Crooked Road CD Series [Back]

The Spencer Family and Friends:
Greetings from Whitetop

Page [1] [2] [3]

The Whitetop area has always been blessed with fine musicians, and the music the Spencers play has been fed by the traditional streams flowing through such fiddle players of past generations as Howard Wyatt, Corbit Stamper, and Albert Hash, and the banjo players Lee Weaver and Jont Blevins. These musical streams are now flowing outward into a new generation of musicians through Emily Spencer’s “Mt. Rogers School Band” – a hotbed of burgeoning talent composed of young banjo, fiddle, and guitar players from her music classes. Many of her former students are now accomplished musicians, each with his or her own unique personal style. Jacob Bowen, a phenomenal fiddle player who can be heard on this CD, studied initially with Emily, and now learns tunes from Thornton. The other musicians heard on the CD include Dr. Mark Handy from Ennis, NC, Debbie Bramer from Fancy Gap, VA, and Michelle Lyle and Spencer Pennington from Ashe County, NC, all of whom have benefited from the encouragement and generosity of Thornton and Emily Spencer.

As evidenced by the repertoire on this CD, the Spencers play music from a variety of sources. Songs such as Bury Me Beneath the Weeping Willow, and East Virginia Blues, both popularized by the Carter family alternate with older traditional tunes originating from as long ago as the Civil War (Johnson Boys) and further back (Leather Britches – an ancient Scottish tune still played as Lord MacDonald’s Reel in Scotland). Even more recent songs with origins in bluegrass (Rank Stranger), western swing (Faded Love), southern gospel music (Have a Little Talk with Jesus) appear in their repertoire – transformed into their ecstatic, clawhammer-driven Whitetop Mountain style.

This CD of the Spencers and their friends was recorded around one microphone, without the use of multi-tracking or heavy editing, usually in one “take” per song. The result is close to what one might hear at one of the weekly jam sessions down at the Mt. Rogers School, or during an evening of music in the Spencer’s living room, as these multitalented musicians trade instruments back and forth, try out various instrumental combinations, and play and sing a variety of old-time songs. As is true of all their performances, their talent, versatility, and deep love of old-time music shine through every song.

Mark Sanderford

Page [1] [2] [3]