Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly, Charlie Patton, Dock Boggs, Carter Family, Hank Williams and countless old time balladeers, blues singers, banjo pickers and songsters.
"Coal Creek" and "Where Mockingbirds Roam" available now at: CDbaby.com, iTunes, Bullmoose Music outlets and online.
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PRESS RELEASE:
The Mutineers, an acoustic music trio which has been in the thick of the traditionalist revival in southern Maine for a number of years, have followed up their 2005 release "Where Mockingbirds Roam" with their second CD, called Coal Creek. This record is a mix of traditional and original songs ranging from a unique and soulful arrangement of “Barbara Allen” to contemporary pieces which deal frankly with the heartache of loss as well as the redemptions of love and family.
The Mutineers’ founder and lead vocalist, Stuart MacDonald, demonstrates an uncanny knack for taking the basic idea of an old tune – “The Cuckoo,” for example – and giving it a transfusion through new lyrics and fresh arrangement. MacDonald commented on his approach to songwriting:
“The depth and beauty in traditional folk music is what got me playing and singing in the first place. This music can’t fade away and it informs everything I do as a musician. It’s natural that it would start to inform and inspire me when dabbling in writing as well. Both to add to something old and to create something new within that tradition; that’s the goal.”
Many of the songs on the album, though, are entirely original. The title cut, “Coal Creek,” is a good example of MacDonald’s songwriting, and “Whiskey Road,” a collaborative effort from MacDonald and band mate Jeff Trippe, is one man’s hard-headed look back at his checkered past. Guest artist Charlie Gaylord’s classic-country Telecaster guitar solo gives the song just the right amount of grit.
As far as instrumentation on the rest of the record, it is – as the band likes to say – “100 percent acoustic.” Trippe handles most of the lead work on guitar, mandolin, banjo, and fiddle, while MacDonald’s vocals, intertwined with his blues-based mouth-harp playing, is alternately gruff or mournful, blunt or mellifluous. Upright bassist Rod Pervier’s impeccable timing is the heartbeat of the project, and both Trippe and Pervier add harmony vocals.
In addition to Gaylord, guest artists include fiddler Hope Hoffman, slide player Kevin Midgley, dobroist Ben MacDonald, and Kim and Alan Bean. The album was mixed and mastered at Baked Beans Recording in Harrison, Maine.
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The Mutineers play traditional folk, blues and old-time country music. With the necessary ingredients (guitar, mandolin, acoustic bass, dobro, banjo) the songs are adapted and arranged in ways that are at once traditional and unique.
The songs are selected, arranged and sung by Stuart MacDonald, who has been collecting, learning and playing traditional folk music for a number of years. He also wrote several songs on "Coal Creek."
Stuart is joined by Jeff Trippe, a multi-instrumentalist originally from the Southeastern U.S. where he performed with various bands over the years. Jeff has also worked as a solo act and recording artist.
Darren Finnegan plays bass guitar for The Mutineers. He is a well-known and respected musician from the greater Portland area.
Their first record 2005's "Where Mockingbirds Roam" is a collection of traditional songs drawing from the folk, blues and old time country music genres. These songs have been rearranged melodically and lyrically so that they are at once modern and faithful to the rich traditions that created them.
The album boasts many styles from the moody slave spiritual "Motherless Child" to the wistful storytelling of "Old Joe's Barroom" to the horse-galloping of "Lily of The West." Complete with a few guest musicians of note, this record is the sound of three musicians scratching through the old time sound to produce a collection of songs that reveal the wide and varied beauty of traditional folk music.
CD Available at cdbaby.com, iTunes, Amazon.com and all Maine Bullmoose stores...realeditorbest profile toolsrealeditorbest profile tools
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hey yall. i love this band name. yall ever heard of the warren zevon song with teh same name. soooooo good. keeeeeep up the good tunes. peace, itchy hearts
Hey guys lovin the tunes. You know, Im not the biggest fan of country style as you might tell (lol). But you guy guys have that blusy sound that is just incindiar. Keep kickin ASS!!
