Search - Casey & Chris & the Two-Stringers :: Get Along Girl

A heaping helping of tradition and a profusion of enthusiasm

J. Ross | Roseburg, OR USA | 11/24/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Playing Time - 41:25



Who They Are: Casey was born in Florida, moved to Virginia at age eight, and now lives in Nashville. She grew up playing bass with her family group Red and Murphy and their Excellent Children. In 2000, Casey graduated from the University of Virginia.



In 2001, she recorded a banjo album called "Real Women Drive Trucks" and joined up as bass-player with Tim Graves and Cherokee. She's also worked with Uncle Earl and Jim Hurst. In 2004, Casey recorded with the Tennessee Heartstrings. In 2005, "Casey & Chris and the Two-Stringers" formed with brother Chris Henry (mandolin), who previously had worked with Dave Peterson and 1946.



What They Do: Carefully calibrated traditional bluegrass with youthful exuberance and an original focus.



The Songs: Eight of the 13 songs are originals with the others coming from David McLaughlin, Sally Jones, Nancy Pate, Will McLean, and S. McCandlish. Chris' songsmithing shows considerable promise and potential with the bluesy "Walkin' West To Memphis," "Counting on the Stars," "Change of Heart," an instrumental "Pass the Eagle," and "Pitiful Life." "Counting on the Stars" establishes a nice traditionally-sounding groove (albeit without fiddle) as it recounts a fictionalized tale of a king who bases his military decisions on astrology. "Hold Back The Waters" is a disaster story of a 1928 huricane and flood in Florida's Lake Okeechobee. Tyler has a fluid lead guitar style and he adds some strong guitar rhythms to push the pulse in the band sound. "Leroy and Liza" is a peppy instrumental that gets it title from the names that Frank Wakefield used for Chris and Casey. The stimulating gospel song "Got Sweet Heaven in My View" is a favorite. Chris' apparent muse is Bill Monroe, and he combines some fiery sixteenth notes on the uptempo pieces ("Too Hands On The Wheel") with smooth downstroke and tremolo techniques on the slower numbers (the ¾-time "Pitiful Life"). If Chris owes inspiration to Monroe, then Casey could also claim her crisp, consistent approach on banjo owes to Earl Scruggs. Their duet singing shines luminously in Chris' song, "Walkin' West to Memphis," that conveys some raw and rootsy sounds characteristic of a brother act like The Delmore Brothers. But their crowning moment for both vocals and instruments could be "Pitiful Life."



The Musicians: In addition to Casey (banjo) and Chris (mandolin), the solid band is Tyler Grant (guitar), Missy Raines (bass), and Shad Cobb (fiddle).



Any Recommendations: Casey and Chris could work on their vocal blend a bit more. Casey vocalizes with an assertive lead that makes us sit up and pay attention on "Hold Back The Waters" and "Sound I Hear." More tonal quality and dynamics in their voices will elevate them to the top of the bluegrass game.



The Bottomline Is: Effective and convincing bluegrass with a heaping helping of tradition and a profusion of enthusiasm.



Reviewed By: Joe Ross (staff writer, Bluegrass Now)

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