In the late '70s,
bluegrass
singer/songwriter and banjo picker
Dave Evans
recorded two albums for
Vetco
,
Dave Evans and River Bend
and
Call Me Long Gone
. While
Evans
had honed his banjo chops and vocals with
Larry Sparks
the Boys from Indiana
, the 21 cuts he recorded for
were his first work as a leader. Now
Rebel
, the label where
recorded most of his subsequent work, has attained these earlier tapes and issued 15 cuts on
The Best of the Vetco Years
.
work here is fresh, vital, and recorded well, and includes energetic cuts like
"Highway 52"
and the bluesy
"99 Years Is Almost for Life"
(the first two cuts). This body of work is interesting for a couple reasons. First, these tracks sparkle because of
' and company's first-rate performances, delivering classics like
"Barbara Allen"
"White House Blues"
as though they meant every word. Secondly, these tracks are deeply invested in tradition and, in the late '70s, ran counter to the active
new grass
scene that had developed in the 1970s. These recordings showed that the style coined by
Bill Monroe
Flatt & Scruggs
had life in it yet. Smartly, these songs were recorded "straight" without much echo or other distracting studio additions, allowing
voice and the banjos, guitars, fiddles, and dobros to come to the forefront.
work on
will probably cause D.I.W. (dyed in the wool)
lovers and pickers to crank up the stereo to rock & roll levels. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr.