Swing Violin and Western Swing

Cross-Country Swing:
Western Swing and Country Classics

Compact Disk: Swing Cat 1611 (1999)
$18.00

No More Nothing (MP3 sample cut)

Guitarist and vocalist Roger Bellow grew up surrounded by hillbillies, which explains his life-long infatuation with honky-tonkin' country music. Here he vocalizes on a deluxe mix of country weepers, swing-era standards and boppin' Western swing, backed by the fiddle of Paul Anastasio, brother Tom Anastasio's doghouse bass and Ray Wood's non-pedal steel guitar. Even if you don't like beer you might need to order one just to cry into while listening to this CD.

"...Paul and I played twin fiddles with Merle Haggard for a while. On this album Paul sure proves he is one of the top fiddle players and one of my heroes. Roger Bellow is one of a kind. He is a great singer and musician."
-Gordon Terry

The songs:

No More Nothing
Heart of a Clown
No One Will Ever Know
It Makes No Difference Now (Floyd Tillman's great number, first recorded by Cliff Bruner way back in the late 1930s)
Before I'm Over You (from the Loretta Lynn book)
Let's Settle Down to Runnin' 'Round Together
I Gotta Have My Baby Back (also from Floyd Tillman)
Take Me Back to the Prairie
Sick, Sober and Sorry (the title says it all)
Silver Bells (Paul and Roger on twin fiddles)
Dinah
It Could Happen to You
Whispering
Darn That Dream
Love is Just Around the Corner

Swingin' in Seattle...Live!

Compact Disk: Swing Cat 1502 (1997)
$18.00

Swing 39 (MP3 sample cut)

Seattle bids farewell to what passes for summer with the aptly named Bumbershoot Arts Festival, featuring a mixture of national and local artists performing in a variety of styles. Paul Anastasio and his Swing Cats were selected to showcase at Bumbershoot in 1995 and again in 1997. The more recent set, with Paul on violin, Jack Hansen on guitar and Spencer Hoveskeland on bass, is presented here exactly as the audience heard it on that sunny Seattle summer day.

Paul Anastasio - Violin, Octave Violin
Paul studied jazz violin with Joe Venuti and played extensively for years with fine western swing fiddlers such as Johnny Gimble, Joe Holley and Buddy Spicher. He hopes it shows.
Jack Hansen - Arch-top Guitar
Jack has been a presence on the Western Washington music scene for over 30 years, with his musical association with Paul going back nearly that far. A veteran of many Seattle bands, he's heard here playing rock-solid rhythm guitar in the tradition of Basie guitarist Freddie Green.
Spencer Hoveskeland - Dog-house Bass
Spencer "Hoverkraft" Hoveskeland studied with longtime Bill Evans bassist Chuck Israels. A talented, creative player known for his arco (bowed) bass work, Spencer loves to laugh and is a tremendous addition to the Swing Cats.

Bugle Blues
Honeysuckle Rose
Nuages
Lulu's Back in Town
Some of These Days
Skip It
Swing 39
Swingin' Softly
Moonglow (I'm Living in the Past)
Giuseppi's Blues
I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart
Avalon
Bugle Blues (reprise)

Twin Fiddle Western Swing
featuring the twin fiddles of Dick Barrett and Paul Anastasio with Lisa Barrett and Tom Morarre

Compact Disk: Swing Cat 1504 (1997)
$18.00

Detour (MP3 sample cut)

Dick Barrett and Paul Anastasio have fiddled together for over twenty-five years. They first got acquainted during the early 1970s when both Paul and Dick were playing in fiddle contests in the West. Dick is an undisputed master of the Texas style of old-time fiddling. Basing his sound on the driving breakdown style of groundbreaking Texas pioneer Major Franklin, Dick has dominated the fiddle contest scene as no one has before or since. Over the years he has amassed a small collection of over one thousand contest trophies, most of which are engraved with the number one. Dick is equally adept at playing western swing, as he cut his teeth playing the swing-heavy western and country music of the 1950s. His tasteful playing graced the bands of Lefty Frizzell, The Sons of the Pioneers, Tex Ritter and T. Texas Tyler, for whom he was both fiddler and bandleader.

Paul Anastasio has also played a few of the old western swing tunes a time or two. Merle Haggard loves western swing, and in 1978 when Paul was working as a member of Haggard's backup band,The Strangers, Merle's shows always included several western swing numbers. Four years with Asleep at the Wheel didn't hurt Paul's country swing chops either.

It would certainly seem as though a twin fiddle recording featuring Dick and Paul would be a natural. What was hard was scheduling time for recording sessions between Dick's heavy schedule of teaching, performing and travel and Paul's road work and recording in Nashville. Paul's 1992 escape from Nashville and his return to his native Pacific Northwest simplified logistics. Two music-drenched visits to Dick and his wife Lisa Barrett's Montana home solidified the arrangements and song selection. All that remained was to wax tracks, and so in the fall of 1997 Paul loaded up his trusty van and headed east from Seattle with a load of digital recording gear and vintage ribbon microphones. Stopping in Missoula to pick up one Tom Morarre, an affable gentleman who happens to play a lot of guitar, the journey continued until the boys arrived in bustling Rapelje, Montana (population 60). Dick and Lisa were waiting with fiddle and guitar at the ready. A studio was set up in their home and, for the next four days, whenever the spirit moved them the red light came on and the quartet made music.

The tunes recorded ran the gamut from western swing standards to old- time waltzes, from big band swing tunes to country classics. Everyone concerned with this project is looking 'frontwards,' as Johnny Gimble says, to the recording of the second volume in this series. This next volume will feature more of the fine fiddling of Lisa Barrett, as on the first recording she was kept busy playing guitar on all but one cut - the triple fiddle Sunbonnet Sue.

Here are the tunes on Twin Fiddle Western Swing:

Detour
Faded Love
Kansas City Kitty
Home on the Range
Spanish Two-Step
Westphalia Waltz
Right or Wrong
Let Me Ride in Your Little Red Wagon
Deep Water
Red Wing
3 O'Clock in the Morning
Sunbonnet Sue
Hang Your Head in Shame
There's a New Moon over My Shoulder
I Don't Love Nobody

This loving interplay of two longtime fiddle playing compadres was a long time coming, but the results are more than worth the quarter-century wait. Jump onto this recording and let it transport you into the middle of a great Montana music session!

The Swing Cat says, "Wow! Two fiddles! That's a lot of catgut! Good thing I didn't wander into any string factories before they cut this one."

Twin Fiddle Western Swing
Volume 2

Compact Disk: Swing Cat 2002 (2003)
$18.00

San Antonio Rose (MP3 sample cut)

Dick Barrett and Paul Anastasio have played music together for 30 years, and they have have a sincere and deep friendship based on mutual respect.

Dick's musical roots go back many years. The 1950s found him fiddling professionally with T. Texas Tyler; Tex Ritter; the Sons of the Pioneers and Lefty Frizzell, among others. He was also the protogé of Texas fiddle pioneer Major Franklin. Basing his style on Major's aggressive "git after it and move it on down the road" approach, Dick soon became a force to be reckoned with on the fiddle contest circuit, winning hundreds of contests. In fact, it was at the National Old Time Fiddler's Contest in Weiser, Idaho, where Paul and Dick became acquainted.

Paul was avidly exploring many musical styles including swing, bluegrass, country fiddle and Texas fiddling when he met Dick in the early 1970s. He and Dick soon found they shared a fondness for western swing, the American southwest's unique blending of jazz, blues, Tin Pan Alley pop songs, country, and old-time fiddling. Dick was among the first to teach Paul the 'over-and-under' double stop harmony style, which allows two players to play three-part harmony. You can hear this sound on many of the recordings of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, with fiddler Joe Holley 'sandwiching' Bob Wills' melody notes.

For their second volume, Dick and Paul once again enlisted the assistance of Lisa Barrett on rhythm guitar. They called upon Cary Black, an excellent acoustic bassist known for his work with the Kingston Trio and Laurie Lewis, to hold down the low end. Mike Dowling, who studied with former NBC staff guitarist George Barnes and recorded with Joe Venuti, arrived with a gang of guitar-shaped objects. He drove into the tunes from four different angles, on acoustic and electric guitar, resonator guitar and dobro.

While jamming at the old-time fiddlers' contest in Weiser, Idaho in 1994, Paul was delighted to encounter the truly exceptional guitarist Ray Wood. Ray was at the time seriously wrapped around an old arch-top guitar and, one would swear, playing notes that hadn't been invented yet. Paul's return to the same swing jam session hours later found Ray wrapped still further around his guitar, which sounded as though it was about to burst into flame. To make a long story short, Paul grabbed his fiddle, they jammed till three in the morning, and the omnipresent Swing Cat made a note regarding the necessity of recording the pair. This was accomplished with the help of some vintage RCA 77-DX ribbon microphones, whose characteristic warm sound set the music industry standard in the 1940s.

Paul and Ray laid down twenty great swing and western swing standards in two extended sessions, including a remake of two original tunes from Paul's LP with Joe Holley and Frank Hicks, a Joe Holley blues and one of Paul's more unusual compositions. This "four string" number employs a technique Paul borrowed from the playing of Joe Venuti wherein the bow is taken apart with the hair laid over the strings while the stick saws behind the back of the violin. This allows the performer to play three and four-note chords simultaneously. Venuti regularly broke up audiences with this uniquely difficult technique, and Paul and Ray pay tribute to Joe with this number. The other nineteen tunes aren't half bad either - almost an hour of spirited swing including a couple of tunes where Paul plays an octave violin, a violin with special strings giving it a range between a viola and a cello.

The tunes are as follows:

It's Only a Paper Moon Give Me the Simple Life Right or Wrong Joe's Blues The Darktown Strutters' Ball Opus One Bring It on Down to My House, Honey Green Eyes How Come You Do Me Like You Do? How High the Moon

Kansas City Kitty Bye Bye Blackbird St. Louis Blues Paul's Jive Hang Your Head in Shame Chinatown, My Chinatown Am I Blue? Misery Blue Skies I Want To Be Happy It's Only a Paper Moon (reprise)

Solid playing and a spirit of serious fun pervades this recording venture, with Paul's fiddle soaring over Ray's rock-solid rhythm guitar. Swing Cat would almost take this one over a bowl of cream.

Greg Hardy and the Blue Light Boys
All Cats is Grey After Dark

Compact Disk: Rancho Zilla Productions 1 (1999)
$18.00

I Want a Bow Legged Woman (MP3 sample cut)

Jump blues with a touch of western swing. Greg Hardy leads on vocals & drums. Get down playing from Tom Morrell (guitars), Tim Alexander (piano), Mac MacRae (bass), Snuffy Elmore (fiddle), Chris McGuirre (saxes), & Bill Atwood (trumpet).

These cats have a fun time & you will too! (Bo Lewis, Big Band Dance Party, WNAV-AM, Annapolis, MD, live on the internet)

We all know that Greg Hardy is a fine singer and a great drummer from his work with Tom Morrell and the Time Warp Tophands. Now, with the release of "All Cats is Grey After Dark" by Greg Hardy and the Blue Light Boys we see the vast talent of this man. We now are treated to 11 jump standards redone and totally rejuvenated in this wonderful new CD that was also produced by Greg. It is really a very enjoyable listening experience. (Mike Gross, host of "Swingin' West", WVOF-FM, Fairfield, CT)

Besides Greg's wonderful vocals, this CD has great grooves to dance to as well as a variety of songs filled with romance and humor for the listener. If you are looking for a CD that you will play again and again, this is it! (Dayna Wills)

Check it out:

I Want a Bow Legged Woman
She's a Bombshell from Brooklyn
Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You?
Cielto Lindo
Azure Te
The Blue Light Boogie
Sweet Lorraine
Honey Chile
A Kiss to Build a Dream On
The Barnyard Boogie
The 3 Lil' Pigs

Mount Baker Swing

Compact Disk: Swing Cat 1493 (1992)
$18.00

Sweet Georgia Brown (MP3 sample cut)

Paul Anastasio and Jack Hansen have played music together for close to thirty years. At the beginning of their musical association they performed together as members of the Southfork Bluegrass Band. The years found them both increasingly drawn to the mesmerizing music of the Swing Era. By the late '70s Paul was studying with Joe Venuti, and he and Jack were jamming with Joe at his home and at a now-defunct Seattle club, which shall remain nameless for the reason that the club's owners neglected to pay a certain well-known violinist. For some unknown reason the unpredictable Joe created aliases for Paul, who became "John Philip," and Jack, who was renamed "Paul Revere," and introduced them as such on stage.

When Paul moved back to the Northwest after years of touring with Bakersfield, Austin and Nashville-based bands, it was natural for him to continue his musical partnership with Jack. A performance in Paul's home town of Bellingham, Washington at the Mount Baker Theater provided a perfect showcase for the hand-in-glove symbiosis of these long-time friends and musical partners. The digital recording gear was rolling for the reunion of "John Philip" and "Paul Revere" as the boys played these great standards before an appreciative and enthusiastic audience:

Sweet Georgia Brown
My Melancholy Baby
Mood Indigo
Take the "A" Train
It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
Honeysuckle Rose
Oh, Lady Be Good!
I Can't Give You Anything but Love
Dinah
Don't Get Around Much Anymore
Hush My Child
Exactly Like You
Moonglow
Pennies from Heaven
Undecided

As the audience's reaction confirms, this is truly an energetic and inspired performance from the heart, and one you'll really enjoy. The Swing Cat gives it four paws up!

Zombies of Swing

Compact Disk: Swing Cat 1495 (1993)
$18.00

Stars Fell on Alabama (MP3 sample cut)

For one week each year, the campus of Davis and Elkins College in Elkins, West Virginia becomes a hotbed of swing as the Augusta Heritage Center presents Swing Week. At the conclusion of the intensive week of teaching and playing in 1993, an all-day recording session was arranged by Swing Cat. Paul Anastasio on violin was joined by fellow instructors Steve Jones on piano and Roger Bellow on guitar, with the able assistance of Kathy Reitz on bass. This quartet swung hard on three original Count Basie-style blues numbers and a standard by longtime Basie trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison. Joining this instrumental core of players were several vocal instructors as well, including Chicago songbird Susan Smentek, Liz Masterson and Sean Blackburn.

When the session was over, this all-star group had digitally waxed:

Stars Fell On Alabama (Susan, vocal)
Loud Door Blues
Nevertheless (I'm in Love with You) (Liz and Susan, vocals)
Sleep Deprivation Blues
There's an Old Watermill (By a Waterfall) (Sean, vocal)
You Call Everybody Darlin' (Roger, vocal)
Cafeteria Blues
Dream a Little Dream of Me (Susan, vocal)
Taps Miller
They Can't Take That Away from Me (Susan, vocal)

This outstanding group of performers, running more on adrenaline than sleep after completing a long week of teaching (hence the recording's name) more than admirably rose to the occasion, and the result is a swinging set of great vocals and instrumentals.

Swing Cat engineer Rus Davis, generally acknowledged to be the brains of the outfit, had a brainstorm one day. "Why not," he reasoned, "put two of the most misunderstood instruments in swing, the violin and the accordion, together on a recording?" After all, what could be more confusing to listeners than this pairing? The violin, usually associated with highbrow symphonies or, under its hillbilly alias of fiddle, foot-stompin' hoedowns, hooked up with the accordion, an instrument that travels with a polka band-sized load of oom-pah-esque and certainly un-swinging expectations in the eyes of the public.

Rus knows that it isn't what "axe" one plays but how it is swung that counts, and thus was born the distinctly swinging musical pairing of Paul Anastasio on violin with Ken Olendorf on accordion. Their sonic romp covered a lot of territory, ranging from uptempo swing barnburners to ballads and tangos, with a haunting Sons of the Pioneers western number thrown in for good measure. Check out the menu:

The Swing Cat says, "good thing I didn't get my tail caught in that accordion."

Paul Anastasio was fortunate to have had the opportunity to perform, jam and study informally with some truly legendary western swing musicians. While attending the Sweet's Mill music camp outside of Fresno, California, he was introduced to the phenomenal guitarist Frank Hicks. Frank, who had played in Junior Bernard's western swing band after Junior left Bob Wills, was known up and down the west coast as a master of swing guitar. It was through Frank that Paul became acquainted with two longtime Bob Wills sidemen: trumpeter Alex Brashear and left-handed fiddler Joe Holley. This friendship resulted in innumerable jam sessions, with Joe on occasion joining Paul onstage with Asleep at the Wheel or Paul sitting in with Joe's band - Joe Holley and the All-stars. Joe had helped Paul learn the "over-and-under" two-part harmony that Joe had played for years in the Wills band, and everyone concerned was excited about making a musical record of their musical camaraderie featuring this big, three-part sound.

As Joe, Alex, Frank and Paul were all swing nuts, and as the two Wills alumni had played and recorded all of the western swing standards countless times, it was decided that the recording would instead feature great standards of the 20s and 30s. Alex's passing reduced the group to a trio, but all agreed that the record must still be made, so one memorable night in 1983 the boys met at the studio, the tape rolled, and the following tunes were captured:

Joe's Blues (a Joe Holley original) Sweet Georgia Brown Should I? I'll Never Be the Same Oh, Lady Be Good! I Can't Give You Anything but Love Honeysuckle Rose

My Mother's Eyes Paul's Jive I'm Confessin' Rose Room Kansas City Kitty Jealous Ain't Misbehavin'

"This music is hot and I like it!" - Johnny Gimble

Swing Cat is in the process of remastering the original master tape of this project for CD and cassette release in the near future. As we remaster, we hope to uncover alternate takes to include in the reissue. Since this recording was made both Joe Holley and Frank Hicks have passed on, but those of you with working turntables can ride a vinyl magic carpet back in time to that hot Fresno night and listen in as three good friends give it all they've got.

Hot Swing Fiddle and Venuti Stories:
The Joe Venuti Quartet

Compact Disk: Swing Cat 1494 (1969)
$18.00

That's A'Plenty (MP3 sample cut)

Paul Anastasio had the good fortune to study and perform with the inventor of jazz violin, Joe Venuti, who was as legendary for his practical jokes as he was for his definitive and much imitated virtuosity. Joe lived for the last twenty years of his life in Seattle with Helen and Bill Fischer, who were huge fans and helped Joe in many ways, setting the stage for his comeback onto the jazz scene. After Joe's death the couple gave Paul a huge suitcase full of priceless memorabilia: many of Joe's records and photographs, the sheet music to several of his original compositions, and, most important to this narrative, the master tape of a recording Joe had made in Toronto in 1969. This recording had been issued briefly in Canada but never in the United States, and it features some of Joe's best playing interspersed with a recounting in his own words of many of his most fabled practical jokes.

Folks familiar with Bing Crosby's radio show remember Joe and Bing's hilarious repartee, but until this recording there was no first-hand telling of the legendary Venuti stories by Joe himself, although innumerable barroom hours have been enlivened by the telling of the famous "Trigger" story and many others by those who knew Joe. While Joe never quite gets around to telling about Trigger (this being a G-rated recording), he tells of calling 46 tuba players to meet at a Manhattan intersection for an imaginary gig, nailing the shoe of a foot-stompin' piano player to the floor, and sending Wingy Manone on a 200-mile goose chase to get to a gig that was only a few blocks down the street. These tales and many others are heard here straight from the mouth of Joe Venuti - the original wild man, who was wilder than all the crazed rock-and-rollers put together and did it first - way back in the 1920s. Here are the tunes and the stories on the recording:

That's A'Plenty Furniture as Firewood (story) The March of the Weasels Doughnuts & the Milkman's Horse (story) Someday Sweetheart A Swim on the Links with Bing (story) One Finger Joe Gentle on My Mind (Joe really makes it swing!)

Pit Falls of Show Biz (story) Tap Room 46 Tuba Players/Nailing the Shoe (stories) Momalega Orchid Salad/5000 Watt Baton (stories) Jazz Me Blues Long Way to the Gig (story)

This recording features, in addition to Joe, Lou Stein on piano and a fine rhythm section. A nice clean reissue with all of the original liner notes and several photos from Joe's private collection. Great music and a lotta laughs - what more can we say? Available only from Swing Cat.

Harbor Lights and Cowboy Blues
Lost Weekend

Compact Disk: Redoubtable Records 101 (2002)
$18.00

Cowboy Blues (MP3 sample cut)

It features fifteen classic performances by California's premier Western Swing band. The CD comes in a jewel-free case with photos of the band members, and a 32-page booklet, featuring notes on the selections, reviews, and a photo "scrapbook" of Lost Weekend from 1984 to the present day.

Anything Goes!

Compact Disk: Swing Cat/Tuxedo 801 (2005)
$18.00

Some Of These Days (MP3 sample cut)

Tony Marcus has been a mainstay of the San Francisco Bay Area music scene for many years - since dinosaurs roamed the earth, in fact. His work with R. Crumb's Cheap Suit Serenaders and swing trio Cats and Jammers has always been of the highest quality, and he currently performs with Patrice Haan in the swinging duo Leftover Dreams. One can count on the musical level of a jam session ramping up several degrees as soon as he snaps the latches on his guitar case and joins in. I've been a big fan of both Tony's find guitar playing and his dulcet bass vocal stylings for a long time, and it was truly a pleasure to be able to record this disc with him. - Paul Anastasio

I first heard of Paul Anastasio 25 years ago, and even then people were speaking of his playing with reverence. When I got a chance to play with him about 15 years ago at the Augusta Heritage Swing Week, I found out it was all true. Paul's playing combines influences from Joe Venuti (who was his first jazz teacher) with Stuff Smith and Svend Asmussen's style, while sidestepping the more frequent Grappelli violinistic touch. He uses bluesy slurs, extended chord tones and a barrelhouse attack to make tunes his own. While his career has included stints playing western swing and country music, and in recent years he has focused a lot of attention on the Mexican music of Juan Reynoso, his jazz fiddling is straight from the heart. He plays standards with a level of commitment and emotion that few, if any, can match. When the two of us began to play music together, it immediately fit together perfectly. For a number of years now we've been talking about recording a CD, and a few months back we had a couple of days when Paul was in the area and free. We set up some mics in my studio and just started throwing tunes back and forth. What you hear is pretty much what occurred, though each of us did a couple of overdubs. Paul played harmony fiddle lines on two tunes, and I added a few guitar solos over my rhythm playing. There's a minimum of studio processing and sweetening, mostly just two guys having fun playing music. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did! - Tony Marcus

1. Some Of These Days
2. Sleepy Time Down South
3. Slow Boat To China
4. Maria Santamaria
5. Black & Blue
6. Hello Young Lovers
7. Tea For Two
8. Rockin' Chair
9. I Want To Be Happy
10. Keepin' Out Of Mischief Now
11. What's Your Story, Morning Glory
12. Anything Goes

Hick Jazz

Compact Disk: Way Out West Productions Hick Jazz (2006)
$18.00

Miss Molly (MP3 sample cut)

Hello Western Swing fans, thanks for buying our new album! Western Swing, also know as "Hick Jazz, Texas Swing, and Hillbilly Jazz," is truly an American Treasure. It originated in Texas and Oklahoma, where musicians like Milton Brown, Spade Cooley, and Bob Wills, blended hoe downs, blues, and big band jazz into some of the greatest dance music of the 1930's and 40's. Our band is performed in an acoustic style with guitars and fiddle as the lead instruments. We stay true to the Wills' tradition, borrowing from Big Band Swing, Western Hoe Downs, and Classic Western Show Tunes to create our repertoire. The result is an infectious "string swing" that is turning jazz and country enthusiasts into Jangles fans. We hope to see you at our next show, and thanks for listening!

Sincerely,
Mike Faast, Band Leader

1. Miss Molly
2. Down at the Old Corral
3. Roly Poly
4. Don't Fence Me In
5. I'm an Old Cowhand
6. Bonapart's Retreat
7. Ain't Love alot Like That
8. Cherokee Maiden
9. Redwing
10. Deep In the Heart of Texas
11. Lone Prairie
12. Right or Wrong
13. Goin Away Party
14. Stay a Little Longer

Two Pauls No Waiting

Compact Disk: Swing Cat/Tuxedo 802 (2006)
$18.00

The Lonesome Road (MP3 sample cut)

Paul Shelasky has been playing fiddle and mandolin since dirt. He played for 12 years in the California band The Good Old Persons, and has also recorded and toured with Lost Highway. Pauls's been playing great swing music for many years, and I'm honored to have had this chance to record with him. His musical idols include Gumby and Shooby Taylor, and it shows.

Tony Marcus has played in the swing trio Cats and Jammers, R. Crumb's Cheap Suit Serenaders and Lost Weekend. He is a terrific guitarist and vocalist, and currently plays and sings in the duo Leftover Dreams with his wife Patrice Hahn. It's always a joy to record with Tony.

I, Paul Anastasio, was born at an early age in a little log cabin I built with my own hands. Since then, I have studied with jazz violin great Joe Venuti, performed in the bands of Merle Haggard, Larry Gatlin, Loretta Lynn and Asleep at the Wheel. I've taught and continue to teach at fiddle camps throughout the U.S.

1. The Lonesome Road, 3:05
2. Foolin' Myself, 5:21
3. I Thought About You, 5:39
4. The Japanese Sandman, 3:38
5. Misery and the Blues, 3:42
6. Doin' the New Low Down, 3:20
7. Just a Gigolo, 2:46
8. Tain't No Sin to Take off Your Skin (And Dance Around in Your Bones), 4:08
9. Yearning, 2:34
10. I Found a New Baby, 4:39
11. Daydream, 5:10
12. September in the Rain, 2:58