Mike Mitchell – Love Songs, Torch & Bluegrass
Bluegrass is country music on steroids & this showcase has several examples of that prediction. “Little Mountain Home” is a good bluegrass introduction with more traditional threads, but “Little Delilah” is bluegrass drenched in gasoline with the fiddle fire of Mike Mitchell, whose lead vocals are the spark. Excellent performance & that’s from the pen of a New York boy. Makes you want to get up, dance — even if you’re alone wearing a towel.
10 gracious melodies will connect you with Love Songs, Torch & Bluegrass (Drops May 8/Mountain Fever/33:40) produced by Darin Aldridge (guitar/harmony vocals) & recorded in North Carolina. There are plenty of good tunes in this collection & the finesse with which the musicians apply themselves to each composition is thrilling. Mike has good song instinct & the originals, at times, sound almost traditional – they’re compellingly good. The intermezzo instrumental of the traditional “Cold Frosty Morning” displays the musicians’ skills on their respective instruments. The fiddle-work, the mandolin, the banjo, the ever-thumping bass & guitar – ingredients that come together like a masterful dish in a first-class restaurant.
More pensive is “Hinge On the Gate,” with its enthusiasm stitched between the notes. One way in and the same way out…nice lyrics. Mitchell has the perfect bluegrass voice – it isn’t twangy enough for C&W, it isn’t popish enough for modern country, but it has all the range & tonality of bluegrass proponents. Great storytelling even if it’s intense – “Bottom of the Bottle” is imaginative with wonderful guitar picking & fiddle sawing. Don’t tell me country musicians aren’t great instrumentalists. Not with people like Chet Atkins, Roy Clark, John Hartford, Allison Krauss & Mike Mitchell.
Even on the bluegrass ballads like “Love Came True,” Mike’s authenticity shines through his performance. The more upbeat & pop-stylized “Once Upon a Rhyme” is relatively tame, but the music is played with such gusto & ingenuity that it easily tugs on your ear with the skill of these musicians. This is a delightfully generous helping of fine music from an ambitious, dedicated musician.
Highlights – “Little Mountain Home,” “Little Delilah,” “Hinge On the Gate,” “Bottom of the Bottle,” “Cold Frosty Morning,” “Why Old Men Cry,” “Love Came True” & “Once Upon a Rhyme.”
Musicians – Brooks Aldridge (harmony vocals), Tim Surrett (bass), Wayne Benson (mandolin) & Kristin Scott Benson (banjo).
CD cover image courtesy of Susan Bibeau. CD @ Apple & Amazon + https://www.mikemitchellmusic.com/ & https://mountainfever.com/mike-mitchell-joins-mountain-fever-records-artist-roster/