By Paul Morgan

THIS WAS MY FIRST VISIT to the “Junction”, thanks to Derek and Jean B’s kindness in providing overnight accommodation to break the 350 mile round journey from West Wales.

Standing in at very short notice in place of regular guitarist was Dutch fiddle player Joost (of 4-Wheel Drive and late of The Hill Billy Boogie Men). Joost had only played with the band for 4 days - an intimidating job indeed and he gave an excellent account of himself. I was concerned that the last-minute personnel changes in Lou’s band might have harmed the overall sound, but I needn’t have worried.

Most impressive was banjo player Gena Britt; let’s face it, Terry Baucom’s act is a tough one to follow. I was amazed how close Gena’s playing was in style and dynamics to Terry Baucom’s, and the sound of her original ’49 Mastertone was a delight. I was surprised, however, to see her break the banjo player’s ‘First Commandment of Band Etiquette’, i.e. “Thou Shalt Not Roll During The Guitarist’s Break”, but she was well back from the mike and it seemed to work well enough. Completing the quartet was bass player Randy Barnes providing powerful baritone vocals.

After the gig - “It was an outstanding evening...”

When Lou, with one of the finest lead voices in bluegrass, launched into Cry, Cry Darling in the first set, the effect was electrifying. Also memorable was his offering of Red, White and Blue as a tribute to the late John Duffey and his vocal lead on I Couldn’t Find My Walking Shoes. Then in the second set fate struck when Lou broke a string. This was met with the usual mixture of empathy for the performer and anticipation, i.e., “how quickly can he get out of trouble?” It was only necessary for the band to provide 3 impromptu breaks before Lou, the consummate professional, had re-strung and was ready for his next verse.

The band’s vocal blend on the harmonies was flawless, particularly well felt on the Gospel number Kneel Down and Pray Up, complete with barber-shop-style ‘swipe’ on the ending. I also particularly enjoyed the two interludes when Joost and Gena played fiddle and banjo duets on Clinch Mountain Backstep and Sally Goodin’; the sound of the banjo rolling hard down-the-neck against the fiddle’s melody has always been, for my money, one of the most evocative in bluegrass.

This was an outstanding evening, marred only slightly by some needless audience chatter during the numbers (5th row, right hand side - you know who you are). Even as a slave to ‘the weed’ I had no objection to the increasingly common ‘No Smoking’ policy which made for a better time for performers and audience alike.

Our thanks must go to Dave ‘Frets’ Bresnen, assisted as usual by the ebullient Chris Wilson, for his efforts, which enabled us to see and hear an American band of this calibre.

Paul Morgan, Carmarthen, South Wales

Updated 23rd Jan 1999