Grascals - The Famous Lefty Flynn's

Not the 'stereotypical' bluegrass band,   The Grascals are based and Nashville and are unafraid to record songs that take them away from tradition.  Does this album carry on their tradition of making strong cohesive albums?

The first thing to know about the Grascals is that they’re not the ‘typical’ bluegrass band.  First off, they’re based in Nashville and not the hills of Kentucky or the Carolinas.  Second, they have a propensity to sing songs that aren’t old-time bluegrass standards and when they do sing new tracks, they’ don’t mind singing stuff from the best songwriters in Nashville like Chris Wallin, Scotty Emerick and Craig Monday.  They even give newcomers like Jeremy Parsons a ‘leg-up’ while also giving strong interpretations of classic songs like the Monkees “Last Train To Clarksville” and Steve Earle’s “My Old Friend The Blues,” both of which are on the Grascals’ fourth Rounder album The Famous Lefty Flynn’s

 “Last Train To Clarksville” actually opens up the album and even if you didn’t think that the song would work in a bluegrass setting, it does as the band retains the vocal melody thanks to the three-part lead vocal from Jamie Johnson, Terry Eldredge and Terry Smith but the bluegrass arrangement, which features new Grascals members Kristin Scott Benson, Jeremy Abshire and Danny Roberts in separate banjo, fiddle and mandolin solos throughout the song.  The Craig Monday/Chris Wallin collaboration of “Satan & Grandma” finds Jamie Johnson taking lead vocals as he sings a traditional country ballad about the power that faith can provide a person in their darkest hour.  The song may have been written for a more ‘mainstream’ country audience but it works damn find as a piece of roots music. 

Singer/songwriter Jeremy Parsons’ recently released album featured “Out Comes The Sun” and the folksy, traditional ballad -which finds a man (voiced by Eldredge) wondering aloud why his baby does what she does- showcases the expert musicianship of the Grascals while giving Eldredge the ability to show off his born-for-bluegrass tenor, something which he does on the fantastic title track.  Steve Earle’s “My Old Friend The Blues” feels every bit as ironic here has it did when Earle originally sang it.  The Bill Monroe and Hank Williams co-write “I’m Blue, I’m Lonesome” features Hank Williams, Jr. and it is a great mixture of bluegrass and traditional country and features some fantastic steel guitar from Lloyd Green. 

Over the course of their previous three albums the Grascals showcased the ability to honor the traditions of bluegrass while not being afraid to stretch the boundaries of the genre by incorporating their traditional country roots as well.  It’s a skill that has been enhanced even further on  The Famous Lefty Flynn’s, a record which is truly one of the best bluegrass albums anyone is likely to hear in 2010.


You can support the Grascals by purchasing this album at Amazon | iTunes (3/30/10) | Amazon CD.

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