CD Review By Captain Barry R. Willis

Pinecastle Records PRC-1114

Phil Leadbetter and his Wildfire bluegrass band has come up with a winner with "Uncontained." If you like hard-driving bluegrass which is "on the edge" yet with strong traditional roots, you'll like this new release from Pinecastle Records.

Everyone in Wildfire was formerly with J.D. Crowe and the New South. Phil: "I think we are playing from the edge, but Wildfire has also learned the old style (drive, attack, etc.) from the time spent with Crowe. He taught us a lot. We just went a little more toward the edge with some of our ideas."

In the eternal search for a band to find its own sound, we find here that Wildfire has a refreshing and distinctive sound. While Bill Monroe's band was based around his mandolin and Jim and Jesse's music was based around their vocal harmonies, Phil Leadbetter's Wildfire adds an interesting and constant resonator guitar (a.k.a. Dobro®) throughout the music. It's different and refreshing. We can now pick out Wildfire from other modern bluegrass bands. Innovative, in my opinion. But, as Mr. Leadbetter described his motives to me for this review, "I just tried to do what I felt inside. I didn't want to sound like anyone else. I've not really tried to be dominant. I have always just tried to be the very best I could be."

In addition to Phil, other band members are Robert Hale, Darrell Webb and Curt Chapman. Hale and Webb both sing expressive and effective lead vocals. Hale, who brought the bulk of the tunes to this band, was earlier in a band called Livewire with Scott Vestal/banjo and Wayne Benson/mandolin. "They were really ahead of their time," said Phil. Webb worked with the Lonesome River Band awhile. Phil's fine harmony vocals were refined with CBS recording artist Vern Gosdin who was pretty famous in the '80s.

Wildfire also invited the exciting and, I think, necessary banjo of Scott Vestal to join the band for the recording. Good idea! Really added a lot of bluegrass feel to the recording. They also invited Sonya Isaacs on harmony vocals to help fill in the project for a more complete sound. Jesse Jones is on percussion. The final mix for this self-produced project was done by the well-known Bil Vorndick.

Phil described his music to me as "on the progressive side" (they used drums on a few cuts). "We try to stretch it just a little bit. Always looking for something new." The tune selections for the band came from the effort to find more up-to-date tunes that appeal to some of the younger folks but, at the same time, not lose the sound that also appeals to the older crowd.

I especially like the first tune "Rough Edges" penned by the late Randall Hylton. Full speed ahead and dynamic, it sets the stage for the terrific music which is to follow. I especially like the lines in the chorus: "I got rough edges all over me and I can't change, not even for you. …Those edges will never be smooth." Obviously written by somebody who understands himself and who isn't afraid of telling others of his limitations.

Another of the twelve songs which is especially memorable to me is reminiscent of "Little Sadie" and other tunes we bluegrassers are familiar with which include the line, "that figure in the picture looks a lot like me" and they punish him for a murder he committed. It's called, "Maria (Love to See You Again)" written by Curtis Allen and Marty Stuart.

Competently produced and mixed, "Uncontained" takes us through a musical journey which spans "on-the-edge," "progressive," and traditional. This is definitely a fine musical experience.

Captain Barry Willis

5th February 2002