IV - Chatham County Line

Not surprisingly given its title, IV is the North Carolina quartet's fourth album and their most commercial to date. While the band have certainly not abandoned their bluegrass roots they have successfully crossed over into something more accessible, a kind of 'newgrass' if you like.

I'd only vaguely heard of the band before their appearance on BBC's Later with Jools Holland earlier this year and I'm not sure that reviews of their ...
...fall under the bluegrass banner, IV as a whole is better described as 'Americana'; pedal steel and steel guitar send the songs more in the direction of alt country and should appeal to the wider audience than the banjo dominated songs that used to be the trademark of CCL.

On IV, CCL show that they are no one trick pony. From the opening track, "Chip of a Star" through to the finale "Thanks", this is a collection ... more

Not surprisingly given its title, IV is the North Carolina quartet's fourth album and their most commercial to date. While the band have certainly not abandoned their bluegrass roots they have successfully crossed over into something more accessible, a kind of 'newgrass' if you like.

I'd only vaguely heard of the band before their appearance on BBC's Later with Jools Holland earlier this year and I'm not sure that reviews of their previous albums would have enticed me to give them a listen. I've never been much of a bluegrass fan but I was so taken with the songs they performed on the show that I had to buy this album.

They are an acoustic band comprising banjo, fiddle, guitar, double bass and mandolin; all four members of the band sing and they create some really lovely harmonies though guitarist Dave Wilson usually picks up the lead vocal.

On previous albums the Chatham County Line did pretty much what you'd expect a band to do with those instruments but the band themselves admit that on their fourth album they decided to push the boundaries and let the instruments be just instruments and not tie them to the bluegrass genre. They wrote the songs they wanted to and then played them on their instruments rather than using the instruments as a starting point. While one or two of the tracks definitely fall under the bluegrass banner, IV as a whole is better described as 'Americana'; pedal steel and steel guitar send the songs more in the direction of alt country and should appeal to the wider audience than the banjo dominated songs that used to be the trademark of CCL.

On IV, CCL show that they are no one trick pony. From the opening track, "Chip of a Star" through to the finale "Thanks", this is a collection of songs that move seamlessly from one genre to another. There are no weak links but there are a couple of stand out tracks. Top of my list is "The Carolina", an age old tale of meeting a young lady on a train journey and wondering what could have been. Hardly original but the lyrics are wonderful and the chorus is one of those you just have to sing along to "She's in Richmond with my heart, and I'm bound for Carolina/Wish I'd never met this train or the girl that's left behind here". "The Carolina" is what CCL do best - old-fashioned storytelling.

"Let it Rock" proves that CCL don't need to be plugged in to really get going and "Whipping Boy" is another foot-tapper but this one is a modern take on bluegrass with a fantastic fiddle line. "Clear Blue Sky" is a fast and furious bluegrass instrumental with some virtuoso banjo playing that even the most ardent country-hater surely couldn't resist a little toe-tapping along to.

Only one track doesn't sit so comfortably on this album. "Paige" is a two minute instrumental that demonstrates some excellent mandolin playing but it seemed to me quite "Elizabethan" in style and jarred with the other tracks. Still it does highlight the fact that there is some quality musicianship involved in this album. The close harmony singing of "Birmingham Jail" is an excellent example of the band's abilities but it's the wonderful banjo lead in this song that dominates.

The song that best sums up IV is "Country boy, city boy"; it has bluegrass running though its core but it has been updated and is more accessible than the genre traditionally is. Even the lyrics echo the way urban (read rock/pop) and the country blend seamlessly together.

Chatham County Line seem finally to have come of age and found the perfect blend of bluegrass and Americana in general that will give them wider media exposure. They have already appeared on Later with Jools Holland and are regulars on Bob Harris's Radio 2 show. I would not describe myself as a particular fan of bluegrass music but CCL have taken key elements and themes and put them in a contemporary music setting that is a breath of fresh air in the Americana scene. For pleasing harmonies, impressive musicianship and some fine song-writing skills, nobody can come near the Chatham County Line.

1. Chip Of A Star
2. The Carolinian
3. Let It Rock
4. One more minute
5. Birmingham Jail
6. Sweet Eviction
7. I Got Worry
8. Clear Blue Sky
9. She
10. Whipping Boy
11. Paige
12. Country Boy, City Boy
13. Thanks 

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