The best in bluegrass meets the best in Dixieland jazz this weekend with the Del McCoury Band and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band performing together onstage at Bonnaroo. A living example of “the best of both worlds”, their collaborative efforts in the recording studio resulted in the rollicking American Legacies CD that was released earlier this year. Both groups maintain hectic performance schedules, with the two crews colliding for only a handful of shows in 2011.
Here’s a re-post of my recent review of their excellent CD:
“This week marks the release of what is surely soon to be considered one of the finest roots music CDs of the decade. In the Del McCoury Band you have some of the best players in the bluegrass field. And with the legendary Preservation Hall Jazz Band you get traditional Dixieland jazz at its finest. Though the blend of bluegrass and jazz might sound unusual to some, the truth is there is a lot of common ground between the two. At any rate, the marriage of these two bands in a recording studio has resulted in one of the most enjoyable Americana records in recent history.
Ol’ Del takes many of the lead vocals here, but the microphone is passed around the entire troupe throughout the record. The whole gang declares their readiness to rip and roll on the album opening track “The Band’s In Town”. Hank Sr.’s “Jambalaya” is reborn here as a rousing Mardi Gras stomp, while the traditional “I’ll Fly Away” is a celebratory flight to the heavens propelled by piano and angelic vocal harmonies. The tune fairly sparkles as the entire ensemble weaves and warbles with ragged glory.
If the mix of jazz and bluegrass sounds incongruous to you, just cue up the song “Banjo Frisco” and dig the clever juxtaposition of banjo with a full horn section. Rob McCoury‘s banjo sets the bouncing melody atop a lightly jumping rhythm provided by the drums and mandolin while the horns and fiddle trade solos. The happy vibe immediately pulls you into the joyful spirit of the tune. Under the dancing spell of this record you might not realize right away that you are listening to something that has no discernible precedent in American music. Not many parties this good also offer a hidden history lesson.
The Del/Pres collaborative is playing some tour dates together this spring and summer, including a number of outdoor shows and festivals. Without a doubt, they are one of the most highly-anticipated of the 80-plus acts scheduled to perform at this summer’s giant Bonnaroo Music And Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee.”
Frankly, there are very few acts on the bill at this year’s Bonnaroo that I am looking forward to seeing more than these guys. Popular trends and shallow subgenres come and go. This stuff will be around forever. One need only go one or two layers deeper into this music’s history to find that it is the foundation for everything worth a damn that followed. If this promo clip that I’ve attached below fails to get your juices flowing, you better check to see if you still have a pulse.
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