John Hartford would just grin crookedly at you if you brought up the subject of virtuosity in his presence. Half the charm of his music is his loopy sense of humor -- he often counts a tune in by grunting rhythmically or by singing the title, and his fiddling is always just a hair away from wobbling off the side of the road. But his knowledge of the traditional repertoire is encyclopedic, and he can fiddle in more idioms than most can recognize. On this outing he's joined by banjoist
Bob Carlin, guitarist
Ronnie McCoury, mandolinist
Mike Compton, and bassist Jerry McCoury for a sprawling tour of obscure tunes, a number of which
Hartford learned from old recordings by Ohio fiddler Ed Haley. Each track is annotated and pedigreed (sample: "French and Solly Carpenter who were friends of Ed Haley's played this according to
Wilson Douglas"). The whole thing's a hoot and a joy, and is recommended strongly. ~ Rick Anderson