Longview
After two wonderful albums on Rounder, there was serious question as to whether this super studio aggregation would ever record again as a band. All six members are fully involved in busy schedules with their own groups, creating a logistics problem in securing the proper rehearsal and studio time to put together a project like this. Happily, the obstacles were overcome, the result being another record of some of the sharpest, tightest, hard-core traditional Bluegrass to be heard today (or any day). There are several factors which make this band so noteworthy, starting with the fact that it includes three of the best lead singers in Bluegrass today: Dudley Connell, Don Rigsby and James King. Instrumentally they are just as impressive, with Glen Duncan on fiddle, Joe Mullins on banjo, Rigsby on mandolin and Marshall Wilbourn on bass--all veterans with impeccable Bluegrass credentials. Almost equal in importance is the group’s ability to find obscure but wonderful songs that lend themselves perfectly to the bands’ talents. Pieces like Jimmy Martin’s Across The Sea Blues, Carl Story’s I Heard My Mother Weeping, and two old Country Gentlemen numbers (The Hills & Home and You Left Me Alone) are hammered out with the skill and power that can make the hair stand up on your neck. While every cut is a gem, pay special attention to the wonderful title song, written by Tom T. Hall, and the high-baritone trio treatment of Faded Red Ribbon, with James King leading. Great, great stuff! If you have the chance to see this band at one of its few special personal appearances, don’t miss it! Whether or not you get to see them, don’t miss this fantastic recording! A Few More Years, Never Get To Hold You In My Arms Anymore, When The Golden Leaves Begin To Fall, etc.
After two wonderful albums on Rounder, there was serious question as to whether this super studio aggregation would ever record again as a band. All six members are fully involved in busy schedules with their own groups, creating a logistics problem in securing the proper rehearsal and studio time to put together a project like this. Happily, the obstacles were overcome, the result being another record of some of the sharpest, tightest, hard-core traditional Bluegrass to be heard today (or any day). There are several factors which make this band so noteworthy, starting with the fact that it includes three of the best lead singers in Bluegrass today: Dudley Connell, Don Rigsby and James King. Instrumentally they are just as impressive, with Glen Duncan on fiddle, Joe Mullins on banjo, Rigsby on mandolin and Marshall Wilbourn on bass--all veterans with impeccable Bluegrass credentials. Almost equal in importance is the group’s ability to find obscure but wonderful songs that lend themselves perfectly to the bands’ talents. Pieces like Jimmy Martin’s Across The Sea Blues, Carl Story’s I Heard My Mother Weeping, and two old Country Gentlemen numbers (The Hills & Home and You Left Me Alone) are hammered out with the skill and power that can make the hair stand up on your neck. While every cut is a gem, pay special attention to the wonderful title song, written by Tom T. Hall, and the high-baritone trio treatment of Faded Red Ribbon, with James King leading. Great, great stuff! If you have the chance to see this band at one of its few special personal appearances, don’t miss it! Whether or not you get to see them, don’t miss this fantastic recording! A Few More Years, Never Get To Hold You In My Arms Anymore, When The Golden Leaves Begin To Fall, etc.