Reviews

Billy Blue Records Doyle Lawson recently announced that he will be retiring from touring at the end of 2022, but it’s clear with his new album out that he plans on exiting with a bang.  Roundtable is a collection of a dozen songs that can simply be described as what you’d expect from Lawson and…

Jesse Brock, winner of the 2009 and 2015 IBMA “Mandolin Performer of the Year” awards, burst on to the scene while he was still just a kid.  Since then, he has performed with numerous bands, including the CW Brock Family, the Lynn Morris Band, Chris Jones and the Night Drivers, Audie Blaylock and Redline and…

Georgia-based John White is an accomplished banjo player as well as a student of the instrument’s history. In the past, he’s recorded with gourd banjos, fretless banjos and Victorian banjos. On this solid collection of original songs, White has teamed up with some front-line pickers: Tim Crouch on fiddle, Tony Wray on guitar, Randy Kohrs…

Patuxent Music The McPeak Brothers, out of Wytheville, VA, had a significant impact on bluegrass music during their run from the early 1960s right through to the 1990s, mainly due to their fine vocal arrangements and distinct songwriting.  Along the way, they recorded for Rebel Records, County Records and RCA/Nashville. They were also featured on…

Bell Buckle Records This is Daniel Crabtree’s fourth release and contains all-original material written by Crabtree. He is joined by Scott Vestal (banjo), Gaven Largent (resonator guitar), Patrick McAvinue (fiddle), Cody Kilby (guitar), Harry Clark (mandolin), and Dave Roe (bass). Guests include Evan Winsor (bass), and vocalists Aaron McClune, Rick Stanley, Donna Ulisse.  Donna Ulisse…

Pinecastle Records—PRC1255 Steve Wilson formed the Wilson Banjo Co. as a promotional tool for his custom banjos, whose popularity among bluegrass musicians has grown quite a lot in the past few years. Located in the Westminster, South Carolina area, Wilson gathers together many local musicians and others to record his brand of the music. On…