Climbing the Walls (Rounder Records CD 0280, 1991) is a co-billed studio album from mandolinist Mike Compton and guitarist David Grier, recorded in Nashville across twelve instrumental tracks drawn from traditional tunes and less familiar bluegrass material. Compton plays mandolin; Grier plays guitar; Blaine Sprouse plays fiddle; Roy Huskey Jr. and Billy Rose share bass duties across the tracks; Alisa Jones contributes hammered dulcimer; and Paul Martin Zonn plays clarinet on select pieces. Tony Trischka's liner notes describe the playing as "off-handed intricacy" — music that sounds casual but rewards close attention. The dulcimer and clarinet appearances give the album an unusual tonal palette for a bluegrass record, and the rapport between Compton and Grier — in unison passages and interlocking solos — is the album's defining characteristic. Climbing the Walls established both musicians as among the most thoughtful collaborators in contemporary acoustic music.
Tracklist
- 1 Climbing The Walls 3:52
- 2 Honky Tonk Swing 3:39
- 3 Waters Street Waltz 4:18
- 4 Black Mountain Rag alt version 2:40
- 5 Bye Bye Blue 2:55
- 6 Going Up Caney 4:18
- 7 Huffy 3:45
- 8 Over the Waterfall Source Recording 3:11
- 9 Flop-Eared Mule Source Recording 1:58
- 10 The New Five Cents 2:44
- 11 Paul's Blues 5:29
- 12 The Fun's All Over 3:38
