Bluebird (CD - 1989)

Personnel: Emmylou Harris (vocals, guitar, percussion); Richard Bennett (guitar, mandolin, bass, percussion); Steve Fishell (pedal steel guitar, dobro); Michael Henderson, Bonnie Raitt (slide guitar); Kieran Kane, Glen Duncan, Marty Stuart, Mark O'Connor (mandolin); Kate McGarrigle (accordion, background vocals); Glen D. Hardin (piano); Carl Marsh (organ, synthesizer); David Pomeroy (bass); Billy Thomas (drums, percussion, background vocals); Kenny Malone (percussion); Anna McGarrigle, Ashley Cleveland, Donivan Cowart, Barry Tashian, Pam Rose, Mary Ann Kennedy, Harry Stinson (background vocals).

Like most of Emmylou Harris' albums, Bluebird is an expertly performed album, featuring some truly startling and affecting tour de forces. The material features a handful of truly great songs, like John Hiatt's "Icy Blue Heart" and her original "A River for Him." ~ Thom Owens

Like most of Emmylou Harris' albums, Bluebird is an expertly performed album, featuring some truly startling and affecting tour de forces. However, the material -- while featuring a handful of truly great songs, like John Hiatt's "Icy Blue Heart" and her original "A River for Him" -- is too uneven to rank among her finest efforts. ~ Thom Owens

Often called a new traditionalist, singer/songwriter Emmylou Harris has built a career on revamping classic honky-tonk music while striving to keep the idiom fresh and modern. Harris's music has roots. She knows the repertoire and is steeped in the history of North American folk and C&W music.

On the late '80s release BLUEBIRD, Harris performs the poignant "Lonely Street," Johnny Cash's dreamlike "I Still Miss Someone," and her own sorrow-drenched tune, "A River For Him." Guest musicians such as Bonnie Raitt, and Kate and Anna McGarrigle, among others, support Harris's beautiful vocal performances. minimize