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Acoustic Disc proudly delivers Livin’ With The Blues, the first ever
blues album from award winning fiddler supreme, Vassar Clements. Throughout
his illustrious fifty-plus year career, Vassar has earned a reputation
as one of America’s greatest folk musicians—and as one of the
architects of bluegrass music, Vassar always put the blues in bluegrass.
For decades Vassar has added his magical touch to recordings by a diverse
musical "Who’s Who"—Bill Monroe, Earl Scruggs, John
Hartford, the Grateful Dead, Linda Ronstadt, the Allman Brothers Band,
Bonnie Raitt and Paul McCartney among many others. But it is only now
with Livin’ With The Blues that Clements is provided with authentic
rural and urban blues settings to showcase his soulful playing. Produced
by mandolin champion David Grisman with harmonica ace Norton Buffalo,
Livin’ With The Blues teams Vassar with blues heroes Charlie Musselwhite,
Elvin Bishop, Maria Muldaur, Roy Rogers, Norton Buffalo and Bob Brozman.
While Vassar Clements has often been considered the ‘bluesiest’
of the bluegrass fiddlers, it wasn’t until producer Grisman asked
him what kind of record he wanted to make, that the soft spoken septuagenarian
replied "I’ve always wanted to make a blues record."
Livin’ With The Blues kicks off with Skip James’ swampy "Cypress
Grove," with Vassar’s lonesome fiddle accompanied by Bob Brozman’s
National slide guitar. Arkansas’ #1 blues export Elvin Bishop cleans
house with his own "Dirty Drawers" and "That’s My
Thing," while the queen of the Oasis, Maria Muldaur gets low-down
with Vassar on "Honey Babe Blues" and Bessie Smith’s "I
Ain’t Gonna Play No Second Fiddle." Other tracks guaranteed
to keep you in the crossroads include Roy Rogers desolate take on Robert
Johnson’s "Phonograph Blues," "Mambo Boogie"
featuring the pulsating piano of Dave Mathews and the Booker T. Jones
classic "Green Onions," given a new twist by Charlie Musselwhite
and Vassar. "Rube’s Blues" features 19-year old blues guitar
whiz David Jacob-Strain helping Vassar reinvent a bluegrass standard and
Norton Buffalo brings it all home with his unique soul treatment of his
own "Don’t Stand Behind A Mule."
Vassar Clements has been a living legend for quite some time—but
right now he’s Livin’ With The Blues.
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