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I used to see these guys at Colorado bluegrass festivals all through the 1980s and at Telluride in 1992. I bought this CD because I had a sudden longing to listen again to the late great Charles Sawtelle and to the miraculous voice of Tim O'Brien. Of course, Nick Forster and Pete Wernick are awesome too. What a great band.
You just have to listen to a moment of this to recognize the artistry and authenticity of these wonderful pickers. Sadly Mr. Sawtell is not on the their newest 2014 release, but these first albums are classic bluegrass. So MANY people followed these guys and gave us new-grass and dog-grass, but Hot Rize is the real deal.
After several albums of excellent traditional bluegrass on the Flying Fish label, this was 1985's debut release for Sugar Hill. As the title implies, the band doesn't alter its approach here. Fully half of the songs are traditional ("Hear Jerusalem Moan," "Lost John," "Leather Britches," "Working on a Building," "John Henry" and "Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning") with one Flatt and Scruggs classic ("If I Should Wander Back Tonight"). Among the remaining five numbers, all but one ("Montana Cowboy") are band originals. Peter Wernick co-wrote the instrumental "Frank's Blues," which gives him and the late Charles Sawtelle the opportunity to shine on banjo and guitar respectively. Lead singer Tim O'Brien (fiddle, mandolin) wrote "Hard Pressed," "Walk the Way the Wind Blows" (later a huge hit for Kathy Mattea the following year), and "Footsteps So Near" (the latter co-written with bass player Nick Forster). Hot Rize would release a few more albums before breaking up in the early Nineties, with O'Brien having the highest profile solo career. But for more than a decade, these guys produced some solid bluegrass (and old-timey country as their alter egos Red Knuckles and the Trailblazers), and this album is one of their best. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED