O Sister: The Women's Bluegrass Collection 2

Once you get over the obvious marketing ploy to target a record-buying public still enamored with the "O Brother!" phenomenon, this second volume from Rounder is yet another collection of some of the brightest stars in bluegrass music today. Other than a trio of songs from the Seventies (tracks 14-16), these tracks are from the late-Nineties through the present. In fact, a couple of these have not yet been released on the artists' albums, including the Lester Flatt Standard "I'll Stay Around" by Alecia McRight which features mandolin wizard Ronnie McCoury. The other is "I Wonder Where You Are Tonight" with an angelic vocal from Jeannie Kendall.

This is a solid collection of bluegrass music--regardless of gender. Highlights include Kathy Kallick's plaintive "Hideaway," the heartfelt original "Reason Enough" by Tanya Savory, and Phyllis Boyens and Hazel Dickens' "Dream of a Miner's Child" with backup provided by the Dreadful Snakes (Jerry Douglas, Roland White, Bela Fleck, et. al.)...Read more

For many years, bluegrass (like many other genres of music) was almost a male preserve. It took longer for the ladies to break through in bluegrass than elsewhere, but this collection and others like it prove that they are well capable of competing with the men, who continue to make great bluegrass.

This Rounder compilation is targetted at those who are new to bluegrass, but will also appeal to committed fans. Extensive liner notes give biographical summaries of the singers, also including a list of albums by the individuals for those who wish to explore further (and who wouldn't, after hearing this collection?). Actually, this list may cause problems outside America - this album is available in other countries (including the UK) where most of the listed albums are not available except through specialist dealers or Amazon.

All the great ladies of bluegrass are represented, including Claire Lynch, Rhonda Vincent, Laurie Lewis and Lynn Morris. Alison Krauss and Suzanne Cox close the...Read more

This CD contains some of the the best Bluegrass music today. Every track can stand on its own as a great recording. Having 1 CD with so many great bluegrass names back-to-back gives the listener the ability to easily compare and contrast musical styles of the artists. Often, "various artists" bluegrass cd's a letdown, but this one is remarkable.