Reviewed by Paul Poulton

Though there is a throng of celebrated country and bluegrass heroes on here I have to say "Houston, we have a problem." The nature of this problem is, it's gangly. The instrumentation although not always perfectly executed does have some very tasty bluegrass licks, but the vocals stand too proud in the majority of tracks. It's like a nice suit of clothes on a person whose arms are too long for the jacket and whose legs are too long for the trousers. Without doubt the music is at times kickin', and for that reason I'd like to hear it. If you listen in a car with not too much volume the instruments all but disappear leaving naked voices, and on a hi-fi system there is a distinct difference between regular bluegrass/country songs and this Homecoming CD. It turns the project into something like a tribute to bluegrass music rather than a vibrant immediate and real bluegrass recording. Vocal level is crucial these days to making a "whole" recording and while it's true that there are times short trousers on men are in fashion those times are never long lived, the mix on these songs takes some of the life out of them, which is a shame because there are some fine artists assembled for this gig. The claw-hammer banjo picking is wonderful in the famous Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys "I'll Answer The Call". Country Music icon Marty Stewart and his wonderfully named band, the Fabulous Superlatives play a very cool "It's Time To Go Home", the lazy electric guitar with bags of reverb could have come straight from a new Bob Dylan album. It's a shame the mix has let the potential of this album down.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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