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COUNTRY,
BLUEGRASS & OLD-TIMEY
Kathy
Kallick -> Kris Kristofferson
| KATHY KALLICK |
Sugar Hill 3820 |
Matters Of The Heart |
● CD $15.98 |
13 tracks, 46 min., recommended
The longtime lead vocalist
of The Good Ol' Persons steps out here in her first solo effort, offering
13 sparkling examples of her songwriting and singing skills. Backed by
fellow Persons Sally Van Meter, John Reischman, Kevin Wimmer, and album
producer Todd Phillips, Kathy also employs many other notables, among them
Stuart Duncan, Jerry Douglas, Nina Gerber, and Scott Nygard. Bakery
Window Wedding, a duet with Tim O'Brien, is bound to be recorded by
some famous country duo sometime and become a classic, but this version is
going to be hard to beat. Other gems include Man In The Moon/ Just
Takes Time/ You Were In Love/ Save Everything/ Wish Me Well. Very
impressive. (RP)
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| ROBERT EARL KEEN JR. |
Sugar Hill 1028 |
West Textures |
● CD $15.98 |
11 tracks, 38 mins., good
This country singer has his rough
edges and a somewhat dodgy voice but writes serviceable country songs.
Most of the songs here are originals, full of drinking, gambling,
bittersweet romance, and all the trappings of the good ole boy country
life of trucks, fishing, hard-won paychecks, and honkytonks. With a solid
Nashville backing lineup including Jerry Douglas and Roy Huskey, Jr., Keen
tells his slice of life stories pretty well. Occasionally he sneaks in a
surprise, like his Road Goes On Forever, a tale of a couple of
lovable drug dealers, one getting a Mercedes, the other getting the chair.
And he saves the best line on the album for toward the end when he sing,
"It's the little things... the little things... that piss me
off." Play that if you dare, Nashville radio! (DC)
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| ROBERT EARL KEEN JR. |
Sugar Hill 1051 |
No. 2 LIVE Dinner |
● CD $15.98 |
17 tracks, 67 min., recommended
A generous live set by this
country/Americana artist, recorded during 1995 at the Floores Country
Store in Helotes, Texas and at the Cactus Cafe Ballroom in Austin. And it
should come as no particular surprise that here, on his sixth disc, he
performs quite a few of his earlier, well known numbers. Specifically, the
program includes Gringo Honeymoon, Merry Christmas from the
Family, Five Pound Bass, Sonora's Death Row, Think It
Over One Time, Amarillo Highway, The Road Goes on Forever,
Dreadful Selfish Crime, Mariano, and I'm Comin' Home.
It's a solid set from start to finish; unfortunately the sound is a bit
dull. (DH)
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| TOMMY KENT |
Bear Family BCD 15484 |
Susie Darlin' |
● CD $21.98 |
Recorded 1958-1964, 26 tracks, w. booklet
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| THE KENTUCKY COLONELS |
Vanguard VCD 77004 |
Long Journey Home |
● CD $15.98 |
Recorded live in 1964 at Newport, these recordings capture
one of the most exciting 60's bluegrass revival bands. The Colonels'
featured the groundbreaking and highly influential lead guitar of Clarence
White, also Clarence's brother Roland on mandolin, Billy Ray Lathum on
banjo, and Roger Bush on bass. Their repertoire was strictly traditional,
as represented here by Roll On Buddy/ A Beautiful Life/ Get On Your
Knees And Pray/ Over In The Glory Land/ Sally Ann/ Shady Grove and
more. Also included are six numbers with Clarence joining Doc Watson at a
guitar workshop; Doc was certainly one of the first to pick fiddle and
banjo tunes out on the guitar, and White incorporated that technique into
his style quite easily. Their duets on Farewell Blues/ Beaumont Rag/
Lonesome Road Blues/ Footprints In The Snow and two others are very
special. The Colonels also back up banjo innovator Bill Keith on four
tunes here. All in all quite a package; this disc evokes memories of a
time when city folks were discovering bluegrass and these musicians were
determining the sound of bluegrass to come. The ambient crowd sounds and
applause add to the excitement. (RP)
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| DOUG KERSHAW |
Warner Bros. 25964 |
The Best Of Doug Kershaw |
● CD $10.98 |
The "Ragin' Cajun's" best from 3 Reprise Lps.
Includes Louisiana Man/ Diggy Diggy Lo, and Jambalaya.
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| CLARK KESSINGER |
County 2713 |
The Legend Of Clark Kessinger |
● CD $15.98 |
Reissue of mid 60s album, originally on Kanawha Records
featuring superb old time fiddle player from West Vifginia. With Gene
Meade on guitar and Wayne Hauser on banjo.
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| HAL KETCHUM |
Curb 77450 |
Past The Point Of Rescue |
● CD $10.98 |
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| BOB KING |
Bear Family BCD 15718 |
Songs That Tell A Story |
● CD $21.98 |
30 tracks, 77 min., good
From the point of view of the
artist's chronology, this is the second disc from Bear Family to review
the Rodeo Records performances of Canadian artist Bob King, this time
covering the years 1962-1963. Here too, King performs a mix of original
material and covers of American hits in a easy but rather uninspired
style. Featured numbers include I'm Just Here to Get My Baby Out of
Jail/ The French Song/ When the Work's All Done This Fall/ Rockin' Alone
in an Old Rockin' Chair/ Mary Ann Regrets, and Jimmie Brown the
Newsboy. Accompaniment is usually limited to King's guitar, and two
numbers feature assistance from his wife Marie. Otherwise, sound, graphics
and notes are all excellent. (DH)
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| BOB KING & THE
COUNTRY KINGS |
Bear Family BCD 15719 |
Bob King & The Country Kings |
● CD $21.98 |
26 tracks, 63 min., good
Canadian artist Bob King spent most of his professional career in the Ottawa
Valley country music scene, performing original material and covering
American hits in a easy, lighthearted style - but never quite gaining
recognition in the illusive US market. This disc features his Rodeo label
recordings from 1958-1963. Featured tracks include Give My Love To Rose/
If the Things They Say Are True/ Let's Make a Fair Trade/ My Son Calls
Another Man Daddy, and a remake of Bill Parson's (actually Bobby Bare's)
The All American Boy, called here The All Canadian Boy. All in
all, more pleasant than compelling. Production values are otherwise up to
Bear Family's usual standards with fine sound, graphics, and notes. (DH)
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| CLAUDE KING |
Bear Family BCD 15619 |
More Than Climbing This Mountain |
● CD $125.98 |
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| CLAUDE KING |
Collectables 6041 |
Wolverton Mountain |
● CD $13.98 |
16 Columbia including his biggest hits like Wolverton
Mountain/ Big River, Big Man/ The Burning Of Atlanta/ The Comancheros/ I'm
Building A Bridge and more.
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| JAMES KING |
Rounder 0305 |
These Old Pictures |
● CD $15.98 |
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| JAMES KING |
Rounder 0350 |
Lonesome And Then Some |
● CD $15.98 |
12 tracks, 36 min; essential
James's first Rounder album, "These Old Pictures" (Rounder 0305 -
$15.98), brought him to the attention
of many bluegrass enthusiasts for the first time, and was justifiably
regarded as perhaps the finest new traditional album to emerge last year.
This second Rounder album is a more than worthy follow-up, revealing
Virginia born James King to be among the finest traditional bluegrass lead
vocalists on the current scene. Influenced by the best of his
predecessors, James has frequently sung with Ralph Stanley as lead
vocalist, and the influence of the late Carter Stanley is discernable in
his style, and the intensity of his vocal approach, along with his fierce,
conviction drenched delivery, reminds me of Dave Evans, but James is his
own man. His reading of Hazel Dickens'classic These Old Pictures is
hair-raising stuff, and he wrings every drop of emotion from Vince Gill's
hit When I Call Your Name. James is ably abetted here by members of
The Johnson Mountain Boys, including Dudley Connell on harmony vocals, Tom
Adams, David McLaughlin, and Marshall Wilborn, plus Mike Compton and Tinm
Smith as he cuts loose on a repertoire of old and new bluegrass numbers
and honkytonkers. (RP)
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| PEE WEE KING |
Bear Family BCD 15727 |
And The Golden West Cowboys |
● CD $145.98 |
6 CD box set, 153 tracks, recommended
It's Bear Family, it's
everything and it starts with King's earliest recordings for the tiny Nash
label (later reissued on Bullet). From their, it picks up his entire
1946-1958 RCA Victor output, plus one recorded spoken autobiography by Pee
Wee. Don't expect a slew of hot western swing. The listener who prefers
hotter swing should also expect a substantial number of novelties and the
occasional sticky-sweet ballads. For sure, King and the boys could cook
when they wanted to. Throughout its existence, the Cowboys had excellent
musicians in steel guitarist Bobby Koefer and fiddler Shorty Boyd. They
didn't particularly stand out on the big hits like Tennessee Waltz
and his 1952 crossover smash Slow Poke. Yet they did record some
exciting swing like Forty Nine Women, Oh Monah! Ten
Gallon Boogie and the 1950's instrumentals Flying Home and Woodchopper's
Ball. Nor were they slouches on their white bread cover version of
LaVern Baker's Tweedlee Dee. It wouldn't be fair to judge King by
conventional standards of Western Swing. Unlike Bob Wills, who played
Southwest dancehalls for decades, King & Co. toured the entire nation,
concentrating on stage shows (not dances) in auditoriums and theaters in
the South, the East Coast and Midwest. Stage shows required a wider
variety of material than dances, which at least partly explains the
schlock. Enough cannot be said about the quality of the booklet. The
photos are particularly outstanding. The usual complete discography is
included and Otto Kitsinger's outstanding research sheds new light on many
areas of King's career. The downside is Kitsinger's convoluted, dull
writing (noticeable even in the chapter titles), which makes reading his
wonderful research tough going. (RK)
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| PEE WEE KING |
King 3800 |
Hall Of Fame, Inducted 1974 |
● CD $9.98 |
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| ALISON KRAUSS |
Rounder 0235 |
Too Late To Cry |
● CD $15.98 |
The teenaged Ms. Krauss is a smooth fiddler with the
traditional chops (demonstrated here on Dusty Miller ) to win
national contests and an emotive singing style that's very effective. Not
much traditional fiddling here, but some nice honky tonk singing and hot
picking by Sam Bush, Russ Barenberg, Roy Huskey, Jerry Douglas, Tony
Trishka, John Schmaltz and Lonnie Meeker. 9 originals here, 6 by a
songwriter named John Pennell, plus a new age Scottish fiddle tune by
Trishka & a very nice rendition of Rodney Crowell's Song For Life
. A mite stylized for some tastes perhaps, and not enough of that great
fiddling we've been hearing about (Strachwitz is a big fan), but the girl
is a real talent. (RP)
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| ALISON KRAUSS |
Rounder 0325 |
Now That I've Found You |
● CD $15.98 |
12 tracks, 44 min., recommended
Long time fans of this
delightful lady need to know that this issue is a compilation of tracks
from her earlier releases going back to 1987, plus three very nice
previously unreleased numbers. On the other hand, if you are new to Krauss
and Union Station, her backup ensemble, this disc makes a terrific
introduction to a major country talent. Of the unreleased tracks, I think
that Atlanta is my favorite, but it's a close call. This set is
Grade A from start to finish. Among the previously released gems are Every
Time You Say Goodbye, Tonight I'll Be Lonely Too, Sleep On,
When God Dips His Pen of Love in My Heart, and I Don't Believe
You've Met My Baby. If you like gentle, mostly acoustic country music,
led by a plaintive voice, this is a must-buy. (DH)
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| ALISON KRAUSS
& UNION STATION |
Rounder 0265 |
Two Highways |
● CD $15.98 |
Alison Krauss is still in her teens, but she is making a lot
of noise in contemporary bluegrass circles. Her fiddling is good enough to
have won her a spot on the touring Masters of the Folk Fiddle show, and
her singing voice reveals a honky tonk worldliness that belies her tender
years. Union Station is an excellent comtemporary bluegrass band, but Ms.
Krauss is clearly the reason for their existence. Bassist John Pennell is
a talented composer and contributes three originals. The other members are
Mike Harman on banjo and Jeff White on guitar. Highlights:the fiddling on Beaumont
Rag and Wild Bill Jones and Alison's singing throughout. She has quite
a set of pipes and a singing style that will be reminiscent to real
bluegrass aficionados of the vocal style of Rhonda Vincent. (RP)
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| ALISON KRAUSS
& UNION STATION |
Rounder 0285 |
Every Time You Say Goodbye |
● CD $15.98 |
A real phenomenon in bluegrass music, Alison's previous
album, "I've Got That Old Feeling", won the Bluegrass Grammy,
sold over 100,000 copies, and received a fair amount of top 40 country
airplay. Her popularity is due in part to her evolving vocal style (more
country or even pop at times than bluegrass) and her fondness for
contemporary song writers (Shawn Colvin and Karla Bonoff are both
represented here). But, she is a wonderful bluegrass fiddler, a great
harmony singer, and her band includes some of the hottest players in
bluegrass. Guitarist Tim Stafford's playing is wonderful, and his vocals
on Another Night, Another Day, Another Dollar are among the finest
on the album. Tunes include Every Time You Say Good-bye/ Last Love
Letter/ Cluck Old Hen/ Who Can Blame You/ It Won't Work This Time/ Cloudy
Days/ Shield Of Faith and Jesus Help Me To Stand. (RP)
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| ALISON KRAUSS
& UNION STATION |
Rounder 0365 |
So Long So Wrong |
● CD $15.98 |
14 tracks, 48 min., highly recommended Well, even though
there's a slimmer, straight-haired, and blond Alison Kraus starring back
at me from the cover photo here, the music being made by the remodeled
singer is thankfully very much in the newgrass/country mode that has made
both her and her delightful supporting cast musically famous. Among the
highlights here are the title track, featuring Kraus on lead vocal; No
Place to Hide, with Adam Steffey handling the lead; The Road Is a
Lover, featuring Dan Tyminski on lead; Little Liza Jane, an
uptempo instrumental; and the wistfully forlorn It Doesn't Matter,
with Kraus again singing lead. Splendid music from a reliable,
multi-talented acoustic ensemble, well worth the price of admission for
both new-comers and long-time fans. (DH)
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| KRIS KRISTOFFERSON |
Sony Music A2K 48621 |
Singer/ Songwriter |
● CD $21.98 |
A nifty 2-CD box of Kristofferson's best-loved songs. Disc 1
issues his own recordings of Jody & The Kid/ Me And Bobby McGee/
Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down/ Help Me Make It Through The Night/ Loving Her
Was Easier/ They Killed Him and more (17 songs). The second disc
contains many of the same songs, and a few more, as performed by Roy
Drusky, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Jerry Lee Lewis, Ray Price, Willie
Nelson, Hank Williams, Jr., Janis Joplin, et. al.
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| KRIS KRISTOFFERSON |
Sony Music AK 52415 |
Live At The Philharmonic |
● CD $9.98 |
24 tracks, 78 min., good. Maximum-length reissue of Monument
recordings, featuring Kris and friends Willie Nelson, Rita Coolidge and
Larry Gatlin. Late John Garfield Blues/ Loving Her Was Easier/ For The
Good Times/ Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down/ Okie From Muskogee/ Funny How Time
Slips Away/ Night Life/ Me And Bobby McGee and more.
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