Josh Graves – Sultan Of Slide / Billy Troy – Broken Moon
Josh Graves is the father of bluegrass dobro; his recordings with Flatt & Scruggs from 1955 on set the standard for the instrument, and he was inducted two years ago into the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Hall of Honor. Billy Troy is his son, a producer, guitarist and songwriter who’s made his own career in country music. Graves plays on Troy’s album; Troy plays and sings on
Graves’ album; and Troy co-produced both releases with label founder Hugh Moore.
Graves’ eponymous 1998 album, also produced by Troy but done for Rebel Records, featured Graves with vocalists Terry Eldredge and Curly Seckler on a relaxed bluegrass set. Sultan Of Slide is a mostly country affair, sporting drums, steel, and electric guitar and bass — and beyond them, a few more twists that listeners may find surprising coming from a man well past the usual age of retirement. Obviously, it was a perilous course to take, but it turns out exceedingly well.
Though there are a couple of showcase instrumentals — Leon McAuliffe’s “Panhandle Rag”, with Graves and steel man Buddy Emmons taking turns, and the lovely “Evelina”, done with Jerry Douglas — the emphasis is on vocals and songwriting. The Whites wail Graves’ transcendent waltz “Come Walk With Me”; Porter Wagoner reprises “Satisfied Mind”; Tom T. Hall breezes through “Fireball Mail”; Johnny Russell essays his own “Someday I’ll Sober Up”; and Troy takes on Jimmie Rodgers’ “Carolina Sunshine Girl”.
All do well, but the real fun comes on a two pairs of appearances by Marty Stuart and Delbert McClinton. The former duets with Graves on a couple of his rockabilly (!) tunes, while the latter is at his hoarse, gritty best on Johnny & Jack’s goodtime rhumba “Down South In New Orleans” and Van Morrison’s “Bright Side Of The Road”. It’s great stuff, every bit of it, and you shouldn’t miss it.
That’s a tough mark to measure up to, and Troy’s album doesn’t quite make it, though it’s good enough to have quite taken me by surprise; why hadn’t I noticed this guy before? He’s not overpowering, but he’s a convincing singer, and the picking is good, too, mostly from guys with slightly left-of-center mainstream country credits (I especially liked Bob Wray’s aggressive bass).
There are some great songs, notably the title cut, on which Troy is backed by the Whites (who also sing on the classically simple “If I Could Be The One You Love”), the similarly-themed “Full Moon Half Heart”, and a deftly written and executed duet with Rosie Flores — as well as some he didn’t write, including a dandy “Lonelyville”, which he sings beautifully.
Even so, some of the songs are built on too-slender ideas — a pun, or a play on words that has some momentary charm but doesn’t age well. These tunes show Troy as a writer of considerable range, but they also give up their pleasure quickly. It’s the ballads and hard country numbers that really stir the currents here, and it would be nice to have more of them.