Salt of the Earth (CD - 2007)

Ricky Skaggs: Ricky Skaggs (background vocals); Jeff Taylor (accordion); Jim "Moose" Brown (Hammond b-3 organ); Mark Fain (bass instrument); Paul Liem (drums); Cheryl White, Sharon White, Buck White (background vocals); Cody Kilby, Andy Leftwich, Paul Franklin, Molly Skaggs, Brent King.

Personnel: Ricky Skaggs (vocals, guitar, electric guitar, dobro, bouzouki, mandolin, percussion); Buck White (vocals, piano); Cheryl White, Sharon White (vocals); Cody Kilby (guitar); Paul Franklin (steel guitar); Molly Skaggs (autoharp); Andy Leftwich (fiddle); Jeff Taylor (accordion, piano); Jim "Moose" Brown (piano); Paul Liem (drums, percussion); Brent King (percussion).

Liner Note Author: Ricky Skaggs.

Photographers: Ricky Skaggs; Erick Anderson .

The Whites--dad Buck and his daughters Sharon and Cheryl--have been singing bluegrass and Southern gospel for decades, and singing informally with country/bluegrass megastar Ricky Skaggs, who has been married to Sharon since 1981. This inspiring country-gospel record, nominated for a Grammy, marks the first official collaboration for the two acts. The quick-picking guitars and mandolins, scintillating harmonies, and soul-stirring lyrics and melodies are as good, if not better, as anything the two acts have recorded separately.

Ricky Skaggs and Sharon White celebrated their 25th anniversary in 2007, so it's a wonder it took that long for them, along with Sharon's sister Cheryl White, and Buck White, the sisters' dad, to record a full album together. On their own, the Whites have proven a consistently strong outfit, flitting easily between bluegrass, mainstream country, and mostly gospel, and it's within that last genre that the 13 songs of Salt of the Earth reside. Skaggs, meanwhile, has proven for decades a master not only of anything remotely country, but virtually everything he's tried his hand at -- his recent collaboration with keyboardist Bruce Hornsby even found the two of them reconstructing Rick James' funk anthem "Super Freak"! Salt of the Earth is not about experimentation though, it's about tradition. These are all simple tales of faith and conviction, using the basic acoustic instrumentation of guitar, mandolin, fiddle, and bass. Nothing electric, nothing noisy, just wood and strings. But not surprisingly it's the vocal harmonies that dominate the proceedings throughout. Lead vocals are taken by each of the four, and the tight harmonies that have brightened all of the Whites' previous efforts are in ample supply here. While it's true that Skaggs and the Whites add nothing new to standards like "This Old House," "Wings of a Dove," and "Let it Shine," they don't really need to: they just give these chestnuts everything they've got, and that's plenty. ~ Jeff Tamarkin minimize