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Title: A Musical treat - "Newgrass" meets Bluegrass
Review: On this Debut CD Johnny Staats offers some of the most thrilling mandolin playing in years. Nimble fingered, precise, and fun - if every UPS driver could play like this we would have packages flying in all directions! Staats is backed by the likes of Sam Bush and Jerry Douglas - both are two of the most respected musicians playing in Country/Bluegrass today (Bush and Douglas contributed to Dolly Parton's 1999 release "The Grass is Blue"). Back up vocals are provided by folks such as Kathy Mattea and Tim O'Brien. CD standouts are the Jazz inspired "Mandolin Meltdown" and the Celtic influence of pieces like "The Legend of the Ghost Coon", and "Shafer's Reel". Other standouts, such as the CD's title track "Wires and Wood", and "Timbuktu are played with a gentle Country/Folk styling. There just isn't a bad piece on this CD(most were composed by Staats). My favorite is "Jessica's Lullaby" -a graceful tribute to Staats Daughter. Buy this and enjoy.
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