Live, Vol. 1

AMG Review of Live, Vol. 1

Chris Nickson
All Music Guide

This is relatively late-period live Monroe (recorded six years before his death), but don't think there are any signs of age in the performance. This double-CD set, from Monroe's Bean Blossom Festival in Indiana, captures him at 79, still completely vital, with fleet fingers and that trademark high, lonesome voice, leading the umpteenth incarnation of the Bluegrass Boys. As always, they're up to the mark, even if they're not the big names of yesteryear. But Tom Ewing, Blake Williams, Tater Tate, and Billy Rose do a fine job and establish their own presence among the shadows of the greats. However wonderful they might be, though, they really have only one function, and that's to back up Monroe, who's the undoubted star. There's a good mix of sings and instrumentals and of the sacred and the secular, and it's interesting to note just how many truly familiar pieces there are in his repertoire, like "Uncle Pen," one of his real signature tunes; "Muleskinner Blues"; and the famous "Rawhide." Inevitably, Monroe ends with "Roll in My Sweet Baby's Arms" to close out another excellent set. But excellence was always his benchmark, and the fact that he demanded a lot of both himself and the people around him is apparent here. Everything is spot-on, the musicians can turn on a dime, and the master can still play a mandolin like no other.