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STEEL WHEELS, LAY DOWN LAY LOW
STEEL WHEELS LAY DOWN LAY LOW No Label No Number I didn’t think I could review the entire disc, because my CD became permanently stuck on track three. I couldn’t stop listening to “Rain In The Valley,” an incredible harmonic convergence from this quintet. A solid bass drum lick and some extra percussion seasoned lightly…
FLATLAND DRIVE
FLATLAND DRIVE No Label No Number Flatland Drive is a five-piece, predominantly traditional-based band from Delaware and Maryland’s Eastern Shore, featuring banjoist Curt Fox, mandolinist Brad Turner, reso-guitarist Alan Rausch, guitarist Lee Collins and bassist Rodney Collins. Everyone sings and everyone writes. Who sings what, the notes don’t say, though there are at least two…
SATAN IS REAL: THE BALLAD OF THE LOUVIN BROTHERS—BY CHARLIE LOUVIN WITH BENJAMIN WHITMER
SATAN IS REAL: THE BALLAD OF THE LOUVIN BROTHERS—BY CHARLIE LOUVIN WITH BENJAMIN WHITMER—ItBooks/HarperCollins Publishers, $22.99. (HarperCollins Publishers, 10 E. 53rd St., New York, NY 10022, www.harpercollins.com.) If there was ever a pivotal duet in classic country and bluegrass history, it was the Louvin Brothers. You just can’t get any more beloved than the Louvins…
RARE BIRD ALERT TABLATURE BOOK—BY STEVEN MARTIN & THE STEEP CANYON RANGERS, TRANSCRIBED BY TONY TRISCHKA
RARE BIRD ALERT TABLATURE BOOK—BY STEVEN MARTIN & THE STEEP CANYON RANGERS, TRANSCRIBED BY TONY TRISCHKA—Homespun Tapes 9781597733274. $19.95. (Homespun Tapes, P.O. Box 340, Woodstock, NY 12498, www.homespuntapes.com.) I’m convinced that “Steve Martin” is actually an offshore conglomerate where brilliant, kidnapped writers, actors, musicians, and talk-show guests are cloned into “Steve Martins” and sent into…
PLAY LIKE A LEGEND: BILL MONROE TUNES & SONGS FOR MANDOLIN—BY JOE CARR
PLAY LIKE A LEGEND: BILL MONROE TUNES & SONGS FOR MANDOLIN—BY JOE CARR.—Mel Bay 978-078668358-1. CD included, 80 pp., $29.99. (Mel Bay Publications, 4 Industrial Dr., Pacific, MO 63069, www.melbay.com.) This is the mandolin book I’ve been waiting for. I’m a very mediocre mandolin player, but I’ve told myself for years that I should learn…
MEL BAY’S SCHOOL OF BLUEGRASS MANDOLIN—BY JOE CARR
MEL BAY’S SCHOOL OF BLUEGRASS MANDOLIN—BY JOE CARR—Mel Bay 9780786681600. CD included, 32 pp., $14.99. (Mel Bay, 4 Industrial Dr., Pacific, MO 63069, www.melbay.com.) As part of its School Of Mandolin series, which includes instructional books on blues, classics and Italian mandolin, Mel Bay Publications has released the bluegrass book in the series, written by…