Various – Just Behind the Creek: Field Recording at Kickin’ It on the Creek 2019
Dolceola Recordings – Out Now
At the risk of hyperbole, on occasions, it is a real privilege to feel that one is able to comment upon a release that potentially has importance, in the musical sense, and could stand the test of time as a document of value as a cultural record capturing, in microcosm, one genre of music, from one specific geographic location at one point in time. Just Behind The Creek: Field Recording at Kickin’ It On the Green 2019, from Dolceola Recordings, is one such record.
About Kickin’ It On The Creek…
Located in Ross Creek, Kentucky, the most remote corner of Appalachia, the festival is synonymous with the word ‘family’, and research suggests it possesses remarkably striking similarities with many of the characteristics which make the New Forest Folk Festival here in England such a highly successful event. Firstly, it is family owned and run. In 2015, The Roberts family, headed by Byron Roberts of Wolfpen Productions, lent their farm at the head of Wolfpen Branch in Lee County for the inaugural festival, following a successful celebration for Roberts’s son and a CD benefit for artist Tyler Childers in 2014. Having constructed a permanent stage out of rough-cut cedar and sheet metal on-site, the KIOTC event quickly gained the reputation as the best festival in the state.
With acts on the bill all selected by the family, the festival, which limits ticket sales to around 1 000, sells out within minutes, and as with the Curtis family in Romsey for the NFFF, the atmosphere and friendship between organisers, musicians and fans shines through, creating what is tantamount to an annual pilgrimage and reunion, (notwithstanding 2020 pandemic cancellations). As one of the main organisers, Kenton Roberts, says, “What I think makes Kickin’ It On The Creek unique is the sense of togetherness and love…. and brings a smile to everyone’s face.”
About Dolceola Recordings…
Dolceola Recordings was founded in 2010 by Dan Torigoe and is a music label which has a mission to focus upon analogue field recordings of all forms of American traditional music. Drawing inspiration from, and with total admiration for, pioneering field recorders such as Alan Lomax, Chris Strachwitz, George Mitchell and Art Rosenbaum, Dolceola’s first field-recording trip was back in 2015 to Gee’s Bend, Alabama, with the subsequent release reviewed in Folk Radio here. All the more remarkable, then, that the company, and Dan, are based in Tokyo, Japan.
About Just Behind The Creek: Field Recording at Kickin’ It On the Green 2019 …
Torigoe first got to hear of KIOTC whilst recording banjo player Jack Bunch in London, Kentucky. Whilst the label has no real interest in modern country music of younger artists, and even though this was a different scenario to their usual modus operandi, the opportunity to undertake recording sessions showcasing the modern bluegrass and Appalachian mountain music which features at the festival, with local artists, and thus documenting an aspect of community-based music, appealed.
Interestingly, it appears that Dan had no pre-formed plan, he merely trekked half-way across the globe, pitched up at the gate and asked if he could record some old-time music, using his 1950s vintage equipment. Festival owner Byron was so much on board that he turned his living room, just behind the stage, into a temporary recording studio. Word quickly filtered out amongst the musicians, and some 30 to 40 sessions were recorded, using Ampex 601 mics and RCA 77DX reel-to-reel equipment, coincidentally the same ones used in the 1950s and 60s by the aforementioned Alan Lomax.
Recorded monaurally, over four sides, (2 LPs), of coloured ‘Ross Creek Sunset’ & ‘Muddy Creek’ vinyl, (also available digitally), the album contains a variety of music, from 19 artists, covering both traditional tunes and original songs, and gives a solid representation of the Appalachian music culture current at the time.
There are many highlights, beginning with Grammy-nominated fiddler Bobby Britt who kicks the album off with an expertly-played improvised medley. Further high-quality fiddle music is provided by Blakeley Burger, who gives a warm rendition of the traditional classic Glory In The Meeting House, whilst the prolific Don Rogers absolutely shines with his Greek Medley. Talented singer and fiddle player Joe Mecheret, (The Tillers & Joe’s Truck Shop), performs Flying Burrito Brothers’ Gib Guilbeau’s Red Mountain Wine with zestful energy, but it is 23-year-old fiddler John Thomas, with a mesmerising and tear-jerkingly mournful version of Ashoken Farewell, used as the theme to The Civil War PBS tv series, which steals the show.
Lovers of the banjo are amply catered for. Eastern Kentucky musician Brett Ratliff giving a spirited version of Pass Around the Bottle, a song made popular by The Skillet Lickers, Montana Hobbs and the gifted Sean Geil, (also a member of The Tillers), whose short-but sweet Bowling Green is energy personified, all providing fine and worthy examples of this much-maligned instrument.
Many satisfying moments can also be enjoyed listening to the range of styles and performances provided by the other singer-songwriters delivering their own material. Senora May, Zach Russell and Kyle Crownover all contribute memorable tracks, and Pepsi Girl, from Teresa Prince, (Luna & The Mountain Jets), might just be a prime example of Appalachian-pop. Don’t Have A Clue, from Chris Shouse, Appalachian Farewell, Abe Partridge’s ode to Appalachia and the haunting Oceans by West Virginia folk singer/guitarist Walter DeBarr all hit the sweet spot too, whilst Gypsy Home written and performed by former Army Ranger and rancher Padre Paul Handelman, taken from his excellent Until This Point album, is worth the price of entry on its own.
Just Behind The Creek is a wonderful testament to just how vibrant the current music scene is in the Estill Mountain region of Eastern Kentucky and West Virginia. If you like traditional Folk, Bluegrass, Blues and Mountain Music this album will bring a smile of appreciation to your face, if you don’t, then this release might just convert you.
Order via Bandcamp: https://dolceolarecordings.bandcamp.com/album/just-behind-the-creek-field-recording-at-kickin-it-on-the-creek-2019
https://www.dolceolarecordings.com/