Hold on We're Strummin
You won’t have to be a mandolin aficionado to get delightfully caught up in the complex rhythms, exotic melodies, and entrancing syncopations of this mandolin super-duo’s first album-length collaboration. Yet only students of the instrument are apt to appreciate the extraordinary level of musicianship contained in this eminently listenable, all-instrumental collection. David Grisman is a former member of Earth Opera, founder of The David Grisman Quintet, and the late Jerry Garcia’s occasional sidekick in the erstwhile bluegrass band, Old & In The Way. Sam Bush is a founding member of The New Grass Revival and has played mandolin on the records of everyone from Allison Krauss to Garth Brooks. Each, in his own right, is a master of the contemporary newgrass/new age mandolin. And on tracks like the droning, bluesy "Swamp Thing," the soaring "Intimo," and the doleful "Weeping Mandolin Waltz," they inspire each other to reach even deeper into their grab bags of hot mandolin licks.--Bob Allen