Reviews

LONESOME RIVER BAND OUTSIDE LOOKING IN Mountain Home 17272 The branding of LRB is solidly embedded in this excellent recording. The liner notes capture the mood of the disc precisely: “We always spend a lot of time and thought when choosing material for a new project and try to keep the ‘LRB sound’ you have…

LARRY STEPHENSON BAND 30 Whysper Dream Music WDM 7428 Larry launched his own band in 1989, which may seem just a short time ago to those of us who have followed his career with the likes of Bill Harrell and The Bluegrass Cardinals, to mention just two. Now, we’re listening to a project that celebrates…

SCOTT SLAY THE RAIL Bonfire Recording Co. BRC5011 Working from Denver, Colo., Slay has created a new project featuring his unique style. (This follows prior work with Big Virginia Sky and a 2015 release under that name.) Scott displays his writing skills on eight of the thirteen tracks, which also includes one, “Truth Came Out,”…

WILLARD GAYHEART & FRIENDS AT HOME IN THE BLUE RIDGE Blue Hens Music No Number Within the southwestern Virginia and northwestern North Carolina old-time and bluegrass communities, Willard Gayheart is one of the best loved and most respected figures. Willard has gained such acclaim for his intricate drawings of people and places in central Appalachian…

MIKE COMPTON & NORMAN BLAKE GALLOP TO GEORGIA  Taterbug Records 6451    Gallop To Georgia features two of America’s greatest stringband experts and revivalists, playing note-perfect renditions of 16 instrumental tunes from legendary Mississippi act Narmour & Smith, authors of “Carroll County Blues” and many more. The music here is raw and angular, undisturbed by modern chord…

HARRY BOLICK AND 44 FRIENDS THE COMPLETELY LOST MISSISSIPPI FIDDLE TUNES No Label No Number Harry Bolick has published a book about fiddle tunes from his home state of Mississippi. In his research for that book, he found many titles for which the recordings were lost or never existed. Bolick calls these “orphaned” titles for…