Starred review from October 1, 2004
With the sweet sounds of fiddles, banjos, Dobros, guitars, and mandolins, the driving rhythms of bluegrass music create a high lonesome sound that echoes across the ages. Music journalist Ledgin provides a helpful survey of the genre as well as an engaging introduction to the music, weaving interviews with musicians into her overviews of the music's evolution, its instruments, and its various personalities from Bill Monroe and Doc Watson to Alison Krauss and Nickel Creek. She helps first-time listeners understand the differences between traditional bluegrass and the "new" grass, and her appendixes offer a treasure trove of information ranging from the top 25 bluegrass albums with which to begin building a collection to selected readings on bluegrass and country music. While Neil V. Rosenberg's Bluegrass: A History remains the definitive history, Ledgin's inviting introduction brings Rosenberg up to date and offers an entertaining glimpse of today's bluegrass scene. Every library should own a copy.--Henry L. Carrigan Jr., Lancaster, PA
Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.