Stony Plain (Multiple Artists) – 40 Years of Stony Plain | Album Review

stonyplain40yrtscdStony Plain (Multiple Artists) – 40 Years of Stony Plain

Stony Plain Records

www.stonyplainrecords.com

3 CDs/47 tracks

A sampler spanning 40 years of great music deserves 3 full CDs.  This fantastic Canadian roots label has produced some fantastic stuff over the years and is one of the top blues record labels on the planet.  The CD set features three collections of music with differing slants.  The collection spans their 40 years and features blues, swing, R&B and a host of other roots styles.  This independent label has maintained a standard of high quality while nurturing new artists and sounds.  It is a testament to the dedication and hard work of Holger Petersen and his small but talented staff.

CD One is Singers, Songwriters and much more.  Classic country like Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell are featured as are blues greats and fantastic acts like Eric Bibb, Harry Manx and Kevin Britt, Colin Linden, and so many more.  Steve Earle makes an appearance here as do the Blind Boys of Alabama, Taj Mahal and Ruthie Foster when they sat in with Eric Bibb.

CD Two is entitled Blues, R&B, Gospel, Swing, Jazz and even more.  Joe Louis Walker, Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters, Jeff Healey, Bill Boy Arnold, Rory Block Ruthie Foster, Big Dave McClean and Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne are just some of the 19 artists featured on this CD.  This CD ranges from Roscoe Gordon to Monkey Junk- eclectically cool stuff!

The third CD is called Rarities and Previously Unreleased Material and features Duke Robillard, Eric Bibb, Maria Muldaur, David Wilcox, Sam Chatmon and His Barbeque Boys,  Bob Carpenter and Walter “Shakey” Horton with Hot Cottage.  This was my favorite of the three, but all of them were really good.

This is a great set of representative tracks from this superb label.  If you need to get exposed to that Stony Plain has released, go no further than this.  This Is an exceptional set of tunes culled from almost 400 a;bums that they have put into production.  Kudos to them and here is to another 40 years of great music!

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