Friday, February 19, is the release date for Love Songs, a new single from bluegrass powerhouse Lonesome River Band on the Mountain Home Music label.
LRB has been at the forefront of contemporary bluegrass since the early 1990s, when their epic Carrying The Tradition album broke the mold and inspired the driving, “mash” sound that has motivated jam session pickers ever since. It is a style that has become a commonplace, but those of us who have been around the block a few times remember when groups like Lonesome River Band and The Knoxville Grass brought it into favor.
There has been plenty of turnover in the group over the past 30 years, but the constant has remained the hard-driving banjo playing of Sammy Shelor. A five time recipient of the IBMA Banjo Player of the Year Award as well as the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass Music, Sammy has found his place in the five string banjo pantheon.
He has a strong group surrounding him, including long time members Brandon Rickman on guitar, Mike Hartgrove on fiddle, and Barry Reed on bass. Newest member, Jesse Smathers on mandolin, has been with LRB since 2015.
This new single is a fun song about a songwriter who just can’t seem to write a catchy love song, as his own romantic history doesn’t provide him the history to match.
Shelor explains a bit about the single.
“Love Songs is another great song written by our friend Adam Wright. It tells the story of a songwriter who has had bad experiences with love and can’t find ways to be positive about it. Adam puts a comedic twist to selling sad songs, and Brandon portrays it in his unique way.”
Here’s a taste…
Radio programmers can get Love Songs from Lonesome River Band now via AirPlay Direct. It will available on Friday (2/19) wherever you stream or download music online.
