Dave Evans - High Waters (2003)

Dave Evans discovered his life's interest at a young age when he heard his father play a Silvertone five-string banjo. He learned to pick, sing, and write songs and by the early '70s, got his start playing bluegrass with Larry Sparks. In 2002, nearly 25 years after forming his first band, Evans continues to explore traditional bluegrass with a number of like-minded pickers. High Waters finds him offering a dozen songs "dedicated to my fans and especially those who have overcome life's adversities." "Stone Coal West Virginia" tells the story of a young man whose rowdy ways lands him in prison while "High Waters (Bad Blood)" narrates a tale of love gone wrong. Redemption is found, however, in more upbeat pieces like "Love Will Make It Last" and "Humble Carpenter from Galilee." Evans has written half of the songs on High Waters and he's in good voice, but it's the help of his band mates that gives the project extra pizzazz. Guitarist Ray Craft, fiddler Gerald Evans Jr., mandolinist Randy Thomas, and bassist Clancy Fields provide steadfast support and plenty of deft solo work. A number of covers fill out the album, including fine versions of Flatt and Scruggs' "Dear Old Dixie" and the always fun Freddie Hart piece, "Drink Up and Go Home." For anyone who believes that the only kind of bluegrass is the traditional kind, Dave Evans' High Water will be a real treat.