Reviews
THE COMPLETE 5-STRING BANJO METHOD: BEGINNING, INTERMEDIATE, MASTERING
THE COMPLETE 5-STRING BANJO METHOD: BEGINNING, INTERMEDIATE, MASTERING BY NED LUBERECKI Alfred Music 44932, 44935, 44939. (Alfred Music, P.O. Box 10003, Van Nuys, CA 91410-0003, www.alfred.com.) This three-volume set will take the student from the raw fundamentals to being a knowledgeable player with improvisational skills, if they follow the path set out by the author….
JOE MULLINS & THE RADIO RAMBLERS, SACRED MEMORIES
JOE MULLINS & THE RADIO RAMBLERS SACRED MEMORIES Rebel Records CD-1863 Once again, Joe Mullins & the Radio Ramblers have returned to the deep, abiding well of bluegrass gospel where, from time to time, they seek—and find—renewed inspiration. Sacred Memories is a worthy sequel to the band’s last gospel outing, Hymns From The Hills, from…
THE ROUNDER BOOK OF BLUEGRASS TRIVIA
THE ROUNDER BOOK OF BLUEGRASS TRIVIA BY BILL NOWLIN Rounder Books 1579402518. (Rounder Books, 29 Lancaster St., Cambridge, MA 02140.) Trivia buffs will enjoy this new book of bluegrass music trivia by Bill Nowlin, co-founder of Rounder Records. Nowlin got the idea for this book after he started writing the “Bits & Pieces” trivia column…
TIM MAY & ROBERT BOWLIN, FLATPICK SWING
TIM MAY & ROBERT BOWLIN FLATPICK SWING FGM Records 5887 Swing music in the style of Django Reinhardt has influenced every bluegrass flatpicking guitarist from Doc Watson and Clarence White to Tony Rice, Bryan Sutton, David Grier, and modern wizards Julian Lage and Chris Eldridge. Minor swing and many more Jazz era tunes today can…
TOWN MOUNTAIN, SOUTHERN CRESCENT
TOWN MOUNTAIN SOUTHERN CRESCENT LoHi Records 001 More than any other form of music, bluegrass is shaped and bred on place. Imagine Doc Watson, Earl Scruggs, and Bryan Sutton without North Carolina; Monroe and Bush without Kentucky; the Kentucky Colonels without Southern California; Hot Rize without Colorado. You can’t. Asheville, N.C., has bred its own…
SIERRA HULL, WEIGHTED MIND
SIERRA HULL WEIGHTED MIND Rounder Records 1661-91662 Sierra Hull enters a brave new world with her first recording project in five years. She was frustrated with the variety of opinions pulling her in different directions, and her inner voice was longing for a different sound. Accepting the advice of her banjo wizard producer Bela Fleck,…