Lester’s Loafin Lounge

Lester's Loafin' Lounge (Spring Fed Records, 2015) is the fifth studio album from the Tennessee Mafia Jug Band, the Nashville old-time and jug-band ensemble led by banjoist Leroy Troy, dedicated to founding member "Lonesome" Lester Armistead, who died in early 2014. Troy plays banjo and sings lead; Dan Kelly plays fiddle; Ernie Sykes holds the bass; Mike Armistead plays guitar; and Mike Webb plays guitar, resonator guitar, and banjo. Recorded on analog tape in Old Hickory, Tennessee, the album presents the band's loose, comedic approach to old-time and jug-band string music — more interested in communal spirit and entertainment than stylistic orthodoxy — with guest appearances from Marty Stuart and Hargus "Pig" Robbins among others. The title refers to Lester Armistead's actual lounge near Goodlettsville, Tennessee, where the band held many of its formative jam sessions.