Dailey & Vincent Sing The Statler Brothers

Dailey & Vincent Sing The Statler BrothersOut this week is the latest CD offering from one of bluegrass music’s hottest bands, Dailey & Vincent. The boys have just released Dailey & Vincent Sing The Statler Brothers. The CD is part of the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store line of CDs, and is available exclusively at Cracker Barrel locations.

Any fans of Dailey & Vincent will already know that Jamie and Darrin are both unashamed Statler fans, so it comes as no big surprise that the duo would release a project like this. 12 tracks, all Statler Brothers favorites. 9 of the 12 songs included on this project hit the top 10 on the Billboard country chart for the Statlers back in the 1970s and ’80s. Even if you’re not as big a Statler fan as Jamie and Darrin are, you’re sure to recognize most of these tracks if you’ve listened to any country radio from the ’80s.

The CD features all the band members, along with a few extras from the ranks of bluegrass music’s finest. Making special guest appearances are: Adam Haynes, Andy Leftwich, Stuart Duncan, Bryan Sutton, Scott Vestal, Andy Hall, Randy Kohrs. With a lineup like that, you know the pickin is world class. Lest I mislead anyone, let me state that some of the tracks do include light, and I mean very lightly mixed into the rhythm bed, percussion. And the piano does make an appearance before things are over. This is still very much a bluegrass CD though. From the opening banjo notes to the last soaring harmony chorus, this is a Dailey & Vincent CD. It’s just that the material all came from the same place, the discography of the Statler Brothers.

I was a Statler fan growing up, so I thoroughly enjoyed this CD, each new track bringing a smile to my face. It was like taking a trip down memory lane with Jamie and Darrin as tour guides. And better guides you couldn’t ask for.

The CD opens with the familiar Flowers On The Wall and is closed with Thank You World. Along the way you’ll encounter a lot of familiar tunes, most with fresh new bluegrass arrangements. One problem I often have with covers is that the new arrangement is so far from the original that I just can’t stomach it. If I liked the original, my taste is tied to the original arrangement and changing it drastically often leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Such is not the case on this CD. The arrangements are exciting and fresh, but never offensive to a fan of the originals. I enjoyed every track without reservation.

One track that particularly struck a memory with me was #10, The Brave Apostles Twelve. My dad owned the double LP, Holy Bible: The Old and New Testaments. I wore those records out as a child listening to them over and over again. Hearing a track from that LP set sure brought back fond memories.

If you have any good memories associated with Statler Brothers music, then you’ll want to stop by the nearest Cracker Barrel Old Country Store and pick up a copy of Dailey & Vincent Sing The Statler Brothers. I promise you, you’ll enjoy it.

You can watch a video of Jamie and Darrin talking about the CD, the Statler Brothers, and Cracker Barrel, as well as listen to a bit of each track here.

Dailey & Vincent will be on the air live with Katy Daley tomorrow morning, Wednesday February 3, at 8 AM EST. Tune in to WAMU’s Bluegrass Country (online at BluegrassCountry.org) to catch the show and I’m sure they’ll be talking about, and playing tracks from Dailey & Vincent Sing The Statler Brothers.