Fulks goes down easy with "One Glass of Whiskey"
The song is a "contradiction of the stereotypical view of LA," said Fulks.
While bluegrass music has always been a part of Fulks's musical vision (he was a member of Special Consensus), "Bluegrass Vacation" marks his first full-length bluegrass endeavor. Sam Bush, Sierra Hull, Ronnie McCoury, Tim O'Brien, Alison Brown, John Cowan and Jerry Douglas all help out on the 12 songs.
"Molly and the Old Man" features Brennen Leigh's harmony vocals and Brown's banjo. "Angels Carry Me" features Sierra Hull on mandolin and balances three themes: rural loneliness, rock-star worship and father-son tension. The autobiographical "Longhair Bluegrass" connects Fulks to the hippie bluegrass festival scene of the early 1970s that helped shape him as an artist and features newgrass pioneers Sam Bush (mandolin/harmony vocals) and John Cowan (vocals). "Let The Old Dog In" is a bluegrass barnburner featuring picking from Russ Carson (banjo), Jerry Douglas (Dobro), Shad Cobb (fiddle) and Ronnie McCoury (mandolin).
"Electric guitars might give way to computers, as seems to be happening now, but the mountains will still be right there."
The track list is:
"One Glass Of Whiskey"
"Molly And The Old Man"
"Lonely Ain't Hardly Alive"
"Angels Carry Me"
"Longhair Bluegrass"
"Backwater Blues"
"Sweet Li'l Cora-Mae"
"Silverlake Reel"
"Momma's Eyes"
"Nashville Blues"
"Let The Old Dog In"
"Old Time Music Is Here To Stay"
More news for Robbie Fulks
- 03/17/23: Fulks looks at bluegrass with "Longhair Bluegrass"
- 01/25/23: Compass signs Fulks
- 08/10/18: Lewis, Fulks, Jennings out with new discs
- 05/30/18: Fulks, Lewis go "Wild! Wild! Wild!"
- 01/21/16: Fulks returns to roots on "Upland Stories"
- 10/13/15: Fulks, The Mekons team up
- 02/02/15: MPR bleeps Fulks
- 06/04/13: Fulks returns home
CD reviews for Robbie Fulks
The Americana Outcast Robbie Fulkshas been delivering spellbinding albums since the late '90s, but has never returned to bluegrass in that time. Select songs within both "Upland Stories" and especially "Gone Away Backward" flirted with 'grass, but it hasn't been since his sole album with The Special Consensus (1989's "A Hole in My Heart") that Fulks has fully immersed himself in the beauty that is unabashed bluegrass.
Fulks' vocal style ...
Twenty years ago, Robbie Fulks became a beloved alt.-country figure by writing modern honky tonk and country songs that rose above the work of many other contemporary traditionalists thanks to a combination of sharp wit and engaging storytelling. In 2013, Fulks gained critical acclaim for "Gone Away Backward," an album that took a deeper dive into history by embracing the traditional Appalachian folk music that proved to be country music's bedrock. That exploration continues with ...
Robbie Fulks is going backwards in more ways that one - not that that's a negative. For starters, he's back with Bloodshot - the label where he released four of his first six albums, but none since "13 Hillbilly Giants' in 2001. Also evident of his coming home feel is that he may hearken back even further to his time with bluegrass band Special Consensus as Fulks opts for an acoustic, often bluegrass sound, sometimes country or folk on these dozen songs. ...
©Country Standard Time • Jeffrey B. Remz, editor & publisher • countrystandardtime@gmail.com
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