From The Ground Up
Pinecastle, 2022
8/10
A musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and producer, Jim Hurst brings his distinct picking style to these very bluegrass friendly 11 tracks that welcome some exceptional help on vocals and instrumentation.
“Sunnyside Garden” opens the listen with Hurst’s comforting, cozy pipes alongside Steve Wilson’s banjo and Christian Ward’s fiddle as plenty of vocal harmonies unfold with beauty, and “Nothin’ To Do But Pray” follows with Kristin Scott Benson’s banjo and Wayne Benson’s mandolin helping cultivate a very poetic and gospel influenced landscape.
In the middle, “Easy Does It” spotlights Mike Witcher’s dobro and Fred Carpenter’s fiddle as the vocal-less 4 minutes flows with grace, while “It Started With Love” finds a romantic place to reside with Ethan Burkhardt’s bass and Alan Bibey’s mandolin complementing the soothing vocal harmonies.
Deeper still, the agile and poetic “John Williams” benefits much from Shawn Lane’s mandolin and tenor vocals in the album’s best, and “Oh Lonesome Me” exits the listen with Danny Roberts on mandolin and Gary Davis on banjo for the very intricate and memorable finish.
This is Hurst’s first release in 7 years, and he makes the wait worth it, where his powerful voice and award winning guitar playing make for a timeless and memorable bluegrass listen.
Travels well with: Kim Robins- Leave The Porch Light On; Deeper Shade Of Blue- 20