Talk Of The Town
This is the tenth release for this North Carolina couple, who have become one of bluegrass music’s extremely popular duos. Darin Aldridge is a well-known multi-instrumentalist while Brooke Aldridge is IBMA’s four-time Female Vocalist of the Year. Their nominations and awards are many and they have performed at venues nation-wide, including many appearances on the Grand Ole Opry and a variety of both radio and television broadcasts.
This new project is a result of collaboration with Hall of Famer Vince Gill and the legendary John Jorgenson. Other musicians playing on the album include Samantha Snyder (fiddle), Matt Menefee (banjo), Mo Pitney (bass vocals), Stuart Duncan (fiddle), Eddie Dunlap (pedal steel) and Brent Rader (piano). Then there is a host of other artists contributing in the studio, including Ricky Skaggs, Lynn Williams, Mark Fain, Cody Kilby, Jacob Metz, Ron Block and Lauren Mascitti.
Song selections begin with Desert Rose’s “Price I Pay,” which features Jorgeson on lead guitar. Songs co-written by the Aldridges include “Some Ole New Love,” “My Favorite Picture Of You,” “Wildflower Too” and “It Can’t Be Wrong” (with a nice duet from the couple). There are gospel songs: “Dear Lord,” “God Made” and “Jordan” (which features Ricky Skaggs, Mo Pitney and Mark Fain). Brooke Aldridge takes a real nice turn on Hank Snow’s “(Now and Then There’s) A Fool Such As I,” and the project closes with Vince Gill, Darin and Brooke on Gill’s tribute to Byron Berline “A Million Miles (A Song For Byron).”
Brooke handles most of the lead vocals with her clear, beautiful voice and is backed by Darin on vocals, mandolin and guitar. The couple keeps close to their traditional roots while allowing a more progressive approach to their song arrangements, thus making this project another fine example of what Darin and Brooke Aldridge’s music is all about.
