Livin in the Past

Livin in the Past

Bluegrass isn't filled with tragic stories of early demise, but two of the genre's most tragic figures team up on this exhilarating collection. Flat-picking guitarist Clarence White and fiddle champion Scotty Stoneman died within four months of each other in 1973, leaving precious few recordings behind for us to savor. This prized CD collects a slew of live cuts recorded between 1961 and 1965, when the Colonels were a brash Southern California bluegrass ensemble attacking mountain music with youthful exuberance and astonishing technique. Jerry Garcia went so far as to call Stoneman the "bluegrass Charlie Parker" and it's hard to argue when listening to his whirling fiddle fire; the deified White was already a fluid, formidable force on guitar before incorporating what he learned from master Doc Watson. However, the Colonels were much more than mere virtuosic showboats: they excelled at heartfelt two- and three-part harmony singing (led by Clarence's brother Roland) and were as likely to bust out an age-old gospel number as they were to play a roaring fiddle tune, bluegrass standard, or even a jazz staple like "Sheik of Araby." <I>--Marc Greilsamer</I>