Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
According to Béla Fleck, he and his wife and fellow banjo player Abigail Washburn began playing together almost upon meeting. They've recorded together before on Washburn's first album, Song of the Traveling Daughter (he produced it), and with the Sparrow Quartet with Ben Sollee and Casey Driessen, but never before as a duo. The music on this self-titled offering was developed on tour before cutting it in their home studio. The tunes range from traditional folk songs to originals with compelling instrumentals woven in: two pieces by Béla Bartók in a medley, a redo of the Flecktones' "New South Africa," and the pair's "Banjo Banjo," which might be the best of the three for its timbral colors, warmth, and thematic variety. Both players are versed in many forms of music, and while that can't help but be on display, the real showcase is musical intimacy. These two banjo players combine different styles to shape a dialogue that speaks directly and distinctly to a love for tradition; they carry it forward as well. "Railroad" (as in, "I've Been Working on the...") contrasts her clawhammer style and Fleck's three-finger jazz-oriented syncopation. The bridge between approaches is the blues, outlined in a unique cadence by Washburn's crystalline vocal. In the murder ballad "Pretty Polly," the banjos talk to one another over octave ranges, conversing over time and space as modern stylistic developmental imagination is balanced by old-timey utterances. Washburn's voice relates the harrowing tale with haunting resonance. Her "Shotgun Blues," featuring her Gold Tone cello banjo, displays her percussive thumb strokes accenting each sung line as Fleck improvises on Celtic reels and Appalachian folk styles. His "What'cha Gonna Do" updates the gospel song "Sinner Man" but is still a warning -- this one signals a judgment day wrought by the earth as recompense for human abuse. Washburn's "Little Birdie" is almost hypnotic; her thumb stroke creates a near drone as Fleck bends notes to underscore the song's narrative meaning and assent to her vocal. The traditional folk song "And Am I Born to Die" offers not only Washburn's finest signing on the set, but innovative instrumental sections composed by Fleck that add power to the song's history. "What Are They Doing in Heaven Today?" is one of the more beautiful country gospel songs in the canon. The instrumental understatement displays canny melodic interplay. The set closes with "Bye Bye Baby Blues," featuring new lyrics drenched in modern irony. It preserves the swinging Texas feel of George "Little Hat" Jones' OKeh version (and uses his chorus), while highlighting the tune's rag-like quality. The way almost tuba-like basslines, tight chord voicings, and slippery fills wind around one another reveals what is so distinctive about the album as a whole: Abigail Washburn and Béla Fleck don't need a band -- they and their banjos are one.
© Thom Jurek /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From $17.49/month
Traditional, Writer - BELA FLECK, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, MainArtist
BELA FLECK, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, Writer, MainArtist
BELA FLECK, Writer, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, MainArtist
BELA FLECK, Writer, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, Writer, MainArtist
BELA FLECK, Writer, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, MainArtist
Traditional, Writer - BELA FLECK, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, MainArtist
BELA FLECK, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, Writer, MainArtist
Bela Bartok, Writer - BELA FLECK, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, MainArtist
Traditional, Writer - BELA FLECK, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, MainArtist
BELA FLECK, Writer, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, Writer, MainArtist
BELA FLECK, Writer, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, Writer, MainArtist
BELA FLECK, Writer, MainArtist - Abigail Washburn, Writer, MainArtist - Little Hat Jones, Writer - Juno Fleck, Writer
Album review
According to Béla Fleck, he and his wife and fellow banjo player Abigail Washburn began playing together almost upon meeting. They've recorded together before on Washburn's first album, Song of the Traveling Daughter (he produced it), and with the Sparrow Quartet with Ben Sollee and Casey Driessen, but never before as a duo. The music on this self-titled offering was developed on tour before cutting it in their home studio. The tunes range from traditional folk songs to originals with compelling instrumentals woven in: two pieces by Béla Bartók in a medley, a redo of the Flecktones' "New South Africa," and the pair's "Banjo Banjo," which might be the best of the three for its timbral colors, warmth, and thematic variety. Both players are versed in many forms of music, and while that can't help but be on display, the real showcase is musical intimacy. These two banjo players combine different styles to shape a dialogue that speaks directly and distinctly to a love for tradition; they carry it forward as well. "Railroad" (as in, "I've Been Working on the...") contrasts her clawhammer style and Fleck's three-finger jazz-oriented syncopation. The bridge between approaches is the blues, outlined in a unique cadence by Washburn's crystalline vocal. In the murder ballad "Pretty Polly," the banjos talk to one another over octave ranges, conversing over time and space as modern stylistic developmental imagination is balanced by old-timey utterances. Washburn's voice relates the harrowing tale with haunting resonance. Her "Shotgun Blues," featuring her Gold Tone cello banjo, displays her percussive thumb strokes accenting each sung line as Fleck improvises on Celtic reels and Appalachian folk styles. His "What'cha Gonna Do" updates the gospel song "Sinner Man" but is still a warning -- this one signals a judgment day wrought by the earth as recompense for human abuse. Washburn's "Little Birdie" is almost hypnotic; her thumb stroke creates a near drone as Fleck bends notes to underscore the song's narrative meaning and assent to her vocal. The traditional folk song "And Am I Born to Die" offers not only Washburn's finest signing on the set, but innovative instrumental sections composed by Fleck that add power to the song's history. "What Are They Doing in Heaven Today?" is one of the more beautiful country gospel songs in the canon. The instrumental understatement displays canny melodic interplay. The set closes with "Bye Bye Baby Blues," featuring new lyrics drenched in modern irony. It preserves the swinging Texas feel of George "Little Hat" Jones' OKeh version (and uses his chorus), while highlighting the tune's rag-like quality. The way almost tuba-like basslines, tight chord voicings, and slippery fills wind around one another reveals what is so distinctive about the album as a whole: Abigail Washburn and Béla Fleck don't need a band -- they and their banjos are one.
© Thom Jurek /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 12 track(s)
- Total length: 00:45:55
- Main artists: Béla Fleck Abigail Washburn
- Label: Rounder
- Genre: Country
Distinctions:
Improve album informationWhy buy on Qobuz...
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalogue with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.