Black Twig Pickers, Jack Rose: Jack Rose & the Black Twig Pickers

Media: LP
$20.00

Raw and rocking collaboration between Jack Rose and the Black Twigs with some of the most swinging, hard-hitting string music waxed in many a decade. Rose’s solo playing has always had a tough edge, with his prodigious technique often employed in the service of dropping right-hand bombs – his use of a thumbpick originates from his years of duets with Twig Mike Gangloff, struggling to make his guitar heard over Gangloff’s crashing banjo. The front line of Rose and Gangloff’s strings are joined by Isak Howell’s no-nonsense guitar and harmonica and Nate Bowles’ variety of expert percussion. The four players lock together with a sure-footedness honed by frequent touring and a singularity of intent to rock. Gangloff takes the vocals, howling out standards like “Little Sadie” firmly in the old-time tradition – without reserve. A few of the tracks here are updates of Rose & family classics, with the group turning the stately “Kensington Blues” upbeat and issuing an assured take on “Bright Sunny South,” first recorded by Pelt (w/Rose and Gangloff) back in 2001 on their gonzo classic double “Ayahuasca.”

Note that there is now a cd edition of this album, containing the same music, issued by VHF Records and in the UK, by Beautiful Happiness (see here, here, here or here).

Jack Rose & the Black Twig Pickers Reviews

• After settling down into his fold-up chair, Nathan Bowles convinces a receptive crowd to conquer their shyness and come closer to the stage. (The Skinny)
• ... the kind of lively, unself-conscious simplicity too often in short supply amid the haste and clutter of modern living. (Mojo)
• it’s hillbilly, it’s ragtime, it’s bluegrass, it’s rhythm, it’s blues, it’s the greatest bar-band you ever heard. (Cows are Just Food)
• ... raw without courting a faux primitivism (Be Independent)
• ... not trendy hipster anti-folk or a post-modern reworking of traditional sounds for a jaded and novelty-starved market. (Dreaded Press)
• ... it's something of a shock to hear vocals on a Rose-related record. (Brainwashed)
• The late November view from A.P. and Sara's headstones ... (Yeti)
• ... archaic musical disciplines ... (Boomkat)
• ... mighty mountain music indeed ... (Uncut)
• ... some HOT tunes to melt your butter with. (American Primitive)
• ... one of the most compelling no-nonsense folk albums of the year. (Dusted)
• ... a gracious hand that never feels trite or contrived. (Foxy Digitalis)
• ... breastfed on Jack Daniels ... (The Skinny)
• This is a jug-swigging, toe-tapping, and uproarious album of Appalachian booty rap. (Other Music)
• ... letting the night settle comfortably on all those within earshot. (Raven Sings the Blues)
• ... from wild campfire old school blue grass hoedowns to more darkly contemplative folk explorations... (Aquarius Records)
• ... a big fuck you to the gentrification (and homogenisation) of traditional American folk music. (Strangeglue)