Search - John Hartford :: Tribute to John Hartford: Live From Mountain Stage

Goodbye John....

Brian Robertson | Austin, Texas United States | 07/28/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I'm a huge fan of John Hartford's and have been since I saw him live in Austin many, many years ago. Those who gathered together to play John's music were better musicians than I, but not necessarily bigger fans! In any event, this is not the album to get as an introduction to John -- Aereo-Plain, Live on Mountain Stage or Good Old Boys are far better for that.The performances are all wonderful here, but what comes through is the emotional energy that runs through it. John was dying of cancer - everybody knew it and he knew everybody knew it -- and his appearance on the final few songs is tough to get through. His fiddle wobbles here and there and his voice is touched by the medication and treatment he'd been through. For those of us who knew his voice, you can hear death's whisperings going on in there and it's disturbing to listen to. What saves it? The very last short speech and song that John gives.This was recorded a full 9 months before his death, as I understand it, and I've given it a 3 because I want to stress this isn't an introduction, but an emotional experience that, when seen within the body of his work, shows what American music has lost."

A heartfelt tribute...............but a mediocre album

James D. Ahrens | Minneapolis, MN USA | 12/27/2001

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I've loved John Hartford's music for years, and was very happy that a tribute had taken place and was preserved for posterity. But I found the disc that resulted disappointing. The breadth and depth of Hartford's music calls for a towering tribute. Unfortunately, this isn't it. There are some bright spots .... Riders in the Sky doing "Billy the Kid," Gillian Welch's wonderful rendition of "In Tall Buildings," and, of course, the pieces Hartford does with his string band (especially "Watching the River Go By"). But the great parts are weighed down with, for example, John Cowan's overwrought "Dark as a Dungeon" and the Jamie Hartford Band's run-of-the mill country rock -- pleasant, but nothing to write home about.I'm glad I got this album -- it rounds out my collection, and Hartford's "goodbye" on the last track is priceless. But this one is for fanatics like me only. For a better introduction to his later music, try "Live at College Station, Pennsylvania" or "Good Old Boys.""

Enjoyable

Sparky Chick | 02/02/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I liked this album myself. My favorite tracks being Gillian Welch's In Tall Buildings and Tim O'Brien;s More Love. This really isn't a John Hartford album, but rather a tribute to him There are a few great numbers by him however that are wonderful and amusing in a dark humor sort of way."