Reviews

ONDRA KOZÁK OVERTONES: 12 SONGS, 12 VINTAGE GUITARS No Label, No Number    If you’re a guitar player with a love of vintage instruments, this album is for you. If you’re an acoustic music fan with a love of gorgeously played tunes, this album is for you. And if you’re a jaded listener with a need…

BEN WINSHIP ACORNS Snake River Records No Number Ben Winship sings and plays mandolin, mandola, guitar, and tenor guitar on this new acoustic collection of 14 tunes and songs. Most are originals, but also included are a few older tunes such as Burl Hammons’ “Shakin’ Down The Acorns,” “New River Train” from Wade Ward and…

HAMMERTOWNE PICTURES Mountain Fever MFR190712 Since forming in 2012, Hammertowne continues to write and perform high-quality and original songs. This collection, the fourth album for the band, is no exception. The title-track, “Those Pictures Mean A Whole Lot More These Days,” was written by guitarist and lead and harmony vocalist David Carroll, as was the…

MAGNOLIA STREET STRING BAND WRONG SIDE OF THE RAIN No Label No Number Although the Magnolia Street String Band makes its debut with Wrong Side Of The Rain, the quintet is long on experience. Paul Prestopino on banjo, mandolin, and resonator guitar (Peter, Paul, and Mary), bassman Ron Greenstein (Chad Mitchell Trio, Tom Paxton), and Bobby…

EARL SCRUGGS AND FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREAKDOWN: THE MAKING OF AN AMERICAN CLASSIC—BY THOMAS GOLDSMITH—Univ. of Ill. Press 9780252084782. Paperback, 200 pp., 12 b&w photos, $19.95. (Univ. of Ill. Press, 1325 S. Oak St., MC-566, Champaign, IL 61820, press.uillinois.edu.) This is a fairly short but rather remarkable book in which veteran music journalist Thomas Goldsmith, a…

JULIAN PINELLI BENT CREEK No label, No number    Julian Pinelli’s masterful fiddling fits perfectly with the modern approach to bluegrass and new acoustic music. Gorgeous tone, phrasing that harkens back to his roots in North Carolina that still carries a modern edge, technique that could play almost any style, and a gifted ear for crafting…