Search - Various Artists :: Bluegrass Mountain Style

Timeless Bluegrass Takes You Back

J. M. Martin | Cincinnati, OH USA | 08/11/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When I was a child I remember my grandma dancing to her jangly, thumpin' Bluegrass music. As I grew up, my parents would pop the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Loretta Lynn, Johnny Cash, Conway Twitty, Tom T. Hall, and Charlie Rich in the tape player. At the time, I didn't much care for "old fogey's" music. I'm Gen-X. In later days I was a Pearl Jammer. A Smashing Pumpkin. A Red Hot Chili Pepper. Country music was anethema. It made me physically ill. Now in my thirties, I still rock and grunge out once in a while, but it's fewer and further between, and I have a true appeciation for my Country/Bluegrass roots. My grandma is gone, but her music lives on.



What the heck does all this have to do with the album under review? Well, I first got hooked on bands like Alison Krauss & Union Station and Nickel Creek (admittedly, much due to 'O Brother, Where Art Thou') and eventually embraced bands and offerings like the ones here on Rounder's 'Bluegrass Mountain Style.' Whether you're an old fogey or a whippersnapper, this album is a fantastic sampling of country Bluegrass. There's just something about this music. It doesn't just take this City Boy back to summer days of Granny shuffling her feet in her farmhouse kitchen, it takes him back to an earlier time, haunting days of a fading past when mandolins and stringbands stirred the American soul.



The bands on this album are superb. I listen to every track. A purchase well worth making. Listen to 'Bluegrass Mountain Style' and go back to that place yourself."

A First-Rate Bluegrass Collection

Steve Vrana | Aurora, NE | 10/26/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a terrific 60 minute-plus collection of some of the greatest bluegrass music from the vaults of Rounder Records. [Note: If you already own 1987's Rounder Bluegrass, vol. 2, this is the same CD with different cover art!] There are too many highlights to mention...every song is a winner. I'm especially glad to see the late Joe Val included. [Rounder has had a tendency to let some of its 70s releases go out of print, but you can also hear Joe Val on the equally excellent True Bluegrass along with another "lost" Rounder artist Tasty Licks, featuring Jack Tottle and Bela Fleck.] Many of these artists' individual albums are worth seeking out, but this gives you a wonderful assortment of some of the best bluegrass music available. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED"