10 great Old Time Albums from the past 10 years

I thought I'd build from last week's post on "new" fiddle tunes (here) by discussing "new" Old Time recordings. A lot of people prefer to listen to "source recordings" of tunes and there's definitely something magical about hearing how these tunes were played before youtube got a hold of them. However, there are some truly amazing players in the world today and modern technology allows us to hear every nuance of every note they make. I get a ton of inspiration from "new" Old Time and its hard to deny that these recordings don't make a splash when they come out; standout tunes on a new album quickly become over-represented in festival jam sessions and you can even hear people adopting the signature twists from a recording into their own playing.

Today I thought I'd point out 10 great albums that spend a lot of time piping through my speakers - this list is by no means exhaustive and things that have been omitted are either missing due to lack of space (stopped myself at 10) or perhaps even due to ignorance on my part - feel free to suggest some others in the comments below! To cull the list a bit I stuck to albums mostly populated by instrumental fiddle tunes that one might play at a jam (though most albums inevitably include a few "singing" tunes/songs). Here they are - listed in roughly chronological order of release date (so I don't appear to play favorites : )

​Furnace Mountain - Fly the River - 2006
This Old Time trio (expanded to a quartet in more recent albums...) adds a bouzouki to the more-traditional Old Time lineup - the fact that this album is banjo-free doesnt stop me from loving it!  Standout fiddle tunes include "Chinquapin Hunting," "Blackjack Grove," and "Duck River." "Dink's Song" is my favorite vocal number and though many people have recorded it I've never found a version I like more - Aimee Curl (also on bass) has a really cool voice...

Chance McCoy - Debut - 2008
Before he was playing with Old Crow Medicine Show, Chance McCoy made one of the best Old Time albums I've ever heard. Chance fiddles a highly-crooked jaw-dropping version "Yew Piney Mountain" solo. Other solo standouts are "Gospel Plow" and "Little Pink," both of which he sings accompanied by really clean (2 finger?) banjo playing. On other tunes, Chance is backed by some world class musicians (including Adam Hurt!); by far my favorite versions of "Dance All Night..." and "Greasy Coat."

​Light and Hitch - (self titled) - 2008
Apparently this was a band that formed to play a contest and recorded an album afterwards.  An amazing album overall but Andrew Norcross' banjo playing is just ridiculous! He plays a deep pot fretless (big inspiration for the pot depth of the Buckeye) that he built himself and the tone takes plunkiness to a new extreme - in places it sounds more "hang drum" than "banjo" to my ear. So many good tunes but some of my favorites are "Charleston #2," "Road to Malvern" and the "Ryestraw/John Sharp's tune" medley!

The Macrae Sisters - Old Sledge - 2008
As an only child, I'll never know what its like to play tunes with your siblings, but the Macrae sisters sure make it sound incredible! Every bit of sound here is great but, as usual, my ears home in on the banjo. Lots and lots (and lots!) of plunk....another great CD for fans of the "Light and Hitch" type banjo sound. Standout tunes include "Highlander's farewell," "Cousin Sally Brown," and "Tennessee Mountain Fox Chase" (all three of which I played before hearing this album, but they play waaaaay better than I do).

Adam Hurt - Perspective - 2009
I have way too many good things to say about Adam Hurt to fit them in here - like many people, I've been obsessed with his banjo playing since the moment I first heard it....but in recent years I've actually gotten to meet Adam in person several times and he just couldn't be more friendly! Adam sticks on banjo for this whole album (he has since started recording on fiddle as well): my favorites include his versions of "Cherokee Shuffle," "Say Old Man, I Want Your Daughter," and "Highlander's Farewell."

The Flat Iron String Band - (Self titled) - 2008
J.P. Harris' banjo sound on this album has a lot in common with Andrew Norcross' playing on "Light and Hitch" (i.e. he also plays a deep-pot fretless that he built himself). For a little while, J.P. Harris was selling these banjos under the name "big bottom special;" amazingly, he fronts a honky tonk band these days (J.P. Harris and the Tough Choices). I love "Bill Cheatham" (a tune that seems to get more play at bluegrass jams) and "Say Old Man..." which is slower than Adam Hurt's version, and shifted to D!

Adam Hurt - Earth Tones - 2010
Adam Hurt had to make two appearances on this list (well, three if you can't Chance McCoy's album). This is an incredible piece of work, where Adam played a great bunch of fiddle tunes on a fretless gourd banjo; as I should have expected from Adam, I've never heard a gourd banjo played with such precision! Standout tunes include the "John Riley the Shepherd/Brushy Fork of John's Creek" medley, and "Josio," though the whole album is really great (and spends a lot of time on repeat)!

Bigfoot - I've Got a Bulldog - 2012
Two fiddles, bass, guitar, and banjo (...with John  Herrmann playing plunky banjo!). After "Indian Corn" kept popping up in various jams in recent years, I finally realized that the opening track on this album was the reason! I've only gotten my hands on this album recently but I'm impressed throughout. "Newt Payne's" tune (track 2) has found its way into a couple recent jams as well - simple tune with a cool structure (AAA;BBB).

Lukas Pool - The Lost Gander - 2014
Lukas Pool is someone who's playing I only discovered in the last few years - he's a Berkeley School of Music grad and plays like it! I met Lukas at midwest banjo camp this year, and also got to play a couple Ozark banjos (which he builds - these things just ooze bass!). This album veers a bit outside the Old Time canon ("Polska Efter Nylandspojkarna??") but all of the musicians play great throughout! My favorite track is the "Boatman," based on Marcus Martin's windy version (not the jam standard).

David Bragger - Big Fancy - 2015
I know David Bragger's name from the "Old Time Tiki Parlour" youtube videos. A fiddler friend of mine has really taken to his version of "Jingle at the Window Tidy-o" and I've recently picked up the tune from this album as well - his fiddling is really, really  (really!) great! I'll admit I haven't spent enough time with the rest of the album yet, but from what I've heard this is destined to become one of my favorites!

​Technically, that ends my top 10 list and I could stop here without too much guilt : ) However, theres one more album out there that I haven't actually gotten to hear yet, but that I'm crazy excited about!! This is the new offering by Molsky's Mountain Drifters:

​Molsky's Mountain Drifters (self titled) - 2016
Fiddler Bruce Moslky has some cool recordings out there (solo albums, playing with an irish band, playing with a group that normally sings "A Capella"), but I can't wait to hear this album with his new Old Time trio that featuring Allison De Groot on banjo. Allison (like Lukas Pool) is another Berkeley grad and to me her banjo playing is best-summarized as "thoughtful" with gorgeous tone - she never overwhelms the fiddler, but she's definitely present and playing plenty of notes! I heard a bit of Allison and Bruce together at Clifftop and I'm hooked!

Hope anyone reading this found at least one new album worth buying : )