Terrific Americana Music from the Blue Ridge Mountains!
07/04/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Spurred by the popularity of the successful movie "O Brother Where Art Thou" legions of new listeners are coming (or returning!) to the traditional music of the Southeastern United States. I'm sure the vast majority of them will really like this album showcasing Wendy Lewis in a wonderful collection of vocals and instrumentals recorded right there in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.Wendy's crystal-clear voice is complemented by tasteful and professional musical performances that highlight her own background and experiences. The recorded tracks have been mixed with obvious care and skill resulting in an extremely listenable product. As a traditional musician myself, I can easily recognize and appreciate the work and that went into these tracks and the terrific results they produced!My favorites include "I'll Pick Pretty Flowers for You" which includes some very nice dulcimer work by Michael K. Bell and "When the Roses Bloom in Dixieland" with its wonderful fiddle (Rickie Simpkins) and frailing banjo (Edwin Lacy) backup. Throughout the album Steve Kilby adds inspiring and tasteful flatpick guitar solos. Resonator guitar fans won't want to miss the contributions of award-winning Rob Ickes to "Living the Blues" and an original instrumental by Wendy and Rickie entitled "Chestnut Ridge."While some independent productions reflect their origin with brief or plain booklets, "Mountain Memories 2000" includes Karen Frazer's fine six-page layout with many photographs of the participants and the beautiful surroundings of their area. Wendy's comments really make you feel like you are a friend. Between the music, the notes, and the photographs, I just want to go there! Buy it, you'll be glad you did!"
Blue ridge mountain music still flourishing
Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 07/11/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The good people of West Virginia probably know all about Wendy Lewis, who sings and plays mountain music of the highest quality, mixing well-chosen covers with great originals, which bluegrass fans in particular will enjoy. The covers are mostly old, including a couple of oft-recorded Carter Family songs, but also some less obvious.Anybody looking for anything new or innovative won't find it here, but there are plenty of other singers and pickers doing that. On the strength of this album, Wendy and her friends deserve more recognition than they have so far achieved."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1