Roots (CD - 1968)

Additional personnel: Ron Elliott, David Cohen, Sam McCue (guitar), Buddy Emmons (steel guitar), Bobby Bruce (fiddle), Larry Knechtel (piano), Joe Osborne, Terry Slater (bass), Hal Blaine (drums); Randy Newman, James Burton, Jim Gordon, Van Dyke Parks.

Engineers: Mike Shields, Lee Herschberg, John Neil.

Liner Note Author: Richie Unterberger.

The Everly Brothers may be best known for their late-1950s pop hits, but their story really begins in Appalachian country. A cultural change in the late 1960s brought with it a broader, worldlier concept of popular music, and, in '68, the boys took another route, reviving, with great clarity of purpose, their own Kentuckian heritage.

On ROOTS, the Everly Brothers use their characteristic close-knit harmonies on the folksy ballad "Living Too Close to the Ground" and the bluegrass-influenced "Less of Me." Listeners can certainly hear the influence of the Louvin Brothers on these tracks. This music is not purebred country, though. There are divergences, especially on the tripped-out intro to "I Wonder If I Care as Much," a song that begins with a swirling feedback guitar and Beatles-esque tom-tom fills. A smartly produced album, ROOTS successfully combines the Everlys' country pedigree with dashes of pop, and a good dose of moody, coming-of-age lyrics. minimize