Lefty's Old Guitar

J.D. Crowe & The New South

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 10, 2006)
• Original Release Date: June 27, 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rounder / Umgd
• ASIN: B000FKO5E2
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #130,574 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

At the age of 69, J.D. Crowe enters his fifth decade of recording surveying the past and the present--and seeing nothing but pure bluegrass. Even when employing nonstandard instruments like pedal steel (played by Nashville genius Doug Jernigan) or breaking the rules of Scrugg-style banjo all over again, Crowe continues to draw on the sound and style that made the first New South album (Rounder 0044) a landmark. The low- and high-tenor blend of Rickey Wasson and Dwight McCall echoes the classic harmonies of Tony Rice and Ricky Skaggs, and the instrumental brilliance is always subordinate to good songs--contemporary in feel yet indebted to an honest, rural-based lyricism and durable, flexible old-time traditions. The band rocks through the public domain "Roving Gambler," jumps freights nimbly on "I'm a Hobo," and then subverts the myths on "In My Next Life," a devastating portrait of rural, working life and dreams. Cindy Walker's chestnut "Blue Bonnet Lane" is a showcase for McCall's sugary-smooth high lead singing and, of course, Crowe's wicked little banjo fills, while the title track, a highlight of New South live sets for years, is especially welcome. The album's only stumble is "You Can Be a Millionaire with Me," which makes an unfortunate equation between capital accumulation and soul salvation. Ultimately, music this rich doesn't need saving. --Roy Kasten

Product Description

No Description Available.
Genre: Bluegrass
Media Format: Compact Disk
Rating:
Release Date: 10-OCT-2006

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lefty's Old Guitar, October 18, 2006

By	Old enough to know better - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

The first time I listened to this CD I was disappointed that there weren't a lot of blazing banjo solos. Also, too many of the songs sound like country rather than bluegrass. However, I played the CD again and simply listened to the music, and appreciated the musical skills of these musicians. Getting rid of my preconceptions of what I thought should be on the CD, I felt differently about the CD the second time around. Nice enjoyable music, but not what I had hoped for from banjo virtuoso J. D. Crowe.
Addendum 2/19/07: I have been listening to this CD a lot, and it has become one of my favorites. Although I am not a big country music fan, the songs on this CD are just too good to pass up. If I were to review this CD today, I would now give it 5 stars. (I don't know how to change the star rating.)

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eclectic songs that are as sure to become as classic & influential as J.D. Crowe's seminal works, December 29, 2006

By	J. Ross "a-music_fan" (Roseburg, OR USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Playing Time - 34:10 -- From Kentucky, J.D. Crowe began his career as a member of Mac Wiseman's band in 1955. Thus, "Lefty's Old Guitar" is also somewhat of a half century celebratory milestone for J.D. After an early stint with Jimmy Martin, he formed his own group in 1968, The Kentucky Mountain Boys (with Doyle Lawson and Red Allen). The New South first took the stage in 1974 with Tony Rice, Ricky Skaggs and Jerry Douglas. Abut 2002, Rounder Records re-released "My Home Ain't in the Hall of Fame" (the band's seminal 1978 album). Over the years, band alumni have included Keith Whitley, Jimmy Gaudreau, Paul Adkins, Wendy Miller, Gene Johnson (Diamond Rio), Tony King (Brooks and Dunn), and many others. In 1999, J.D. and The New South put out the album "Come on Down to My World," that introduced us to Dwight McCall's singing and mandolin playing. A year later, however, some of their bandmates left to form another stellar group, Wildfire. That 1999 album was the band's last studio album until "Lefty's Old Guitar" hit the mark.

Today, the award-winning banjo player's band is comprised of some masterful pickers and singers - Dwight McCall (mandolin, vocals), Rickey Wasson (guitar, vocals), Ron Stewart (fiddle), and Harold Nixon (bass). Crowe, of course, also typically sings a baritone harmony in choruses. Their vocal blends are resonant, full of joy or sung with pathos, when needed. For their highest, lonesomest sound, check out "She Knows When You're On My Mind Again," that lays in Cia Cherryholmes' high baritone harmony on the very top. While Wasson does most of the lead vocalizing on "Lefty's Old Guitar," McCall's sumptuous high voice belts out the verses' lyrics on his own self-penned "I Only Wish You Knew," Larry Sparks' "Just Loving You," and Cindy Walker's "Blue Bonnet Lane."

Their contemporary repertoire is arranged with shared breaks and crafty instrumental fills. "Lefty's Old Guitar" has been a long time, about seven years, in coming. I guess that the band and record label felt that the current personnel had now solidified into a very cohesive unit of impeccability. Crowe has always been astute about incorporating some country feeling into his music. Doug Jernigan's pedal steel on two cuts doesn't bother me, and I appreciate their not feeling a need to put drums or percussion into the mix. Other producers (usually Nashville-based) feel that `power' bluegrass music needs drums to present commercial, radio-friendly fare. J.D. Crowe proves that it just ain't so! One thing I did find missing from their successful formula, however, would be a hard-driving barnburner that really challenges the instrumental picking and bowing prowess of highly regarded award winners like Ronnie Stewart. However, the set still provides some eclectic ups and downs in tempos for songs that are as sure to become as classic and influential as some of J.D. Crowe's seminal works. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Good Stuff!, November 18, 2006

By	Robert N. Abercrombie "banjoneely" (Rock Hill, SC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

JD Crowe has struck gold with this CD! This CD sounds contemparary without sacrificing the traditional bluegrass sound. This CD contains great arrangements that fit bluegrass but leave the listner guessing at what may happen next. This is the best I have heard from Crowe since the Skaggs/Rice days. The song selections, vocals and instrumentations are as good as anything else current in bluegrass today. JD's banjo picking sounds very youthful and full of that great tone that has set him apart from other pickers of his generation for so many years. To me Scruggs, Crowe and Fleck are what define great banjo playing. Thanks JD for a great CD!