With their previous single, The Price of Falling, currently moving up our Bluegrass Today Weekly Airplay chart for the second time, Mountain Home Music has released another from Chris Jones & The Night Drivers, Blow Whistle.
In a break from form, this is a song written by Marshall Wilborn, bass player with The Night Drivers, and a long time friend and fellow traveler of Jones’s.
Marshall says that he had initially heard this one with a dance hall feel.
“I wrote the song a couple of years ago, with a shuffle beat, country sort of thing in mind. In Chris’s hands, and voice, I love how it evolved, and how it turned out.”
The Drivers take it at a swingy, mid-tempo pace, using the tried-and-true train whistle metaphor, that has stood in for the passage of time for the eternity of country and bluegrass music.
Considering their time together, Chris shared a bit of his appreciation for Marshall’s talents.
“Marshall and I have played together in three different bands now, and I’ve been a big fan of his songwriting all along. Most of his songs recorded by other artists are older ones of his, so we were especially excited to record a new one. He played it for us backstage at a show last year and we all loved it immediately.”
Mark Stoffel on mandolin and Grace van’t Hof on banjo and ukelele complete the band, with an extra boost on this track from Tony Creasman on drums.
Have a listen to Blow Whistle…
Blow Whistle by Chris Jones & The Night Drivers is set to release tomorrow, April 21, when it will be available from popular download and streaming services online. Radio programmers can get the track now from AirPlay Direct.
