Search - Ron Spears & Within Tradition :: Grandpa Loved the Carolina Mountains

New, original bluegrass with a traditional sound

J. Ross | Roseburg, OR USA | 04/13/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm always impressed when a recording project contains a significant amount of original material. Within Tradition's new recording Grandpa Loved the Carolina Mountains (Copper Creek CCCD 0192) is no exception. With 8 of it's 12 songs written by bandleader Ron Spears, this recording rings with traditional bluegrass from the beginning. Additional songs from guitarist Charlie Edsall and fiddle player Bruce Johnson make this West of the Mississippi quintet an upcoming bluegrass songwriting powerhouse. Spears powerful and smoky tenor voice might remind one of a Lou Reid. Many of his songs have that "reminiscent" sound that is so important when composing traditional bluegrass. Standout tunes such as Another Last Goodbye and title track, Grandpa Loved the Carolina Mountains sound is as you could hear these tunes played around a campfire at a bluegrass festival. Top it all off with a couple of rousing, original instrumentals such as Within Tradition and Poor Old Monroe and you have a complete bluegrass package. Round that out with the consummate banjo playing of Hal Horn and bass work of Jerry Logan and you'll be within tradition, the tradition of good bluegrass songs about returning to a lost home and the heartbreak of a lost love.
--by Pete Goodall, reviewer for "Nwbluegrass""