Album DescriptionRenowned stand-up bass player Todd Phillips (yes, another member of the talented Phillips family!) gathers a galaxy of his illustrious friends - Tony Trischka, Laurie Lewis, Tim O'Brien, Mike Marshall, Darol Anger and Scott Nygaard, to name a few - to play favorite old-timey ballads and dance tunes including Spotted Pony, Sugar in the Gourd, Rye Straw and Valley to Pray. "These old songs are art out of real life, evolved through generations by folks getting together and playing it with, and for, each other," says Todd. "They've influenced every contemporary American music form. Look at In the Pines -- it's been recorded by artists from Leadbelly to Connie Fran cis to Kurt Cobain. I wanted to add again to the lives of these tunes by playing, arranging, changing and recording them (and having fun doing it)."