Reviews

TERRY BAUCOM’S DUKES OF DRIVE 4TH & GOAL John Boy & Billy JBB0517 The night this review CD arrived, Terry Baucom’s Dukes of Drive appeared on the TV show Song Of The Mountains. The contrast was striking. While the performance of Baucom, mandolinist/vocalist Joey Lemons, guitarist/vocalist Will Jones, and bassist Joe Hannabach exhibited a strong…

BILL GRAHAM AND FRIENDS WEST MISSOURI RAMBLE No Label No Number West Missouri Ramble appears to be a labor of love by Missourian Bill Graham. This is primarily a singer-songwriter CD, featuring Graham and his guitar with occasional bluegrass or old-time backing on a few cuts. Songs here typically reminisce on family members, friends, and…

BLUE & LONESOME CRUZIN’ WITH BLUE & LONESOME No Label No Number The lead vocals on this third CD from Northern California’s Blue & Lonesome alternate between the clearer, more polished style of guitarist Mike Wilhoyte and the rowdier, rougher hewn style of mandolinist Ed Neff (medium range) and banjoist Larry Cohea (higher range). There…

BIG COUNTRY BLUEGRASS LET THEM KNOW I’M FROM  VIRGINIA: 30 YEARS WITH BIG COUNTRY BLUEGRASS Rebel Records REB-CD-1862 Thirty years of Big Country Bluegrass? No way! I’d be more than sixty years old. Oh…I am, and the veteran band is celebrating the anniversary with a career best album, Let Them Know I’m From  Virginia. Traditional…

CHRIS JONES & THE NIGHT DRIVERS MADE TO MOVE Mountain Home MH16792 Chris Jones wears many hats. He’s a songwriter, a musician, a DJ, and a writer, but most of all, he’s an artist and band leader. On this new project, Jones is joined by his current band including Gina Clowes (banjo), Mark Stoffel (mandolin),…

VARIOUS ARTISTS MAC WISEMAN: I SANG THE SONG LIFE OF THE VOICE WITH A HEART Mountain Fever MFR170120    Mountain Fever promises and delivers “an unprecedented album project” in I Sang The Song. On the one hand, it comprises an all-star tribute to Mac featuring John Prine, Alison Krauss, Jim Lauderdale, Sierra Hull, Shawn Camp, Junior…