrass.

Andy Irvine & Donal Lunny's Mozaik

Changing Trains

Compass Records 7 4468

Mozaik is an international string extravaganza composed of Ireland’s Andy Irvine and Donal Lunny, American old-time  musician Bruce Molsky, Dutch guitarist Rens van der Zalm, and Hungarian multi-instrumentalist Nikol Parov.  This collection of seven songs and three instrumentals was recorded in Budapest in 2005 after Andy Irvine envisioned an ensemble of his favorite musicians joined in a celebration of Irish, European and American folk music.  Each of these musicians is a seasoned master of several instruments and together they tackle tunes from Ireland, Romania, Bulgaria, and America.  I really like the variety on this album, and the delicate and interesting instrumentation.  Andy Irvine has a classic Irish balladeer’s voice and sings three great Irish ballads that are my favorite tunes on the album.  Credit Compass Records for once again bringing great international music to American audiences.

Interstate Cowboy

There's a Road

Ranch Ruckus Records

Interstate Cowboy is a band out of Masonville, Colorado, just outside of Ft. Collins.  I’ve really taken a liking to their new album There’s a Road.  This band’s tunes range from western swing, to old-time country, to an Elvis-sounding song “Everytime She Makes a Mistake.”  Most of the songs are written by bandleader and lead vocalist Tim Champlin who raises horses on a ranch in Masonville and is captain of the Poudre Fire Authority in Ft. Collins. Included with their originals is a great rendition of the classic folk ballad “Frankie & Johnny,” a song my mom used to sing to me as a kid.  To call Interstate Cowboy a “bar band” would be to diminish their impressive talent and creative songwriting.  I was hooked after hearing the first song on the CD: “I Got Nothin” --a rockin’ little number with drums, electric guitars, and Hammond organ.  I can’t quite pigeonhole these guys--there’s such a variety to their music—but Tim says he likes “mixing things up” and this album surely proves it.

The Billy Pilgrims

The Billy Pilgrims

Self-produced

The Billy Pilgrims are a newly formed retro country and bluegrass band from Northern Colorado, named after a Kurt Vonnegut character in Slaughterhouse Five.  Billy Pilgrim was “unstuck in time” and couldn’t help but travel from the present to the past, then back to the future again.  I guess that’s how this band feels about their music.  Drawing from tunes from Buck Owens, Hank Williams, Jimmy Martin and the like, this band goes back to country music from the 1950s and plays it with passion.  Black Rose audiences will recognize Erin Youngberg on bass, Aaron Youngberg on banjo and steel guitar from their days with Hit & Run Bluegrass.  They’ll also recognize Caleb Roberts who co-founded Open Road, now playing electric guitar as well as mandolin.  David Richey, who also toured with Hit & Run, completes the band on vocals and Dobro.

Spring Creek Bluegrass Band

Rural & Cosmic Bluegrass

Self-produced RC 2006

Spring Creek Bluegrass Band takes the stage at the Black Forest Community Center January 11 and shouldn’t be missed.  Spring Creek won the coveted band competition at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in June, and thus will be invited back to play a full set at Telluride 2008.  The members of Spring Creek met at music school in Texas, but now have settled in the fertile bluegrass soil of Colorado.  We’ll be treated to yet another performance by a rising, talented band as they begin a busy touring schedule in 2008. This debut self-produced album features original songs by all four band members, as well as their arrangements of some traditional tunes and covers.  I particularly liked their rendition of Gillian Welch’s minor-toned haunting ballad “Caleb Meyer.”  Another favorite is mandolinist/fiddler Alex Johnstone’s tune “High Up in the Mountains.” 

Steep Canyon Rangers

Lovin' Pretty Women

Rebel Records 1824

The Steep Canyon Rangers are five guys from North Carolina who began playing together while students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  In 2006 they were voted Emerging Artist of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association. Now with their third album as an intact band, the Rangers expand their reputation as a young bluegrass band respecting the past while writing new songs that may become “bluegrass standards” of the future.  This album of 12 tracks is almost completely original material, most written by banjo player Graham Sharp.  Graham’s writing includes songs about a “ramblin’ man,”  a guy wishing he could “make a living loving pretty women,” another guy rejecting the coal mines, a song from Moses’ mother as she places him in the basket, a blues song, and several others.  Bluegrass veteran Ronnie Bowman produced this tight, consistent album. 

Bradley Walker

Highway of Dreams

Rounder Records 11661-0581-2

Bradley Walker won male vocalist of the year at the 2007 International Bluegrass Music Association’s awards show and now I know why.   His debut album Highway of Dreams is an impressive display of his rich, soulful baritone singing traditional country and bluegrass songs supported by guest artists Vince Gill, Rhonda Vincent, Ron Block, Cia Cherryholmes, and others.  What makes this debut all the more inspirational is the fact that Bradley was born with Muscular Dystrophy and has been in a wheelchair all his life.  He began singing at age three, when he sang “Elvira” backstage with the Oak Ridge Boys. That began a friendship that continues today.  Bradley’s voice reminds me of Randy Travis and is perfectly suited to these tunes that I would classify as mostly classic traditional country songs—not the rock-pop country stuff that dominates today’s country stations.  Bradley will also please bluegrass fans with his rendering of a couple of great banjo-driven bluegrass numbers “Payin Your Dues” and “Shoulda Took That Train.”  Bradley and his band are scheduled to play in Westcliffe, Colorado July 12th and 13th at the High Mountain Hay Fever Bluegrass Festival.  

John Starling & Carolina Star

Slidin' Home

Rebel Records 1820

John Starling was one of the founding members of the legendary bluegrass band The Seldom Scene.  On Slidin’ Home he joins with other Seldom Scene originals Mike Auldridge and Tom Gray on this ten-track collection of mellow acoustic tunes drawn from sources old and new. Starling is a medical doctor who spent time in Viet Nam as a surgeon.  He has mixed a career in medicine with recurring stints as a vocalist and guitarist with Auldridge and Gray in the Seldom Scene since 1971.  Emmy Lou Harris joins the band in harmony vocals on the most beautiful track on the album, Gram Parson’s “In My Hour of Darkness.”  This is a soft, mellow collection of songs played with affection by a joyfully reunited mature band. 

Ricky Skaggs & The Whites

Salt of the Earth

Skaggs Family Records 6989050022

The Whites, who have been playing gospel bluegrass for years, consist of sisters Sharon and Cheryl and their father Buck.  Ricky Skaggs first met the Whites when he was sixteen, and then eventually married Sharon White in 1982. This CD is the first official collaboration between them.  Salt of the Earth is a gospel album of inspirational tunes about love, prayer, and Jesus--the type of music the Whites are known for.  The liner notes contain a scripture tied to each of the thirteen song’s lyrics.  Lead vocals are shared equally between Skaggs and the three Whites, and there is plenty of harmony singing.

Matt & Shannon Heaton

Fine Winter's Night

Self-produced ESL 007

Even though Christmas has passed, I’m recommending Matt and Shannon Heaton’s Fine Winter’s Night as an excellent Celtic-flavored holiday collection you’ll enjoy throughout the year.  This Boston-based husband and wife graced Black Rose’s stage in May 2007, and continue to impress me with their beautiful flute and guitar based Irish music.  The Heatons have chosen lesser known carols and songs to interpret, and added seven original tunes to create a refreshing album that shouldn’t be mistaken as just another album of common Christmas songs played in Irish style.  Put this CD of songs and instrumentals in your player for a “fine winter’s night” of lovely music indeed. 

Carrie Hassler and Hard Rain

Carrie Hassler and Hard Rain

Rural Rhythm Records 1028

Some CDs I fall in love with on the first listen.  Such was my response to Carrie Hassler and her band Hard Rain’s self-titled debut on Rural Rhythm Records.  Carrie bridges the gap between bluegrass and country with a fresh, exciting sound that landed her a “Showcase Artist” slot at the 2007 International Bluegrass Music Association show, and a top ten position on Billboard’s Bluegrass charts.  “Restless State of Mind” and “Going on the Next Train” are driving straight-ahead bluegrass numbers with blistering banjo and dobro punctuation surrounding Carrie’s raw, expressive alto.  “Seven Miles from Wichita” and “Now That She’s Gone” have a country feel, but still rely on the mandolin for percussion and again highlight Carrie’s bold, emotional voice. “Sensebaugh Tunnel” is the only instrumental on the album and showcases the talents of her young, five-piece band.

My only complaint with this CD is that at just under 34 minutes it left me wanting to hear more.  Hopefully I’ll get my chance when she takes the stage at the Mid Winter Bluegrass Festival in Denver February 16. 

The Charlie Sizemore Band

Good News

Rounder 11661-0591-2

Charlie Sizemore was just seventeen when he was hired to join Ralph Stanley’s Clinch Mountain Boys, a band he’d stay with for nine years as lead singer and guitarist.  Then he started his own band, went to college, earned a law degree, and has been out of the bluegrass world for a few years while raising his kids and practicing law in Nashville. Good News, his first album in five years, is a pleasant collection of four original Sizemore tunes and ten other songs that were all new to me. In “Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart”, which Randy Travis made popular years ago, Sizemore’s mellow baritone harmonizes with his band mates in an appeal to a former lover for forgiveness:

“I feel like a stone you have picked up and thrown,

To the hard rock bottom of your heart.”

“Alison’s Band” is a tongue-in-cheek catchy tune about wanting to play in Alison Krauss’ band:

“ I want to be in Alison’s band, sing with Dan,

Listen to Flux play the dobro.

I’d even drive her bus to hear her cuss

When she’s trying to teach me the solo.

Brother Ron Block would keep me straight,

And Barry would keep me in time.

 But Ally won’t let me play in her band,

So I guess I’ll keep foolin’ with mine.”

Charlie Sizemore’s new album title, Good News, is just that—a welcome return of a talented Renaissance man.

LAU

Lightweights and Gentleman

Compass Records 74458 2

LAU has been described as “a formidable union of three of the finest and most innovative exponents of modern traditional music in Scotland today.”  Kris Drevor (guitar and vocals), Martin Green (piano accordion), and Aidan O’Rourke (fiddle) combine their talents to create a sound you won’t believe is coming from just three musicians.  This debut album begins with a monster instrumental jam piece “Hinba” that establishes their daring exploration into free-form jazz-folk.  Then the mood changes completely with “Butcher Boy”, a haunting, beautiful ballad highlighting Kris’ vocals and Aidan’s fiddle.  “Results” is an instrumental that begins with a happy melody that will have you dancing, before it detours into a minor-sounding jam session, before returning to the original melody.   These young musicians are pushing the limits of Celtic music, and if you have an ear for the progressive edge, this band will capture your attention. 

Rhonda Vincent

Beautiful Star: A Christmas Collection

Rounder 11661-0575-

Are you thinking ahead to Christmas shopping for the bluegrass lover in your life?  You might consider Rhonda Vincent’s Christmas Collection that was released in 2006.  Beautiful Star begins with “Christmas Time at Home”, an original tune by Vincent that captures the feelings of anyone returning home for Christmas.  It’s a great tune—my favorite on the album. The other eleven tracks are traditional Christmas standards.  Rhonda Vincent is considered the number two lady in bluegrass after Alison Krauss, and has one of the tightest bands in bluegrass.  This production doesn’t try to do anything overly fancy.  It’s just Rhonda’s beautiful voice singing traditional Christmas songs with acoustic accompaniment. 

Grasstowne

The Road Headin' Home

Pinecastle PRC 1158

The Road Headin’ Home is the debut album of a newly formed band anchored by bluegrass veterans Steve Gulley, Phil Leadbetter, and Alan Bibey. These guys combine for a fabulous contemporary bluegrass sound.  Steve Gulley’s lead and tenor vocals will be recognized by Mountain Heart fans.  His excellent songwriting is on display in four of the songs. Home is about a widower near the end of his life when all his children are gone and speaks in a deep way about the meaning of one’s “home”: “Home can be anywhere you are It can be a million miles away/ but it’s really not that far/ Home is just a state of mind/ And as long as he keeps it there, he can go back any time.”  It’s a beautiful tune—my favorite on the album.  One thing that impressed me about the song selection on this album is the meaningful lyrics.  If I Knew Then is a reflection on mistakes made throughout a lifetime that the singer now regrets.  That’s Not What Ships are For is a bittersweet goodbye of a father to his seventeen year-old son on the threshold of manhood, comparing his son to a ship: “A ship is safe in the harbor/ But that’s not what ships are for.”  The musicianship on this album is excellent.  Phil Leadbetter has been named IBMA Dobro player of the year, and Alan Bibey’s mandolin and lead and harmony vocals reflect his years of experience with Quicksilver, IIIrd Tyme Out, and Blueridge.  Jason Davis on banjo and Lee Sawyer on bass complete this talented new ensemble.  

Cherryholmes

Cherryholmes II: Black and White

Skaggs Family Records 6989020182

I love family bluegrass bands.  Surely, the family that plays in a bluegrass band together, stays together.  The Arizona-based Cherryholmes family has risen to the cream of the bluegrass crop in an amazingly short period of time.  The family began playing together only after the oldest daughter Shelly Cherryholmes died of a cardiac ailment in 1999. At that time, half of the kids didn’t even play an instrument.  In 2005 the Cherryholmes were IBMA Entertainers of the Year.  In Black and White, their second album on Skaggs Family Records, they showcase fourteen songs, most original, with energy, passion and maturity beyond their years.  The children—Cia on banjo, BJ on fiddle, Skip on guitar, and Molly on fiddle--range from 14-23 years in age and all contribute to the writing and singing on this album.  Mother Sandy Lee plays mandolin, and Jere, the father, anchors the band on bass with his striking ZZ Top-like chest-length beard.  Oldest daughter Cia has written my favorite cuts on the album, and sings like bluegrass  powerhouse  Rhonda Vincent.  The song Black and White is about a prisoner sentenced to life without parole seeing his life literally in black and white—in prison stripes—awaiting his release and forgiveness in heaven when he dies.  This title song established the whole color, design and look of the CD insert and their website.  There’s no gray area about it—the Cherryholmes’ Black And White secures the band as one of the most colorful acts in bluegrass today.

Michael Black

Michael Black

Compass Records 7 4462

Michael Black is the older brother of the famous Irish singer Mary Black, and has gathered a great collection of ballads, and assembled a talented supporting cast on his first album.  If you love Irish ballads—songs that tell stories—you’ll love this album.  Youth of the Heart tells the story of a man who goes to America to make his fortune and then returns to Ireland to his Molly only to find her getting married the day he returns to “a penniless man, with a heart that is young.” The Deserter tells of one young man who can’t bring himself to kill another man in a war battle, and now faces execution for desertion. This album has a little bit of everything:  one instrumental, one song in Gaelic, and a modern song Don’t Laugh At Me seems slightly out of place with the rest of the traditional material, but is pleasant nevertheless.

Anne & Pete Sibley

Will You Walk With Me

Anne & Pete Sibley Music  APSM 03

Husband and wife Anne and Pete Sibley delighted a Black Forest Community Center audience on August 24 with their sweet, soulful harmonies.  If you were lucky enough to be there, you may have picked up one of their three CDs.  Their latest CD Will You Walk With Me, which came out in early 2006, is a collection of mostly original tunes showcasing Anne’s stunning voice over their simple guitar and banjo accompaniment.  Their music takes you back to simpler days.  Many of these tunes sound like they were written a generation ago, but are Sibley originals. Anne and Pete’s sincere, genuine approach to music is refreshing in our fast-paced age.  Slow down and listen.

The Violin Shop

Concert Seriies Vol. 1 DVD

www.theviolinshop.net

In 2005, The Violin Shop in Nashville underwent significant remodeling which included the creation of an intimate sixty seat concert room.  For six months they hosted a series of concerts which were all recorded live.  This DVD is the result of those performances and highlights some of the hottest fiddlers in acoustic music today.  Andy Leftwich, Bruce Molsky, Aubrey Haynie,  Jim Van Cleve, and Bobby Hicks all strut their stuff on this twenty song collection. The intimacy of these performances was captured beautifully by the team of videographers and the sound quality is top-notch.  You’ll feel like you’re on the front row of the most amazing fiddle concert you could ever attend. Most numbers are played with a full backup bluegrass band; other songs, like those performed by Bruce Molsky, are performed solo.  Said master fiddler Darol Anger, “This DVD is hands-down the best picture of the state of the art of fiddle playing, 21st Century, right now.  Nothing else comes close for production values, musical content, and pure artistry.”

Round the House

Safe Home

Round The House played on the Black Rose stage February 23 to a crowd treated to some excellent Irish traditional music.  The band’s third album, Safe Home, came out shortly after that performance and further proves that great Irish music can come from, of all places, Tucson, Arizona.  Safe Home is a balanced album of songs, reels, jigs, one air and one march. The instrumentals are crisp and lively, driven by Dave Firestine’s mandolin, bouzouki, and banjo, and Mark Robertson-Tessi’s rhythmic backup guitar.   Sharon Goldwasser’s mastery of the Irish fiddle graces each song. Claire Zucker’s voice has a lilting, authentic quality that might have you guessing she was born in Dublin. She even sings one song in Gaelic.  Safe Home includes extensive notes and all lyrics in its glossy eight-panel foldout about the fifteen pieces on this album.  Available from CDBaby.com. 

Blue Moon Rising

On the Rise

Lonesome Day Records 007

I never cease to be amazed at how many good bluegrass bands there are writing original material.  My latest discovery, Blue Moon Rising, played at the North Fork Colorado bluegrass festival June 8 and 9.  On the Rise is this Kentucky band’s third album of mostly original tunes.  Led by lead singer and guitarist Chris West, this band combines tight picking and lonesome harmony vocals to create masterful, engaging music.  I particularly liked The Crime I’m Guilty Of, in which a young man laments “now I must live alone” after he takes the life of the girl he loves after she rejects him.  You gotta love bluegrass when you can enjoy beautiful harmony vocals and the lines “now she sleeps beneath three feet of clay eternally.” Other great songs on the album are The Next Big Thing featuring guest dobroist Randy Kohrs, and the beautiful gospel number He Arose. This is a talented band making great music. 

Gráda

Cloudy Day Navigation

Compass Records 7 4451 2

Since buying Green Linnet Records, Compass has become the premier U.S. label distributing great Celtic music.  One of their latest offerings is Cloudy Day Navigation from the Dublin Band Gráda.  Gráda plays traditional-style Irish music with a jazzy, contemporary flair that should appeal to a wide audience, and Celtophiles will  find refreshing.  Some of their songs include percussion that give them an almost “pop” feel, and yet the band plays other instrumentals and airs with an absolute traditional approach. Alan Doherty plays his flutes and whistles with a clarity and speed that amazes me.  As a bonus, this CD comes with a DVD showing the band playing six tunes live in Dublin in 2006. My compliments to Compass Records for showcasing this energetic, progressive Irish band. 

Donna Hughes

Gaining Wisdom

Rounder 11661-0554-2

I fell in love with this album the first time I popped it in my CD player.  Donna Hughes grew up in tiny Trinidad, North Carolina, and has been well known behind the scenes in Nashville as a songwriter. Donna was trained in classical piano, but has hung in bluegrass circles for years, writing songs recorded by Alison Krauss, The Seldom Scene, and others.  Donna wrote twelve of the fourteen tracks on Gaining Wisdom which was produced by Tony Rice and features harmony vocals from Alison Krauss, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Rhonda Vincent, Carl Jackson and others.  When you hear some of Donna’s piano blending with Rice’s melodic guitar, Scott Vestal’s banjo, and Rob Ickes' Dobro, you’ll believe that the piano is a bluegrass instrument.  There are so many great songs on this album.  Sad Old Train is a straight-ahead bluegrass number about love lost and the subsequent heartache.  Bottom of a Glass tells the tragic tale of popular high school star succumbing to alcoholism and a ruined life.  Letters describes Donna’s bittersweet feelings upon finding that her grandmother had saved all the letters Donna had written her over the years.  Scattered to the Wind is a story of losing a parent, but also the insignificance of material things in the greater scheme of things.   Donna writes from her soul, and takes you on an emotional journey with each song.  This album also includes Donna’s version of Tim Stafford’s Find Me Out on a Mountain Top, and a bluegrass version of Cyndi Lauper’s Time After Time, which is a delight.  I highly recommend this CD. 

Crooked Still

Shaken By a Low Sound

Signature Sounds 0123-72000-2

Crooked Still will take the stage at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in June and I can’t wait to hear them.  This four-person band out of Boston uses an unconventional blend of instruments to create a sound that’s different, fresh, and mesmerizing.  What do I call it—alternative bluegrass?  Cello-based folk?   Vocalist Aoife O’Donovan’s sultry voice floats over her bandmates’ instrumentation consisting of Gregory Liszt’ unconventional four-finger banjo rolls, Rushad Eggleston’s riveting cello riffs (including flat-picking!) and Corey DiMario’s thundering upright bass lines. The band reinterprets standards like Little Sadie and Ain’t No Grave with a sound that pushes traditional boundaries, yet retains an old-timey feel.  The tunes vary from a driving version of Bob Dylan’s Oxford Town, to the beautiful and haunting sound of Ecstasy, a tune from the early 1800s. Crooked Still came together in 2001 when the four musicians were all students at prestigious Boston universities.  The four started to jam and make music as they completed their studies.  Greg, the banjo player, went on to complete a PhD at MIT and came up with the name for the band. He says the name means a moonshine still, representative of Appalachian vibes, but coming at it from a different angle.  They certainly weren’t “straight-up” bluegrass, so they must be “crooked,” he figured.  I recommend you get a hold of this Crooked album straightaway.  

Pauline Scanlon

Hush

Compass Records 744352

The Irish Times called Pauline Scanlon’s voice “a superb mix of china cup fragility and steely resilience.” In Scanlon’s second album Hush, you are treated to her breathy vocals of nine traditional Irish tunes and two contemporary songs accompanied by a core band made up of musicians from America, Ireland, and England with roots in Jazz, Bluegrass, and Country.  I particularly liked “Wearin’ The Britches”, a song about an unhappy husband’s marriage and his warning to all young men. Call it a traditional Irish take on “who wears the pants in the family.”   I was also moved by In Shame Love, In Shame.  It’s a song in which a young unwed mother sings to her unborn child as she walks along the road to the hospital to give birth.   Scanlon describes it  as “quite simply the darkest and most moving song I have ever sung.” Hush appropriately describes the subtlety of this talented Irish vocalist. 

Niall Vallely, Paul Meehan, Caoimhim Vallely

Buille

Compass Records 744502

Buille is an Irish band formed in 2004 by brothers Niall and Caoimhim Vallely, and Paul Meehan, after years of playing in various band configurations.   The Vallely brothers grew up learning traditional Irish instruments from their parents, and are now recognized as some of the most distinctive voices in traditional Irish music today.  Niall began playing the concertina at age seven and is now recognized as one of Ireland’s greatest concertina players. (Concertinas, by the way, are those little Irish accordions played between the knees). Caoimhim played several instruments before ending up studying classical piano.  Paul Meehan, on guitar, completes the trio. The combination of the driving concertina, piano, and guitar is a refreshing and beautiful mix which draws on traditional Irish influences but also touches of jazz and classical music. This album is entirely instrumental and will really get you in the mood for St. Patrick’s Day. 

The Infamous Stringdusters

Fork in the Road

Sugar Hill 4021

The Infamous Stringdusters played in Colorado Springs last summer at the America the Beautiful Park free concert series, and later at a Palmer Lake festival.  They’re also appearing at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival this June.  If you caught them last summer, you know that this band is hot.  With the Stringdusters you get something unusual in bluegrass: a six-man band.  That means you’ve got everything—dobro, fiddle, mandolin, banjo, guitar, and bass, tightly meshed on every song.  Playing mostly original material on their 12-track debut on Sugar Hill, the Stringdusters play blazing bluegrass, true to its traditional roots, but with a fresh new voice.  While most of the material would please Bill Monroe, the band repertoire also includes a bluegrassy version of a John Mayer song, and several instrumentals with a “newgrass” feel.  This young band is loaded with talent, and reminds me of other young bands like King Wilkie  and Hit and Run Bluegrass who demonstrate that the future of bluegrass is in good hands. Palmer Lake native Travis Book plays bass for the band and sings lead vocal on two of the songs. Andy Hall, mandolinist, wrote and sings lead on my two favorite songs on the album, “No More To Leave You Behind”, and “My Destination”.

Hot Buttered Rum

Well-Oiled Machine

Harmonized Records 025

Hot Buttered Rum wants YOU…to join the growing ranks of Butter Spreaders.  So invites their website Hotbutteredrum.net. Well-Oiled Machine is the second album from this five-piece band out of San Francisco. The album takes its name from the band’s custom tour bus that runs on recycled vegetable oil and biodiesel.  The band has toured extensively over the past two years and this album is a collection of songs that grew out of that experience. Their music can’t be pigeonholed but borrows influences from Celtic, bluegrass, and old-time swing music.  Four of the band members have written material for this all-original album.  Erik Yates, their banjo player, also plays flute and accordion, and Bryan Horne, the bassist, also plays cello, adding refreshing touches to some of the tunes.  This album was produced by mandolin master Mike Marshall and features some cameo appearances of Peter Rowan, Darol Anger, and Mike Marshall himself.  I like these guys--I think I’ve become a Butter Spreader. 

Cadillac Sky

Blind Man Walking

Skaggs Family Records 6989020172

Cadillac Sky plays hard-edged contemporary bluegrass.  Ricky Skaggs (as true to tradition as they come) was so impressed when he heard them, he signed them on his record label. Blind Man Walking showcases the writing abilities of Bryan Simpson, the lead vocalist, mandolinist, and chief songwriter of the band.  Indeed, eleven of the twelve songs on this album were written by Simpson.  I especially liked “Motel Morning”, the proverbial musician’s song about life on the road, played with an upbeat tone and great harmony vocals. I also liked “Born Lonesome” which starts the album and sets its edgy tone.   If you want to be one of the first to catch one of bluegrass’s new contemporary voices, check out Cadillac Sky.
 

The Wailin' Jennys

Firecracker

Red House Records 195

The Wailin’ Jennys are more than just three Canadian chicks with a clever band name.  Annabelle Chvostek, Ruth Moody, and Nicky Mehta are multi-instrumentalists and songwriters who have combined talents for a second album of original tunes that span musical genres.  Each has written four songs on this 13-track album of acoustic music that borrows from bluegrass, country, and Celtic genres, and yet can’t be defined as any of those categories. “The Devil’s Paintbrush Road” is my favorite song on the album, combining a pulsing mix of banjo, drums, harmonica, and the minor-toned refrain “live and die and gone.”  Most of the other songs are softer, subtler tunes with understated accompaniment and beautiful harmony vocals. Since this recording, Annabelle Chvostek left the band to pursue a solo career, and Heather Masse has replaced her.  Whatever the future configuration of the Wailin' Jennys, I'll enjoy listening to this album for a long time. 

The Mark Newton Band

Hillbilly Hemingway

Rebel 1819

Mark Newton was the lead singer and guitarist for the bluegrass band The Virginia Squires in the 1980s that made five albums and developed a devout following.  Now, years later, and after a move to Nashville, Newton has produced a solo album with a new hand-picked band, and a polished, contemporary sound.  Yes, you can hear some drum percussion in the background, so some bluegrass purists may complain, but one can’t argue with the polished, excellent production and beautiful harmony vocals in these twelve pieces. The album is worth buying just for “It’s a Good Town to Die In,” a touching song that reminisces about hometown and childhood.  This is a solid, consistent, very professionally produced album.

Riley Baugus

Long Steel Rail

Sugar Hill 4019

Riley Baugus grew up in rural North Carolina, and began playing music at an early age.  He started on the fiddle at age ten, then switched to guitar.  At age twelve he and his father built a banjo from scrap wood and he learned yet another instrument.    Baugus’ singing was featured on the soundtrack to the film Cold Mountain, and he built several of the banjos used in the movie.  On this album, produced by Tim O’Brien and Dirk Powell, Baugus plays fourteen traditional tunes with the authenticity of someone who’s lived the rural mountain life.  Riley’s voice and open back banjo sound like echoes from 150 years ago.  The accompaniment is sparse, his voice is raw, and the songs are simple.  If you’re interested in traditional southern Appalachian music, this is a fine album to discover.  I appreciated Baugus’ liner notes describing the origin and inspiration behind each tune.

The Mitguards

Ridin' with the One I Love

MIT 003

Hank Cramer

A Soldier's Song

Ferryboat Music 905

I’m sure among our Black Rose Acoustic Society members are several retired or active duty soldiers.   Hank Cramer, who spent nearly thirty years on active duty and the reserves (including time at Fort Carson), decided to dedicate an album to the songs of soldiers throughout history. On this 66 minute CD of twenty tunes, Cramer plays a broad  cross-section of soldier songs, both ancient and modern.  Cramer, who lives in Winthrop, Washington, clearly loves making music, and tries to catch Black Rose Open Stages whenever visiting his sons in Denver.  Hank’s bass voice is perfectly suited for these traditional ballads, and he adds just the right accompaniment to authenticate the sound of these songs drawn from Britain, Ireland, and America.  Available through www.hankcramer.com.

Druha Trava

Good Morning, Friend

Compass Records 74434

Chris Thile

How to Grow a Woman from the Ground

Sugar Hill 4017

When I first picked up this new CD from Chris Thile I wondered what I was in for.  Thile, arguably the best mandolin player on the planet, has played with Nickel Creek for the past decade, and written music with cross-over appeal to the college alternative rock crowd.  (Nickel Creek, if you haven’t heard, has announced an indefinite hiatus in 2007).  The album begins with a driving, bluegrass instrumental number “Watch’at Breakdown,” showcasing Thile’s nimble fingers, followed by a toe-tapping bluegrassy number “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground” showcasing his vocal talents.  Then comes “Stay Away,” a slow, crooning, vocal lament about one of his recent lovers.  And so the album goes: a mixture of hot instrumentals, blistering bluegrass numbers, and slow, mournful ballads.  In many ways, this mixture of styles on the same album is the kind of variety Nickel Creek has always recorded. Thile recorded this CD in New York with four other musicians surrounding two omnidirectional microphones to capture an authentic “live” sound.  

Keith Sewell

Love is a Journey

Skaggs Family Records 69890201326

Have you ever heard an artist that left you thinking: Why haven’t I heard of this guy before?  Such was my response to discovering Keith Sewell’s Love is a Journey.  Keith has been writing songs for country singers for years, and has toured as lead acoustic guitarist for James Taylor, the Dixie Chicks, Marty Stuart, Jerry Douglas and Sam Bush.  But until now Keith had never produced an album of his own. It was worth the wait.  Keith assembled his favorite musicians to surround his soulful voice on these ballads, and the production is first-rate. On the title track Love is a Journey Keith sings about staying together in the long, winding river of a relationship that “flows to an endless sea.” Shambles is a funky, driving number about unrequited love accompanied by the blistering, bluesy banjo of Scott Vestal.  Ripples on the Water is, as Keith describes it, an “in your face” gospel song about baptism. “I write songs when an emotion overflows me to the point where I want to translate that to a melody, to a lyric,” says Sewell.  Keith wrote or co-wrote all eleven ballads and one instrumental on this album.  Although rooted in bluegrass, these songs will have crossover appeal to those who like progressive country and other forms of acoustic music.  They’re heartfelt, gritty and refreshing.  Highly recommended.

Kenny & Amanda Smith Band

Always Never Enough

Rebel 1811

I like to pop into Borders or Barnes & Noble every couple of months to see if there’s something new in the Bluegrass/Folk section of their listening stations.  That’s how I discovered this superb CD by husband and wife Kenny and Amanda Smith whose band won the IBMA’s Emerging Artist of the Year award in 2003.  Kenny and Amanda met at a concert when Kenny played lead guitar for the Lonesome River Band. This CD is the couple’s third album together and it’s a beauty.  The crisp lyrical vocals, the tight instrumentation, and the arrangements make this one of the most solid, consistent recordings I’ve heard in a long time.  There is not a single song on this album I don’t love. None of these songs are originals by Kenny or Amanda, but it’s not surprising why so many contemporary songwriters have provided them material—they make beautiful music together.

Blue Highway

Marbletown

Rounder 11661-0558-2

Blue Highway is one of bluegrass’s super groups.  Marbletown, their latest effort, is a delightful treat for lovers of contemporary bluegrass.  Ten of the twelve songs are originals, written by four different band members, all distinctive in style, and flawless in execution.  Tim Stafford’s Nothing But a Whippoorwill is a gem of masterful songwriting--understated lyrics and a great chorus—my favorite on the album.  Shawn Lane’s Tears Fell on Missouri, about a wife who pleads with her husband to think of their young children as he calls from afar with a new love, is the saddest bluegrass song I think I’ve ever heard.  The album ends with Endless Train, a driving combustion of banjo, guitar, mandolin, Dobro, and soaring harmony vocals that will defy your ability to stay sitting, and leave you anxious for the next album by this amazing band.

Dale Ann Bradley

Catch Tomorrow

Compass Records 4445

"Dale Ann Bradley is one of the most gifted vocalists bluegrass and country music has ever heard. She is a dream.” So said Alison Krauss, a longtime fan of this forty-one year old singer who grew up in rural southeastern Kentucky in a home without electricity or running water.  Perhaps her difficult upbringing gives Bradley such an authentic voice in these 12 songs drawn from various sources.  Bradley consciously selects songs that carry a message, and her pure soprano and gift of storytelling make this a special collection.  One of my favorites is one Bradley wrote herself about her cousin Rufus forced to run moonshine as a twelve-year old boy because his family refused the trap of the coal mines.  It’s a driving bluegrass number with a great screeching fiddle punctuating the lyric.  Bradley is supported by a talented band and guest artists on this excellent recording.

Various Artists

Feels Like My Time Ain't Long

Rebel 7507

I always love it when a bluegrass band puts down their instruments to sing an a cappella number.  Rebel Records has assembled a fifteen-track collection of gospel songs from artists such as IIIrd Tyme Out, Ralph Stanley, Larry Sparks, the Marshall Family and many others.  There’s amazing variety on this CD, and it’s a joy to listen to.  The perfect CD for listening to on a Sunday morning.

Skaggs Family Records 6989020122

When Media Play closed last year, I swooped in on their last week to see what was left on the discount rack. There amongst the slim pickings was a CD with the photo of a smiling twelve-year old boy holding a mandolin. I turned the CD over, and there he was holding a banjo. I couldn’t resist. After listening to this pleasant mixture of vocals and instrumentals, I did a little investigation into Ryan Holladay. First off, this is his third album! He is the youngest performer ever to play at the Grand Ole Opry, appearing at age five. And last year he organized the first annual Ryan Holladay Bluegrass Festival in Camden, Tennessee. The band consists of Ryan’s father Mark on guitar and vocals, his uncle Mike Holladay on bass, seventeen year old fiddler Tyler Andal, and Ryan on mandolin, banjo, guitar, and lead and harmony vocals. There’s no denying this kid can pick. But this album wisely avoids a “solo show-off” approach, and presents a full bluegrass band sound, allowing Ryan’s father’s high tenor to carry most of the lead vocals. Will Ryan be the next Chris Thile? The next Bela Fleck? Keep your eye on Ryan Holladay.
 

EatsRecords ESL CD 006

Husband and wife Matt and Shannon Heaton were part of the Boulder-based band Siucra that recorded three traditional Irish CDs from 1999-2003. Now as a Boston-based duo, they’ve released their sophomore recording Blue Skies Above. Shannon plays a clear and beautiful Irish flute and whistle, and Matt provides textured guitar accompaniment for these twelve original and traditional songs. Both Matt and Shannon take turns singing, but it is their expressive instrumentals I like best on this album. I enjoyed the liner notes that detail the inspiration for each song; it adds a sense of intimacy to these musicians who find inspiration in everyday events. The Heatons clearly love what they are doing, and this bright recording expands their position in modern Irish music.

Lunasa

The Kinnitty Sessions

Compass 7 4377 2

Lunasa (pronounced LOO-nuh-suh) is a five-member band from Ireland that plays an exciting brand of instrumental Irish music.  This album was recorded live before an invited audience in Ireland’s supposedly haunted Kinnitty Castle.  But you’d never know this was a “live recording.”  There are no “audience sounds” and the clarity and crispness of the playing sounds like a highly polished studio production.  Perhaps it is in live performance that these five musicians best demonstrate their virtuosity.  Lunasa loves to begin with a beautiful lilting song, and then gradually ratchet up the tempo, jig by reel, until the piece ends in a thundering storm of guitar, fiddle, and pipes.  Lunasa is acoustic Celtic rock and roll.  But they also play quiet, wistful airs with an equally powerful effect.  Some may think that an all-instrumental album would get too tedious, but I could listen to this album while driving to Denver and back and never tire of it.  

John Doyle

Wayward Son
 

Compass 7 4408 2

John Doyle is a sensational Irish guitarist who played with Solas for years before moving to Nashville to record solo projects and play with the Tim O’Brien band and others.  Wayward Son is Doyle’s second solo album and further establishes him as singer and songwriter, as well as guitarist.  In Wayward Son, he surrounds himself with the likes of Liz Carroll, Seamus Egan, John McCusker, Tim O’Brien and other musicians to embellish his arrangements.  I love the stories told in Celtic ballads and there are several great ones here.  Jack Dolan tells of a “wild colonial boy” born of “poor and honest” parents who moves from Ireland to Australia and wreaks havoc until he is shot by mountain troopers.  Although most of the songs are Doyle’s arrangements of traditional tunes, two of his originals are two of my favorites on the album.  Bitter the Parting is a haunting original duet he sings with Kate Rusby about lovers breaking up.  The Glad Eye/The Journeyman/The Wayward Son is a medley of original tunes that demonstrate his guitar prowess.  John Doyle is carrying the tradition of Irish troubadours to a new generation. 

Willson & McKee
This Thin Place

Rimsong 5055

I’ve managed to miss Willson & McKee’s performances at the Black Forest Community Center in the past, but have placed March 17 on my calendar after listening to their latest CD.  Ken Willson and Kim McKee met in the 1980s and began recording their own brand of Celtic-flavored music together  soon thereafter.  This is their seventh CD in twelve years.  This Thin Place was recorded in Colorado Springs where the artists make their home.  The album includes McKee’s Aghadoe inspired by her walk through an Irish graveyard  and which won 2nd place at the prestigious 2005 Milwaukee Irish Festival songwriting competition.  There is a pleasant mix of vocals and instrumentals on this album.  McKee’s angelic soprano gives both the traditionals and her originals an ancient, ethereal  tone. These multi-instrumentalists list guitar, bouzouki, dulcimer, harp, keyboards, and cake pan—yes, cake pan—among the instruments they play on this album.  For a “New-Age”  Celtic experience,  try out Willson & McKee.

Kevin Burke & Ged Foley
In Tandem

Green Linnet 48248-60172-6

Did you catch the band Patrick Street at Benet Hill February 25?  Two of its veteran members, Kevin Burke on fiddle and Ged Foley on guitar, have played together since 1994 and talked about doing an album of fiddle/guitar duets for years.  Finally, in late 2005 they sat down in an Ohio studio for two days and recorded this album.  It’s amazing how much emotion an Irish fiddle with minimal guitar accompaniment can produce.  In Tandem contains traditional instrumental tunes, some original compositions by Kevin, and four vocal pieces. The album also contains a song by Sting, We Work the Black Seam, which holds meaning for Ged, the son and grandson of Irish coal miners.