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Good to hear Earl, but disappointing combos

Kenneth B. Hunt | 10/10/2001

(2 out of 5 stars)

"It is wonderful that Earl Scruggs is performing new music. He is at the top, top level of musicians and has inspired banjo performers for the past fifty years. Unfortunately, this CD is a bit of a disappointment. It is nice that he tries to play with other musicians and tries to mix a variety of styles. The problem is in the choice of those musicians. Elton John's early work was ok, but for the last twenty-five years he has been the king of vanilla pop and is about the last choice for an album like this. He delivers a sterile and flowery performance that does not fit with Earl's playing. Sting, Don Henley and some of the other performers fall into much the same category. There are some positive standouts. John Fogerty meshes with Earl in a great performance that really captures that country-bluegrass feel. As another reviewer wrote, Foggy Mountain Breakdown, Earl's trademark song, is a little overblown with ten musicians each performing a break on it. A more stripped-down version would have been far better. An interesting and ironic standout is Steve Martin's break on this song (the man really can play!). He plays it using a frailing style which really gives it a unique sound- much closer to the freshness and energy of the definitive Mercury recording of forty years ago. All in all a mediocre album with a few standouts. I look forward to Earl's next work instead."

I give it a 10.

Bill Allison | Southwest Missouri, United States | 08/29/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I had a pretty unusual upbringing. I spent a lot of time on my grandfather's ranch when I was a kid and he listened to a lot of Lester and Earl, Patsy Cline, Merle Haggard, and Hank Williams. At home, my parents were more into the likes of Creedence, Skynrd, Aerosmith, The Doors, The Beatles, and the Rolling Stones. Well, I'm quite a bit older now and I still get strange looks from the record store clerks for some of the things I buy there. I mean, I doubt if there are many other twenty year olds out there who are going to buy this cd. (there may be a few, let's hope). This puppy really shines. There are quite a few on here that you would expect to show up (Marty Stuart, Travis Tritt, Vince Gill) and there are even a few suprises (Elton John, Melissa Etheridge, Sting, and John Fogerty). Perhaps the biggest suprise of all is Billy Bob Thornton's rockin' cover of "Ring of Fire". I mean, wow. It's the old Cash favorite like you've never heard it before. Disregard what Rich Kienzle says in his review about the rock singers being "out of their element". They're paying homage to one of their heros here, not trying to outshine him. Earl himself, was there for the recording and I'm quite sure that if he thought that "their overwhelming performances relegated him to the back", then it wouldn't sound the way it does. Besides, it would be pretty boring if they didn't use their own style wouldn't it? I found this cd to be well worth the cash. It's an eclectic mix of down home twang brought to you by an extremely wide range of some of today's greats. Mr. Earl's picking has never sounded better (God, what I'd do to play that good). This cd is not just for Scruggs fans. If you've never been familiar with his stuff, this is a great place for newbies to get started. It will also be quite popular among Billy Bob Thornton fans. He has a very smooth and deep voice. The hip-hop, beat, Earl's banjo picking, and Thornton's voice give the classic "ring of fire" a whole new dimension. Check out his studio album when it comes out next month."

Best CD of the year

Kenneth B. Hunt | Madison, AL USA | 09/04/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"First, my tastes: I'm a bluegrass fan, a jazz fan and a rock fan. Springsteen, U2, Miles Davis and Earl Scruggs are my favorite artists. I don't care for contemporary country music at all. As for Earle, I have only listened to his Flatt & Scruggs work to date. Now that you know where I'm coming from... this is a great CD. The amazon review blasts the billy bob thorton song, which isn't my favorite, but it isn't that bad. And the Sting song had to grow on me. On first listening, I thought it was corny. And you might think (as the amazon reviewer says) that the Foggy Mountain Breakdown instrumental would "break down" under the weight of 10 artists. It might have, if they hadn't done a great job in the liner notes of clarifying who is playing each solo. This makes it pure fun, to sit back and visualize Steve Martin, Albert Lee and the rest having their turn.Earl show tremendous taste on this CD. He can obviously still cut loose when its called for, but its the subtle, understated fills and backup, and the incredible banjo tone, that make so many of these songs beautiful. The tones of the banjo heard on this CD are as defining as any banjo recording I've heard (and I'm a banjo player). Its not a case of Earl being overwhelmed or outshined... its Earl doing what the song calls for. Sometimes, less is more, even when its your own tribute collection."