Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, January 4, 1992 TAG: 9201040333
SECTION: SPECTATOR PAGE: S-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SETH WILLIAMSON
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
RECORDINGS
BluegrassKerry Hay's Blacksburg-based bluegrass empire has a winner in a new double compact-disc (or three-cassette) set of bluegrass gospel standards by\ The Bluegrass Band, "Shine Hallelujah Shine: Sacred Songs from the Early Days of Bluegrass," (Hay Holler Harvest HHH-CD-201).
It's a testament to the seriousness of Hay's young label that this latest release is easily the finest collection of bluegrass sacred songs recorded recently. About the only way you could do better than these soulful and well-recorded performances would be to hunt up the originals from the early giants of bluegrass, many of which are out of print.
The core of The Bluegrass Band is banjoist Butch Robins of Pulaski, who is one of the most tasteful and inventive players today. Besides himself Robins retained two other players from the group's previous double CD, "Once Again, From the Top," bassist Ronnie Simpkins and mandolinist and tenor singer Larry Stephenson. New for this session are guitarist Dudley Connell and mandolinist David McLaughlin (of bluegrass super group the Johnson Mountain Boys), fiddler Blaine Sprouse and lead guitarist Rob McCoury. And new bassist Bill Lux is a knock-out bass singer as well who brings excitement to a usually unremarkable part in bluegrass singing.
The subtitle "Sacred Songs from the Early Days of Bluegrass" pretty much describes the repertoire. The 43 songs range from early Monroe classics such as "Shake My Mother's Hand for Me" and Reno & Smiley's "Tree of Life" to "On the Jericho Road" from Jim and Jesse and Flatt & Scrugg's "Gone Home."
As usual in gospel music fancy picking takes a back seat to singing, but Butch Robins' solid arrangements leave room for all to shine. Though Robins has not devoted himself full time to music in recent years he is as good or better a player as he ever was. His sparse and bluesy lead on the haunting "Get Down on Your Knees and Pray" is a masterpiece of understatement that has stayed in this reviewer's mind for weeks now. A splendid collection.
Rock
Roanoke's The Wanderers keep it raw like early Doors music on their EP, "Thrust in Through the Outer Wall" (Vanishing Point).
These guys burst with punkish garage-band energy. Singer Jim Scarlet slurs words like a screaming Jim Morrison over the relentless rhythms of drummer Stephen Graves and bassist Rand Dotson. The music is stark and dark and ready to be consumed at some dangerous, inner-city club.
Though they hold nothing back and attack with an electrifying charge, the production on these four tracks - with too much reverb evaporating from Gary K.A.'s guitar - leaves something, namely polish, to be desired.
- JOE TENNIS