‘Once Upon a Harp’ is a Sparkling Collection of Turlough O’Carolan Pieces by Steve Baughman
Steve Baughman’s guitar playing on Once Upon a Harp has the perfect combination of a light touch, rhythmic surety, and deeply melodic sensibility.
Album Reviews
John Moreland’s ‘Birds in the Ceiling’ Packed with Darkly Powerful Songs
The spareness of Birds in the Ceiling frees John Moreland to dig deeper into the darkness of these songs, to focus on a life where death is the only certainty.
Cristina Vane’s Slide Guitar Takes Center Stage On ‘Make Myself Me Again’
On Christina Vane's album Make Myself Me Again, the slide guitarist is exploring what it means to reconnect with herself in a new, unfamiliar city where she seems to fit right in.
Bluegrass Trio The Slocan Ramblers Breaks New Ground on ‘Up the Hill and Through the Fog’
On Up the Hill and Through the Fog, the Slocan Ramblers make a clean break from their folk-trad past and establishing three distinctive voices to make the group greater than the sum of its parts.
Guitarist Scott Metzger’s Solo Debut ‘Too Close to Reason’ Is an Impressive Acoustic Tapestry
Stylistically, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead guitarist Scott Metzger's solo acoustic album, Too Close to Reason, covers a lot of territory in what he calls his “sonic landscapes.”
Joe Robinson Explores New Directions on the Eclectic ‘The Prize’
With his 7th full-length album, The Prize, Joe Robinson is reaching for the biggest prize of all: writing songs that are as good as his guitar playing.
There’s More Light Than Darkness on Mary Gauthier’s ‘Dark Enough to See the Stars’
Dark Enough to See the Stars is what we call a happy album for Mary Gauthier—the happiest album in her career, recorded at the happiest time in her life.
Billy Strings and Terry Barber Pick Their Way Down Memory Lane on ‘Me/And/Dad’
Billy Strings' Me/And/Dad is a happily unlikely outcome for father and son, a chance to record an album rooted so deeply in memory and gratitude, addiction and recovery.
Mississippi Ghosts Haunt the Deep Blues of Ryan Lee Crosby on ‘Winter Hill Blues’
Winter Hill Blues is Ryan Lee Crosby's strongest work yet, alternating between hard-droning blues on electric guitar and softer, brooding blues on acoustic guitars.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band Offers Surprisingly Fresh and Original Takes on Classic Dylan Tunes on ‘Dirt Does Dylan’
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band founders Jeff Hanna and Jimmie Fadden used to play Dylan tunes together in high school, now the band has released a tribute album, Dirt Does Dylan.