Search - James Alan Shelton :: Half Moon Bay

Expressive, moving album from a captivating instrumentalist

J. Ross | Roseburg, OR USA | 06/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Playing Time - 36:07 -- James Alan Shelton knows how to make a listener very happy with his full guitar sound and clean picking on a number of catchy melodies like his own self-penned opener, "Half Moon Bay," and a handful of traditional favorites like "Goodbye Liza Jane," "Darlin' Nellie Gray," "Little Bennie," "Road to Columbus" and "Texas Gales." Shelton also plays some banjo on a favorite Webb Pierce number, "Tupelo County Jail." We even hear Shelton pick the eight strings of the mandolin on "Married Life Blues" and "Eight More Miles to Louisville." This all adds up to a great showcase of Shelton's multi-instrumental talent, accompanied by Dr. Ralph Stanley, Ralph Stanley II, Steve Sparkman, Adam Steffey, Tim Stafford, Barry Bales, Hunter Berry, Shawn Lane, Dan Moneyhun, Todd Meade, John Rigsby, Keith Williams, and Bill Dunham.

From Virginia, James is the lead guitar player for Ralph Stanley's Clinch Mountain Boys. Learning to pick out melodies on guitar from listening to his maternal grandfather's harmonica, James also caught a good share of bluegrass on television. His early bluegrass bands included the Bluegrass Travelers, the Larkin Brothers, Flint Hill, and Blue Ridge. In 1992, James first appeared for a short time with Ralph Stanley when Junior Blankenship took a few weeks off. In early 1994, James when to work for Ralph on a fulltime basis. Six solo album projects have documented his music during the last decade. One, in collaboration with crosspicking legend George Shuffler, was nominated by IBMA for the 2000 Recorded Event of the Year Award. Shelton now picks a 1946 Martin or Signature Huss and Dalton dreadnought guitar. It's especially nice to hear an album that doesn't try to push the tempos too far to extreme. The material chosen should be lyrical, fluid, precise and not overly tricky. The band is obviously trying to capture the mountain mood with instrumental passages (especially guitar) that allow the songs to breathe. Look closely at the succinct liner notes and discover that less than half of the tracks include banjo. John Rigsby sings "Handsome Molly" solo, and "Little Bennie" features a trio of Ralph Stanley, his son, and Rigsby. The trio for the other three vocal numbers is Moneyhun, Lane and Stafford. Unlike many projects that emphasize one or the other, it's a treat to hear nearly equal offerings of instrumental and vocal numbers. "Half Moon Bay" has a very pleasing personality. While certainly not explosive, the album is still very expressive and moving. A very captivating instrumentalist, James Alan Shelton and friends resist the temptation to overplay. Their recipe for traditional music includes just the right ingredients and proportions. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)"