Say “Rosine” to any bluegrass lover, and images of the little cabin home where Bill Monroe was born and raised immediately come to mind. Rosine, of course, is the tiny community in western Kentucky from whence Monroe was delivered to the world, and the locale where his early impressions about music were formed.
Rosine is now also the name of new duo composed of Forrest O’Connor, who we know from his time with the O’Connor Band, alongside his dad, the award-winning fiddler Mark O’Connor, and Forrest’s wife, Meredith Lane O’Connor, with whom he now collaborates musically as well. Meredith is a strong vocalist and songwriter, and the two make a powerful team.
Like many children of famous musicians, Forrest wasn’t inspired initially by his father’s professional attainments, but by hearing Nickel Creek’s self-titled 2000 album as a teen, which led him to pick up mandolin. The talent was there, and by the time he was finished college and moved back to his hometown of Nashville, the young O’Connor captured the Tennessee Mandolin Championship.
That college experience was at Harvard, where he played in folk and bluegrass groups around Boston and Cambridge.
Meredith came into the picture during the O’Connor Band days. She and Forrest met when the group played in her hometown of Enterprise, OR, where Meredith had developed a following as a singer and songwriter. There she collaborated with future bluegrass and country star Zach Top. She and Forrest met up initially to write and sing together, and, well… the rest is history.
As Rosine, the duo has signed with Compass Records, and have a new single that nicely marks two generations of top bluegrass talent. It Never Ends features Meredith on lead vocals and Forrest on guitar and mandolin, supported by papa Mark on fiddle, and Alison Brown, President of Compass Records, on banjo.
Also assisting on the track are Ethan Jodziewicz on bass, Maggie O’Connor on fiddle, Nat Smith on cello, and Eric Darken on percussion. The song was written by Forrest O’Connor.
It makes a fine official debut for this talented duo. Give it a listen.
It Never Ends is available now from popular download and streaming services online. Radio programmers are invited to contact Compass for an airplay copy.
