Once Upon a Road

Nothin' Fancy combines the best elements of progressive and traditional bluegrass to create a hybrid reminiscent of the mellow sounds of Rice, Rice, Hillman & Pedersen. The band formed in Lexington, VA, in 1994, and Once Upon a Road, issued by Pinecastle, serves as its fine debut. The album opens with "I'm Running Away," an easy-flowing ode to getting out while the getting's good, adorned with pleasant harmony and deft solos. The title track, interestingly, features a string arrangement, an unusual occurrence in bluegrass. The strings are tastefully integrated, though, and while classical-grass may be a hard sell, only traditional bluegrass fans will actually be offended. By the fourth track, listeners may notice that mandolinist Mike Andes has had a hand in writing three of the first four songs, and that the material has a similar, relaxed pace that makes these pieces easy on the ear. The spell is broken by an a cappella rendering of "Do Not Pass Me By," which prepares the way for original religious material like "The Light Came Shining Down" and "When the Angels Take My Hand." These tradition-oriented tracks are good, but lack the originality of the earlier pieces. Fans of older styles of bluegrass, however, will enjoy these cuts along with good covers of "I Wonder Where You Are Tonight" and "Make Me a Pallet on Your Floor." Unpretentious and solid, Once Upon a Road is a fine opening salvo from Nothin' Fancy. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford Jr., Rovi