Customer Reviews

New Nashville Cats

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

A great rollicking Nashville CD. Slick, humorous, and with a supporting cast whose work had me constantly shouting to myself, "Whoa! How did they do that?"

I heard the CD at a friend's house, and within a week I had ordered a copy for myself.

It's no surprise that O'Connor can play the sh1t out of a fiddle (and guitar, mandolin, etc). And to those who've followed his career it's no surprise that he can write interesting compositions. You get a lot of both on this album. What you also get are some very inspired performances by many of Nashville's greatest pickers. The combination of melodically interesting songs and playing that is both heartfelt and virtuosic makes for a very satisfying listen indeed. If you have even a passing interest in bluegrass, swing, country, celtic music, jazz, or any sort of improvised music at all you will certainly find something (and most likely a lot more than just something) to enjoy on this album.

A friend of mine recommended this album years ago and I still listen to it with awe. I have since purchased all the Mark O'Connor albums I can lay hands on. This music passes the movement test: you can't sit still listening to it unless you're dead, and then you're not really listening to it.

I had this tape a number of years ago and my oh my...I wore it out and now i'm back to order me another one. It is in my top 5 of favs!!! A lot of awesome musicians having a lot of fun in an old bluegrass style but still a style of thier own.. I'd recommend this tape to anyone that just loves country, bluegrass and just wants to have some good ole fun!!!

THIS CD IS EVERYTHING IT PROMISED TO BE. IT IS DIFFICULT TO LOCATE IN THE AVERAGE MARKET, BUT AMAZON.COM CAME THROUGH WITH FLYING COLORS.

If you don't have this in your collection, I must say,...YOU ARE MISSING OUT! This album is awesome overall, and being a fellow fiddle player, I know what I'm talking about! :) Mark's talent, mixed with some of the best musicians in Nashville, make this album a "have to have!" It has such a variety of styles, so there's sure to be SOMETHING you'll like on it! The cut of "Restless" (which includes Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs, and Steve Wariner) has won many country awards...and if you get the album, you'll see why! And Orange Blossom Special was played on this album (I believe)...the fastest it has ever been played! I heard Mark talk about it once, and he said that the drummer had been practicing it at a certain tempo--lightning fast--and when they got in the studio to cut it, they only had ONE chance, or the drummer would be DEAD, but Mark pushed him to the limit--FASTER than what he had practiced!--and they never missed a beat! Just buy it....you WON'T be disappointed!

This is a must-own album for any music fan or musician. Instead of the usual "star-in-a-cowboy-hat" of country music, this album features the most incredible musicians that make the frontman sound good.

Mark O'Connor is a virtuoso. Each track has even more amazing musicians that round out the sound. This album could be placed in a time capsule or put on a rocketship to outer space for alien cultures to showcase examples of...Oh, that is what a fiddle, Mandolin, steel guitar, dobro, acoustic guitar, honky-tonk piano, harmonica, dulcimer, mountain dulcimer, hammered dulcimer, double bass...etc should sound like.

And especially if you are a musician, you'll re-listen over and over because you will truly understand HOW impossible it is make the music that you just heard. It will rank in top 3 of your Desert Island Albums.

Championship bluegrass fiddler Mark O'Connor and various hotshot picker pals take on the explosive sounds of "young country" commercial music, as well as amped-up versions of bluegrass and western swing. To say that truegrass fans won't like this album is simply stating the obvious -- why country fans would, either, is a little harder to sort out. Certainly O'Connor & Co. are dazzlingly talented musicians, and it is kind of liberating to hear them horsing around and cutting loose from the boundaries of the new- and bluegrass, where he made his mark. Still, O'Connor playing electric sounds a lot like Charlie Daniels, and the musical style that he is so affectionately sending up (TV commercial country) simply lacks soul. It would have been a lot more interesting if he'd played it straight and put a little more sincere emotion into the performances.

I recently purchased this CD and really liked several of the songs. There was one disappointment, though. I was hoping to hear the version of the "Orange Blossom Special" that was played with the children in the movie, "Music From The Heart". If you are looking for the same version as it was played in the movie, you won't find that one on this CD. That was disappointing for me. What you will get is a speeded up version which if you are into speeded up fiddle playing, you will like it. I enjoyed the songs on this CD that Celtic DANCING could be done to. There are a few songs on this CD that are way too fast-paced for my taste. I like music you can dance to or sit and listen to. The too fast paced music just makes me want to leave the room, but that's just me! I want to hear Orange Blossom Special played the way it was in the movie, "Music From The Heart". I'm still looking for it?

What a disappointment. This is an accomplished fiddler at the peak of his skills who has lost respect for the music he plays. One of the great pieces of music for his instrument is Orange Blossom Special, but he's gotten so bored he intersperses the theme music from Bonanza as well as the Flintstones.

What is this about? Cute? Clever? Fun? Not really. Just a finger in the air toward bluegrass.

The New Nashville Cats? Thanks, but no thanks. Please bring back the old alley cats who loved the music.