Ralph Stanley II: This
One Is Two
Features Songs by Lyle Lovett, Townes
Van Zandt, Tom T. Hall, Elton John,
Fred Eaglesmith and Stanley Himself.
Read more at
www.ralphstanleyii.com
Keith Lawrence| December 2008
Bluegrass fan selects favorite releases of ‘08
By KEITH LAWRENCE Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer (also printed in Columbia,
Mo, Dailly Tribune website)
Published Thursday, December 11, 2008
Bluegrass got a shot in the arm in 2008 with some exciting new bands
and some great sounds by well-established groups.
Picking the best is never easy, but here are my choices for the year.
5. Blue Highway, "Through the Window of a Train" (Rounder)
The band’s eighth album was written entirely by band members.
Sometimes, that is not a good thing. This time, it is. The picking and
vocals are everything you would expect from one of bluegrass’
top bands, and the material pushes bluegrass far beyond its rural roots.
A very strong album by a very good band.
4. Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass, "The Room Over Mine"
(Rounder)
If you like your bluegrass raw and intense - the way it was meant to
be played and sung - you’ll want this album. Very few people in
bluegrass can deliver a song with more conviction than Danny Paisley.
Rounder calls the sound "backwoods mountain blues ... music you
not only hear but feel in your gut."
3. Tim Hensley, "Long Monday" (Rural Rhythm/ Blue Chair Records)
Wow! Tim Hensley has made a career as a sideman - primarily on guitar
and harmony singing - for artists such as Ricky Skaggs, Patty Loveless
and Kenny Chesney.
Now, he is stepping forward with his first solo album. "Long Monday"
is a powerful album, and there is not an ounce of fat on here.
2. Ralph Stanley II, "This One Is Two" (Lonesome Day)
The only reason this album isn’t No. 1 is because it is not a
bluegrass album. It’s traditional country. But it’s by one
of the most exciting young singers in bluegrass today - a man carrying
on a family tradition.
Ralph Stanley II’s sound is very similar to the late Keith Whitley’s
- for good reason. They both honed their sounds as lead singers with
Stanley’s father’s Clinch Mountain Boys.
1. The SteelDrivers, "The SteelDrivers" (Rounder)
Imagine Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys fronted by Bob Seger or
Billy Joe Shaver. That’ll give you an idea of what to expect from
The SteelDrivers, one of the most interesting bands to come out of Nashville
in years.
Read
more at www.ralphstanleyii.com
Contacts:
Norma Morris / Erin Morris
Morris Public Relations
615 952-9250
norma@morrispr.biz
www.morrispr.biz
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