| Product Summary | | Label: Rca Records | | UPC: 00090266397129 | | Release Date: 9/17/2002 | | Buy.com Sku: 60568114 | | Item#: MMKRKL | | Buy.com Sales Rank: 25050 | Format:  CD |
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| | The Chieftains 40th career album, DOWN THE OLD PLANK ROAD was conceived by Moloney as the long-awaited follow-up to the double Grammy-winning 1992 release, Another Country, which joined such luminaries as Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson and Chet Atkins with the legendary Irish ensemble. Recorded in the spring of this year at Nashville’s Sound Emporium, DOWN THE OLD PLANK ROAD was, according to Moloney, “a tremendously gratifying experience. It seemed like everyone in Nashville wanted to lend a hand and we ended up with enough material for a pair of albums. We’re very excited about the second volume which will be released early next year and which so far features guest artists Emmylou Harris, Patty Loveless, Allison Moorer, John Prine, Joe Ely, Jerry Douglas and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.” In addition, Moloney is grateful for the wonderful support of Nashville producer Steve Buckingham for his talent coordination on DOWN THE OLD PLANK ROAD.
DOWN THE OLD PLANK ROAD blends authentic Celtic instrumentation, composition and arrangements. The album includes tracks with deep roots in Irish/American music such as the standout renditions by Vince Gill of “Dark As A Dungeon,” Lyle Lovett’s “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down and “Molly Bawn” as performed by Alison Krauss. Moloney first heard “Dark As A Dungeon” in Ireland in the ‘40s, and “Molly Bawn” is an old Irish ballad that later made its way onto the American folk scene under the title “Polly Vaughan” and featuring a different melody. Earl Scruggs signature banjo playing can be heard on “Sally Goodin” while Bela Fleck performs a medley of Irish reels with The Chieftains and joins forces with John Hiatt, Tim O’Brien and Jeff White on the title track. Ricky Skaggs performs “Cindy,” while vocalists Patty Griffin and Martina McBride can be heard, respectively, on “Whole Heap Of Little Horses” and “I’ll Be All Smiles Tonight.” The album’s rousing finale, “Give the Fiddler a Dram,” features solos from most of the assembled musical cast.
“You can hear the musical links in the melodies and trace it in the lyrics,” remarks Moloney. “The similarities between the Irish version of a song and its American variation are most times plain as day. Even when the material is particular to one country or the other, the foundation is still there. We wanted to bring it all back together again and make something new.”
| | Album Notes and Credits |
Notes & Personnel Info |  | This a companion disc to an earlier release of 2002, THE WIDE WORLD OVER, celebrating the 40th anniversary of The Chieftains. | | The Chieftains includes: Paddy Moloney. | | Additional personnel includes: Buddy & Julie Miller, Earl Scruggs, Martina McBride, Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, Bela Fleck, Ricky Skaggs, Patty Griffin, John Hiatt, Alison Krauss, Lyle Lovett, Del McCoury, Jeff White, Martina McBride, Vince Gill. | | DOWN THE OLD PLANK ROAD was nominated for the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Contemporary Folk Album. "Sally Goodin" was nominated for the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Country Instrumental Performance. | | In the wake of the success of O Brother Where Art Thou?, this collaboration between Irish supergroup the Chieftains and some of country's best known neo-traditionalists was almost inevitable. Luckily for all involved, the idea actually makes a lot of sense too. Most of the ballads and work songs that were born in the Appalachian hills have deep roots in the traditional music of Scotland, England, and Ireland, and crying fiddles, ringing banjos, and tales of drunkenness, outlaws, and loss are woven deeply into both cultures' musical heritage. Through most of the tracks, the instrumentals work better than the vocal tracks, but the droning "Katie Dear" (performed by the impeccable Gillian Welch and David Rawlings) and Alison Krauss' mournful "Molly B n" are both heart-wrenching and beautiful no matter what continent they came from. Other highlights include B?la Fleck's firey banjo rolls on a trio of reels, and the underrated Patty Griffin's turn on the traditional "Whole Heap of Little Horses." While the interpretations on Down the Old Plank Road turn out to be successes, the sum of these collaborations aren't as good as the Chieftains doing what they do best: traditional Irish music with subtle contemporary flourishes. Still, anyone who enjoys the music of any of the guests on this release will be pleased with the entire package; sweet and mournful, historic and unprecedented, fun and engaging all rolled into one. ~ Zac Johnson | | Those eclectic ambassadors of Irish music are at it again, this time taking their act to Nashville for sessions with some of country music's most popular artists. On the one hand, you'd think that the most famous Irish folk group in the world would spend more time simply playing Irish music instead of guesting with artists from and dipping into seemingly every other conceivable genre. On the other, when you've recorded as much amazing Irish traditional music as exists in these guys' back catalog, you've pretty much got carte blanche to do whatever the hell you want. | | Anyway, Irish music played a major role in the coalescing of early country music, so DOWN THE OLD PLANK ROAD turns out to house a pretty good musical fit. Still, there are plenty of musical surprises afoot. It might not be a revelation to hear Lyle Lovett singing a traditional tune like "Don't Let Your Deal Go Down," but to hear it with added Celtic flavoring is quite an ear-turner. The lads work similar magic with everyone from Gillian Welch to venerable bluegrass patriarch Del McCoury, showing that this is one Irish outfit that refuses to be pinned down to a predictable sound. |
Musical Guests | | Earl Scruggs | | Bela Fleck | | Gillian Welch | | Alison Krauss | | Ricky Skaggs | | Del McCoury | | John Hiatt | | Lyle Lovett | | Jeff White | | Tim O'Brien | | Buddy & Julie Miller | | Vince Gill | | Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder | | Patty Griffin | | The Del McCoury Band | | Martina McBride | | D |
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| | Associated Artists and Works |
| | Technical Info | | Release Date : 09/17/2002 | | Original Release Date : 2002 | | Catalog ID : 63971 | | Label : RCA Victor Records (USA) | | Number of Discs : 1 | | Studio/Live : Studio | | Mono/Stereo : Stereo | | SPAR Code : n/a | | UPC : 00090266397129 |
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| | Professional Reviews | | Rolling Stone (10/02, p.72)
- 3 stars out of 5 - "...Their most heartening work since 1988's IRISH HEARTBEAT..."Uncut (12/02, p.132)
- 3 stars out of 5 - "...An album of old-time bluegrass and Appalachian tunes..." |
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| | Bio | | | In a musical climate that has recently seized on American roots music, Ireland’s most popular band has created the "rootsiest" album of all.The Chieftains traveled to Nashville to record a group of tunes that reveal the connections between traditional Irish music and old-time country sounds.
In doing this, the group drew on a diverse cast of guest stars that includes famed instrumental masters such as Earl Scruggs and Bela Fleck as well as bluegrass luminaries Ricky Skaggs, Del McCoury, Jeff White and Alison Krauss. Added to the mix were troubadours Lyle Lovett, Patty Griffin and John Hiatt. Rounding out the list of collaborators were a pair alt-country duo favorites Buddy & Julie Miller and Gillian Welch & David Rawlings plus two of Music City’s biggest stars, Vince Gill and Martina McBride.
The album’s repertoire is laced with tragic folk ballads, lullabies and traditional fiddle tunes, sometimes from Ireland, sometimes from America and sometimes shared by both musical traditions. In addition, songs from the earliest decades of country’s history are presented in new Celtic settings on Down the Old Plank Road. The result is a brilliant project that sounds as old as our shared heritage, yet completely crisp and young.
Career Highlights
Formed in 1963, The Chieftains have become one of the most durable bands in modern musical history. They are certainly the best known popularizers of Irish music on earth. Down the Old Plank Road is the group¹s 39th album.
Among the highlights in what has been an extraordinary career was an Academy Award for scoring the 1975 movie Barry Lyndon. Later that same year, The Chieftains were named Melody Maker’s Group of the Year over such competitors as The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. The band has provided music for more than a dozen feature films, television productions and stage works. Nominated for 10 Grammy Awards, The Chieftains won music’s highest accolade in 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996 and 1998. Their album’s of1991 and 1995 earned U.S. Gold Record awards.
Down the Old Plank Road is not the group’s first collaboration with artists from other genres. The Chieftains have been noted for such explorations for many years. They introduced American audiences to Irish step dancing by presenting Michael Flately and Jean Butler in concerts well before either enjoyed fame in Riverdance. One of the band¹’ Grammy’s was for a collaboration with Irish rocker Van Morrison and other albums featured the group with flautist James Galway. But their musical confederates have ranged far more widely than that.
The Chieftains in China found the band playing with traditional Chinese instrumental ensembles. A Celtic Wedding explored the music of Brittany with French folk musicians. Santiago did the same for the traditional music and musicians of the Galicia region of Spain. The Who’s Roger Daltry and folk queen Nanci Griffith were featured on An Irish Evening. The group’s CD The Long Black Veil included such guests as Sting, Mick Jagger, Tom Jones, Sinead O’Connor, Ry Cooder and Marianne Faithfull. The Chieftains have performed and recorded with a number of classical orchestras.
They’ve even "gone country" before. The Grammy-winning Another Country CD of 1992 showcased the legendary group with Chet Atkins, Don Williams, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and others.
Down the Old Plank Road goes further back in time, to the very dawn of country's existence. It's a collection of performances that will thrill lovers of old-time music, delight fans of Irish music and excite the millions who have recently fallen under the spell of roots-music sounds.
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