Customer Reviews

Weather & Water

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I discovered this band from an NPR/public radio airing last week. I went out and bought the album from hearing "Long Way Down," and I have to say that it's one of the most geniune and sincere acoustic albums I've heard in years. The music itself is wonderful, but the lyrics lend the music an authenticity that is often missing from popular music: the things greencard sing about are what you and I live everyday, not idealized hopeful future-land. The sound and menaing resonate more with the Louvin Brothers and less so with contemporar country/bluegrass faire. It's definately a bluegrass for the alt-country generation, but it also has appeal for the old timers. This is a masterful bluegrass crossover I cannot recommend more highly! Earnest and white, these Aussies have hit the nerve . . . .

The Greencards have earned their success the hard way. Individually they learned the business playing for other artists such as Rodney Crowell . They actually met and came together as a result of working on a project for another artist. They have build a fan base using the time honored tradition of opening for bands they respected musically. In short, they are a flashback to a time when musicians became successful by making, of all things, music. On their second album they remind new fans and old exactly what kind of music can be wrung of this kind of work. Haunting and memorable, The Greencards may just be the best contemporary straight bluegrass band on the scene today.
The album opens with the haunting tribute to losing a loved one, "The Ghost of You And Me," which features Carol Young's voice to its best advantage. The title track is a chilling ballad, penned by fellow Aussie Jed Hughes, about a man forced by economics into commercial fishing, trapped on a boat in a storm. "Almost Home" is a quick fingered and fast paced instrumental which still maintains the quietly beautiful mood of the album. "Like A Melody" is a warm, pretty love song, featuring Kym Warner on vocals. The albums lead off single "Time" returns to the melancholy vocals of Carol Young, accentuated to perfection by the fiddle and mandolin of Eamon McLoughlin and Kym Warner respectively. "Long Way Down" allows Warner the chance to stretch his vocals into a melancholy and minor keyed song which sums up the album's theme of the vagarities of love and loss. "Marty's Kitchen" is a striking and rousing instant instrumental classic which includes plenty of fiddle and two guitar solos. Next they break into the albums second cover, Patty Griffin's "What You Are," which finds Carol Young singing at her musing and heartbreaking best. In "Don't Want Forever" Young muses prettily "give me a little of you time/I think there's something we could find/I don't want forever/Just give me tonight." This is followed by "The Ballad of Kitty Wells" which features Warner drawing on his adopted Appalachian roots in a tale lust, adultery and murder. "Bordered On A Breakdown" continues the theme of a man brought to the brink of madness by the love of a fickle woman. The album closes with "The House On Vine Street," a quiet and introspective instrumental song.
With Weather and Water The Greencards continue their heritage of understated beauty. While they follow the same general pattern of Allison Krauss and Union Station, they carve their own ground and Carol Young is often a more satisfying vocalist. This combination turned Movin' On into one of the most talked about debut albums in years. Weather and Water brings this talent into focus with a their continual thread of time, love and loss. Between the heart wrenching pluck of Warner's mandolin, the weeping of McLaughlin's fiddle and the melancholy ach of Young's voice, Weather and Water is an album not soon forgotten, even in the current sea of Contemporary Bluegrass albums.

The recording itself is beautifully mixed.
Each voice and instrument is crystal clear.
A beauty to listen to !

Harmony seems to be a forgotten part of modern music.
This is just a gem.
The voices mesh together like silk and honey.

I realized after listening to one of my stations on Pandora that I kept loving songs and finding they were the Greencards on this album. I loved it so much, I bought it. Pandora is a great tool becaus it led me to this fabulously simple yet rich album. Love it, and I highly recommend it.

If you want to actually hear a beautifully recorded and performed album - this is it! Borrowing Gary Paczosa from Alison Krauss and Kelly Wiliis' last and released on Dualtone should give you a clue as to the artistry and excellence of this sophmore effort by truly unique and genuine recording artists. Every song is a gem - buy it - you'll love it!

This Nashville-by-way-of-Austin trio can actually trace its roots back to Australia and Great Britain, from which its three players hail. Their shared interest in bluegrass and acoustic string-band music has produced some very fine modern bluegrass, with the requisite mandolin and fiddle playing set against acoustic bass. What sets this threesome apart from Alison Krauss, Nickle Creek and others exploring the same contemporary ground are the dream-time tempos of their original ballads, and the contemplative introspection of their vocals and harmonies. Engineer Gary Paczosa (Alison Krauss, Dolly Parton, Nickle Creek) captured the acoustic picking and the intertwined harmonies with tremendous clarity, bringing The Greencards' charms right into your living room. [©2005 hyperbolium dot com]

My Greencards Weather & Water CD came right away. I was so delighted with the promptness in which the package was mailed out and also the quality of the CD. I popped it into my player immediately and listened to the music all afternoon. The CD has a good quality sound to it. I'm am very pleased with my purchase and am also pleased in dealing with Amazon. They have proven to be very trustworthy and reliable. Something that is very important when dealing with purchasing a product on line.

It's difficult to place The Greencards music in a single category. At first listen the group comes across as sort of a "contemporary folk" band, but the bluegrass and celtic roots are very strong. I usually describe this to friends as "sort of like bluegrass without the banjos" but that really doesn't do justice to the group either. About the only label that really fits is "unique".

I bought this as a used CD and was very pleased with the quality of the product. I highly recommend the artist for a unique listening experience. I also recommend Amazon as a marketplace for quality music products at the best possible prices.

We have several Greencards albums and this is my favorite. I always enjoy listening to their wonderful harmonies and beautiful melodies. They are great live and if you have a chance to see them you will not be disappointed.

Never heard of them before. Read the reviews. Great surprise! The music is wonderful. Not an especially sappy person but REALLY like "What you are" (a Patty Griffin song) - great version. It's cheap used - buy it - enjoy.