Buried treasure uncovered

Thanks to Gerry Fitzpatrick for the first album review to appear on the BIB:

What have Al Perkins, Chris Hillman, and Bernie Leadon got in common? Well, for one, they were all involved in the genesis of the country-rock scene which sprung out of southern California in the late 60s and early 70s, and variously played with the Byrds, Flying Burritto Brothers, Gram Parsons, the Eagles, Crosby Stills and Nash, Manassass, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou... the list goes on.

The other thing these three master musicians share is a love for bluegrass and roots music. In 1985, along with David Mansfield and Jerry Scheff, they recorded an album called Ever call ready, which was barely noticed at the time but has now been afforded a timely re-release by Sierra Records.

Ever call ready is a collection of bluegrass and old-time songs and tunes with a Christian/Gospel theme. The album is marked by strong male vocal harmonies and excellent tempered use of solo instruments. Mandolin (Hillman), banjo (Leadon), Dobro (Perkins), and fiddle (Mansfield) are used tastefully, both to augment the rhythm and to complement the melodies. These guys are masters of their instruments and a pleasure to listen to.

The music includes traditional pieces such as 'I’ll be no stranger there' and 'Panhandle Rag' and songs by writers such as Don Reno and Flatt & Scruggs. The version of the the Flatt & Scruggs song 'God loves his children' is as good as it gets in terms of driving bluegrass music. In contrast there is the tender ballad 'Rule over my soul', which would be equally at home on one of Gram Parson’s solo albums. Throughout the album the four-part male vocal harmonies consistently impress. Spanning the full range of the human male voice, they have a very natural sound and there is no attempt at the over-production which has spoiled many a potentially good bluegrass album.

In short, this album is a treasure both for pure listening enjoyment and as a master class in bluegrass harmonies and instrumentation. Unfortunately the distribution this side of the Atlantic is scanty, but the album can be purchased online from Smart Choice Music, the UK-based roots and Americana record store.

Gerry Fitzpatrick