Search - Lonesome River Band :: Window of Time

LRB's Best

Richard Brannon | Parkersburg, WV United States | 10/27/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is the best music that LRB has put out since Tim Austin left the band. I think that Sammy has put together one of the best bands that bluegrass has to offer. I had gotten to the point that I didn't listen much to LRB in the last few years but after hearing them this summer and getting the new CD I am a fan again. The vocals are better than they have ever been thanks to Brandon. Listen to the bass lines on Stray Dogs (track 6) and realize that there is really none better. And what more can you say about Mike's fiddle playing the best. Again this is a good buy and listen to it through a couple of times and you will be running these tunes in your head all day long.R"

Throttles wide open, the new LRB lineup picks at full steam

J. Ross | Roseburg, OR USA | 06/13/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"From Virginia, the Lonesome River Band originally formed in 1983 and has included many of the top young players in bluegrass over the years. In 2001, the band underwent a major personnel transition with four out of five members departing. To keep the band going, banjo-player Sammy Shelor recruited Brandon Rickman (guitar), Jeff Parker (mandolin), Mike Hartgrove (fiddle) and Irl Hees (bass). "Window of Time" is the 2002 debut project of this new LRB lineup, and the band's managed to not lose one iota of momentum. Lead vocals are shared by Rickman (seven cuts) and Parker (five cuts). On two songs (Give The Devil An Inch; Don't Go Out Tonight My Darlin), their harmony arrangements have Rickman grabbing the lead vocal just on the chorus. Bandmember Irl Hees composed "How I Long To Be In The Mountains" and Rickman penned another original, "Rounder's Spirit." Parker and Rickman sound like a couple of brothers on the hard-driving "Weary Day" and the Delmore Brothers' "Honey I'm Ramblin Away." The band's cover of Harley Allen's "Stray Dogs and Alley Cats" actually provides a nice melodic and slower respite from the frenetic openers. There is some impressive, crisp picking throughout, but it's the moderate-tempo'ed "Tune Of A Twenty Dollar Bill" that gets the toes-a-tapping with its banjo hammer-ons and pull-offs. A minor criticism is that their material on this project is largely of similar tempo - fast. The album's only instrumental, Tommy Jackson's "Tomahawk," closes the project with the band members all grabbing a part of the hoedown.This latest LRB configuration likes to pick in high gear. With their throttles wide open, and picking at full steam, this band is hard to stop. They've clearly got their sights set on big things ahead, and a new, exciting chapter is now being written for the Lonesome River Band anthology. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)"

A must have for bluegrass fans!!

Richard Brannon | 11/15/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"LRB is the best blugrass band out there as far as I'm concerned. This is a great CD and keeps the LRB alive and well. They are a great bunch of guys and excellent musicians. Brandon and Jeff's vocals add to the hard-driving music. I would definitely recommend this CD to anyone not just bluegrass fans."