Bluegrass Smash Hits Vol. 1 (Rural Rhythm RHY-CD 325, 2008) is the debut recording from the Mashville Brigade, an informal Nashville all-star ensemble that convened for weekly jam sessions at the Station Inn. Jim VanCleve, Aaron McDaris, Darrell Webb, and Ashby Frank — collectively carrying credits from Mountain Heart, the Grascals, Rhonda Vincent & the Rage, and Special Consensus — deliver sixteen classic bluegrass standards recorded live in the studio without overdubs. The project's roots in an informal session environment give the recording an ease and directness that more formally constructed productions sometimes lack, and the assembled musicians' individual pedigrees ensure the playing matches the highest standards of contemporary traditional bluegrass. The playful title belies the straightforwardly earnest quality of the actual content.
Tracklist
- 1 My Home’s Across the Blue Ridge Mountains alt version 2:42
- 2 Banks of the Ohio alt version 4:12
- 3 White House Blues alt version 2:12
- 4 John Henry alt version 3:12
- 5 Take This Hammer alt version 2:18
- 6 Sitting on Top of the World alt version 2:10
- 7 Long Journey Home alt version 3:04
- 8 Bury Me Beneath the Willow alt version 2:43
- 9 Little Maggie alt version 2:44
- 10 Going Across the Sea alt version 2:54
- 11 I’ll Remember You Love In My Prayers alt version 2:59
- 12 Lonesome Road Blues alt version 2:28
- 13 Ain’t Nobody Gonna Miss Me When I’m Gone alt version 2:51
- 14 Salt Creek alt version 3:49
- 15 Roving Gambler alt version 3:10
- 16 Sally Gooden 4:10