A HAPPY KEYSTONE CROSSING IN MARIN
By Michael Hall
Crossing Paths is the first
recording by Keystone Crossing, a Marin County duo that has revived
the "brother duet" as a modern musical form. There is both
a musical and personal story behind the recording.
The musical story is rural America's romance
with the duet during the early to middle part of this century. In a
simpler time, folks went for a simpler music. The Carter Family act
offered mostly female duets. George Jones and Tammy Wynette did
couple duets. But, the brother duet was the dominant form. Two male
singers, often brothers, whose voices blended well would sing
heartfelt duets, often sad. These duets make good music that also
hit some strong marketing angles: proper family values, acceptance
by male fans, and, of course, appeal to female fans. Bill Monroe's
first commercially-successful band was the pre-bluegrass Monroe
Brothers, staged with his brother Charlie around the Carolinas.
The personal story is the March 1995 chance
meeting of two "sons" of King of Prussia, Pennsylvania
(the "Keystone State"), at the venerable Sweetwater in
Mill Valley. Larry Carlin and Claudia Hampe had even attended the
same grade school (she left in the spring of 1959; he enrolled that
fall). The two hit it off romantically and musically. They will
return to the Sweetwater this month for their big record release
party.
Crossing Paths features songs
from the Delmore, Louvin, and Everly Brothers, as well as material
picked up from Lynn Morris, Emmylou Harris, and Hazel Dickens. The
arrangements are simple duets with dual guitar rhythms. The CD takes
the listener back to a slower era, when all music was acoustic
music, when love gone bad did not simply mean the quick placement of
an internet personal ad, and when lovers could talk to each other at
a show without shouting over screaming guitars.
Modern audiences are used to "brother"
duet tunes appearing on the set lists of acts like Laurie Lewis &
Tom Rozum, Sidesaddle & Co., and Emmylou Harris & Graham
Parsons. The key to this type of music is the blend achieved by the
voices of the performers. On this album, the couple's voice blend is
outstanding and true to the genre.
The album is built around the slow, sad songs
of the Delmores ("The Weary Lonesome Blues," "Midnight
Train"), the Louvins ("My Baby's Gone," "The
Angels Rejoiced Last Night"), and some material from Utah
Phillips ("Green Rolling Hills"), Bob McDill ("We
Believe In Happy Endings"), and the Everly Brothers ("So
Sad To Watch Good Love Go Bad"). Along the way, some uplifting
and even mildly amusing tunes balance the load, notably the Louvin's
"The Great Atomic Power" and the gospel "Just
Rehearsing," Lynn Morris' get-on-with-it-now-you-are-gone "What
Was I Supposed To Do," and the traditional tune "When You
and I Were Young Maggie." Listeners who know the Everly
Brothers through their rockin' hits like "Wake Up Little Suzie"
will find a whole new world of the duo's material on this CD,
including the beautiful "Devoted To You."
The rich literature of the brother duets
deserves attention from contemporary artists as interest continues
to grow in acoustic music in general and in bluegrass-related
acoustic music in particular. Keystone Crossing has done the trick
in its first recorded outing. In live performance, the duo offers an
even wider exploration of the genre. We hope they will return to the
studio to lay down more tracks as soon as possible.
September, 1998
Reprinted from Bluegrass By The
Bay, the publication of the
Santa Cruz
Bluegrass Society, with permission by the author.
