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About the CD
The Rosin Up Your Bow album was recorded like the early days
before the drum kit was added -- back when the entire rhythmic feel was generated by the
compelling combination of an acoustic upright bass and an acoustic guitar. In keeping with
the thought that sometimes 'less is more,' the signature song Rosin Up Your Bow features
just one lead instrument; naturally, it's the wending, winding fiddle.
The steel guitar sound of the album pre-dates the advent of the pedal steel guitar,
as the traditional lap steel is heard on Leaving Blues and Steel Mill Blues, and as
the glide of the Hawaiian steel drives the progression of Baby Are You Telling Me
The Truth smoothly forward.
The electric guitar is featured, too -- with lively Telecaster picking on
City Blues and Blues At Midnight, the playing has the perfection of a studio
setting with all the dynamics of a live performance...the phrasing is snappy when it sounds good
that way, and alternately, it's relaxed and spacious when it should be.
The open-string guitar playing is also engaging, as it emanates through the dramatic chords of
Time Is A Healer. The beautiful, earthy sound of the mandolin finds its home as it sounds
out triplet note-chords in Weeping With The Willow Tree and I'm Sorry I Left You
Alone.
The eleven songs on Rosin Up Your Bow were selected from many compositions for their overall
balance as a collection, for the individual stories that each told, and for their ability to
showcase country music simplicity at its finest. The songs contributed to an album that is
appropriately-produced, rather than over-produced; when the singer has something to say, he is
heard, and when it's time for the instruments to stretch out, they have room to roam.
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Click here to visit our companion website, Sound of the Blues.
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Refreshing songs of optimism are here; The Girl Next Door, Time Is A Healer,
and the signature song, Rosin Up Your Bow. The heartbreakers are here, too:
Weeping With The Willow Tree, Blues At Midnight and others, telling perennial
stories of lost love and unrequited love.
Accompanied by honky-tonk blues piano, the bittersweet, nostalgic story of
The Lonely Piano unfolds, and is accentuated in a beautiful instrumental coda. There
is a timeless work-lament in Steel Mill Blues, the narrative of an orphan's plight in
I'm Sorry I Left You Alone, and the 'everyman' sentiment, City Blues...the search
for a better life, whether it's to be found in the country, the city, or simply within
our own hearts.
Reviews
We have received many compliments on the Rosin Up Your Bow
album, and would like to share two of them with you.
Inside Bluegrass magazine, from the Minnesota Bluegrass
and Old Time Music Association, says "Good, well written songs sung in a
pleasant voice with appropriate, uncluttered arrangements. This is classic country,
with sparser instrumentation than most things that have been successful in the
commercial market. This disc has a lot of things going for it. Many of the songs
(all written by Perry) could become standards with the right exposure. The titles
pretty much describe what the songs are about. One hook line I especially like is
'This city life has been a rat race and I think the rats have won.'"
Tradition magazine, from the National Traditional Country Music
Association says that "Steve Perry is a singer-songwriter from Illinois, and a
good one he is. Catch this line and see if it doesn't grab you, 'This city life has
been a rat race and I think the rats have won.' Isn't that a great line? Steve wrote
all of the songs on this CD, and I'd have to admit I liked every one of them. Steve
has a nice knack for taking the ordinary and making it special. That takes good
songwriting ability. The CD has good backing all the way through, and a good fiddler,
too. A good all around country CD."
We appreciate these kind words, and express our gratitude to these fine
organizations. If you have a friend who enjoys traditional country music and country
blues, we hope that you will tell them about Rosin Up Your Bow.
Links
Antique Radio Classified Antique radio's largest circulation magazine.
ezFolk Instruction for guitar, banjo, ukulele, and harmonica.
Fiddle Fork Events, articles, reviews, and fiddle downloads.
Folk Music Home Page A collection of folk music links.
MusiciansStorehouse.com Musical instruments and equipment.
Radiophile.com A beautiful collection of antique radios.
Roy Rogers and Dale Evans The official website.
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