Robin Denselow 

Old Crow Medicine Show, Big Iron World

(Nettwerk)
  
  

Big Iron World

One of the finest all-American acoustic bands of the moment, Old Crow Medicine Show almost manage to match the exhilaration of their live performances on record. They play with verve and enthusiasm, matched with a faultless sense of rhythm, and their instrumental work on fiddle, banjo or harmonica shifts effortlessly from country blues and bluegrass through to jug-band styles. They write some good songs, from the stomping New Virginia Creeper to Don't Ride That Horse, where their tight, slinky playing makes them sound like a new acoustic answer to the Band, but the set is dominated by well-worn oldies. There are some good revivals here - from Jerry Leiber's Down Home Girl, now dressed up with immaculate harmonica work from Ketch Secor, through to the rousing Cocaine Habit, which is a reworking of the skiffle standard Take a Whiff on Me, or a rapid-fire treatment of Woody Guthrie's Union Maid. It's all very entertaining, but just a little too safe.

 

Leave a Comment

Required fields are marked *

*

*