The basic idea at the heart of this album was to unite old country and bluegrass greats with 1972 and in doing so, forming 'a new Circle' between two generations of musicians. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band started out in 1965 and released their self-titled debut in 1967 which, although probably their weakest album, would help pave the way for country-rock.Their initial line-up also included Jackson Browne. The band released 5 more albums between 1967 and 1972, when they released what would be their crowning achievement.
For this album the band enlisted the help of some of their heros and subsequently recorded songs with legends such as 'Mother' Maybelle Carter, Doc Watson and Earl Scruggs. All of the album's 105minutes worth of tracks were recorded on either their first or second take and helps not only prove the just how skilled the players involved were, but also helped create a loose feel that allows you to feel like you were there. This was also amplified by the inclusion of dialog between the musicians at the start of many of the tracks. All conversation at the sessions was recorded and really adds to the album's charm.
"My policy in the studio is that once you to do a number, put everything you've got into it and don't say, 'Well, we can always do it over.' Let's do it right the first time and to hell with the rest."
Roy Acuff
The songs on the album were all covers of old tradtional songs or covers of songs written by the likes of Carter and Scruggs. This album should be in every record collection and if you're only going to own one country album, this isn't a bad choice!
1 comment:
This is very true. It was a great, unique, and original concept for country music up to this point. Very good write up. Thanks
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