Customer Reviews

Crown of Jewels

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Every song on this cd is a gem. The instrumentals are first class.Many of my favorites take part on this cd including Mary Chapin Carpenter(who sounds awesome in It's Only Love), Trish Yearwood (giving great harmony to I Wanna Be Loved), Matraca Berg, Gary Chapman, Amy Grant, John Hiatt (all singing background vocals on City Of New Orleans), Emmylou Harris & Iris Dement (Beautifully dueting on Wildwood Flower), Joan Osborne (burning it up on the Johnny Cash co written Passin' Thru), Roseanne Cash (singing a gorgeous My Secret Life). Reading the notes from Randy Scruggs one can see his love of writing and recording these songs, but even more so from the performance he and his co-horts bring to this project. There is not one bad song on this cd. If you like good country music, or just plain good heartfelt music, you can't do amy better than this recording.

"Soldiers Joy" from this CD deservedly won Best Country Instrumental Grammy for 1998. The whole album is great, with special recommendations going to "City of New Orleans" (with John Prine), "My Secret Life" (with Roseanne Cash) and "It's Only Love" (with MC Carpenter) I only wish Nashville produced more like this.

I have loved this album since it first came out and I would be hard pressed to pick a single cut that would be my favorite. It's a joy from start to finish.

My question is why hasn't he recorded another album since this one. I've done a search on here and can't find one. I remember him from the Earl Scruggs review and was impressed with his guitar playing (Earl wasn't bad at playing the guitar either but not flashy; I could always tell when he was playing guitar on the Circle album.)

Great album.

This cd covers some many areas of music that it is like listening to a radio station that plays a dozen songs in a row that all sound different and all sound great. Outstanding new versions of City of New Orleans with John Prine and Amie with Travis Tritt make the cd worth the purchase, but these two barely scratch the surface. This is my gift to my friends this year.

This album contains the excellent guitar picking of one of the finest studio musicians to come from Earl's genes. A Soldiers Joy is one of the best examples of this work. This album features some of the best vocals in country music today...Rosanne Cash, Mary Chapin Carpenter,etc. Get this one.

This has quickly become one of the favorite CD's in my collection. I would highly recommend it. Everyone I know who listens to it, goes and buys it!

Crown of Jewels is a enjoyable cd with plenty of great moments that more than make up for the few bad ones. The all-star collection of guests make this seem more like a country greatest hits album than a solo album, but that is a good thing. The playing is great and the mood is festive. Although the sound sounds, at times, too polished, listening to Crown of Jewels is a great experience.

Probably one of the finest country albums in a decade. Not every song is tops, but there are enough to move you to tears. A must for all lovers of trad based country by the masters.

If you enjoy just plain old, GOOD music this is a must have CD. There just isn't any way to single out a particular song or songs, they are all good. This is music at its best, performed by some of the very best artists out there...who, judging by the contents of the CD, had a great time putting this together.

Although this isn't a case of the son eclipsing the father, Randy Scruggs needs no comparisons to anyone. He stands alone as a singular artist and Crown of Jewels showcases his amazing talents. With a vast array of corroborators, the effort spans the musical spectrum and is at once exhilarating and lyrical. A must have for ANY music lover.