The Knackered Ramblers

The Knackered Ramblers is a duo of well-known artists, Laura Boosinger (banjo) and Mike Compton (mandolin). Boosinger is based in Asheville, North Carolina, while Compton lives in the Nashville, Tennessee area. Both are long-time veterans of traditional music styles that include bluegrass, old-time, string band, and gospel.

Boosinger’s clawhammer style of banjo has been heard playing with such artists as David Holt, Luke Smathers, George Shuffler, and Josh Goforth. She can also be found at numerous festivals, such as the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival and Shindig on the Green, and she is a member of the Blue Ridge Music Hall of Fame. Compton is known for his close following of the mandolin style of Bill Monroe, and he has over 140 projects under his belt, which include stretches with John Hartford, Joe Newberry, David Grisman, Norman Blake, and some others like Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, and Patti Loveless. Compton is also known for his efforts on the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack.

This seven-selection project includes originals, old-time traditional, and gospel. Boosinger offers the pleasant “Gazebo on a Sunday Afternoon” and “On The Day” about the destruction of Hurricane Helene. Compton’s “Long Way To Vicksburg” is a song about his growing up in Mississippi. Other selections include “Sandy River Belle” and “Dear Honey,” and the gospel “Wait ‘Til I Get On My Robe,” and the old “Sheep, Sheep Don’t You Know The Road.” The word ‘knackered’ is an old-English slang for being old or tired, but this project is anything but, as these two artists feature their solid change-offs between banjo and mandolin, along with their good vocals.