Chris Stuart & Backcountry – Mojave River
Chris Stuart has been knocking around the bluegrass scene for a while, writing songs (including the fabled Twenty Naked Pentecostals In A Pontiac as well as more serious entries such as Paul And Peter Walked, recorded by Claire Lynch) and playing banjo with upstate New Yorks Cornerstone. Now ensconced in southern California, hes finally found his groove; Mojave River, his second album with Backcountry and his third since the move, should get him the attention hes deserved for a long time.
That being said, the album is unmistakably a collective effort. The two returning members of Backcountry banjo player/vocalist Janet Beazley and resonator guitarist Ivan Rosenberg contribute songs, and new bass player Mason Tuttle has a hand in the group-written instrumental, Buttermilk Pie. Though the album opens with Townes Van Zandts Dollar Bill Blues, its the only cover, and the story-oriented songwriting by the band is one of its greatest strengths. Its especially good to have Stuarts Dear Friends And Gentle Hearts, about Stephen Foster, available in the writers own voice.
Though California is home to all kinds of bluegrass variants, Chris Stuart & Backcountry lean to the modern-traditional here. Beazleys playing is stout and Rosenbergs inventive but tasteful, while the rhythm section supplies plenty of drive. Stuart has matured into a compelling singer, with a husky but nuanced voice that, not surprisingly, is well-matched to the material.