Roots

Roots Artist: Blue Mountain
Label: Blue Mountain
Category: Music


Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1


UPC: 691983100629
EAN: 0691983100629
ASIN: B000059M19


Release Date: 2001-02-27

Roots


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Tracks:

  1. Rye Whiskey
  2. Rain And Snow
  3. Black Is The Color Of My True Love's Hair
  4. Banks Of The Pontchartrain
  5. That Nasty Swing
  6. Spring Of '65
  7. Riley And Spencer
  8. Young And Tender Ladies
  9. I'm Thinking Tonight Of My Blue Eyes
  10. Little Stream Of Whiskey

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Amazon.com

On previous albums of original material, head Blue Mountaineers Cary Hudson and Laurie Stirratt forged their style at the roots-rock convergence of Southern mountain music and Mississippi blues. Here, they pay tribute to traditional sources, applying their sinewy harmonies to centuries-old songs with such raucous vitality that the album could as easily have been titled <I>Raw</I>. The results echo more contemporary influences as well, with the well-lubricated romp through "Little Stream of Whiskey" recalling the Pogues at their thirstiest, while the oft-revived "Black Is the Color of My True Love's Hair" carries the electric jolt of Neil Young's work with Crazy Horse. From the bluesy undercurrent of "That Nasty Swing" and "Riley and Spencer" to the Celtic strains of "Banks of the Pontchartrain" and "Spring of '65," the album reflects the liveliest brand of regionalism, the sort that celebrates a vital legacy rather than re-creates a museum anachronism. <I>--Don McLeese</I>

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Honest and passionate.......2001-10-06

Blue Mountain doesn't blow you away with technical prowess, but the band's passion and commitment bring these songs to new life, much in the same way that Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span re-invigorated British traditional folk a generation ago. "Roots" doesn't scale the peaks of the best of those bands, but it comes close. I'll return to this one often when I want to hear music that gets right to the point.

3 out of 5 stars NOT A WIERD FOLKIE.......2001-06-11

The only thing missing in Blue Mountain's electric rendition of traditional folk songs is the giddy delerium one hears in the vocals of old folk records. There's something unsettling about a folk artist yodeling away as if from some other world. The lyrics here beg for such wierdness as whiskey and dead wives are spilled and chilled. This is very competant music bringing to life historic American music through anonymous vocals that may remain restrained out of reverence.

4 out of 5 stars Strong Roots.......2001-04-10

Heard Laurie and Cary do most of this one live at the Hi-tone in Memphis in mid=March. Bought it on the spot after one of the best shows I've seen in years (second only to Alvin Youngblood Hart two weeks before BM's set). Cary played like a man possessed. Laurie's vocals were superb. (This was the third time I've seen them live -- and no question, the best.) Something about the Hi-tone and Mempho makes musicians shine. Anyway, this is a great CD and has replaced Homegrown as my favorite Blue Mountain effort.

4 out of 5 stars rocking folk from the heart.......2001-03-26

Blue Mountain's take on American folk music is informed, passionate, and engaging. As any number of mediocre recordings have documented, folk music is a whole lot harder than it looks. To do it justice, to make it real, you have to get inside it and speak from its heart. Roots is music from the heart, and it never misses a beat. I'd heard every song but one (Bill Carlisle's "That Nasty Swing") in its traditional form, and the formidable competition notwithstanding, Blue Mountain has made each its own. It even manages to transform the old parlor ballad "I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes" (whose melody graces a number of subsequent country songs, most famously Hank Thompson's "The Wild Side of Life") into a rock-and-roll song, something I would not have imagined possible. The past year has seen two other memorable fusions of American folk and rock, by the Tarheel Ramblers and Dave Alvin. This CD holds its own in that esteemed company.

5 out of 5 stars

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