Volume Five - Scarecrow HD

from the "Drifter" 2016. Mountain Fever Records Over the past few years Volume Five has been quietly releasing some of the most consistently entertaining contemporary bluegrass you can find. I say quietly because they are rarely mentioned as among the top tier acts in our business, and they certainly deserve to be in that discussion. The secret to their success has been the appealing voice of fiddler and founder Glenn Harrell, and their inerrant ability to choose tuneful songs that suit their sound. They easily blend a contemporary feel with traditional material, but it’s the quality and perceptiveness of the songs they record that sets them apart. Drifter, their sixth album since 2008, from Mountain Fever Records is set for release tomorrow (June 24), and it may be their best to this point. All the elements that make this such a likable band are in evidence from the opening track, the first single, I Am A Drifter. Written by Donna Ulisse and Marc Rossi, it has an easily singable melody and lyrics that relate a compelling story about someone that can’t stay put. It has been doing very well on our Bluegrass Today Weekly Airplay chart this past few weeks. But like all the songs here it works on a Shakespearean – or Bullwinklean – level as well. The Bard has been praised for centuries for his ability to give the uneducated masses a tale of intrigue to capture their imagination, while also including elements of philosophy and human interaction to involve the minds of the intelligentsia. Just so with the classic Bullwinkle cartoons, which distracted children with silly characters, while entertaining their parents with witty asides that flew right over the children’s heads. Volume Five can please a fan who just wants to hear a bluegrass beat with a pleasant melody, but the rhythmic interplay between the instruments can enthrall a more sophisticated listener after multiple hearings. It’s a special skill, and may ultimately be the one thing that eventually allows this talented quintet to rise to the top, a la Blue Highway. This rings true for all the tracks on Drifter, from ballads like Because Of You (Ronnie Bowman/Jon Nite) and Scarecrow (Kevin Denney/Tom Botkin) to grassy burners 95 Years (Carter Moore), and Alaskan Gold (Colby Laney),.Harrell’s voice sells the songs and the band supports him with appropriate accompaniment. And they are each intelligent songs, even when following traditional themes we have come to expect from “cabin songs.” There are several standouts that bear special mention. Ranching Man from Jesse Daniel is a textbook demonstration of an effective pop song. It’s the story of a young man who’s fallen in love with the girl of his dreams, but her father is trying to manipulate their relationship with his wealth. But instead of simply telling the story journalistically, Daniel reveals it in pieces over two verses and a chorus, so that by the end you completely understand the young man’s dilemma. A sure sign of a great song is wh