Reviews

JIM LAUDERDALE CAROLINA MOONRISE: BLUEGRASS SONGS BY ROBERT HUNTER AND JIM LAUDERDALE Sky Crunch Records 74590 2 When it comes to Robert Hunter and Jim Lauderdale, it’s clear that these two great creative minds not only think alike, but also rhyme alike. Hunter (the long-time lyricist for the Grateful Dead who has collaborated with Lauderdale…

INFAMOUS STRINGDUSTERS SILVER SKY: DELUXE EDITION Sci-Fidelity Records Scifi 1155 In the bluegrass world, as we all know, there are music fans and even DJs who are not fond of new, original songs being added to the bluegrass lexicon. The old standards are good enough, which is cool. Fans of early jazz and rock-and-roll are…

DELTA REIGN CALM BEFORE THE STORM Mountain Fever Records MFR 120911 Being a big tent kind of guy, it’s always fun to hear the different influences found in bluegrass music. It’s a tradition that goes all the way back to Monroe absorbing the sounds of country blues guitarist and fiddler Arnold Schultz and more. Delta…

VARIOUS ARTISTS THE 1861 PROJECT, VOLUME 2: FROM THE FAMINE TO THE FRONT Cohesion Arts No Number Irish songwriter Thomm Jutz, who transplanted himself to Nashville and became immersed in stories of the American Civil War, has released a second album in his epic series. Tracing the roles of Irish immigrants in this defining and…

HARD RYDE COMPOSED Hapidawg 2072012 This group based in Ontario, Canada, consists of Doug deBoer (guitar), Rich Koop (bass), Will Meadows (mandolin, guitar), Luke Puckrin (banjo), Marc Roy (guitar), and Shawn Kellett (fiddle). The band pretty much swept the Central Canadian Bluegrass Awards this past year, winning for Will Meadows the Mandolin Player Of The…

NU-BLU NAIL BY NAIL Pinecastle Records PRC-1181 The music business is constantly changing in both delivery, format, packaging, presentation, and expectations. Bluegrass is no exception. With fans able to go to iTunes and Amazon and cherry-pick favorite songs by artists, it is becoming more and more the norm that there is no set number of…