Artist: Del McCoury & David Grisman
Album: Del & Dawg Live! (Acoustic Disc)
Label: Acoustic Disc
Release Date: 04/29/2016
David Grisman and Del McCoury, each a titan of bluegrass, have been friends for over fifty years and you can certainly hear that close familiarity on each track on this fun and intimate live recording.
Grisman is without a doubt, one of music’s greatest collaborators. No matter who he plays with, he always clicks with the other musician’s style and voice perfectly, blending into a sound that is always something new, unique and wonderful. It’s worked in the past with Jerry Garcia, John Sebastian and Doc Watson to name a few, and this performance with McCoury is no different.
Every track here is performed exquisitely, with profound skill, joy and ease. Grisman and McCoury weave around each other’s playing with the utmost grace, flourishing with tight, intricate leads. Classics like “Dark Hollow” and “Snow Dove” soar with Grisman’s complex mandolin picking and McCoury’s dusty yet robust strumming.
Between most of the tracks, Grisman and McCoury tell little humorous stories to the audience about their own intertwining musical paths and other musicians they previously worked with like Bill Monroe and Bill Keith. The relaxed nature of this banter completes the warm, cozy feeling that the music generates throughout the double disc. It really is difficult to be anything but happy and tranquil while listening to this album.
With a recording this enjoyable, one would hope that it’s just the first in a long series of new live recordings from this perfect duo.
– Keith Hadad
[…] I recently reviewed the new live double album by the great Del McCoury and David Grisman for Elmore. Check it out here! […]