Search - Rhonda Vincent :: Storm Still Rages

Back to the roots

Jerome Clark | Canby, Minnesota | 06/17/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Rhonda Vincent's first CD marking her return to bluegrass, Back Home Again, won plaudits and awards, but the second, The Storm Still Rages, is better. For all the praise it garnered, the earlier recording struck me as a bit tentative and sometimes dismayingly pop-inflected, possibly because a nervous Vincent was looking over her shoulder at the phenomenally successful bluegrass-popster Alison Krauss. This time around, however, there's a confidence, an energy, and a rootedness missing last time. The songs are uniformly first-rate. Vincent wrote the opening cut, the powerful in-the-tradition "Cry of the Whippoorwill," showing yet another aspect of her considerable talent. I hadn't realized that "Don't Lie," originally recorded by Nashville hat-act Trace Adkins, is actually a pretty decent traditional country song till Vincent sang it as it should have been sung to start with. The old-time fiddle sound that opens and closes it is a stroke of genius. She wins my thanks for resurrecting my favorite Hank Williams song, "My Sweet Love Ain't Around," and pulling it off in a way that I'm sure Hank would have loved. "Is the Grass Any Bluer?" is a touching -- and gratifyingly nonmawkish -- tribute to Bill Monroe, without whom this recording, or any bluegrass recording, would not exist. That bluegrass can still sound as good as it does here, decades after Monroe brought it into the world, reminds us that Monroe's is a gift that just keeps on giving."

Another Strong Project

TheHighlander | Richfield, PA United States | 05/10/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Rhonda Vincent gives us yet another outstanding bluegrass CD. A few years ago she tried to "go country" and even though the CD's were good she could not crack the "radio play" mentality of country music today, she was probably too bluegrass. This CD presents Rhonda at her ever improving best. She has been in this business a long time and knows how it should be done. Her vocals are extraordinary and her band is full of excellent pickers. This album features some of the best in the business including Tom Adams, Bryan Sutton, Darrin Vincent, Stuart Duncan, Mike Cleveland, Sonya Isaacs, Rob Ickes, Alison Krauss, and Aubrey Haynie. Audie Blaylock and Rhonda sing some of the most wonderful harmonies known to bluegrass. With power and soul! "Is the Grass Any Bluer" is a nice tribute to the father of bluegrass, the late Bill Monroe. "Drivin' Nails In My Coffin" is a story of a heartbroken person drinking themselves to death. "My Sweet Love Ain't Around" is such a strong vocal song that it will cut right through you. This CD is one great song followed by a good song and so on. Do yourself a favor and purchase this CD. You will not regret it."

Rhonda "Storms" Through Another Wonderful Album

RANDY HOLMES | DUNN, NC United States | 06/09/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Those of you who know Rhonda's music will certainly be pleased with this new release, from the opening "Cry of The Whippoorwill" to the fun, fast take of the "Martha White Theme." Her ... band, The Rage, is joined by several special guests well-known to fans of the bluegrass world; Alison Krauss, Sonya Isaacs, Stuart Duncan and others. This collection includes "high lonesomed"-up takes of some old favorites, "Just Someone I Used To Know" and "My Sweet Love Ain't Around" among them. These and all the other tracks benefit from Rhonda's sweet, skilled voice throughout (amazingly acrobatic on "My Sweet Love...") paired with tasteful, well-realized instrumental arrangements. Michael Cleveland's fiddle playing is a standout throughout, as is Vincent's tasteful melodic mandolin playing. If you loved "Back Home Again", you'll love this collection, and if you just know Rhonda from seeing her on the Opry or in live performance, you'll want to get this album; there's not a filler on here, and we're sure to be hearing from her for a good long time. If you are fortunate enough to have Rhonda and the Rage playing nearby, do not miss the opportunity to see her. She's a wonderful live performer, giving all she's got from the time she hits the stage 'til the last chord rings out. "The Storm Still Rages" is a "Bluegrass Express" straight to the heart of bluegrass music, and one that even a casual fan of the genre is sure to enjoy."