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Fresh Sounds in the World of Bluegrass

Blue Moon Rising, Where Wood Meets Steel (Crosscut Records CR-1133)
In liner notes for the debut CD from this London, Ky. based group, Tim Stafford says, “This album contains all new songs, many of them native to the band. If you like bluegrass music I guarantee you will enjoy it. Blue Moon Rising is certainly doing just that---rising and soaring, as a matter of fact!”

Honi Deaton & Dream, What Should Have Been (Chateau CMG-CD0120)
The first album on the Chateau label from songwriter/bass player/lead vocalist Honi Deaton with her new band, Dream, also features her husband, Jeff Deaton, on mandolin, Kristin Scott Benson on banjo.

The Daltons, Home is Where the Heart Is (Crosscut Records CR-1132)
The latest album from this traditional bluegrass gospel family band from Hazard, Ky. features Jeff, Randy and Kim Dalton, Tammy Williams and guest fiddler Michael Cleveland. Material includes six originals, along with favorites like “Down in the River to Pray” and “I Can’t Feel at Home in this World Anymore.”

Dave Dudley & Leroy Van Dyke, For the Long Haul: Songs for the Open Road, Vol. 1 (Golden Ring Entertainment GRE-0201)
A truck driving theme bluegrass album, this new release produced by radio announcer/truck driver Big Al Weekley in Nebraska, features lead vocals from Dave Dudley, Leroy Van Dyke, James King, Valerie Smith, Chris Jones, Ken Orrick, Don Rigsby, Tony King and Weekley himself. The band includes Tim Couch, Kevin Prater, Don Rigsby, Dave Rowe, Adam Poindexter, Bryan Sutton and Kenny Smith, among others.

Jim Erkiletian, Heart & Hands (Jim Erkiletian Records)
The new, self-produced release from Banjo Jim Erkiletian, of British Columbia, Canada, offers 16 cuts. Included: “Belltone Blues,” “Precession of the Equinoxes,” “Six Hours on the Road,” “DNA Blues,” “Mechanic’s Lovesong” and more.

Flat Creek Bluegrass & Gospel Band, Grandpa’s Favorites (Flat Creek Bluegrass FCFG0103)
The latest album from the Flat Creek Bluegrass & Gospel Band features Jerry Headrick, Joe Littell and Shane Lail. Blue Highway’s Shawn Lane and Jason Burleson guest. Material includes “Crying Holy,” “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry,” “In the Pines,” “Erase the Miles,” “Amazing Grace,” “Sittin’ On Top of the World,” “Blue Moon of Kentucky” and more.

The Gibson Brothers, Bona Fide (Sugar Hill 3965A)
The long-awaited new release from New York state’s Gibson Brothers, their debut on the Sugar Hill label, is being released in March. Liner notes say, “Clearly versed in the rich tradition of the best of traditional bluegrass (especially the brother duet style), as well as the exemplary songcraft of country storytellers like Merle Haggard and the playfulness of Buck Owens, these sublimely harmonious brothers have crafted an instant classic in Bona Fide. Equal parts serious and fun, Bona Fide marks the maturation and, ultimately, the arrival of these 1998 IBMA Emerging Artist of the Year winners.”

Lorraine Jordan, Mandolin Rose (West Station Records WSR2003)
Mandolin player Lorraine Jordan, with the group, Carolina Road, steps to center stage on a solo debut dedicated to the memory of John Duffey. Tim Massey, James King, Gena Britt, Russell Johnson, Lou Reid and Jordan provide lead vocals. In addition to five originals from Lorraine, songs from Bill Monroe and Albert E. Brumley are included, among others.

Jeannie Kendall, Jeannie Kendall (Rounder 11661-0401-2)
After years in a duo with her father, the late Royce Kendall, Jeannie Kendall steps into the spotlight with her first solo album, an all-acoustic/bluegrass project. Material includes covers from The McCarters, Rhonda Vincent, Laurie Lewis, Holly Dunn and Lynn Morris, plus new songs. Guest vocalists include Alan Jackson, Ricky Skaggs, Rhonda Vincent, Darrin Vincent, Allison Moorer and Steve Gulley. Royce Kendall is also included on two cuts recorded for the project before he passed away.

Alison Krauss + Union Station, Live (rounder 11661-0515-2)
The first live album from the award-winning Alison Krauss + Union Station, a double CD set recorded at the Palace Theater in Louisville, Ky. last summer, was released in November. A mix of new songs and older hits are included: “Let Me Touch You for Awhile,” “The Lucky One,” “Every Time You Say Goodbye,” “Broadway,” “Faraway Land,” “Cluck Old Hen,” “When You Say Nothing At All,” “Oh, Atlanta,” “Down to the River to Pray” and more.

Alan Laney, Livin On The Edge (Trace Records)
Originally from eastern Kentucky, Alan Laney is more well-known now as a singer/songwriter with cuts by Charlie Louvin, Joe Diffie, Kix Brooks, Shania Twain, Tim Graves and The Special Consensus, among others. His recorded return to bluegrass is a mostly original set of music, along with songs written or co-written by Carl Jackson, Billy Graham, Jim Rushing and Emory Gordy, Jr. Jackson guests, along with Randy Kohrs and Jon Randall, plus others.

Emory Lester, Cruisin’ The 8 (Quiet Fire Productions QFP-011)
Master mandolinist Emory Lester’s long-awaited sequel to his previous solo album, Pale Rider, is being touted as his most complete musical project to date. In addition to original songs, Emory covers the acoustic spectrum from bluegrass and jazz to new age. He plays most of the instruments himself: mandolin, guitar, fiddle, banjo, piano, acoustic bass, mandola, baritone violin, 12-string guitar, synthesizer and percussion. Mark Johnson and Mike Munford guest, among others.

One-Iota, Never Grow Old (Lonely Records)
Ten cuts of bluegrass gospel music are included on this debut from One-Iota, based in Melbourne, Ky. Lead singer/guitarist Steve Bonafel is joined by Lisa Shaffer, Rick Marksberry, Shane Gosney, Bud Walls and Mark Gray. Included: “Taste of Heaven,” “Through it All,” “Using My Bible for a Road Map,” “The Old Account,” “He Keeps Me Singing,” “Never Grow Old” and more.

James Price, Fiddlin’ The Old-Time Way (Rebel 1790)
James Price, the sparkplug in the fiddle spot for Ralph Stanley’s Clinch Mountain Boys for the past eight years, steps to the spotlight for his solo debut with Rebel Records. A set of 14 cuts includes familiar, requested tunes with some more obscure numbers: “Sally Goodin,” “The Doctor’s Medley,” “Suwannee River Hoedown,” “Kentucky Waltz,” “Watson’s Blues,” “Runnin’ Late” and more.

Donald Ray & The Bearfork Mountain Boys, My Bearfork Mountain Home
Traditional bluegrass vocals and instrumentation are featured on this self-produced cassette from Donald Ray & the Bearfork Mountain Boys, from Kentucky. Vocal influences from Ralph Stanley and inspirations from Uncle Josh-style Dobro playing are heard on “Rank Stranger,” “Oh Death,” “Angel Band,” “Green Briars,” “One Drop of Water,” “My Daddy I Never Knew” and more.

James Reams & Walter Hensley, The Barons of Bluegrass (Copper Creek 0214)
In liner notes Tina Aridas says, “This CD contains a mix of originals, traditional songs and some under-recorded gems---and sounds like the sort of album that might have been made in those earlier days of bluegrass.” His first recording in 25 years, banjo player Walter Hensely (formerly with Earl Taylor & the Stoney Mountain Boys), is known as one of the pioneers of bluegrass in the Baltimore, Md. area in the 1950s. Historical liner notes and photos included. Reams and Hensley are backed by Mark Farrell, Carl Hayano, Bob Mastro and Barry Mitterhoff.

John Rossbach, From the Mountains to the Mills, (Chestnut Records CRCD-103)
The latest release from John Rossbach follows the journey old-time and bluegrass music made from the Southern Appalachian Mountains to the textile mills of the Piedmont and to the steel mills and factories in cities to the north. The album mostly features the group, John Rossbach & Chestnut Grove, with four cuts from old-time string band, The Woodshed All Stars.

Jack Sanbower, George Garris & The No Leeway Band, Same Ole Fools (Buck Hollow Records BHR-0102)
High energy, traditional bluegrass music is presented here from Jack Sanbower, George Garris & the No Leeway Band, from Smithsburg, Md. All of 12 cuts are original except for “My Home’s Across the Blueridge Mountains.” Tadd Marks and Troy Engle guest on fiddles and mandolin.

Larry Sparks, The Coldest Part of Winter (Rebel 1786)
The February release from the inimitable Larry Sparks features his band, The Lonesome Ramblers: Scott Napier, Josh McMurry and Matthew Madden, along with IBMA Fiddle Player of the Year, Michael Cleveland. Memorable cuts include: “Leavin’ Me,” “You Ain’t Lived,” “Winter in Miami,” “Let’s Turn Back the Clock” “Winter in Miami” and more.

IIIrd Tyme Out, Singing On Streets of Gold (Chateau CMG-CD-0111)
The first album from multi-awarding winning group, IIIrd Tyme Out on their own label, Chateau Music Group, is an all-gospel set of music. Greg Luck plays fiddle on his debut album with the group. Included: “My Lord’s Gonna Be There,” “We’ll Soon Be Done with Troubles and Trials,” “How Great Thou Art,” “Where No One Stands Alone,” “Rocked on the Deep,” “I Can Hear Them Singing Over There” and more.

The Village Singers, A Tribute to Governor Jimmie Davis (Pinecastle 1122)
The latest from festival favorites, The Village Singers is a collection of gospel and secular favorites written or made famous by the late Governor Jimmie Davis. Included: “Shackles and Chains,” “You Are My Sunshine,” “I Wouldn’t Take Nothing for My Journey Now,” “Columbus Stockade Blues,” “Someone to Care,” “In the Pines” and more. Compared often to the Chuck Wagon Gang, the Village Singers combine elements of bluegrass and southern gospel music, with smooth, close vocal harmony.

Cliff Waldron & The New Shades of Grass, A Little Ways Down the Road (Rebel 1791)
A prominent member of the Washington D.C. area bluegrass scene in the 1960s and early '70s, Cliff Waldron is credited with helping to helping to bring new material to bluegrass from other genres---including the current standard, “Fox on the Run.” After 22 years with the National Parks Service, Waldron returned to performing and touring, recording two solo albums and a gospel record with Paul Williams. This new project features his band, The New Shades of Grass: Billy Wheeler, Steve Spence, Nevin Lambert and Mark Clifton. Included: “A Little Ways Down the Road,” “My Saro Jane,” “Gone, Gone, Gone” and more.

The Jeanette Williams Band, Too Blue (Bell Buckle)
The Jeanette Williams Band’s debut for Bell Buckle Records includes songs written by Paul Williams, Lynn Morris, Irl Hees, Roy McMillan, Patrick McDougal and Becky Buller, along with guitar player Johnny Williams (Jeanette’s husband). “I Ought to Know You,” a song dealing with a family member who has Alzheimer’s Disease, is one of the groups more requested songs currently. Jeanette also makes her debut as a songwriter and instrumentalist on this project, playing bass on Marsha Bowman’s original instrumental, “Squirrel Tail.”

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