Customer Reviews

Lovin' Pretty Women

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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Playing Time - 35:52 -- Eventually the Steep Canyon Rangers will no longer be just in their 20s. By the time they turn thirty, they'll be well-known far and wide for their brilliant performances and excellent recordings. Their fifth album since forming as a band in 1999, "Lovin' Pretty Women" has all the same splendid ingredients of previous releases that helped them win IBMA's 2006 Emerging Artist of the Year Award. The young, hard-working, and prolific band has been able to tour heavily since their jump to going full-time in 2001. Being on the road can be grueling, and the Steep Canyon Rangers have been able to maintain personnel stability that few bluegrass bands can claim. In early 2005, Woody Platt (guitar, vocals), Mike Guggino (mandolin, vocals), Graham Sharp (banjo, guitar, vocals), Charles R. Humphrey III (bass) welcomed a fifth permanent member (fiddler Nicky Sanders) to the band. Although Sanders is a Californian, he fit right in with the other guys who originally met while students at UNC in Chapel Hill. The band found Nicky attending the Berklee College of Music in Boston. Collectively, they have the right attitude, gumption, original material, and most importantly traditionally-rooted chops to make a serious go of it.

Previous albums from the Rangers have enlisted the production assistance of folks like Curtis Burch or Mike Bub. Engineered by Wyatt Rice (who also guests on rhythm guitar), "Lovin' Pretty Women" was produced by Ronnie Bowman who lays in some harmony or backing vocals on four tracks. A third guest (Randy Kohrs on Dobro) slides gold into two numbers ("Don't Ease Me In" and "Pickin' on Josh"). Rebel Records' support is helping these boys climb the sheer walls and precipitous cliffs to stardom. Since the O Brother! movie, bluegrass music has won new converts who recognize it as something more than a passing fad to niche market devotees. Steep Canyon Rangers "cross-market" themselves to serve as young bluegrass ambassadors at venues and festivals where the music might not regularly be heard.

This album includes some nice covers like "Ain't No Way of Knowin'" and "Don't Ease Me in." Like their last two Rebel albums since 2004, "Lovin' Pretty Women" has originals from Sharp, Humphrey and Guggino. The song lyrics are all included in the 12-page CD booklet. The songs all punchy honky-tonkin' numbers, and rendered with a bounty of bluegrass bang. I especially take to the Rangers' appealing delivery with power, passion and emotion. That's called drive! These boys sing about being ramblin' men who can't resist the wanderlust and the call of the open road. At the same time, they have a clear aim for their music. With plenty of brand new songs, they have just one request - "let me live to love and love to live and lay me down to rest." Makes sense to me. That's the perfect sentiment for a sensational and soulful bluegrass group that is riding the enjoyable wave of life. I've made the recommendation before, and "Be Still Moses" gives us a small taste of what this band could do with a future all-gospel project. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)

oh do these guys rock!! great traditional bluegrass ! i met them at Tottenham, Ontario festival last summer and they stole the show! the fiddle player is just amazing. but all of them together just pour it out. great Cd to have playing while just riding around! these guys are goin places!!!

The latest CD from the 2006 IBMA Emerging Artists of the Year. These five
great young men and artists are emerging no more - they have indeed arrived! A great follow up to the outstanding CD, "One Dime at a Time".
This CD showcases the Rangers writting ability (they write most of their
own music), the individual talents of each as an outstanding instrumentalist(most of them were recently initially nominated for individual IBMA 2007 instrumentalist awards) and great, great tight harmonies. The Rangers clearly have a passion for what they do - you must do yourselves a favor and see them in person (they all do a wonderful job of "meet and greet"!). The title cut, "Lovin'Pretty Women" will clearly quickly move to # 1 on the charts. They cover a wide range of great new and traditional bluegrass music. Each of the songs on this CD are equally strong, but I am particularly impressed with "Ramblin' Man is a Ramblin'Man", "Call the Captain","Be Still Moses", Don't Ease Me In",
and "New Sleepy Eyed John" and of course, "Lovin' Pretty Women" (it is certainly a candidate for song of the year!). Today's bluegrass music does
just not get any better than this!!

The best of all their albums! Love it and listen to it over and over. Some songs, like Call the Captain and Be Still Moses, are just great. Never get tired of it.

These guys can write, play and sing. Tuneful bluegrass songs that highlight the individual talents of the group but everything sounds so together. The Steep Canyon Rangers had fun making this album...you will feel it.

As an urban Bay Area native, I am fairly far away from country, but bluegrass somehow gets into my bones. The caveat is that the band must be uncommonly good, innovative, energetic, and although the quintet composition may be standard--fiddle, mandolin, bass, guitar, and banjo--arrangements need to be clever and balanced. Moreover, the lead vocals and harmonies have to have that special quality. Steep Canyon Rangers has got it all and this album, Lovin' Pretty Women, is delightful. I am listening with a peculiar smile on my face. And they compose their own, very fine songs, too! Woody Platts smooth twang, Graham Sharp's powerful banjo work, Nicky Sanders, accenting fiddling, and the rhythm section of Charles Humprey III, bass, Platt on guitar, and Mike Guggino, improvisational mandolin, keep the energy high. Guest musicians are Wyatt Rice on guitar, Randy Kohrs on dobro, and Ronnie Bowman on vocals. The fine pickin' by all on Be Still Moses is even surpassed by their vocal arrangement. Cumberland Moon should be a folk hit. There is not a bad track. Bluegrass born or city centered, you will enjoy this band's spirit and talent. This could be a Desert Island Disc!

I have heard Steep Canyon Rangers on WUNC-FM, my local NPR station, then saw them at MerleFest with Steve Martin. They are an amazing combination of musical virtuosity, solid vocal harmonies and song lyrics. "Call the Captain" is my favorite on this CD.

I had listened to a few SCR songs on XM Radio's 'Bluegrass Junction'.
I had the extreme good fortune to catch these guys up close and live at the 'Pickin In The Pines' Festival in Flagstaff, Arizona this last September ('09).
One word ; WOW !!! These guys are the real deal and from the time they took to the stage until they played their last song of the afternoon, everyone in the crowd from 9 to 90 was either on their feet or sitting in their seats dancing while sitting down.
I have all their CD's and their first offering that I know of titled 'old dreams and new dreams' in 2001 was great and SCR just keeps getting better and better with the release of every new CD.
If I had to choose a favorite CD it would be Lovin' Pretty Women. In all fairness though I just got their latest CD "Deep In The Shade" and really haven't had the chance to give it a good listen aside from what the band played live off of deep in the shade up in Flagstaff and what I heard there was truly amazing!!!
The song on Lovin' Pretty Women that stands out the most for me anyway is "call the captain"... Great song. The band as a whole is high energy, tight, meticulous and the same time very down home. Very friendly and very approachable at their performances. It's a no brainer that Steve Martin wanted these guys with him on his "the Crow" tour now in progress at a venue near you!!
If you love bluegrass you're gonna wear this one out.

Really enjoying the cd- I like it more every time I listen to it and I am not generally a bluegrass fan by any means! Really tight and great musicians.

While maintaining traditional bluegrass flavor the Steep Canyon Rangers have breathed a little bit of fresh and new life into the bluegrass scene. This Asheville, NC band is absolutely phenomenal. I saw them live at the Peace Center in G'ville, SC and the have an excellent stage performance as well as good, decent, and quite entertaining personality.