The Old Blue label had a fairly similar great record that was devoted to the fiddle. However, whereas the fiddle collection included both old time and Bluegrass fiddle examples, this CD is strictly focused on banjo --mostly clawhammer styles at that. It has a wealth of really neat pieces by a significant number of excellent musicians. The 32 cuts include recordings by Wade Ward, Kyle Creed, Gaither Carlton, Matokie Slaughter, Oscar Wright, Lily May Ledford, Fred Cockerham, and the list goes on. The tuning for each piece is listed, along with the date and place the recording was made (most of the cuts go back to the late 1960s (though there are a few pieces done as recently as 2011 & 2012). Tunes include SALT RIVER, NEW RIVER TRAIN, ROCKY HILL, HOP LIGHT LADIES, BACK-STEP CINDY, JOHNSON BOYS, COUSIN SALLY BROWN, etc,. In several cases there are two versions of the same tune back-to-back but played by different artists. Good recording quality & good notes by Bob Buckingham. A must for the banjo fan in your life!
