Chris Murphy - Red Mountain Blues (2016)

Distilling the essence of Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, and Bob Wills into a heady spirit of moaning fiddle, burbling banjo, dandelion mandolins and high-lonesome harmonies, the songs on Chris Murphy’s Red Mountain Blues move and morph like a moonshine dream, from the uninhibited exuberance of the torrid title-track to the wistful ragtime reflections of “The Lord Will Provide.” Shifts in tempo, mood, and execution—from the brazenly virtuosic to the more tempered and sober—underline songs like “Dirt Time,” “Meet Me Tonight” and “Buckwheat Pancakes.”

Murphy’s flexible combo—including Grammy winning bluegrass vocalist Tim O’Brien, and players who’ve backed Gram Parsons, Shooter Jennings, and Richard Thompson—draws the full measure from both barn-raisers and come-to-Jesus moments. Surely, fans of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Ry Cooder, David Grisman, and The Band will find a certain redemption in Murphy’s tin-type Americana, a cinematic blend of bluegrass, country and folk aesthetics that sits comfortably alongside new-generation folkies like Mumford & Sons and The Lumineers, but suggests a much older vintage, and a far deeper pedigree.