Customer Reviews

Old Southern Porches

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

 

 

An earlier reviewer suggests that there's not much blue in the grass because most of the songs are slow, but there's a lot more to bluegrass than he or she seems to realise, as they would discover by listening to Bill Monroe, who created the music to begin with.

Dale Ann has a pure voice, ideally suited to the type of songs she sings. Some of the songs are very emotional, particularly A face on a poster. This is about a teenager who runs away from home, but eventually realises that the world does not offer an easy escape and eventually returns.

For those who want upbeat music, Dale Ann shows she can do that with a great cover of Stuck in the middle with you. This was a huge hit in the seventies by British group Stealers Wheel (with Gerry Rafferty as their lead singer - he achieved greater fame with his song Baker Street).

This is a brilliant bluegrass album by Dale Ann who, apart from her solo recordings, was also a member of the New Coon Creek Girls, an excellent bluegrass group.

I'm not generally a big bluegrass fan, and I just happened to hear "Reason Enough" (the first track on the album) while flipping through the digital music channels. I immediately came online and bought the CD.

Perhaps because I'm not a huge bluegrass fan, a lot of the songs on this CD are not to my taste, but, appropriately enough, "Reason Enough" is reason enough to buy the CD. It's a beautiful song, and Dale's voice matches it perfectly. It also perfectly sums up the situation if you've just suffered a break-up. It's one of those gems that you find where you least expect them, and it's not-to-be-missed.

Her voice is pure. The writing is fantastic. The instrumentation is great. This CD should bring in a lot of folks to Bluegrass music. For all the people that have felt betrayed by the shift in country music, give Southern Porches a listen.

When I first heard A face on a poster I was sitting in the dark and I thought who has this angelic voice. The words brought tears to my eyes, beautiful lyrics and sweet voice.

Heard it on public radio tonight...some great songs, especially "Reason Enough". Buy it, you'll like it!

I have to downgrade this album to only two stars. In most of these selections Bradley has dropped the fast pace and high lonesome sound that are the hallmarks of bluegrass music. It appears that she has joined Nashville by moving bluegrass "uptown".