Roby Huffman & The Bluegrass Cutups - Colorado River

(Grassound A-105) 1978.

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This is another fine album by a regional bluegrass band from eastern North Carolina, augmented by Lester Woodie, Herschel Sizemore and Steve Wilson.

The Bluegrass Cutups were apparently formed sometime in the '50s and worked through to the '80s, with sporadic performances afterwards, up to Roby Huffman's death in 2012.

In the '70s, Roby Huffman and Kenneth Glover, seem to have been the lynch-pin(s) of the band, with Roby's powerful vocals often being compared to Bobby Osborne. In a comment on 'Bluegrass Today', Lynwood Lunsford mentioned that at one of Carlton Haney's Camp Springs festivals, Sonny Osborne refused to follow the band on-stage, owing to the similarity of Roby and Bobby's vocals. ^[1]

All of the lead vocal work on the album is by Roby, with good harmony work from the other musicians. Although he never pursued music as a full-time occupation, he certainly had the talent to do so. Instead Roby chose to maintain a career in the building trades, working as a self-employed brick mason. ^[1] He had an excellent singing voice, with a wide range & pleasing timbre.

The LP includes four originals, three of which were written by Roby: Colorado River, Love Don't Live Here Anymore, and Jesus Keep Me.

Colorado River is quite a catchy song, which has a melody and harmony vocal on the chorus worthy of the Country Gent's; Love Don't Live Here Anymore is a fairly average tale of broken love, but has some nice dobro and fiddle break by Lester Woodie; and Jesus Keep Me is a slow waltz with lovely lead and harmony vocal.

The other original is Kenneth Peade's Laying Low, a passable instrumental with dobro, fiddle, and mandolin sandwiched between Kenneth's opening & closing banjo breaks.

Other tracks include: The Door Is Always Open which was a minor country hit for Tennessee Pulleybone (1973) and Lois Johnson (1975), before becoming a No. 1 in the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart for Dave & Sugar in 1976.^[2] (Waylon Jennings also cut the song in 1975). The Bluegrass Cutups version again features good vocals, and a nice mandolin break.

The Louvin Brothers' Give This Message To Your Heart had been recorded by The Osborne Brothers in 1959, and features a great vocal by Roby and tasteful dobro from Steve Wilson.

Versions of two ever-green Bill Monroe songs are also included - Footprints In The Snow and My Little Georgia Rose. These are competent, with Footprints having some good dobro, and fiddle break by Les Woodie. The harmony parts on My Little Georgia Rose are also reminiscent of Seldom Scene/Country Gents.

A third track, High Country, is also credited to Bill Monroe on the sleeve, but was actually written by Kenny Baker. This instrumental gives a spotlight for Les Woodie's fiddling, which dominates the tune. The track starts with just fiddle & banjo before the bass kicks in.

Les Woodie contributes breaks on most of the songs, and can be heard weaving counter melodies in the background, but is featured more prominently on the instrumental version of What A Friend We Have In Jesus and High Country. What A Friend... again has some lovely restrained dobro work.

Will The Circle Be Unbroken and Hank Williams I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry again have some fine vocals by Roby Huffman and bluesy fiddle.

It's not clear to me which of the songs feature Hershel Sizemore, or Doug Francis on mandolin. Sizemore was I think with Del McCoury's Dixie Pals at the time this LP was recorded, but also was in the Shenandoah Cut-Ups with John Palmer, who wrote the sleeve notes for the album.

Overall the album is worth hearing, with Colorado River and High Country being the highlights.

• Roby Huffman: guitar, lead vocal
• Kenneth Peade: banjo, vocals
• Doug Francis: mandolin, guitar, vocals
• Kenneth Glover: bass
• Les Woodie: fiddle
• Steve Wilson: dobro
• Hershel Sizemore: mandolin

Other artwork / related images:

[1] https://bluegrasstoday.com/roby-huffman-passes/
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Door_Is_Always_Open&oldformat=true