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  <title>Latest albums @ The Music Store @ My Banjo Teacher</title>
  <link>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php</link>
  <description>These are the latest albums to be added at The Music Store @ My Banjo Teacher</description>
  <lastBuildDate>Sat, 19 May 2012 21:35:52 GMT</lastBuildDate>
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   <title><![CDATA[Album: Nev Jackson - Moonshine Misery]]></title>
   <link>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php?cmd=album&amp;album=5</link>
   <pubDate>Sun, 30 Aug 2009 20:19:38 GMT</pubDate>
   <guid>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php?cmd=album&amp;album=5</guid>
   <description><![CDATA[In the decade after the Civil War, a murder trial took place in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania that remains the most notorious capital court case in the county’s history.

A group of men who became known as the “Blue-Eyed Six” were convicted of murdering a hermit-like mountain man by the name of Joe Raber.  Lectures have been given, movies have been produced, and now the story has been told in music. Gathering his data from the original newspaper articles as well as from anecdotal stories originating with relatives of the defendants and acquaintances still living in the area, Nev Jackson has captured the language of 1878 and told the “Blue-Eyed Six”story in this collection of original tunes.

Multi-tracked with his long-time musical collaborator, Ken Gehret, this disc takes you back to those times when gypsies and ruffians vied for the meager  scraps of life that existed along the mountain range to the  north of the Lebanon Valley.]]></description>
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   <title><![CDATA[Album: Sweetwater Reunion - Oliver's Quiet]]></title>
   <link>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php?cmd=album&amp;album=4</link>
   <pubDate>Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:43:11 GMT</pubDate>
   <guid>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php?cmd=album&amp;album=4</guid>
   <description><![CDATA[From Fame Review:
Sweetwater Reunion, a Pennsylvania-based band, combines bluegrass instrumentation (guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin and bass) with a folk sensibility. Thirteen of the 15 cuts are original, which is an ambitious undertaking, especially for a band's first effort. Nev Jackson (banjo) wrote eight songs and co-wrote a ninth with Henry Koretzky (mandolin), who also contributed one other song.

Without entering the eternal "What is Bluegrass?" debate, suffice it to say that this collection is more likely to appeal to fans of contemporary folk music. It may also appeal to those whose bluegrass tastes aren't bound by the traditional sound of the Stanley Brothers or Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys.

The instrumentalists are solid but not flashy, which is in keeping with the softer edge tone throughout the recording. Among the high spots of "Oliver's Quiet" are the instrumentals: "Grizzlies on the Kenai" and "Woodpecker on the Porch", both written by Nev Jackson. "Grizzlies on the Kenai" is akin to "Monroe's Jerusalem Ridge", while "Woodpecker on the Porch" runs through some nifty chord changes.

"Oliver's Quiet" showcases Jackson's songwriting skills, particularly "Strange Fire", a powerful telling of a biblical tale. The title cut simply and poignantly deals with the plight of a family farm.

The recording and mixing of both instruments and vocals is well-balanced. The electric bass is not overpowering, which can sometimes be the case with some bands.]]></description>
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   <title><![CDATA[Album: Sweetwater Reunion - A Still Place In My Heart]]></title>
   <link>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php?cmd=album&amp;album=3</link>
   <pubDate>Sun, 30 Aug 2009 20:21:26 GMT</pubDate>
   <guid>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php?cmd=album&amp;album=3</guid>
   <description><![CDATA[Eleven fresh original songs, and one old Hoagy Carmichael standard  comprise  Sweetwater Reunion’s  second musical offering.  From a mournful fiddle waltz - the third in Ken Gehret’s “prozakian” series-  to “smash-mouth”, driving banjo, blended with their usual tight vocal harmony, the band delivers its best yet recording.

Up tempo as well as slower songs tell Biblical stories and a few heart-wrenching plaintiff tales that come straight from these musicians’ experiences. The title track, co-written by Nev and a  former band member depicts the internal struggle which accompanies  the loss of a spouse. 

Listen to a few tunes. We guarantee you’ll want to hear more from this driving, talented group of musicians]]></description>
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   <title><![CDATA[Album: Sweetwater Reunion - Almost Bluegrass 3]]></title>
   <link>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php?cmd=album&amp;album=2</link>
   <pubDate>Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:49:47 GMT</pubDate>
   <guid>http://www.mybanjoteacher.com/music/index.php?cmd=album&amp;album=2</guid>
   <description><![CDATA[Review by by Chet Williamson:

Sweetwater Reunion is a southeastern Pennsylvania bluegrass band that's gone through several permutations in membership since its beginnings, but the two constants have been founder and multi-instrumentalist Nev Jackson and Ken Gehret, another musician at home with anything that has strings. Together, these two have come up with another Sweetwater Reunion CD, deftly using multitracking to create an entire bluegrass band made up of just two guys, and the results are fresh and exciting.

Except for one track, all fourteen songs and tunes here are Jackson and Gehret originals. The album kicks off with Jackson's "Dare County," a dandy minor key tune with some delightfully quirky chord changes, and is followed by his "End of the Road," an effective vocal lament for the decline of traditional values that boasts some nice harmonies.

Gehret's songwriting steps into the spotlight with "Leave Paradise Alone," a pop-like ballad that works well in the bluegrass idiom. It's haunting and evocative. Jackson's "Earlville" picks up the tempo with a two-minute-plus primer on Scruggs-style banjo, and Jackson continues the fun with the title track, filled with clever lyrics, tight vocal harmonies and instrumental breaks. Gehret next plays his own "Sweetwater Rag," a pippin of a fiddle tune, shifting from major to minor and incorporating some jazz-like chord changes.

Jackson's "Who Are You?" is a gospel song that deserves a wide audience. Its tight vocals have a CS&N quality. His "Hawthorne" is a modal tune, filled with those good old ancient tones and some beautifully baroque instrumental work. "Life and Other Games of Chance" is another Gehret original, a fine song with varying rhythms in verse and chorus.

The album's only non-original, "Chances Are," is a seven-minute instrumental tour de force that gives Jackson and Gehret a chance to stretch out in a jazz idiom with their various instruments, and the result is a fun display of high-grade string chops, including solos on banjo, fiddle, dobro, guitar, and mandolin. Next we're back to vocals, and the boys are joined by vocalist Abby Snyder for Jackson's "Sing That Song Again," a charming and nostalgic number. Gehret goes into self-proclaimed "wacko mando" mode with "What Was I Thinking Reel," a funny tune that takes some odd turns along the way. Write out the chord changes to this one after hearing it once and win a cigar!

Two more Jackson originals close out the CD. "What a Way to Say Goodbye," a bouncy bluegrass song, and "Nagasaki Breakthru," accurately subtitled "An Asian Mountain Breakdown." It's a nifty banjo tune with more than a hint of the east. Don't take out the CD when it's finished, though -- there's a hidden track here, a brief, lovely and ear-bending version of "America the Beautiful" that starts a minute or so after the last listed track.

Almost Bluegrass is a fine album. Jackson and Gehret have a tight vocal blend, and their instrumental skills are superb. Combine their performing talents with top-notch songwriting abilities, and you've got a gem of an "almost" bluegrass CD. You won't find this one in stores, but you can order it online.

[ by Chet Williamson ]
Rambles: 4 May 2002]]></description>
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