Customer Reviews

High Lonesome Cowboy

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4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

Some of the first songs I ever heard were traditional Western ballads. I guess a taste for them was imprinted on my brain, and I'm sure they had a lot to do with my eventual discovery of folk music in general. Which is a way of saying I came to this recording with warm feeling and confident expectation. And of course, with two pros like Peter Rowan and Don Edwards in charge, with luminaries such as Norman Blake and Tony Rice backing them, how could I have been disappointed?

High Lonesome Cowboy is nothing fancy, just acoustic guitars, mandolin, and stand-up bass. The songs are mostly standards, though -- given that Rowan and Edwards aren't exactly tourists here -- still able to surprise. Rowan and Edwards find some fresh verses (out of the many hundreds, some printable, that must be out there) to "The Old Chisholm Trail." "Ramblin' Cowboy" -- a moving Western variant of the Appalachian "I've Always Been a Rambler" -- was new to me. "Goodbye, Old Paint" happily departs from the familiar text, borrowing verses from the ancient (circa 1870s) variant John Lomax collected from old-time Texas cowboy fiddler Jess Morris. Perhaps less happily, their take on the Woody Guthrie chestnut "Philadelphia Lawyer" (retitled "Reno Blues" for no clear reason) affords the song a graver reading than Guthrie meant -- unless those funereal harmonies are intended for ironic effect.

Edwards, whose vocals sometimes almost eerily echo the late Marty Robbins's, handles most of the lead singing. He proves again that he's as fine a cowboy singer as any who's put mouth to microphone. If the songs and the performances break no new ground, they're all the more appealing for that. After all, something that has lasted a century and a half, as American cowboy song has, isn't exactly broken. Rowan and Edwards know better than to fix it.

I love this Cd. Both Peter Rowan and Don Edwards are great. I would highly recommend this to anyone who appreciates really good music and lots of talent. This is very simple, old time music, so refreshing compared to what is coming out today.

Peter Rowan and Don Edwards have been around awhile, and their grey hair shows it as they lean against the truck old as they are on their CD cover. Rowan is a bluegrass performer, and Edwards sings western songs. Together with veteran guitarists Tony Rice and Norman Blake, they have put together a wonderful collection of mostly traditional songs that sound like they've sprung straight from the high plains and Rocky Mountains of Colorado Springs, where this album was recorded.

I first learned of Rowan and Edwards hearing a song "Buddies in the Saddle" on the bluegrass channel of satellite TV (wonderful invention for music lovers otherwise stuck with urban format commercial radio -- deliver us from what's happened to C&W). Turns out "Buddies in the Saddle" is a Maybelle Carter song, about the friendship of two cowboys, one of whom is lost in a storm. Sung in harmony with an upbeat tempo and such sweet sincerity by two seasoned voices, it got me to buy the whole album, and I was not disappointed. Every song in the collection is arranged handsomely and performed with fine accoustic muscianship -- guitars, mandolin, banjo, and bass.

The songs make up a rich variety of styles, tempos, instrumentation, and voices. There is the aching ballad "The Night Guard," about a lovelorn young cowboy on the trail who is killed by a long-horned steer. In another vein is Woody Guthrie's "Reno Blues" about the fate of a Philadelphia lawyer. The traditional "Goodbye Old Paint," sung simply with two voices, guitar and banjo, evokes another era of wagon trains and dusty cattle drives. And there's a long, mellow, gently rocking version of Bill Monroe's "Midnight on the Stormy Deep."

I recommend this one to anyone with a heart for western-flavored roots music. You can't go wrong.

irresistable...infectious....quaint....you'll be humming along in no time at all...acoustic guitar padding and the stellar cast of musicians including Tony Rice make this a one of a kind must have....even the kids will love this one.

For the real cowboys or just plain folks who love the old time music, this is great. As someone who grew up cattle ranching and playing bluegrass and old standards myself, I can listen to this over and over again. Great blend of mandolin,banjo, guitar and good strong vocals but not in the bluegrass way. The old time way. I can almost feel myself standing in an old dusty saloon or at a dance hall during the time period most of these songs come from. This is a must for the cowboy purist. I'd say one of the best assemblies of musicians as well; Peter Rowan,Nancy & Norman Blake,Tony Rice, Billy & Bryn Bright bring this project together very well to get the exact feel and emotions of the time. Great job!!

When I saw that these 4 had made an album together I bought it right away. If you know what I'm talking about you won't be disappointed
Rising Fawn Gathering
The Hobo's Last Ride
Quartet

If you like western lyrics put to the bluegrass sound you will love this CD.

We have all come to expect a certain type of music associated with a cowboy tune and this definately is a veer from the norm.

The musicians are excellent, the arrangements great and Don and Peter sound wonderful.

When can one say.........."It's different".