Customer Reviews

Roll My Blues Away

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an amazing recording. I've owned it for about two years and I still listen to it almost every week. I give it to friends and family for birthday and Christmas gifts. Unless you hate acoustic music, you will like this album. Tony excels at both slide guitar and banjo, and his guests (Kelly Jo Phelps, for instance) are a nice touch. I've seen Tony play live several times, and he never fails to thrill me with his bluesy, celtic, bluegrass-tinged, old timey, newfangled music.

Tony Furtado's "Roll My Blues Away" has become one of my favorite CDs, but for the life of me I can't tell you how it happened. He and his collaborators (Kelly Joe Phelps, Mike Marshall, Todd Phillips, Stuart Duncan, Aaron Johnston and an enigma known only as "Brain") don't just cross genres- they redefine them, and all with excellent taste. This music really grows on you.

This CD isn't so much about blistering technique as it is about evocative melodies. The mood varies widely from joyful romps (Waterslide) to heavy blues (Ghost of Blind Willie Johnson), but all of the pieces fit together perfectly. In this case, the whole really is greater than the sum of its parts. Folks, finds like this don't come around every day.

Every once in a great while, as a fan of music, you are allowed the opportunity to watch someone grow as a musician. You attend the shows, buy the CDs and hope for the best. For Tony Furtado, an exceptionally gifted musician by anyone's standards, the breakthrough was "Roll My Blues Away."

Before this CD I had always considered Tony a Bluegrass player. While I enjoy Bluegrass, it can be somewhat limiting in its appeal. This is the CD, the MOMENT, in which Tony changed that perception. This CD is blues, jazz, country, blues-grass and way too much fun. This CD took Tony from Bluegrass to Americana, embracing many forms of American music and blending them all in a seamless flow of emotion and positive energy.

I smile every thime I think of this CD. I own three copies.. one for home, work and my car. The "Waterslide" and "Can you Hear the Rain?" are staples of the live Furtado performance. Every song is well recorded, clean, energetic and comfortable. The music challanges and invites. There isn't a bad "cut" on the CD. My only regret is that we had to wait another year or so for Tony to sing!

I've made a lot of records in the last fifteen years, but this one was very special. Not only did Tony write and play some exceptional melodies, but all the musicians were at their tops in performance. Previously known as a 2 time national banjo champ with 4 records under his belt, this recording marks Tony's first as a slide guitar player. He is already being dubbed the "next Ry Cooder".

As the engineer and producer, this was one of the few records I've made that I can actually listen to after it comes out.

I saw Tony open up for Eric Johnson in Cleveland last week and he put on an amazing set. It was stipped down, just him along with his guitar/banjo/slide. If you like acoustic music that blends bluegrass & celtic sound, then I recommend "Roll My Blues Away"

Don't be lookin for bluegrass licks on this album - it is pure funk. Delightful, melodious, extremely listenable. This cd has a great mixture of tunes and styles so you won't get bogged down in that same-ol' same-o.
It's a little embarrasing that a guy from Florida had to tell me about a musician that lives a couple of miles from me, but I'm damn glad he did.

I bought this album because of the guest appearance by Kelly Joe Phelps- a unique acoustic blues musician of the highest calibur, and except for a few of Sandy Bull's unusual outings (check out Reinventions for a cool version of Carmina Burana on banjo-- I'm not joking), I didn't get into the banjo until I heard Chris Whitley use it to great effect on Living with the Law and Dirt Floor (the latter of which ranks as one of the best albums ever). However, Furtado has proven himself to me, even as a slide guitarist playing along with the master, Kelly Joe Phelps. From the first time we hear that slide banjo (yes, a slide banjo, and yes, it is quite cool) on the first track, Furtado shows himself to be an artist with unique vision. Stylistically, this album is all over the place, with traditional bluegrass, blues, folk, and Celtic each showing up individually and in conjunction (yes, it is apparently possible) across the album. Only Leftover Salmon is capable of blending bluegrass with so many other styles as seamlessly as Tony Furtado. As a warning, his other albums have a much more traditional bluegrass sound.

If you ever wonder if there really is magic in this world, the answer is yes. You will find it where a true artist shows his work. In this case it is in the music of Tony Furtado. You will recognize the magic in the sounds that go beyond listening pleasure. This music transports you to a place far removed from your psysical location. It could be the image of a distant memory or somewhere you have never been. In either case the music enfolds your mind and assures you that you are with friends. For me this happens on cut #2 "The Ghost of Blind Willie Johnson". It always brings me to the back roads of West Virginia at a time when the aroma of sour mash filled the woods. A place where earth-stained overalls were the dress code of every day. And the gaunt faces of the men wearing them showed the strength and determination needed to survive the hard times. You may find the magic in another of these wonderful songs but I am sure that there is at least one magical song in this album for any music lover. Enjoy and have a wonderful trip.

All these years later this remains one of my favorite CDs, period. Tony's musicianship is terrific, the tunes are lyrical and engaging, and overall this music warms the soul and makes us better persons. Highly recommended!

So I listened to track 3 on "LastFM.com" and fell in love with it.
I bought the album and feel well justified. I told my family about it and they all nodded and smiled until I played it for them. Now they all want a copy of their own... I win. It now stays in the convertible and is perfect company for a slow ride down the Natchez Trace while the redbuds bloom.
If you like Bella Fleck, and a twist of occasional Celtic, you'll love this.