Monday, 12 June 2017

Kentucky Colonels - The New Sound of Bluegrass America


Rating: 5/5

Review:
Terrific stuff



This is terrific stuff.  The Kentucky Colonels' are chiefly remembered these days for Clarence White (a truly excellent guitarist, later of The Byrds) but there's plenty else to enjoy here, too.

The album features tracks with a pretty traditional bluegrass line-up, with guitar, banjo, fiddle, dobro and stand-up bass.  The standard of playing throughout is excellent with some fabulous pickin' on both guitar and banjo well to the fore.  The singing is also very good, with that slightly rough sound the music needs to sound authentic (even though the band is a bunch of Californians).  I find it a real pleasure, and always end up with a huge smile in my face while listening.

The album was recorded in 1963, but the sound is pretty good – it's certainly good enough for me to enjoy the music without worrying about the quality.  Personally, I think this is a hugely enjoyable album; I'm glad to see it being made available again and I can recommend it warmly.

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