CD REVIEW - Byron Berline - Jammin' With Byron

By Dan King

Byron Berline - Jammin' With Byron

Double Stop Music

Released: August, 2012

Byron Berline loves to play the fiddle. You can tell. There is a contagious energy that comes off his strings when he is bowing that sounds simultaneously athletic and poetic. Witness the impressive display of fiddle gymnastics that starts on the first tune of his new CD, “Jammin’ With Byron” and continues all the way through the 22nd and final track.

Twenty-two tunes would amount to an entire recording career for some musicians, but Byron and his large band of fine picking friends have compiled that many on this one single CD. It is a project that seems destined to become a textbook on old-time fiddle playing for generations to come.

CD REVIEW - Geoff Union - Cold As Steel

By: W.J. Hallock

Geoff Union - Cold As Steel

Label: Shining Castle Music

Released: May 2012

Austin, Texas singer/songwriter and guitarist Geoff Union sent me his new solo CD “Cold As Steel,” and my first impression was that instrumentally, this music was some of the best “front porch pickin’” I’d heard in a while. Surrounding himself with some of Austin’s finest musicians, it’s relaxed and comfortable, but still tight and energetic.

Geoff used to be a member of Austin’s hot “Two High String Band,” that at one time included banjo super star Alan Munde. Billy Bright, producer and mandolin player on this project, was also a member of THSB. This recording was done at Billy’s Mando Cave Studio in Wimberley, TX.

CD REVIEW - The Roys – New Day Dawning

By: W.J. Hallock

The Roys – New Day Dawning

Label: Rural Rhythm

Released: August, 2012

Stop for just a minute and think of all the acts in bluegrass and country music that have been made up of family members….. the Carter Family, the Louvin Brothers, the Whites, the Isaacs, the Stanley Brothers, the Dillards, the Rice Brothers, the Gibson Brothers and so many more….. Now add all the duet partners you can think of into the mix, and it gets even more interesting! Vince and Patty Loveless, Porter and Dolly, Conway and Loretta, Alison and Brad Paisley, Tammy and George, and who could forget Lonzo and Oscar and Homer and Jethro!