The Grascals' Roberts drifts along

The Grascals' mandolinist Danny Roberts served up an original tune, "The Drifter," on Mountain Home.

"When I started writing 'The Drifter,'" Roberts said, "I was inspired to compose something to pay tribute to one of my all-time favorite mandolin players, David Grisman. I feel like this song has that vibe, though nobody can play that style like Dawg. The song title is in honor of my late brother-in-law, Mike Mullins, who wrote a book called 'The Drifter' before he passed away; that title just seemed to fit this song."

After Roberts' opening on mandolin, banjo, fiddle and guitar take turns in negotiating the tune's contrasting sections before Roberts returns to bring the group home in a crescendo.

"'The Drifter' was so much fun to record," he said. "It's always great to have my wife Andrea playing bass with, me and the solos that Tony Wray (banjo and guitar) and Jimmy Mattingly (fiddle) played on it are magical. I'm blessed to have such great musicians helping me bring my music to life."