Old Time Songs Recorded From 1926 To 1930 (Volume Two) by Charlie Poole & The North Carolina Ramblers

Label: County Records.

Release Date: February 27, 1996.

Recording Time: 48 minutes.

Recording Date: September 18, 1926 - September 8, 1930.

Release Info: Compilation (COCD-3508) Studio Recording.

Styles: Appalachian, Country Blues, North American Traditions, Old-Timey, String Bands.

County Records' second installment of Charlie Poole & the North Carolina Ramblers is another great testament to this seminal band: while most or all of Poole and the Ramblers' best-known songs are included on the earlier volume of Old Time Songs, the lesser-known tunes on this disc are every bit as entertaining, if often less familiar. The opening "If the River was Whiskey" (known in other circles as "Hesitation Blues") is one of the smoothest, most subtly infectious recordings of old-timey music available anywhere. True to the Ramblers' style, the playing and vocals are always spotlessly clean and brimming with good humor, the three musicians on each song interacting perfectly. Occasional banter between guitarist Roy Harvey and Poole adds nicely to the atmosphere without delving into gross stereotype or cheap laughs; unlike many of their contemporaries, this band consistently rejected the hillbilly image of the backwoods yokel, creating a music that is instead both sophisticated and inescapably country. Songs on this disc draw from traditional folk sources as well as Tin Pan Alley pop, with each piece rendered in the Ramblers' distinctive style. Sound quality is excellent throughout the compilation, which retains little evidence of the original 78 crackles and hisses; though the first volume of Old Time Songs may have the better song selection, its sound quality is sadly less consistent. All in all, this is a sturdy compilation from what is arguably the greatest string band in the annals of old-time recorded music. ~ Burgin Mathews

Credits: Lonnie Austin - fiddle; Fred Carlson - art direction, design; Sleepy John Estes - composer; Roy Harvey - guitar, spoken word, vocals; Richard Nevins - remastering; Charlie Poole - banjo, primary artist, spoken word, vocals; Charlie Poole & the North Carolina Ramblers - performer, primary artist; Gary B. Reid - production coordination; Posey Rorer - fiddle; Kinney Rorrer - liner notes; Odell Smith - fiddle, vocals; Traditional - composer; Robert Vosgien - digital mastering.

Tracks: 1. If the River Was Whiskey; 2. Bill Mason; 3. Baltimore Fire; 4. Honeysuckle; 5. My Gypsy Girl; 6. Ragtime Annie; 7. It's Movin' Day; 8. Budded Rose; 9. A Kiss Waltz; 10. Jealous Mary; 11. Wild Horse; 12. If I Lose, I Don't Care; 13. There'll Come a Time; 14. Southern Melody; 15. Mother's Last Farewell Kiss; 16. One Moonlight Night.