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Charlie Moore & Bill Napier - Collectors Edition

(Old Homestead OHCS-121) 1975

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This is a partial reunion album of sorts by Charlie Moore and Bill Napier, and in addition to Bill features former CMB's Al 'Towser' Elliott, Chubby Anthony (on Old Chain Gang) and Henry Dockery (on Katy Hill).

Several other CMB's played with Moore & Napier in the '60s including Ralph Mayo, Curley Lambert and Jim Williams, but Chubby Anthony didn't seem to get to record with them.^[2]

Bill Napier is unfortunately only featured on seven cuts, playing on all of Side One and only Friends In Baltimore on Side Two... which is a bit underhand given the title and cover design.

Nonetheless, it is a fairly decent album, and includes a few songs familiar to Stanley acolytes. Al Elliott's Heaven Seemed So Near was recorded by the Stanley's and he also played on the original version of If That's The Way You Feel from their Mercury years (unreleased in the States at the time).

Several of the songs have quite depressing lyrics, beyond the typical "bluegrass murder / cheating / unrequited love" quota. This is hardcore bar-room bluegrass, and even the usually cheerful Handsome Molly seems to a little down in the dumps...

Charlie Moore had a great voice, and it's a shame there hasn't been any decent CD collections of either his days with Moore & Napier or his solo material.

• Charlie Moore: guitar, lead vocals
• Bill Napier: lead guitar, baritone vocal (a)
• Al Elliott: mandolin, tenor vocal
• Chubby Anthony: fiddle (b)
• Terry Beaucom: fiddle (c)
• Billy Constable: banjo (d) lead guitar (e)
• Gary Cooper: bass (f)
• Johnny Dacus: fiddle (g)
• Henry Dockery: bass (h)
• Ben Green: banjo (i)
• Larry Jefferson: mandolin (j)
• Al Osteen: banjo (k)
• Bill Richmond: fiddle (l)
• Ron Rigsby: banjo (m)
• Steve Whalen: fiddle (n)

(a) on all tracks on Side One and Friends In Baltimore.
(b) on Old Chain Gang.
(c) on Katy Hill.
(d) on Christmas Dream.
(e) on Katy Hill, Nashville Skyline Rag and Handsome Molly.
(f) on 'most' cuts except Katy Hill.
(g) on Christmas Dream.
(h) on Katy Hill.
(i) on Katy Hill.
(j) on all tracks on Side Two except Friends In Baltimore and Christmas Dream.
(k) on Handsome Molly, Nashville Skyline Rag and Old Chain Gang.
(l) on all cuts except Handsome Molly, Skyline Rag, Katy Hill, Old Chain Gang and Christmas Dream.
(m) on all cuts except Christmas Dream, Handsome Molly, Nashville Skyline Rag, Old Chain Gang and Katy Hill.
(n) on Handsome Molly and Skyline Rag.

^{[1] There is a live recordng of Moore & Napier from December 1966 at Zebelean's Lounge, Baltimore, Md. which included Chubby Anthony and Henry Dockery, and even recycles one of the Stanley Brothers comedy routines... https://youtu.be/CYiBctm0j3s}