Appalachian Stomp: Bluegrass Classics
Appalachian Stompis an ideal starter disc for those just beginning to explore bluegrass. Mostly this is because its 18 selections are so immediately accessible. The "classics" here, in other words, are usually those infrequent bluegrass cuts to have gained radio recognition beyond a core bluegrass audience. That explains why along with timeless standards such asFlatt & Scruggs' "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" and theOsborne Brothers' "Rocky Top" we also get "Dueling Banjos" from the filmDeliverance, a cut that is to classic bluegrass what Walter Murphy is to Beethoven. There are less immediately obvious choices too, though. If your previous exposure to bluegrass doesn't go beyond the Holy Trinity ofBill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, and theStanley Brothers--for example, if you've never heardJ.D. Crowe & the New South's stellar example of progressive bluegrass, "Old Home Place," or experiencedJimmy Martinlay down the law on his rousing "You Don't Know My Mind"--then you're in for a high-lonesome surprise.--David Cantwell