Reviews

BIGFOOT I’VE GOT A BULLDOG Yodel-Ay-Hee No Number    Bigfoot is an old-time band originally formed to compete in the traditional string band contest in Clifftop, W.Va., (the Appalachian String Band Festival in West Virginia) in 2010. They took their name from fiddler Rhys Jones’ swollen foot at the time, and they took first place. Rhys…

CHASING BLUE LOW VALLEY No Label No Number The Boston-based band Chasing Blue hits quickly and decisively on their debut recording of ten original songs. “Come To Me,” the opener, is a winning combination of medium-tempo bluegrass, Americana, and pop, driven along by drums, made intriguing by slippery and swooping vocals from Suzanne Oleson and,…

VARIOUS ARTISTS CHRISTMAS THE MOUNTAIN WAY Rural Rhythm RCH-2016 Rural Rhythm has put together a nicely varied cast for a live bluegrass performance of primarily Christmas music, caught on both CD and DVD in this two-disc 16-cut package. Vocal performers include Audie Blaylock, Dale Ann Bradley, Cumberland River and Cumberland River Academy, the Gulleys, Darron…

ERYNN MARSHALL AND FRIENDS TUNE TRAMP Hickoryjack 2013 The title of Erynn Marshall’s wonderful new CD reflects her travels from her origins in British Columbia to Toronto to West Virginia to her current home in Virginia with lots of other stops, too. There are 45 friends who play and sing with her on the twenty…

THE ANDY CARLSON BAND FIDDLEHEAD No Label No Number Underneath this fiddle veneer lurks an accomplished violinist. At least it sounds that way to country ears. This evidence pops out of the speakers on the 12th cut, “Cadenza From The Fiddle Concerto.” I’m pretty sure Bill Monroe did not write this one, as Carlson claims…

LONESOME RIVER BAND CHRONOLOGY, VOLUME THREE Rural Rhythm RUR-1103 This third volume of some of the best of the Lonesome River Band’s earlier numbers is re-recorded here with the current lineup. The recording is short and sweet. Ten songs, about thirty minutes of music, is a bit short for the medium of a CD, but…