Search - Red Clay Ramblers :: Live

Wow!

James Skrydlak | Pella, Iowa | 02/06/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Chapel Hill, North Carolina, either breeds or attracts some great musicians. Over the years, such stars as Mike Craver, Tommy Thompson, Bill Hicks, and Jim Watson have left the Red Clay Ramblers. Somehow, though, the Ramblers keep up the astonishing level of musicianship that has always been their hallmark, and it shows more clearly than ever on this CD.Even though this is a live recording, every note is right, all the entries are crisp, the rhythmic drive is perfect, and the harmonies are wonderful. Except for the applause, some crowd noise (I think that the Ramblers must have been hamming it up during "Hiawatha's Lullabye"), and the occasional bit of shaky singing, this could pass for a studio recording.The material ranges from traditional string band tunes, many of Celtic origin, to recently-written songs by band member Bland Simpson, with other material including traditional American songs, pre-World War II jazz, and even a Spike Jones novelty number.One small caveat: The Cat Came Back is not the humorous song that Cisco Houston sang, but, rather, a collection of string band tunes.If American Motors had made Ramblers as good as this, they would have survived, and been bigger than Toyota and Honda put together."