Acorns
Snake River, 2019
8/10
On the more organic, earthy of the two albums that Winship released on the same day, Acorns brings mandolins, fiddles and banjos to the rural fun.
“A Little Goes A Long Way” starts the album with fiddle acrobatics on a rollicking, bluegrass inspired opening, and “Shakin’ Down The Acorns” follows with warm beauty sans vocals, where dynamic interplay between the strings yields a mountain music setting.
Much like the companion album to Acorns, Toolshed, Winship brings in many contributors, and together the variety offers the folk inspired “I’ll Live On”, the playful picking of “Cherry Tree” and the timeless country approach of the graceful duet “Fit To Be Tied”.
Near the end, “Lily Green” recruits breezy melodies for one of the album’s best, and “Boys Them Buzzards Are Flyin’” ends the album with swift instrumentation that puts the exclamation point on the massive skill present.
The perfect complementary listen to the fuller, band oriented Toolshed album, Winship’s old time, deep roots and jam band nods make this string focused record another impressive effort in his glowing catalog of genuine, timeless songwriting.
Travels well with: Tim O’Brien- The Crossing; Alison Krauss- Forget About It