New Favorite
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (14 August, 2001)
list price: $17.98 -- our price: $13.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

After her 1999 gold release, Forget About It, Alison Krauss has found additional success as part of the soundtrack to O Brother, Where Art Thou?--an album that's done more to advance the cause of bluegrass since Bill Monroe first conjured the music out of the hills of western Kentucky. While Forget About It showcased the more contemporary part of Krauss's musical equation and the O Brother soundtrack spotlighted the more traditional, New Favorite combines the approaches in balancing the softer sounds with the rougher-edged material. Krauss particularly shines on the soulful title tune of love gone cold, her vocal--softer than a cloud and more intimate than a midnight kiss--threatening to steal your breath away. However, it's mostly the older sounds that you'll remember from this largely somber album, one that telegraphs uncertainty, doom, and the promise of bloodshed throughout much of the repertoire. On "Momma Cried," a song about a child-snatching that tore a family asunder, Dan Tyminski's tenor vocals rise above a wailing Dobro, a driving banjo, and a thumping, anchoring bass to convey unspeakable pain. Too many of the pop-minded songs fall flat in comparison, but although this may not be the group's best effort overall, no other crossover bluegrass band begins to meet their mark either musically or emotionally, as New Favorite so amply shows. --Alanna Nash ... Read more

Reviews (136)

This album "hits one out of the park", MY new favorite
How can one be critical of such perfection seemingly sent direct from his holly bosom. OK!, I know? That isn't exactly helpful to those new to the AKUS phenomenon. I'll try to be level headed about this. If you are reading this, you are looking for guidance, so for those who have resisted buying any AKUS until NOW... Shame on you! But OK, if that be the case, you're best bet for a high saturation of OUTSTANDING ballads is "New Favorite" which has some good B-grass also, or "Forget About It" But this is void of any B-grass whatsoever, (how'd that happen?). For the most balanced album with STRONG Ballads AND B-grass, "So Long So Wrong" is your good first choice. If you prefer the older works of AKUS (lots of B-grass) but can't decide which to buy, your best bet is "Now That I've Found You" without question. Unless you have a specific song title in mind, "Lonely Runs Both Ways" may not be your best first purchase. Stellar performances on ALL titles are to be found without question. Myself? I heard AKUS the first time in 1992. I was awe-struck, and remain so with each release from Alison or AKUS. When god shines, HE SHINES. One day I hope a CD of all of Alisons singles from movie sound-tracks etc... will be released. I own every Alison "album" released so far, other than the occasional wayward single. I can say the same for Dan & Rons works also. Jerry!... lol, Dude, nobody has enough money or time to buy everything YOU've put your personal touch too. However, I can nearly always detect your sound & style, sight unseen whenever I hear it, ". Alison & the group are beyond mere descriptive phrases. Certainly they are perfection, in humility, talent, taste, execution, communion and musicianship. Yet, these words are only glimpses of the greater power one can sense from every utterance AKUS make. Thank You Alison, Dan, Ron, Jerry, Barry et all...I appreciate your music sooooo very much.

The Pure Sound of Happiness
No matter if you are a brand-new or seasoned fan of bluegrass, you must add this bluegrass album to your collection. As said in previous reviews, the musicianship is stellar--no one person stands out above the rest because the group members are all so talented together.

The violins and mandolins soar. Alison Krauss's voice is from another world--you will never experience another voice as sweet and pure. It's spun sugar.

The songs "The Lucky One" and "New Favorite" stand out in their contemplative, melancholy sweetness. The emotions of these songs are so much more complicated than the usual pop we're inundated with today. The song "Stars" is a hopeful and lovely Dan Fogelberg cover and one of my favorites on the album.

One Word...
FANTASTIC !!!
My husband and I like ALL kinds of music, and he is a musician -the best we've ever heard - can't get enough! ... Read more

Asin: B00005N8T1
Subjects:  1. Bluegrass    2. Country    3. Pop   

Ghost Train
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (17 September, 2002)
list price: $17.98 -- our price: $14.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

Swing, à la Django Reinhardt and Bob Wills, is the jazz that even jazz haters can love. Its bouncy energy appeals to one and all, and in concert, the Hot Club of Cowtown are among the finest purveyors of the style. As players, they have absorbed all the lessons of their heroes; however, as songwriters, they missed a few. Violinist Elena Fremerman's "Home" sounds like a verse to an old standard that goes on and on without ever reaching the chorus, while Whit Smith's tale of a wicked stepmother is a relentlessly bleak essay set to perky music. Smith's "Sleep" and Fremerman's "Secret of Mine" fare better, but still pale beside the offhand brilliance of the Rodgers and Hart chestnut "You Took Advantage of Me." Swing fans will enjoy plenty of hot playing, but newcomers to the band will find some evidence of their live charm only on the Gypsy-style instrumental "Fuli Tschai" and the last track, the gospel-tinged "Pray for the Lights to Go Out." --Michael Ross ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Best CD I heard in 2003
I saw this band in Chicago at the 2004 American Music Festival at Fitzgerald's (my favorite cultural event of the year).They blew me away with their charm, energy, and virtuosity.I picked up this CD on the spot, and immediately fell in love.Elana's vocals are sublime, and her fiddling ranges from sweet to incendiary; Whit's vocals are sly - my wife said it's the verbal equivalent of "bedroom eyes," and he's a wonderful guitarist; and Jake's bass playing is charismatic and a joy to watch in concert.

The originals here are every bit as good as the classic songs they do so well.In fact, I'd encourage them to write more!

A few months after buying this CD and listening to it many times, I had to drive a long way through bad rush-hour traffic to a wake. Normally, this would be a presciption to guarantee a foul mood.But when I popped this CD into my player... all was well in my world.It really has that kind of effect on me.

I now own all of their CDs available here - I just went to their website and see they have a few Japanese releases.I think this is their best, followed by Continental Stomp. And if they ever come to your town for a show, drop everything you're doing and make sure you get out to see them.You'll have a joyful time.

Ghost Train
The Hot Club of Cowtown is a wonderful new group. This is their best CD, although all of them are great. They are innovative, but have respect for some of the more standard tunes. They obviously love the music they play. I have seen them twice and they are a joy to watch, lively, energetic, yet laid back. If you can't spend an evening with them, Ghost Train is the next best thing!

Something to get your toes tappin
You would be hard pressed to find a more upbeat and lively CD.If listen to this CD and don't enjoy it, you don't like western swing."It stops with me" I think is the best song on the album, but every song is very good. ... Read more

Asin: B00006J3W0
Subjects:  1. Pop    2. Retro Swing    3. Rock    4. Western Swing Revival   

The Complete Vanguard Recordings
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (13 November, 2001)
list price: $24.98 -- our price: $24.98
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

Richard Farina was better known as a novelist (he wroteBeen Down So Long It Looks LikeUp to Me), while his wife Mimi was best known as the younger sister ofJoan Baez. On the twoalbums they cut together (plus the outtakes released after Richard's death in a1966 motorcycle accident), their musical progression captured the tenor of thetimes--a progression from folk traditionalism to topical social comment toplayful surrealism. This three-disc set presents the entirety of the duo'sstudio output, plus a nine-song performance from the 1965 Newport Folk Festival(issued here in its entirety for the first time). Richard's mountain dulcimerspurred a revival of interest in the instrument, and his "Pack Up Your Sorrows"established itself as a folk standard of the era, but guitarist Mimi (who diedof cancer in 2001) was plainly a better singer and more proficient musician thanthe husband to whom she deferred. --Don McLeese ... Read more

Features

• Box set

Reviews (6)

Enjoyable light folk pop music, weak lyrics, good though
I am old enough to have seen Richard and Mimi Farina perform at Club 47.At age 13, it made quite an impression on me, and at the time I thought "Joy 'Round my Brain" was the greatest song I had ever heard.Richard Farina is still, to me, a folksinger, first and foremost.

I bought this 3-CD set after reading Dylan's "Chronicles" - I've been on a slight nostalgia trip ever since.The music is surprisingly good, all these years later, but it's not something I am going to listen to again and again and again.Most of the instrumentation is in open-G tuning.If you ever learned to play "Mole's Moan" on a guitar you could probably play every song on these albums (or you could just get a dulcimer or an autoharp).

It is utterly preposterous to compare Richard Farina's lyrics with anything Bob Dylan ever wrote.His songs are nice, but they are exactly the sort of fake folk music that is parodied in "A Mighty Wind."I like this kind of stuff, for what it is, but it's not great poetry.

Rose colored rear view
I'd like to rave about how great the Fariñas were. It would be the hip thing to do. Unfortunately I don't see their recorded output in the same rose-tinted light as most of the reviewers here. Richard's huge ego got in the way of everything they did and poor Mimi, even with her knockout beauty, is a background player throughout. Their "harmony" singing is mediocre. Richard's singing is weak at best. His endless noodling on the dulcimer gets tiresome after one track and becomes unbearable. There's a reason the folk boom went bust: this kind of thing is incredibly tedious especially when compared with what someone like Bob Dylan was doing at the same time, same general scene. There's also a reason why "Reflections in a Golden Wind" has been readily available in bargain bins--got mine for 50 cents--for 35 years: it's not very good.

Reflections on a Sad, Grey Day
Today, the name of Richard Fariña probably is best known for his insider's novel, "Been Down So Long Looks Like Up to Me," which has maintained sufficient sales to stay in print uninterrupted since its first release in 1965.The name of his wife Mimi may ring the most bells with her maiden name attached:Mimi Baez, the younger sister of Joan Baez.When the folk revival of the late 1950s and early 1960s began sharing common ground with the serious segment of rock music, the Fariñas were second only to Bob Dylan in the vanguard of that movement, but their day in the sun was doomed to be brief.Richard Fariña, his deep-running lyrics and wildly free music all died in a motorcycle accident in 1966.His recorded legacy was far too brief.It consisted of two Vanguard LPs:"Celebrations for a Grey Day" and "Reflections in a Crystal Wind," both released in 1965.There also were outtakes from these recording sessions, released by Vanguard on vinyl in 1968 on an album called "Memories" along with two tracks recorded at the famous "rain concert" during the 1965 Newport Folk Festival.The CD release followed in 1994.In 1968 Vanguard also released a 2-LP set called "The Best of Mimi and Richard Fariña," which simply was a re-release of "Celebrations for a Grey Day" and "Reflections in a Crystal Wind" in a new package.It was released again under the same name on CD with six songs subtracted in 1988.This new triple CD release claims untruthfully to be "the complete Vanguard recordings."Vanguard's vaults include not only the Newport material released in this package but also the "rain concert."The two Newport tracks released on "Memories" are missing from this allegedly complete set, which offers the same but substantially different songs from the afternoon set at the festival.The rest of the "rain concert" still remains locked in Vanguard's vaults.Most folks who will ponder buying this new set probably are familiar already with the Fariñas, and many doubtless will have at least one of their previous releases.It's tragic but true, that these wonderful recordings belong to the insiders' niche these days.They would find a much wider audience, if only people knew they were there.For most, therefore, the question will be, "Should I buy this release too?"That depends.Are you a casual Fariña fan?If so, you may not get too much more for your money, even though the price is extremely friendly.If you're in my boat, where the Fariña albums are a part of your desert isle collection, this is a must.Some of the Fariñas best work was in their complex instrumental selections.If you have the "The Best of ..." CD, you're missing six of the best - "Dandelion River Run," "Tommy Makem Fantasy," "Dog Blue" and "V" from "Celebrations" and "Chrysanthemum" and "Allen's Interlude" from "Reflections."They're back here.For the first time ever, you get all eight tracks from the afternoon set at Newport, where the duo had help from Peter Yarrow (Peter, Paul and Mary), Bruce Langhorne and Al Cooper (60s Dylan releases), Fritz Richmond (Kweskin Jug Band) and Kyle Garahan.These are a mixed bag.The microphone work was unfriendly on several tracks.There's also a Newport workshop track with the Appalachian legend Jean Ritchie that frequently is drowned out by the sound of airplanes flying over the festival grounds.These things alone are worth more than the price of this new set.But there's something more that's very valuable and less obvious: Like so many 60s recordings, Vanguard's original mixes were done to make the records sound good on inexpensive record players.The bass was rolled off, etc.In this three CD-set, engineer Jeff Zayara returned to the original tapes and mixed anew for the CD era, giving us these great performances of the past with a transparency and quality of sound heretofore unknown.All that's missing are those Newport "rain concert" recordings still locked up in Vanguard's vaults.Anyone who's listened to the takes from those concerts on the "Memories" LP or CD knows that Vanguard can keep us hungry and waiting for next set, maybe called "The More Complete Vanguard Recordings." ... Read more

Asin: B00005QK16
Subjects:  1. Folk & Traditional    2. Folk Revival    3. Folk-Rock    4. Pop    5. Singer/Songwriter   

Hamilton Ironworks
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (18 September, 2001)
list price: $17.98 -- our price: $17.98
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Reviews (11)

Excellent!
As one relatively new to old-time fiddlin, I found this a wonderful CD in all respects - from the music to the history.For anyone who is a John Hartford fan, wants to become more familiar with what he loved, or is just plain interested in old-timey fiddlin, I couldn't recommend it more.

A loving, thoughtful, and entertaining musical scrapbook.
In his last studio project, John Hartford returned to his roots--the Missouri fiddle tunes he learned jamming in kitchens and basements and parlors when he was growing up near St. Louis. This is more stringband music than bluegrass, and John's fiddle is the featured instrument. As he explains in the illuminating liner notes, these fiddle tunes were designed to showcase the fiddler, not the other players. Still, the band assembled for this project seems just right.

Maybe it's simply because I'm from the same part of the country, but I love John's discourses during the songs in which he recalls how he learned the tune, where it came from, the people he played with, and the times he grew up in. It indicates that John came of age in remarkable time when this kind of music was given flesh and bone by the people who played it for the sheer love of it.

I think this recording is a wonderful keepsake from a remarkable storyteller, historian, and musician.

Superb fiddle playing, and a little history too
John Hartford mastered just about every effect anyone ever got out of a fiddle, plus a whole lot of new ones, and he had a definite feeling about how best to play each tune. Every sound and effect that he sensed might be made by a fiddle was pursued and turned into reality, and he was almost hypnotically tuned into what the next bunch of notes should be in any piece he was playing. His attention to the gait or tempo of each piece was also a key to his musicianship.

In this Hamilton Ironworks album, whenever a break from the sound of the fiddle is needed, his voice interjects anecdotes, chants, and fragments of thought that have the sound and rhythm of music. Over the course of the whole album you find out how he learnt about fiddling and string-band playing, and get to know the individuals and families that peopled his musical life - all those Goforths, Dillards, Pursingers and Woolivers. The tunes in a minor key, such as "Dusty Miller" and "Quail is a Pretty Bird", are perhaps my favorites on the album.

His is a kind of bottom-up playing, evolving out of what sounds he intuited as being right for a tune, rather than top-down, i.e. created to please as large a mass of people as possible. The period when he decided to write and perform music for the mass market must have been a time of conflict for him, as reflected in some of his songs of that time. The lure of fame and money must not have been strong enough to overcome the power of the instinctive path that he needed to follow in his music - releasing the sounds that intuition told him must be found and played, as exemplified in Hamilton Ironworks. ... Read more

Asin: B00005NNKU
Sales Rank: 100444
Subjects:  1. Country-Rock    2. Folk & Traditional    3. Neo-Traditional Folk    4. Old-Timey    5. Pop    6. Progressive Country    7. Songwriter    8. Traditional Country   

Zydeco [Putumayo]
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (25 January, 2000)
list price: $15.98 -- our price: $15.98
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

From the get-go, Putumayo Presents Zydeco is the down-and-dirtiest most-rockin' Saturday night at a sweaty bayou dance hall or juke joint a non-native can experience. Born of the Creole community in Louisiana's backwaters and moving outward to Texas and California, Zydeco bumps, grinds, and is a wang dang doodle of a big time. Youngblood Keith Frank & the Soileau Zydeco Band rip through "Co Fa" with their trademark double-kick beat, the low-end-amped-up sound making heartbreak sound like a raunchy roll in the hay. Rosie Ledet's "You're No Good for Me" is a wailer for all lovers scorned, featuring thudding bass, wiry guitar lines, and sax in a one-upmanship dance with her accordion. Beau Jocque growls, Jude Taylor trades accordion licks with his band's organist, and Queen Ida reigns supreme on "My Girl Josephine." As the Creole Farmers sing on the opening cut, "We gonna party 'til the cows come home!" --Paige La Grone ... Read more

Reviews (7)

This is the one to buy...
If you only buy one zydeco collection, this is the one to buy. Putumayo is a label that specializes in world music. All their releases have beautiful artwork and include a booklet with notes about each song. This release is a great compilation of recent and current and most of it rocks. A sampling of the more popular musicians include...Beau Jocque...Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas...Boozoo Chavis...Queen Ida...Clifton Chenier...Buckwheat Zydeco...and Chris Ardoin does a cover of "Pass the Dutchie"

Sure to please Zydeco fans!
Great compilation album -- every track a winner! Wonderful for listening and/or dancing. Flawlessly-recorded, authentic "real deal" Zydeco music!

Our child loves this CD
I received this CD as a gift, and I love it.I have a 18 month old who begins to dance about when we just say the word Zydeco.This is a fun CD! ... Read more

Asin: B00003OP0X
Subjects:  1. Cajun    2. Cajun / Zydeco / New Orleans    3. Creole    4. Pop    5. Zydeco   

Alone & Acoustic
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (06 November, 1991)
list price: $16.98 -- our price: $13.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Reviews (19)

My Favorite Blues CD
All I can say is that I have over 200 titles in my collection and this wonderful CD has been my favorite for years....

The real deal, sweet home Chicago
This album is so magnificent and the essence of the blues at it's most primal and magic level. You must hear this unamplified or gussied up studio tricks to really find the heart of the blues.

****1/2- wonderful low-key acoustic blues
Okay, an acoustic guitar and a harmonica, how good can it be? Geez, everything must sound the same!
Eh? Well, it can be very good indeed, actually. And it is.

1991's "Alone & Acoustic" is one of the very best of the numerous albums that Chicago blues greats Buddy Guy and Junior Wells recorded together, an intimate, expressive session, and a showcase for Guy's abilities on the acoustic twelve-string as well as for Amos "Junior" Wells' tasteful harp playing.
Sharing lead vocals, the relaxed mood seems to suggest that the two old friends are just sitting down for an hour of easy jamming, but the performances are never sloppy, always tight and done with honesty and conviction.

Buddy Guy and Junior Wells play their own compositions (Guy's "Give Me My Coat And Shoes" and Wells' "Big Boat" are among the highlights), as well as covering artists like Jimmy Rogers (a great "That's All Right"), Sonny Terry (an equally fine "Diggin' My Potatoes"), and John Lee Hooker. There are no fewer than three John Lee Hooker-numbers here, actually, and rather than substituting his own name in Hooker's mini-epos "Boogie Chillen", George "Buddy" Guy lets the narrator refer to himself as "Johnny"!

Okay, so the setting may have been an Alligator Records studio, but this is still acoustic street-corner blues at its best, and one of the warmest, most enjoyable blues records I've ever listened to. ... Read more

Asin: B000000A04
Sales Rank: 9898
Subjects:  1. Acoustic Chicago Blues    2. Blues    3. Chicago Blues    4. Pop   

A Child's Celebration of Folk Music
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (23 April, 1996)
list price: $14.98 -- our price: $13.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

Children of all ages will delight in the simple melodies featured in A Child's Collection of Folk Music. These story-songs are repetitive and eminently singable. Material ranges from traditional twangy banjo numbers like "She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain" from Folk granddaddy Pete Seeger to the soulful song-in-the-round "Run Molly Run" by contemporary gospel group Sweet Honey in the Rock. Moms and dads will have the opportunity to share some of their favorite folk artists with the next generation: Michelle Shocked, who does a lovely traditional Irish-minstral-type ballad; Taj Mahal, who performs a bluesy "Little Brown Dog"; and Woody Guthrie on "Riding in My Car (Car Song)." And for all the Deadhead mommies, there's Jerry Garcia and David Grisman performing "There Ain't No Bugs on Me." Kids will particularly enjoy the Cajun boogie of Buckwheat Zydeco and the trip-over-the-tongue island music of Cedella Marley Booker. --Paige La Grone ... Read more

Reviews (9)

you'll love it too
My 3 y.o. loved it.The music is upbeat and fun, and you'll crack your kid up when you sing your own version of Ridin' in My Car.And Their Ain't No Bugs on Me is a great song.I don't know about your kid, but mine can handle a lyric like "How in the hell can the old folks tell ..." especially when sung so cheerfully and, um, innocuously.Mostly, it's a cd that you yourself will enjoy listening to ... even (believe it or not) the supplied version of Skip to My Lou.

A Child's Celebration of Folk Music/Various Artists
Loved it except for the "Ain't no bugs on me" song. It uses the phrase "how in the (hell) can the old folks tell" In my opinion, that is not appropriate for young children.

Concerned mother actually listened to lyrics
Most of the songs are enjoyable and of the caliber I expected after reading the reviews posted.However, on Garcia's version of "Ain't No Flies On Me", there is a mild obscenity, which is fine for an adult compilation, but unacceptable for a compilation directed to children.As the rules for this forum prohibit obscenities, I cannot be more explicit about the exact lyrics.I am extremely disappointed in the editors and will be returning my CD. ... Read more

Asin: B000002M7Z
Subjects:  1. Childrens    2. Folk & Traditional    3. Pop    4. Traditional Folk   

Laid Back
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (01 May, 2001)
list price: $11.98 -- our price: $10.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

By the end of 1973, the Allman Brothers Band seemed to have it all nailed down. They'd proven their mettle with a fine synthesis of blues, jazz, folk, and country influences; expanded upon it with the definitive Fillmore East set; and moved forward after the separate losses of guitarist Duane Allman and bassist Berry Oakley. The group's myriad strengths, in fact, might've been the reason that one of their most obvious gifts--Gregg Allman's pained, growling voice--was sometimes overlooked. Laid Back, Gregg Allman's first solo disc, seems in part an effort to gain a little more recognition. It worked, particularly given the strong radio response to its opening track, a loping remake of "Midnight Rider." Likewise, much of the album's remainder finds Allman tweaking the band's blues ("Queen of Hearts") and country sides (a cover of Jackson Browne's "These Days"); horns and gospelish backing vocals add to the personal, often mournful feel. Much more coherent than its dated cover art (an either childlike or blasted-out-of-his-gourd Gregg ignoring a blazing volcano) indicates, Laid Back is an often convincing version of the man's music. For Allman, it would get much, much worse before it would be this good again. --Rickey Wright ... Read more

Features

• Original recording remastered

Reviews (19)

Greggs best!!!!!
I grew up with this music, it means so much from back then, i never get tired of this album/cd!!!!! My brother was a huge fan and still is, and so am I , thanks Wayne for over killing this album back in 73"........:0)

Just One Hell Of An Album
One Hell Of An Album! What do you do after 4 great studio albums, Filmore East and Eat A Peach. If you're Brother Gregg Allman, you harness the band and lay down some true beauties. Queen Of Hearts stands alongside Gregg's very best vocal performances as well as one of his absolute best compositions. Mess Up A Good Thing is Southern, it's got absolutely rock solid bottom. These Days is truely heartfelt, gut-wreching, oh so compelling, as good today as when it hit the streets almost thirty years ago. Still, I believe his best studio record.

One of 10I would take to live on an island.
CLASSIC GREGG. HIS BEST SOLO ALBUM. I would also take Live at the Fillmore and Brothers and Sisters. ... Read more

Asin: B000001FM4
Subjects:  1. Blues-Rock    2. Pop    3. Rock    4. Southern Rock   

Hand-Picked: 25 Years Of Bluegrass On Rounder Records
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (19 September, 1995)
list price: $12.98 -- our price: $11.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

Rounder compiled this superb 50-song set to serve as an introduction to bluegrass in general and to their own catalog in particular. Obvious marketing motives aside, the collection has few weaknesses and offers a broad look at the ever-morphing genre. Perhaps more than any other label, Rounder gave exposure to the renegade progressive and "newgrass" musicians who worshipped the style despite the fact that they weren't from the mountains. Folks like David Grisman, Bill Keith, Tony Trischka, and Bela Fleck push the music in new directions while others such as Del McCoury, Don Stover, James King, Jim & Jesse, and Vern Williams represent more-traditional concerns. Still others--Tony Rice, David Grier, J.D. Crowe, Nashville Bluegrass Band among them--adeptly fuse elements of tradition and innovation. This collection also highlights the important contributions of female artists including Hazel and Alice, Laurie Lewis, Claire Lynch, and Alison Krauss. --Marc Greilsamer ... Read more

Reviews (22)

Don't buy this if you are dead set on not liking bluegrass
This is the BEST Bluegrass compilation ever... and you can't beat the price. The only problem is that you might play it too much... until you cant get the songs out of your head... but it will take a LONG time for this to happen even if you play them back to back because both Cds are so long (and there are two of them!) and ALL the songs are good! (except a couple, and that's probably personal preference)
Before I bought these I didnt even like bluegrass all THAT much... but these 2 cds are both are chalk full of great music: talented singing and harmonies, incredible instrumentation ... If you dont like bluegrass, but you have an open mind (and a truck and some open country) this is some real music, and you are going to like it I predict.

Note: DO NOT BUY FROM CAIMAN.cOM... they are a huge hassel. I ordered two of these from them and they couldnt get the order right even after 8 emails and 3 months. Fortunately Amazon has a great refund policy and I ended up buying the item from "reviewstore" because they had a perfect rating.

Pick This One Up
One great album.Some great old songs, and some great new songs. 49 great songs in all.Acts range from some old Hazel & Alice to newer ones like J.D. Crowe and Alison Kraus.If a CD could wear out, I'd have to replace this one.

+ 1/2 stars...Stellar Bluegrass Collection
Whether you like your bluegrass traditional, progressive or genre-bending; there is plenty to enjoy on this 49-track, two and a half hour collection from one of the most influential labels in bluegrass music.

This two-CD set reads like a who's who of bluegrass. JD Crowe, Del McCoury, Ricky Skaggs, Tony Rice, David Grisman, Alison Krauss, Tony Trischka...the list goes on and on.And when you look at the price, this becomes a no-brainer.Enjoy!HIGHLY RECOMMENDED ... Read more

Asin: B0000004DW
Subjects:  1. Bluegrass    2. Country    3. Pop   

Songcatcher: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (08 May, 2001)
list price: $16.98 -- our price: $8.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

Maybe they should have subtitled this album O Sister, Where Art Thou? Like the music from the Coen brothers' O Brother... movie, Songcatcher celebrates the emotional purity of mountain music, the acoustic balladry of the Appalachians--only this soundtrack features an all-female assemblage. Among the luminaries who shine the brightest: Rosanne Cash, who sets the tone with the album-opening "Fair and Tender Ladies"; Julie Miller, whose original "All My Tears" could pass as an old spiritual; Patty Loveless, who returns to her Kentucky roots with "Sounds of Loneliness"; and Gillian Welch, who leads an a cappella rendition of "Wind and Rain." Of the more familiar material, Emmylou Harris seems like she's coasting through the oft-revived "Barbara Allen" while Maria McKee sounds like she's singing for her life on "Wayfarin' Stranger." Yet the emphasis throughout is less on vocal virtuosity than on the stark simplicity of the songs, the album more impressive as an ensemble piece than a showcase for individual singers. --Don McLeese ... Read more

Features

• Soundtrack

Reviews (82)

Pretty Saro, Alone Worth The Price of Admission
Great songs sung by great singers.So what if much of it was not in the movie?This is still first rate.Besides, Iris Demen't take on the traditional ballad "Pretty Saro" is worth every penny you spend on this and it *WAS* in the movie and is here in all its glorious entirety.

Nice Modern Tribute To A Tradition
While the music hear isn't 100% traditional mountain music, it carries with it a deep reverence for that music and gives it a contemporary touch.Anyone who thinks that this is "commercial" music hasn't been listening to the tripe that clutters up commercial radio these days and anyone who is upset because the CD contains little of the music on the movie didn't pay very close attention when they were watching the movie as most of the music in the film only played for a few seconds.

InspiredRoots Music
The film "Songcatcher" is a gem and so is the soundtrack album, featuring the priceless folk music from places like the Appalachian Mountains. These songs are often from old ballads in the "British Isles," and came from countries such as Wales and Cornwall, Ireland and Scotland, and were brought over by many Celtic immigrants from these lands, not only by the English. The step dance music from Ireland, and clogging from Welsh communities in the mountains of Wales are part of this great musical heritage, as are the wonderful Scots narrative ballads. Another gem, with even more authentic mountain music and song is "Songcatcher II" with many early recordings of performers, such as Maybelle Carter, who inspired all the rest. ... Read more

Asin: B00005B50H
Subjects:  1. Neo-Traditional Folk    2. Pop    3. Soundtracks & Film Scores   

Blues Masters, Vol. 3: Texas Blues
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (10 November, 1992)
list price: $11.98
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Reviews (2)

"A title for your review"
What?!
It says you have to enter a title for your review.

Anyway...this 60-minute 1992 Rhino compilations brings together 59 years worth of Texas blues, from Blind Lemon Jefferson's scratchy 1927 waxing "Match Boy Blues", to a 1986 live rendition of Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Texas Flood" (oddly titled "Flood Down In Texas").
It is quite an eclectic collection, and I personally don't think that Stevie Ray and Blind Lemon go very well together even as great as they both were. But there is nothing wrong with the music at all, and the Lone Star state has produced many top-notch blues artists of whom Jefferson, Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins ("Short Haired Woman") and electric blues guitar innovator Aaron "T-Bone" Walker are probably the most influential. T-Bone is represnted by his seminal composition "They Call It Stormy Monday (but Tuesday's just as bad)".

Big Mama Thornton is here as well with her original (and still definitive) reading of "Hound Dog", smooth singer/pianist Charles Brown croons his R&B classic "Drifting Blues", and ZuZu Bollin's horn-driven jump-blues "Why Don't You Eat Where You Slept Last Night?" is another highlight, as is Lillian Glinn's confident reading of her own "Cravin' A Man Blues", and the soulful slow blues "Changing Neighborhoods" by contemporary bluesman Anson Funderburgh.

This is not excactly everything you need to know about Texas blues music, of course, but it is a really nice sampler, featuring some familiar cuts and a number of more obscure tracks which should delight "mid-level" blues fans.

A must for any blues collection - or rock 'n roll roots
History of Texas Blues from the beginning. Everyone from Blind Lemon Jefferson to SRV and the Fab T'birds! Love that Lucy Mae Blues and Why Don't You Eat Where You Slept Last Night! Here's some authentic deep real blues. You won't regret buying this one. ... Read more

Asin: B0000032X3
Sales Rank: 55474
Subjects:  1. 20's    2. 30's    3. 40's    4. 50's    5. 60's    6. 70's    7. Acoustic Texas Blues    8. Blues    9. Blues-Rock    10. Country Blues    11. Electric Harmonica Blues    12. Electric Texas Blues    13. Juke Joint Blues    14. Jump Blues    15. Modern Electric Texas Blues    16. Piano Blues    17. Pop    18. Prewar Gospel Blues    19. R&B    20. Soul    21. Swing    22. Texas Blues    23. Urban Blues    24. West Coast Blues   

American Recordings
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (05 March, 2002)
list price: $17.98 -- our price: $13.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

In 1994 Cash stunned the music world with this commanding collection of 13 solo acoustic performances that roll from gospel to cowboy to sarcastic folk. Minimalism had long been Cash's meal ticket, but this time around, producer Rick Rubin stripped it all away, recording the bulk of the record in Cash's cabin or his own living room (two cuts were captured live at the Viper Room in front of an emphatic audience). Cash offers five typically direct and vivid originals, but he also seizes control of songs by Kris Kristofferson, Nick Lowe, Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, and Loudon Wainwright. Forty years after "Hey Porter," Cash delivers a pure, naked, and incredibly moving record that, dare we say, rivals the impact of his greatest achievements. --Marc Greilsamer ... Read more

Reviews (68)

A Great Record.
I bought this record when it was released on a pre-recorded cassette.I still listen to this record a lot.

Ultimately, the songs are about a hard man who is going to hell.The man knows he is going to hell and feels as if he deserves the destination.

The man prays to Jesus to be good, and he loves Jesus.But ultimately, the man knows that opportunity for a little of the devil's work will always win out.In the last song, the man cries and finally gets to heaven.Wishful thinking by Johnny?

Great music.Great singing.Great stories.The best.

Cash re-emerges to public acclaim
It took a producer of rap music to bring a country icon back to the limelight and to the attention of a fresh generation. At first blush, Rick Rubin and Johnny Cash seem like an odd pairing until you consider what their styles have in common.

Both rap and country music (the traditional variety at least) are songs that are rough hewn and honest...emotion laid bare without pretense of sugarcoated calculation for mass appeal. (If they achieve mass appeal, it's because of the universality of the experience the lyrics describe..not an attempt to make it "dumb enough" as Sonny Bono put it while in Phil Spector's employ.) They've traditionally been the voice of the downtrodden...poor blacks in one case, poor whites in the other. Each is often at its best at its most skeletal...a voice and spare accompaniment.

Cash here is paired with a variety of songs..some his, others from "rock" composers..and he turns them into his own. While I'd not go as far yet as calling it one of the best albums ever (I'd like to "live with it" for another decade before I'm comfortable with that), I'd say it's easily one of the 90's best (as did Rolling Stone also).

HIGHLIGHTS:
The murder ballad "Delia's Gone" ("Delia/oh Delia/Delia all my life/If I hadn't-a shot poor Delia/I'd-a had her for my wife..") is the perfect way to open the disc. It immediately sets the tone for all that comes after. Nick Lowe's "The Beast in Me" despairs at the darkest inclinations lurking in us ("Sometimes it tries to kid me/that it's just a teddy bear/And even somehow manage to vanish in thin air/and that is when I must beware...") all and Cash tears into it as a man who understands that at heart people are NOT good..despite what sugary "I'm OK..you're OK" pop psychology would have us believe. Vietnam vet rememberance "Drive On" nails down the bitterness of many soldiers from that era ("I think my country got a little off-track/Took 'em 25 years to welcome me back"). The bad-luck rebel in Glenn Danzig's "Thirteen" was a perfect match for Cash's outlaw persona and he makes the song his. Tom Wait's "Down there by the Train" is a stark picture of salvation offered to the most hardened and crusty offenders..("I saw Judas Iscariot carryin' John Wilkes Boothe") even you and me. The theme continues into "Redemption", a self-penned tune where Johnny paints Jesus' cross as a modern day Tree of Life watered by his blood and offering new life to those who partake of it. After all these weighty ruminations, Loudon Wainwright's "The Man Who Couldn't Cry" offers some acerbic humour to close the disc out. (Once able to cry finally, the man in the lyric does so for 40 days continuously until his death on the 41st day...from dehydration.)

LOWS:
Although there's not a real clunker here at all, I'd say Kris Kristofferson's "Why Me Lord" and Leonard Cohen's "Bird on a Wire" do the least for me in terms of impact. They're still decent performances, but in comparison to their surroundings they pale a bit.

BOTTOM LINE:
Johnny Cash began to reach out to a younger generation with this album's Danzig cover and MTV video for "Delia's Gone", won a Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album, and reminded his older fans who'd forgotten about him that he was still around and still had something to say. This album is more than a decade old and still sounds great and looks to continue aging well. Highly recommended.

4 1/2 stars

One of the Best Albums Ever
This is simply one of the best albums ever. It is immediately touching, striking, frightening, and incredibly personal. It is almost as if Johnny Cash is your personal psychologist; how else could he know about all of the thoughts and feelings that exist in the bowels of your soul? This album is brilliant, and Cash didn't need to go to Rick Rubin to make this record. Cash desired to make a record that represented Americana, and that's exactly what this is. I think this is a better album than Springsteen's "Nebraska" or anything Dylan has done in a long, long time. Cash does his own version of the folk-blues song "Delia," calling it "Delia's Gone." Actually, Johnny's version has very little in common with the Blind Willie McTell version, except for the fact that the subject of the song is a woman named Delia who is brutally killed. "Why Me Lord" back to back with "Thirteen" makes you wonder whether Cash is on the side of God or Satan. The truly fascinating thing about this album is that the guitar playing is very simple and understated; Johnny was never an expert guitar player. This album is eclectic, moving, and so far it is my favorite Cash album besides "At Folsom Prison." I'm looking forward to listening to the three albums that came after this one. ... Read more

Asin: B000062X9D
Subjects:  1. Americana    2. Country    3. Pop    4. Traditional Country   

American Roots Music
Average Customer Review:
VHS Tape (30 October, 2001)
list price: $39.98
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

O Brother, wherever thou art, behold what thou and thy kin hath wrought.With the documentary American Roots Music and its spinoffs (including abook and CD collection), producers Jim Brownand Sam Pollard clearly were influenced by the popularity of the 2000 film O Brother, Where Art Thou? andits music. You won't be seeingEminem and Mariah Carey here, or even Duke Ellington and Ray Charles, but rathera comprehensive, if flawed, four-part documentary examining the various culturaland ethnic folk traditions that blended together to create the rich,multiflavored brew that is American music.

Narrated by Kris Kristofferson, each of the four parts is a little less than anhour long. Episode One offers a brief overview before detailing topics like thespread of music via Victrolas and radio, the early days of country music and theGrand Ole Opry, the rise of black gospel music, and seminal blues musicians likeSon House, Mamie Smith, and Robert Johnson. Episode Two deals with western music(Gene Autry, Bob Wills), Bill Monroe and bluegrass, Hank Williams, WoodyGuthrie, and more blues (Leadbelly, Sonny Boy Williamson, B.B. King). EpisodeThree, perhaps the best of the lot, takes on urban blues (Muddy Waters, Howlin'Wolf), black spirituals, and the early '60s folk boom, while Episode Fourstudies Cajun, zydeco and Tex-Mex styles, along with Native American music andmore.

The style is standard documentary, with interviews and photos interspersed withnew and old live footage. The producers tout the presence of "rare performances"by Guthrie, Waters, Monroe, Clifton Chenier, and many others, and some of them arefascinating. But for whatever reason (lack of time or maybe lack of faith inviewers' attention spans) not a single performance is presented in its entirety.It's a major drawback that prevents a program that is very good from beingreally great. --Sam Graham ... Read more

Features

• Color
• Black & White
• Box set
• NTSC

Reviews (6)

Typical - very, VERY typical
Some great footage of real music legends edited into obscenely short clips with unenlightening narrative commentary by a bunch of folk-music has-beens and nobodies vieing for the viewers sympathies by maundering on cluelessly about the fabled sufferings of the American underclasses.Lots of bogus romanticization which would be thoroughly unecessasary if they had simply shut up and let the music speak for itself (like i give a crap what KEB MO has to say about any of the great bluesmen!!). The treatment of most of the musical forms is hoplessley brief and slapdash - particularily the cajun and Zydeco segments. Unfortunately, a lot of people will claim to like this simply because they feel like they SHOULD, but this was a concept that had a lot of potential that was ultimately squandered.A waste of time and money.

Nearly Perfect
The PBS American Roots Music series - both the 4 part documentary on DVD and 4 CD boxed set - is a commendable work.It is an incredible education in not only popular American music and culture, but history, and should be required viewing and listening in high schools.

Many of the problems in American Society and its youth today stem from a complete lack of pride and self-awareness.A quick survey of popular music and culture reveal a frightening level of ignorance of America's history, values, and ideals.In short, while the series focusses on America's musical traditions, it does a fantastic job of conveying a sense of America's "roots" in a positive, enriching manner.

The DVD documentary strikes a perfect balance between glossing over, and becoming bogged down in, the material.Unlike the Ken Burns' projects that exhaust the viewer's interest and collapse under their own weight, the series is informative and educational, yet entertaining.It is not MEANT to be an exhaustive treatise on the subject - and so some reviewers here are missing the point - that would take 40, not 4, episodes.Rather, it is an introduction and a sampler; peaking our curiosity and prompting us to investigate and research further the wonderful heritage of music out there.And in that, it succeeds marvelously.

What also impressed me was the documentary's remarkable objectivity.While it eschews political correctness, it doesn't necessarily candy coat anything either. What it does do is present the material in a respectful, thoughtful, intelligent, and unbiased manner - something so lacking in today's political and social discourse.So in this sense, folks looking for something with an "agenda" - conspiracies, skeletons in the closet, and historical revisionism - may be disappointed by the documentary.

The CD boxed set is equally well-done: a fantastic booklet, thorough liner notes, and collection of songs that is a music lover's dream.Again, it is intended to be a sampler - great songs by landmark artists - not an exhaustive account of American Roots music.And also like the documentary, its meant to be a enriching, uplifting - not deconstructing - experience.

If the series has a shortcoming, it is the absence of one of the major "roots" - Jazz - which was no doubt and most unfortunately excluded, because of the recent Ken Burns' PBS documentary.But to exclude Jazz from the discussion of American Roots music, means we do not have the entire picture.And so in that sense, the series is somewhat flawed.

Still, its hard to find any other fault with the series.This is a work that TRULY embraces and celebrates America's cultural diversity.Entertaining and enlightening, I would heartily recommend owning the box set and DVD for one's own edification as well as a way to help introduce friends and family to REAL American music - in all its forms.

Digitally Re-mastered Culture Wars
When I saw this picture of BB King on the cover of the DVD , I thought I was in for a real historic musical treat. When I read the back of the box and saw that they had rare footage and that they actually had a chapter on Zydeco, I got even more excited. I immediately rushed to the sales counter at Tower Records and gave them my hard earned 40 dollars plus tax. When I got home, I put the DVD in the player and main menu appeared. I selected the chapter on Zydeco, because it is a music that my family in Southwest Louisiana wasinstrumental in creating. When the video began to play,my excitement turned to disgust, for they attempted to present this very Black Louisiana Creole music as a spin off of so-called "Cajun" music. Other than the brief footage on Clifton Chenier, the video didn't interview or expose the viewers to not one Black Creole creator of the music. Instead they interviewed various white folks, who even if they considered themselves experts, are at best outsiders of the Black Creole culture, and judging from what they shared on the video they didn't know that much about the music.

In the chapter covering Zydeco I would have loved to see some rare footage or mention of the "juré" music of the Black Southwest Louisiana Creoles that later became what is called Zydeco. I would have loved to hear stories from the common folk around Opelousas, Ville Platte, Mamou, Eunice and Plasiance telling about the racism of the Cajunstoward the Black Creoles of the area, and how this racismreinforced the seprate musical worlds of the Cajuns from that of the Black Creoles. Instead this video painted a very false picture of cultural homogeneity between two very distinct people who have been at odds for over two centuries. While it is true that the Black Creoles of Southwest Louisiana had French folk songs in their repetoire, Black Creole music ( including so-called "Zydeco") is no spin off of Cajun music. To the contrary, Cajun musicians are borrowing from Black Creole music at an alarming rate. In fact the only other musicians covered in the Zydeco segment is a band of white folks who according to the video are "blending elements of Cajun music, Zydeco and Swamp Pop". The makers ofthis video should have dug a little deeper into American soil andtouched the deepest roots before projecting such an influential film into the market place of ideas. This DVD is sure to mislead at lease a million people. People should watch this video with caution.

(reprinted with permission from blackdotcafe magazine oct/nov 2002 issue) ... Read more

Asin: B00005Q65J
Subjects:  1. Music Videos - Blues   

Live at Newport 1959-66
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (25 October, 1994)
list price: $16.98 -- our price: $16.98
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Features

• Live

Reviews (2)

A great and versatile voice
Leonhardt playing Bach is more my line than that broad category called popular music. Nevertheless, Judy Collins breaks through all the categories through sheer virtuosity and style. 'Anethea' is basically the same plot asShakespeare's MEASURE FOR MEASURE, and here it is, prefaced and concludedwith howls of grief: scalp-tingling. 'Turn, turn, turn' is an audaciousadaptation of that most beautiful of Biblical books, Ecclesiastes, and isone of the loveliest songs I know. I amnot ashamed to say that it helpedme through a period of personal grief. This is a marvellous album to startwith, though I think FOREVER is perhaps the definitive collection.

FOLKMUSICATITSBEST
This recording is Classic Folk Music at its BEST. Judy Collins isFantastic on this one. Every song is a piece of folk history. There aresongs of love and songs of hope and even great whaling tales. This one isrecorded live at the Newport Folk Festival. Listen to the history, from atrue folk legend. Every tune strikes a great chord. ... Read more

Asin: B000000EH4
Sales Rank: 34795
Subjects:  1. Folk & Traditional    2. Pop   

Bluegrass Masters: Newport Festivals
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (18 June, 1996)
list price: $16.98 -- our price: $16.98
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Features

• Live

Reviews (1)

A Winner for any Bluegrass Fan
The CD has raw live recordings which have not been heard in other formats.The cut "Cotton Eyed Joe" is one of the best available and features Monroe and Tex Logan in a mandolin vs fiddle duel which grows intempo as it stretches to over 4 minutes.Also Scruggs breaks a string in"Foggy Mountain Chimes".I loved the uniqueness of therecordings. ... Read more

Asin: B000000EH2
Sales Rank: 199762
Subjects:  1. Bluegrass    2. Country    3. Pop   

One Step Ahead
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (29 April, 2003)
list price: $17.98 -- our price: $14.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

Since returning to the bluegrass fold, Rhonda Vincent has earned accolades in country and bluegrass circles alike with two breakout releases, 2000's Back Home Again and 2001's The Storm Still Rages. One Step Ahead is a formidable addition to the series. Vincent (joined by an all-star cast of pickers) not only serves up consistently superb vocals and sprightly mandolin picking, but also displays a masterful songwriting touch. Whether on kinetic bluegrass romps like "Kentucky Borderline" and "Ridin' the Red Line," a soulful country love ballad like "You Can't Take It With You When You Go," or an a cappella gospel rave-up ("Fishers of Men"), Vincent hits the artistic and emotional bull's-eye again and again. --Bob Allen ... Read more

Reviews (27)

Short changed
Excellent album, great songs, beautiful bluegrass voice and some really fine backing muscicians, so why am I left unsatisfied? The total total track length is only 34 minutes! Thats not good value for my purchase, most albums run for 40-50 minutes. Nice album - shame about the length.

More than One Step Ahead..of everyone
Rhonda Vincent is charging hard to be in the front of the pack in women's bluegrass music. Her voice is right on tune with every song she sings. "Fishers of Men" is masterfully done and I have probably worn this cd out in only 2 weeks. I highly recommend getting all of Rhonda's music!

One Step Ahead
This is far and above one of the best CD's out there right now!!The instrumentation on this CD is unbelievable and Ms. Vincent has the quentessential blue grass voice.I can't get enough of this CD!! ... Read more

Asin: B00008V615
Subjects:  1. Bluegrass    2. Contemporary Bluegrass    3. Country    4. Pop    5. Progressive Bluegrass   

Cry, Cry, Cry
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (13 October, 1998)
list price: $17.98 -- our price: $13.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

When three of our finest singer/songwriters join together in a musical ménage à trois, the least they could do is sing their own material. Yet Richard Shindell, Dar Williams, and Lucy Kaplansky have pulled off a perfect, perverse triumph on Cry Cry Cry, a tribute to fellow tunesmiths from Robert Earl Keen to Greg Brown to Julie Miller. Though the disc begins with a bona fide chart buster, R.E.M.'s "Fall on Me" (with ringing guitars and astonishingly audible lyrics no less), most of the cuts come from such unsung artists as James Keelaghan (a dark, brilliant ballad inspired by Norman MacLean's Young Men and Fire) and Jim Armenti. All three members of this folk music dream team are in excellent voice, alternating ensemble pieces with honed call-and-response. Yet these polished, hush-inducing performances never lose their edge and urgency--this is really what they mean by harmonic convergence. --Kerry Fried ... Read more

Reviews (68)

Cold Missouri Waters
I bought this album because I discovered Dar Williams only a year ago and enjoy her music tremendously.I was so used to great female vocalists that I remember skipping over track 2, Cold Missouri Waters, on my first play. Since then, this is the first song I have ever put on SONG-REPEAT on my iPod.The poetic story (thanks James Keelaghan!) and great arangement and vocals totally hooked me.Then reading about the 1949 Montana Mann Gulch Fire on the internet - it seemed unbelievable.What a powerful story!I was reading this story to my 12 year old daughter and I could not keep my voice from breaking down.

One of my favorite albums
I bought this album awhile ago but was reading the reviews today and had to give it my thumbs up!I have enjoyed this album from Cold Missouri Waters to Shades of Gray.Each voice is a perfect blend.

Maybe my favorite album in the last five years
I can't believe I had never heard of some of the songwriters featured on this album.Since getting it a year ago, it has led me to so much more excellent music (and even a book!) that I will never get over its influence.I can't thank the artists enough for putting this together. ... Read more

Asin: B00000D9WD
Subjects:  1. Adult Alternative    2. Contemporary Folk    3. Folk & Traditional    4. Pop   

Great Bluesmen/Newport
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (16 September, 1991)
list price: $16.98 -- our price: $16.98
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

While the likes of Chess and Delmark were wellsprings of '60s electric blues, Vanguard carved out a concurrent niche as a harbor for aging country bluesmen. It was a natural match since the gentler likes of Sleepy John Estes and Mississippi John Hurt went over well with the label's core folk audience. The coalition extended to the Newport Folk Festival, which was much more receptive to acoustic blues than their amplified Chicago offspring. Great Bluesmen/Newport (originally a two-LP set) presents 21 tracks culled from late '50s and mid-'60s performances at the Newport Folk Festival. A consistently rewarding collection, Great Bluesmen nevertheless has its highlights, foremost being John Lee Hooker's brooding "Tupelo." But with Son House, Skip James, Mississippi Fred McDowell, and Lightnin' Hopkins in evidence, how can a folk-blues fan go wrong? --Steven Stolder ... Read more

Features

• Live

Reviews (2)

THIS is the blues!
Anyone looking for the real thing, the delta blues done by the real delta bluesmen, this compilation of acoustic performances at the Newport Folk Festival in the late 50's to early 60's is it.The old guys had their mothballs dusted off and were trotted out for the new, pre-rock 'n' roll folkies of the time, and a revival was born.Now, in the new millennium, this stuff sounds as fresh and hot (or cool, as the case may be) as it did in the decades before it was recorded.These guys aren't around anymore, but you can still listen to the REAL blues, as it was, as it is, as it should be.

Tremendous anthology
What an outstanding album.Give this to your great friends. ... Read more

Asin: B000000EC7
Subjects:  1. 60's    2. Acoustic Blues    3. Blues    4. Blues Revival    5. Country Blues    6. Delta Blues    7. East Coast Blues    8. Electric Blues    9. Field Recordings    10. Folk-Blues    11. Piedmont Blues    12. Pop    13. Prewar Blues    14. Prewar Country Blues   

Nickel Creek
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (21 March, 2000)
list price: $18.98 -- our price: $9.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

San Diego is not exactly known as a hotbed of contemporary bluegrass music, but then again, Nickel Creek are a far cry from most bluegrass bands you've ever heard. On their Alison Krauss-produced debut, they serve up a lilting, ethereal fusion of bluegrass, Celtic, modern folk, and even classical influences, offering exquisite harmonies that would be more at home at a Crosby, Stills & Nash tribute than at a musical salute to the late Bill Monroe. Yet it makes for delightful listening, all the same. The three principals (Sara Watkins on fiddle and vocals; her brother Sean Watkins on guitar, mandolin, and vocals; and Chris Thile on mandolin, banjo, bouzouki, and vocals) are either barely out of their teens or still in them. Individually and as a band, they've already won a slew of awards and notoriety on their respective instruments. The three prodigies (joined by Thile's dad, Scott, on bass) really strut their eclectic hot licks on a few soaring, skittering instrumentals, but even more impressive are Nickel Creek's graceful, heartfelt harmonies on the many lovely ballads. Hot licks, when you get right down to it, are a dime a dozen; this sort of pluperfect tunefulness is a much rarer thing. --Bob Allen ... Read more

Reviews (248)

Why would anyone want to listen to this?
This music is torturous. I regret taking out my Blonde on Blonde SACD for this. Anything is better than pop bluegrass. I'd rather listen to Captain Beefheart or even (god forbid) Blur.

If you're the kind that doesn't recognize any bands older than 10 years, you may like this. That, or you're too old to remember when you first listened to Elvis.

Obviously, I don't recommend this.

the last of their bluegrass background..
Let me say for starters that I love Bluegrass and trad. Country, but to classify Nickel Creek under either of these is doing them an extreme injustice. Even more so, it is alienating them for a large audience that are sure to love their music.

Nickel Creek may have hardcore roots in bluegrass but for quite a few years now they have had more in common with college alternative radio than nashville. Yes, you can hear every ounce of influence they have gained through Radiohead, Wilco, Coldplay, and Pavement(which they cover on this album). That being said, this is the music that they listen to like most
young adults. What is so amazing is that these influences combined with their background in bluegrass has lead to some spectacular songwriting that has yet to reach its potential of wide spread recognition. These three are sure to be superstars.

They are currently in the studio recording their 3rd CD(actually it is their 5th...they had two independent releases previous to their self titled in 2000"little cow poke" and "here to there") Word has it that this album is taking even more of a turn from their past. They are doing quite a bit of new instrumentation including drums and piano this time around...For an idea of the direction that they have gone in, I suggest picking up Chris Thile's latest solo album "deceiver" and Sean Watkin's recent solo outing "26 miles". There is hardly a shread of past sound left...but what has come forth is something spectacular...

So three kids from California walk in to a bar..
ok.. maybe not a bar.. but that seems like a close enough paraphrase as to how this amazing group formed. Opening with a beautiful and impressive instrumental is certainly a nice way to start off an album. All of these musicians floor me with their talent, not only because their technique is so precise, but also because of their musicality.. they don't just play fast notes, they're on pitch and sound clear, sweet and intent. They seem to have such a balance with one another. Sara's violin playing is great. I love her wide smooth vibrato, her sound never over-powering (like many fiddle players can be). Sean's guitar work is beautiful and fun. I hear mostly folk and classical styles with his playing. Chris. Yeah. They're all amazing, but I think he clearly stands apart, not just within the group, but amongst any musician. His technique is jaw-dropping.. he hits every single note so crisp and clearly, and keeps personality with it all, telling a story with every run or lick, and it seems like no style is impregnable for this prodigy. As for the vocals, they blend together so well, and the leading lines take the songs on just the right journey.
I've seen them in concert 4 or 5 times, with the song line-up hardly changing, but I was knocked off my feet every time. I love this entire album, but "Sweet Afton" and "Hand Song" are probably my favorites. Both are relatively simple, slower tracks, but are so beautiful. The lyrics are endearing, and the pace is just perfect. "House of Tom Bombadil" is the second, and probably my favorite instrumental on the album... partly because the title is a LOTR reference (yeah, geek), and partly because almost every time I've seen them live, Chris has played the first few measures of the Bach Partita Preludium during one of his mandolin solos. Though it was written for violin (I think), I love the bright sound the mandolin gives it. Their take on "The Fox" is totally fun, and it impresses me that I like it so much, being a girl who is primarily a classic rock fan. I absolutely love this album. Every voice, every note, paints a vivid picture for the song. It breeches all genre boundaries, and if nothing else, I think just about anyone can appreciate such quality musicianship.
... Read more

Asin: B00004NK9T
Subjects:  1. Bluegrass    2. Contemporary Bluegrass    3. Contemporary Country    4. Country    5. Mandolin    6. Neo-Traditional Folk    7. Pop   

The Weavers at Carnegie Hall
Average Customer Review:
Audio CD (25 October, 1990)
list price: $14.98 -- our price: $13.99
(price subject to change: see help)
US | Canada | United Kingdom | Germany | France

Editorial Review

Peter, Paul & Mary, Bob Dylan, and the Kingston Trio were youngsters next to the Weavers, but without these acoustic elders, the aforementioned artists may have never found their folk voices. The Weavers were the main catalyst behind the folk explosion of the '50s and early '60s. This album captures the spark that led to that detonation. Certainly the foursome was responsible for the leftist political bent associated with folk music to this day. The Weavers were one of the few musical entities blacklisted during the McCarthy hearings in 1952 after a witness named them as Communists, probably a result of members Lee Hays and Pete Seeger's labor-union activities. In 1955 the quartet reunited for this historic show--and you can still hear the triumphant spirit in the air that night as the group (and audience) delight in the Weavers' brand of eclecticism, moving from Leadbelly and Woody Guthrie covers to old English ballads, African music, New Orleans spirituals, and songs that would soon influence rock & roll. --Bill Holdship ... Read more

Features

• Live

Reviews (6)

Magnificient piece that has not aged
Two incredible recordings were made from the 1955 shows at Carnegie Hall.This one and "The Weavers On Tour".Unfortunately the latter has not yet been released on CD.Both recordings have an energy that holds up 50 years later.Listen!

A triumphant return to fame after the blacklist!
This CD is a wonderful record of the triumphant concert by The Weavers given at Carnegie Hall on December 24, 1955. After a three year hiatus because they had been blacklisted by McCarthy, The Weavers began to play again in 1955 and played Carnegie Hall to a packed audience! This CD records both the concert and the electric atmosphere in the concert hall that night.

Of course, The Weavers sing their hits "Goodnight Irene" and "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine" as well as songs from around the world such as "Suliram (I'll Be There)" from Indonesia and "Shalom Chaverim" from Israel. The group believed that folk music included more than just American songs. This belief is shown again when they sing "Around The World."

Although one reviewer says the sound is "so terrific," in my opinion the sound quality varies throughout the CD. Although sometimes it does seem as if they're in my living room, this concert seems to have been recorded in mono originally for LP and also if you listen very closely there seems to be several times when the singers are cut off just as they end the last note of the song. The recording of the concert is strictly speaking not complete since the applause is very obviously edited.

Overall, this CD is a great addition to any collection. The Weavers sing a broad variety of songs set in the folk style, such as "Greensleeves" and "Sixteen Tons." This CD is no longer so easy to find. Get it now-it is harder to find for a GOOD reason! GRIN

Weavers Forever!
I was given this album in the late 1950s when a young teenager. Since then I of course became a Bob Dylan disciple, then became heavily addicted to the best British rock and pop music, through The Who, The Beatles, Kinks, Animals and all the other members of that extraordinary 1960s caravanserai.

And amidst all that was the explosion into my consciousness of great classical music, experienced through the likes of Oistrakh and Richter, Giulini and Klemperer, Schwarzkopf and Popp.

I still love ALL types of great music. And I still regularly return to The Weavers and still marvel at their art and their commitment. And of all their recordings I have heard since they first impinged on my young consciousness, this 1955 concert at Carnegie Hall is still the freshest, thumpingest, foot-stomping best. Buy it now. No matter what your age, it will enrich your musical life forever. ... Read more

Asin: B000000EFX
Subjects:  1. Folk    2. Folk & Traditional    3. Folk Revival    4. Folksongs    5. Pop    6. Traditional Folk    7. United States of America