The Infamous Stringdusters
A Tribute to Flatt & Scruggs
Americana Vibes
Tribute albums are tricky. Albums paying tribute to icons are especially treacherous. Do it well, and you get a standing ovation. Botch it up, and you won’t hear the end of it either, but it won’t be applause.
With A Tribute to Flatt & Scruggs, The Infamous Stringdusters show us what they’re made of and deliver a respectful take on the classics that Lester and Earl made (almost) famous. The Stringdusters aren’t new to the tribute album, releasing A Tribute to Bill Monroe in 2021. They know who the masters are, and they understand how to tribute without patronizing.
This album is meant for both the Stringduster fan whose first exposure to bluegrass might have been a wee-hours festival jam and the seasoned traditional listener who often mutters “That ain’t bluegrass” with the same zeal as “Get off my lawn!” If you know the story of the demise of Flatt & Scruggs, there is a bittersweet irony to this progressive band paying tribute to a sound at the root of traditional bluegrass.
With only six tracks coming in at just under twenty minutes, the band didn’t try to do an anthology. This is a quick trip. You can listen on your commute or while timing that steak and baked potato on the grill. I’d like to think they chose the tracks they did to balance affection for the lyrics and the “high lonesome” vibe that Flatt & Scruggs etched into many of our heads and hearts.
Starting the album with “I’d Rather Be Alone,” written by Troy Martin, Tom James, and James West, is a great choice. Released in 1954, Flatt & Scruggs were the first to cover it. Travis Book brings a smooth lead vocal to this, just as one would expect, and the fiddle kickoff doesn’t steer away from the undeniable mid-‘50s Flatt & Scruggs sound.
Picking up the pace with “Will You Be Lonesome Too” and bringing in the tight harmony party, this track and “Blue Ridge Cabin Home” that follows it are jam favorites. The songs will also shine on stage, giving everyone in the band a chance to hit a break and showcase their talent. Andy Falco, Jeremy Garrett, Andy Hall, and Chris Pandolfi are sonically joined at the hip. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a bad set, recorded or live.
“Earl’s Breakdown” is every banjo player’s pot of gold. I mean, the guy invented a style. Three-finger picking was such a departure from clawhammer that it changed what we now know as bluegrass to become the most common style of playing. The Stringdusters stayed so true on this track, I can close my eyes and picture Earl himself on the strings.
Another Flatt & Scruggs original, “Cabin on the Hill,” comes in on the home stretch. Again, Book’s vocals and the backing harmonies honor the original so much, I can’t comment more than just to say “thank you.” Wrapping the album with the fan-familiar “Down the Road” is a perfect send off. I would love to have heard more.
Hopefully these tribute tracks will get some stage time and perhaps a jam with special guests at a festival near you. I give it a standing ovation. Well done!
