Waiting On The Gravy Train

Amazon.com
This North Carolina pre-grass quartet takes old-time, string- band, and fiddle tunes and injects them with a propulsive energy and buoyant spirit. To a certain extent, that's what Bill Monroe did more than 50 years earlier, but unlike Big Mon, the Hoppers stick to the old-time repertoire exclusively, digging up fine 1920s and 1930s gems; they also retain old-time's rougher edges, stopping short of bluegrass's precision. Certainly, they have the chops to merit liner notes from the venerable Charles Wolfe, especially David Bass on fiddle, who handles his romping contest-fiddling splashes with aplomb. Banjoist Frank Lee and guitarist Cary Fridley offer standout harmonizing, as on the Carter Family's "Anchored in Love," "Warfare," and "We Shall All Be Reunited;" Fridley's striking a cappella dirge "A Roving on a Winter's Night" marks another highlight. Despite their talent, taste in material, and exuberance, however, they seem to lack that tiny little distinguishing characteristic that would carry them to the next level. Still, the sundae is quite tasty, even if the cherry's missing. --Marc Greilsamer

Tracks:

Trouble
Backstep Cindy
Anchored In Love
Molly Put The Kettle On
Ways Of The World
Warfare
Polecat Blues
Nobody's Business
A Roving On A Winter's Night
Fall On My Knees
Fort Smith Breakdown
We Shall All Be United
Wild Fling In The Woodpile
Hell Broke Loose In Georgia
Young Emily
Shortenin' Bread

Amazon.com

This North Carolina pre-grass quartet takes old-time, string- band, and fiddle tunes and injects them with a propulsive energy and buoyant spirit. To a certain extent, that's what Bill Monroe did more than 50 years earlier, but unlike Big Mon, the Hoppers stick to the old-time repertoire exclusively, digging up fine 1920s and 1930s gems; they also retain old-time's rougher edges, stopping short of bluegrass's precision. Certainly, they have the chops to merit liner notes from the venerable Charles Wolfe, especially David Bass on fiddle, who handles his romping contest-fiddling splashes with aplomb. Banjoist Frank Lee and guitarist Cary Fridley offer standout harmonizing, as on the Carter Family's "Anchored in Love," "Warfare," and "We Shall All Be Reunited;" Fridley's striking a cappella dirge "A Roving on a Winter's Night" marks another highlight. Despite their talent, taste in material, and exuberance, however, they seem to lack that tiny little distinguishing characteristic that would carry them to the next level. Still, the sundae is quite tasty, even if the cherry's missing. --Marc Greilsamer

Customer Reviews:

Check out "We Shall All Be Reunited".......2002-03-10

This album gives old standards fire and passion. If you are fond of mountain music and the American folk tradition, this might very well be a great pick to get you up and dancing. In a number of songs on this album, the sound-focus is primarily on the fiddle playing. More of an instrumental give-and-take might have added a little extra color in places. Yet the vocal harmonizing is really something special, and the ballads add a special beauty. I got this album after traveling through the great state of New Hampshire and hearing a song called "We Shall All Be Reunited." If you get a copy of this album for this song and this song only, you will be richly rewarded. To hear such a sweet voice singing these nostalgic and hopeful words was a true honor for me. Thanks, Cary Fridley!

The Freights are even tighter on this, their second CD........1999-09-28

This group is magic as a unit. They play with awareness and respect for the old-time styles, but above all, with enthusiasm and focus. The solo ballads are also beautifully sung.

old music, new life.......1998-10-02

It's no simple trick to carry old-time Southern music into the late 20th Century, especially when those grand 1920s recordings from which the revivalist bands draw their repertoires are readily available in reissues from Yazoo, Revenant, Smithsonian/Folkways, and other labels. But the Freight Hoppers pull it off more successfully than any outfit we've heard in a while. In fact, they're surely the most accomplished neo-old-time outfit since the legendary Highwoods Stringband in the 1970s. The songs here are largely standards -- "Nobody's Business" in particular should have been left in mothballs -- but on the whole the Freight Hoppers manage to make even the worn-out sound fresh, through distinctive arrangements, unusual melodies, and pleasing harmonies. They cut right to the heart, at once dark and hopeful, of the venerable hymn "We Shall All Be Reunited," and the warhorse "Shortenin' Bread" comes roaring back to life in their accomplished hands. All in all, this engaging and entertaining exercise gives us cause for hope that even better is to come.

Music Album:

Music Album