The Original Band

Doyle Lawson has long been an influential bandleader in the mainstream bluegrass scene. Yet many would argue that his vintage years were the late '70s and early '80s, when he first left the Country Gentlemen and formed his own band, Quicksilver. The 22 shining tracks on this digitally remastered reissue of Quicksilver's first two secular albums--Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver (1980) and Quicksilver Rides Again (1982)--make a compelling case for the argument that Quicksilver's earliest was their best. Back then--when Lawson's bandmates included future stars Lou Reid (bass, vocals), Terry Baucom (banjo, vocals), and Jimmy Haley (guitar, vocals)--Quicksilver hewed resolutely to the strict rhythmic and harmonic templates of traditional bluegrass. The band's true innovation came with its imaginative harmonies and its thrilling bluegrass reinventions of material from far outside the realm. Quicksilver's versions of the New Christy Minstrels' folk-gospel "Mighty Mississippi," Don Williams's mainstream country hit "Till the Rivers All Run Dry," and even the Vietnam-era rock oldie "Yellow River" are transcendent musical moments that ace the test of time with flying colors. --Bob Allen