JigTime International
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The Earl Brothers - Whiskey, Women and Death
Review by Joe Ross, Roseburg, Oregon - email rossjoe@hotmail.com
With
the exception of the traditional Cluck
Ol' Hen which
has been arranged and adapted with new lyrics, the cuts on Whiskey,
Women & Death are originals that showcase the Earl
Brothers' brand of honky tonky bluegrass. While playing
original material, the Earls arrange and play their music within the
parameters of a dogmatic traditional style that shares banjo and mandolin
breaks. While I miss hearing a fiddle in this context, a defining character
of The Earl Brothers is that their guttural singing is some of the “lonesomest” around.
At times, they have a unique edginess that sends chills up your spine. Hard
Times Down the Road, for example,
speaks of cruising down town, drinking Governor's Train, listening to
the radio, and meeting girls. Whiskey Bound states: “I had it
coming/Sorrow I've found/Long neck bottles/And I'm whiskey bound.” This
is clearly a thematic concept album that focuses on some of vices of
our society.
The Earl Brothers are John McKelvy (guitar), Robert Earl Davis (banjo), Steve Pottier (mandolin), and Pat Campbell (bass). Bobby and John sing the leads with a rustic, mountain sentience. Some of the cuts, like Broken Motor, seem to indicate the singers have an affinity for a more Dylanesque bluegrass sound. Without any unnecessary flash, the band can also tear up a raucous original instrumental like Mountain Rumpus. I can almost hear them chuckling in the background.
From Virginia, Bobby Earl took up banjo in the 60s and played weekly on the New Dominion Barn Dance with The Virginia Gentlemen. John McKelvy, from Florida, is a self-taught guitar picker who has been inspired by such disparate artists as Jimmy Martin and John Prine. Mandolinist Steve Pottier has played bass with Frank Wakefield, Johnson Mountain Boys, and Laurie Lewis. Pat Campbell has recorded with the Good Old Boys (on their 1975 “Pistol Packin' Mama” album with Don Reno, Chubby Wise, Frank Wakefield and David Nelson), as well as with John erald of The Greenbriar Boys. Since the release of this album, Pat has moved on to other endeavors, and Josh Sidman is now the bass player with The Earl Brothers.
If these songs have any truth to them, I'm darn surprised that The Earl Brothers are still alive. After hearing their hard luck stories of boozing, cruising, rambling, gambling and womanizing, I'm left with a ecstatic feeling of relief that such misfortune is there's and not mine! (Joe Ross)
For more in this band visit
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