Although bluegrass music has taken on many stylistic forms and ideas, the traditional bluegrass sound is still beloved by many audiences. The Asheville Mountain Boys are doing their part to keep that tradition alive, in both their name and musical stylings. The group’s self-titled debut album provides an even-keeled mix of traditional favorites alongside original songs that carry the old school feel.
The opening track, That’s How I Can Count On You, was first recorded in 1954 by Jimmy Martin and the Osborne Brothers. It does a fine job showcasing the vocal blend of guitarist Marshall Brown and bassist Jacob Brewer. Along with Brown and Brewer, the Asheville Mountain Boys also consist of John Duncan on banjo, fiddle, and vocals, and Zeb Gambill on mandolin and vocals.
The Jimmy Martin influence comes through particularly strongly on the following track, Last Night. Written within the band, this song easily sounds like something that Martin and his Sunny Mountain Boys might have recorded in the early 1960s. It’s one of several great examples of the band’s creativity within a traditional framework.
Flood of 1916 and Don’t Take Me Back Again are also sterling showcases of the Asheville Mountain Boys’ originality. The former features mandolinist Zeb Gambill on lead vocals and tells the story of the hurricane that ravaged Western North Carolina in 1916. The latter is a lament touching on all the complicated feelings that surround the end of a romantic relationship.
Lady Hamilton is the sole instrumental on the recording and spotlights the fiddle and mandolin work of John Duncan and Zeb Gambill.
Asheville, North Carolina has a rich heritage of acoustic music, with its bluegrass roots dating all the way back to 1938 when Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys did their first radio broadcast at the Asheville-based station, WWNC. The Asheville Mountain Boys are adding to that heritage through their respect of traditionalism combined with their brand of originality.
