Search - Flatt & Scruggs :: On Foggy Mountain

Good Collection, But It Could Be Better.

W. David Ferrell | West Virginia | 03/28/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I love old time Country and Bluegrass Music, because as a kid, it's what I grew up listening to. You see, when I was growing up, while all the other people around me were listening to KC and The Sunshine Band, The Little River Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd and the like, I was listening to Bill Monroe, George Jones, Buck Owens and Flatt and Scruggs. Now to the point. I know enough about the music of these guys to know that this is not a "great" collection, but it IS a good one for someone who wants to get an idea of what Flatt and Scruggs sounded like without having to pay the price the "great" collections cost. There are some classic gems here like "Foggy Mountain Breakdown", "Petticoat Junction" and "The Ballad Of Jed Clampett." Another high point of this collection is the instrumental "John Henry." I remember hearing "Coal Miner's Blues" when I was just a kid and being raised in Lincoln County West Virginia, this song had special meaning as many of the people around us had worked in the mines of Southern West Virginia at some point in their lives. "Wabash Cannon Ball" is a complete waste of space. They should've left that one to Roy Acuff. "Jimmy Brown The Newsboy" and "You Are My Flower" are both classic Flatt and Scruggs songs, but these are re-records: Not the originals, and anyone who knows my taste in music knows I do not usually like re-records. Yes, there are some weak spots in here, but if you want the down home hillbilly music these guys were famous for without paying the price of the really great collections, this one is for you."