Down From the Mountain: Live Concert Performances by the Artists & Musicians of O Brother, Where Art Thou?
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Free Music Notes for Down From the Mountain: Live Concert Performances by the Artists & Musicians of O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Free Music Review: great alternative to the usual
Hit: 5 Stars
i loved this cd....the blending of harmonies makes for sweet listening!Free Music Review: great bluegrass
Hit: 5 Stars
This is a wonderful collection of bluegrass music with real heart.Free Music Review: Not as good as the soundtrack, but still worth the money!
Hit: 4 Stars
After three years of being dominated by mediocre, middle of the road pop singers with only marginal talent, country music was finally given a wakeup call with the unexpected success of the O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU soundtrack. The double platinum soundtrack has become one of the most successful albums of the year, and has proved to Nashville that the roots of country music are still thriving.DOWN FROM THE MOUNTAIN is the companion to the hugely popular soundtrack. Recorded live in Nashville in May, 2000, the album features several of the songs made popular by O BROTHER, as well as many songs recorded by the artists from the soundtrack. While it lacks the variety of the first CD, DOWN FROM THE MOUNTAIN sports several songs that make it a fine album to own, regardless of whether they were on the O BROTHER album or not. Standouts include the Cox Family's "Will There Be Any Stars In My Crown," Emmylou Harris's "Green Pastures," Gillian Welch's "I Want To Sing That Rock and Roll," and the Whites' "Sandy Land." DOWN FROM THE MOUNTAIN closes with Gillian Welch and Alison Krauss's duet of "I'll Fly Away." One of the album's best and most bittersweet moments is the late John Hartford's performance of "Big Rock Candy Mountain." Hartford died at age sixty three just a year after the recording was made.
While it isn't as long or enjoyable as the O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU soundtrack, DOWN FROM THE MOUNTAIN is an excellent companion to its prequel. If you enjoyed the soundtrack, you will love this album. Hopefully, DOWN FROM THE MOUNTAIN, which has already appeared on the country album charts, will do its share in the quest to repopularize bluegrass and traditional country music.
Free Music Review: Only Half the Story
Hit: 4 Stars
This disk does NOT contain all of the songs from the soundtrack of "Down from the Mountain," or even the best ones. What it contains are the songs that did not make the cut for the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" disk. It is a supplement to the first disk.I listened to it before I saw the video of the concert, and was disappointed. Now that I have seen the video (which is absolutely superb), I like the disk better, but as other reviewers have noted, it does not convey the magic of the video. Given a choice between buying the disk or the video, the video is clearly the winner.
John Hartford was wonderful in the video, but it's the ladies (especially Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch and Alison Krauss) who run away with the show.
Finally, if you're interested in seeing a live performance like this, Asheville (not Nashville) is the place to see it -- the Asheville, North Carolina folk festival begins every year on the first friday in August, 'long about sundown. The performers (all amateurs) drift down out of the hills with their guitars, fiddles, dulcimers and saws, and augmented by cloggers, put on a show you'll never forget. It's the kind of show John Hartford would have loved.
Free Music Review: Here's some of the negatives
Hit: 4 Stars
It's a great album, but here's the downsides:--Too much house band...the same dobro and mandolin players are on almost every song.
--Hartford should have done something else...Big Rock Candy Mountain is a cute tune, but why repeat it from the soundtrack.
--Whites should have had a second song, like all the other bands. Their sound was a refreshing change from the "house" sound that dominated most of the acts.
--I'll Fly Away is a carbon copy of the soundtrack, which is NOT the version in the movie (recorded by someone else...a fact never noted).
--The Fairfield Four song went on way too long, just like the song on the soundtrack. 2 minutes was plenty, we didn't need 4+ of prison hollers.
--Holly Hunter's intro was about five words long. Wonder why they bothered.
--The second Gillian Welch song, about rock and roll, was weak, and out of sync with the theme of the concert.