Customer Reviews

Music From Rancho Deville

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What a magnificent piece of work Charles has left for us. For those of us who knew him, every time we listen to his music, his spirit will be with us. For those of you who were not as lucky to have met him, when you listen you'll have a sense of what kind of person he was; a warm hearted, very funny man and giving to all human beings. This CD is packed with heartfelt emotion and humor.

The best performers of bluegrass appear on this album. And, they give their all; the incredible talent rings through in every track. I love "Ranger's Command" and was happy to hear Flaco Jimenez appear on this track.

The final cut, "The Angel Band", will leave you in tears as we here Charles' voice for the last time singing of ever-lasting life. He continues to live with us through this album.

It's hard for me the to find words to talk about this CD. When I lived in Colorado, we used to pack a tiny little place in Niwot, Colorado called the Left Hand Grange Hall to see a great band called Hot Rize and their very weird alter-egos "Red Knuckles and the Trailblazers." Charles Sawtelle was the guitar player for Hot Rize and "Slade" in the Trailblazers

For twelve years Hot Rize managed to be both really traditional and hip and "alternative" all at the same time. This album is a tribute and legacy to a really important artist and a founder of a musical current that is reshaping and redefining American Music.

It was nominated by the IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) as "recorded event of the year." But this compilation really transcends any genre, especially one that can sometimes be as narrow as "bluegrass."

For instance, some of my favorites are when Charles plays with Michael Doucet, a powerful force in the revival and revitalization of traditional Cajun music. And there’s a track with Max Baca and Flaco Jimenez, giants of norteno (Tejano) music and its really interesting to hear how natural Cajun, Appalachian and Mexican influences sound mixed with one another.

This great CD will help the “Bluegrass Mystery” to live on in our hearts. Rave on, Slade.

This is a beautiful and extremely interesting work. Laurie Lewis has done an exceptional job producing this album. The music is highly diverse, with Sawtelle being the common thread that pulls it all together; I heard a lot of things that were new to me even though I listen to tons of bluegrass & acoustic music. I loved it all -- this is a superb body of work.

The extensive liner notes are a real treat -- informative, good-humored, insightful. All around, the highest production values are reflected in every aspect of this album. I'll be listening to this wonderful music regularly for the rest of my days.

Charles "The Bluegrass Mystery" Sawtelle died on March 21 1999. Music from Rancho de Ville is a celebration of life and music. A stellar group of friends had gathered at Rancho de Ville over the years to enjoy the roots of tradition. These are the resulting beautiful original tunes recorded with friends of Bluegrass, Cajun, Old-time and Tex-Mex. You might know him for his sincere soft-spoken vocals and guitar artistry with Hot Rize. This is a must have all-star gem well

produced by Laurie Lewis. The line up includes David Grisman, Vassar Clements, Norman Blake, Tim O'Brien Sam Bush just to mention a few!

An absolutely gorgeous album with and all-star cast of newgrass/acoustic revivalists. The late Charles Sawtelle was a veteran of one of my favorite bluegrass bands from the '80s, Hot Rize, who infused their albums with a driving but subtle country and pop sensibility. This record, recorded over a long period of time while Sawtelle battled with leukemia, covers a lot of musical territory. It includes good old-fashioned hi-speed bluegrass breakdowns, sentimental ballads and sweet instrumentals, old-time classic like the Carter Family standard, "Storms Are On The Ocean", and even a cajun tune or two. with folks like Norman Blake, Michael Doucet, Peter Rowan and Vassar Clements on board (to name only a few...), how can this go wrong? Mostly, it's the mellow, relaxed atmosphere that label head David Grisman seems to promote which helps make this such a delightful album -- it's so great to hear these super-talented folks just taking it easy and enjoying themselves, rather than trying to sculpt a Grammy-winning album, or whatever. Sawtelle's Hot Rize pals, Pete Wernick and Tim O'Brien also pitch in, as well as album producer Laurie Lewis. Great stuff -- highly recommended!

To fans of the seminal bluegrass band Hot Rize, guitarist Charles Sawtelle was an enigmatic figure best characterized by his nickname, "The Bluegrass Mystery"- a moniker which applied as much to his unique guitar phrasing as his laid-back persona.
I had not head much of what Charles was up to after Hot Rize's breakup, and was saddened to hear of his untimely death in 1999, Fortunately, he left behind "Music from Rancho DeVille," a homage not only to bluegrass, but to all of the music he loved.

"Music from Rancho DeVille" features a diverse cast - former band mates Tim O'Brien and Pete Wernick, bluegrass stars Peter Rowan, Jerry Douglass, and Laurie Lewis (who was instrumental in the posthumous release of this CD), Cajun star Michel Docet, and folk guitar legend Norman Blake, to name but a few. Sawtelle always achieved a rich tone out of his playing, but what will surprise his longtime listeners (and delight the uninitiated) is the lyrical nature of his playing on much of "Rancho". In addition to strong bluegrass (`Gonna Paint this Town" and "Angel Band"), Charles delves into blues, Cajun, and swing music, all with equal panache. And he also delivers some first rate vocals with his spooky tenor voice.

For those who buy and enjoy this CD, please check out any of the Hot Rize CD's to get another side of Sawtelle's playing - I think you'll enjoy his eclectic soloing and interplay with the other band members. In the meantime, God bless Charles Sawtelle - still a mystery, but certainly a beautiful one.

(One story I must tell - the excellent liner notes in this CD comment on Charles' belief that he could communicate with dogs. I can tell you from first hand witness that this was absolutely true! My wife and I were staying at the same motel that Hot Rize was in upstate New York, and Charles carried on a five-minute, half-talking, half-barking conversation with the owner's dog.)